Obama Leads the Way

Barak Obama, speaking at a gathering of Democrats on Saturday, proved yet again why he is the future of the party. He criticized the federal response to the New Orleans crisis. Nothing new there—what is important is how he framed the argument. He pointed his finger at what could properly be called the Republican bastardization of conservative philosophy. By tying legitimate criticism to the Republican plank he shows all Democrats the importance of keeping ideas and not ad hominems at the forefront of the debate. The original conservative idea is not an unworthy one: an accent on self-reliance and taking responsibility for one's own lot in life; not relying on the government as an instant teller when times are tough. Problem is, under the current administration the government has now become the instant teller for the wealthy. The Republicans have taken the basic premise and distorted it so that it has become, in Sen. Obama's words, "Social Darwinism". $Q: ...only a philosophy among Republicans of sink or swim explains why some Hurricane Katrina victims in New Orleans still live in cars while Republicans in Washington prepare next week to enact $70 billion in tax breaks. Even the rich recognize the problem. Warren Buffet, on the dividend tax cut: "Putting $1,000 in the pockets of 310,000 families with urgent needs is going to provide far more stimulus to the economy than putting the same $310 million in my pockets," Buffett added. The Republican mantra has so skewed the gap between rich and poor that no one with an ounce of pragmatism or compassion can begin to claim the system is fair. It's more than a battle between the haves and have-nots; it's now about the connected and the connected-nots. The balance has tipped too far and a reckoning of ideas is in order. If the rest of the party follows the Senator from Illinois' lead, their prospects will be bright for 2006.