26 Tuesday Sep 2000
Posted in Washington Times
The Washington Times
The presidential race is now neck-and-neck. Democrats who thought Al Gore was pulling away once and for all after trailing George W. Bush for virtually the entire pre-convention season are going to have to contain their euphoria.
19 Tuesday Sep 2000
Posted in Washington Times
The Washington Times
In what way is the 2000 Gore campaign different from the Clinton campaigns of 1992 and 1996? The answer to that question provides some insight into the political odyssey of the Democrats over the past decade and where their party may be trying to go now.
05 Tuesday Sep 2000
Posted in Washington Times
The Washington Times
Much to the disappointment of Republicans hoping that George W. Bush would coast into the White House on the strength of impressions of the candidates long firmly established in the minds of voters, Al Gore has finally become as formidable as he ought to be. Quite simply, the past – a nearly unbroken string of Bush leads in head-to-head polls against Mr. Gore, even through the tough primary contest with John McCain – can no longer be construed as prologue.
29 Tuesday Aug 2000
Posted in Washington Times
The Washington Times
Political scientists have been writing for decades now about the decline of the major parties in American political life. It’s true that voters are less willing to identify themselves as either Republican or Democrat. And it’s likewise true that such massive developments over the decades as the professionalization of the civil service, thus diminishing patronage rewards at the disposal of party leaders, has reduced clout in the old style. Likewise, the democratization of the parties in the form of caucuses and primaries – including primaries in which nonparty members can participate – has substantially decreased the amount of business that gets done in smoke-filled rooms.
22 Tuesday Aug 2000
Posted in Washington Times
The Washington Times
Al Gore’s selection of Joe Lieberman as his running mate promised a Democratic campaign for the White House pitched squarely at the center of public opinion. This was the triumph of the centrist Democratic Leadership Council in presidential politics. Although Mr. Lieberman’s personal and family story is compelling, the initial rush of attention to his Jewishness probably detracted attention from the fact that this is the most right-leaning ticket Democrats have ever put together.
16 Wednesday Aug 2000
Posted in Washington Times
The Washington Times
The Democrats are putting on a wonderful party. It is not a party likely to win in November, but it is great fun in August. At The Mondrian – one of the trendy West Hollywood hotels where the best after-hours Democratic parties are being held in the hotel’s Skybar – the management optimistically passes out intimacy kits consisting of: two Durex lubricated, spermicide (Nonoxynol-9) prophylactics, two obstetrical towelettes – and one package lubricating jelly. In my hotel in Philadelphia I got a sewing kit and a shower cap.
15 Tuesday Aug 2000
Posted in Washington Times
The Washington Times
For some years now, Republicans have complained about Democrats “stealing” their issues. From crime to welfare to balancing the federal budget, Democrats succeeded in operating successfully on what the GOP had grown accustomed to thinking of as its turf, and the result was a constant source of irritation for Republicans. President Bill Clinton was under their skin, and they had to scratch the itch – with unpleasant and self-destructive consequences familiar to the parent of any 5-year-old with a mosquito bite.
08 Tuesday Aug 2000
Posted in Washington Times
The Washington Times
The inclusion of New Hampshire Gov. Jeanne Shaheen, who was entirely implausible as a vice presidential nominee at this stage of her political career, seemed mainly to provide a small counterweight to the white maleness of Al Gore’s short list for vice president. It’s now clear, however, that Mr. Gore’s short list was only superficially universe. It seems impossible to avoid the conclusion that Sen. Joseph Lieberman’s Jewishness was a central point in his favor from the beginning.
01 Tuesday Aug 2000
Posted in Washington Times
The Washington Times
For one brief moment in the summer four years ago, Republicans were happy. The moment came just as they met for their convention in San Diego, when Bob Dole announced that Jack Kemp would be his running mate. The surprising choice united the party, as intended, and produced a short-lived emotional GOP high in which it became possible to imagine beating Bill Clinton.
25 Tuesday Jul 2000
Posted in Washington Times
The Washington Times
On the eve of the GOP and Democratic conventions, the real opening of the general election season, it might be useful to take a step back from the close-quarters combat of national electoral politics to see how far we’ve come in the past decade.
Tod Lindberg 