The Democrats' Response - Welcome to Weenie World
by Bob Burnett

Weenie: A person, especially a man, who is regarded as being weak and
ineffectual.

The Democrats' Response - Welcome to Weenie World
by Bob Burnett

Weenie: A person, especially a man, who is regarded as being weak and
ineffectual.

If you've had the misfortune to be a registered Democrat the last few
years, to stubbornly cling to the belief that one day the Dems will
stand up to the Republicans, you're all too familiar with the "weenie"
effect. This is the dramatic transformation that happens when
Senators, Representatives, or Governors get tapped to represent the
entire Party. They may have exhibited great strength of character in
their home territory, but once they step onto center stage, they turn
into weenies. Their backbone disintegrates and rather than speaking
plainly, they fall into political gibberish.

Tuesday night brought us another example of the weenie effect. George
Bush gave his State-of-the-Union Address. Newly elected Virginia
Governor, Tim Kaine, followed with the Democratic response. Kaine may
be a dynamo as Governor of Virginia, but as the national spokesman for
the Democratic Party he was an instant weenie.

Having observed this phenomenon for the past five years - it reached
its nadir with John Kerry - it appears that Democratic speakers are
obligated to follow four rules of weenie world.

The first is Never, never reveal what the Democratic Party stands for.
Apparently, since the end of the Clinton Administration, Party
insiders have decided that speakers should under no circumstance say
what the Dems stand for. They believe that it is sufficient to state,
"We're not Republicans."

Governor Kaine followed in this tradition with the theme of his
response. "As Americans, we do great things when we work together.
Some of our leaders in Washington seem to have forgotten that." Which
leaders? Was Kaine talking about President Bush or someone else? What
great things do the Dems propose?

The second rule is Pick a wimpy slogan and say it over and over until
everyone knows that it sucks. On Tuesday night, Kaine repeated "There
is a better way." In doing so, Kaine implied he actually knows this
better way, that managing the US is just like managing the State of
Virginia. "In Virginia we're moving ahead by focusing on service,
competent management and results. That's how we in Virginia earned the
ranking of America's 'Best Managed State.'" Hmm, I haven't been in
Virginia recently, but I don't believe that managing it is like
running the US. Virginia doesn't have to worry about little things
like an imminent Al Qaeda attack.

The third rule in weenie world is Don't push back. Apparently,
Democrats feel that it hurts their public image to go after President
Bush when he goes on the offensive. They seem to believe that the
public expects Dems to be passive, intellectual, even effete. (That's
why John Kerry won the hearts of Americans.)

If you watched Bush's State-of-the-Union address, you'll recall that
he spoke passionately about two subjects: Iraq and eavesdropping. The
President went on the offensive about Iraq: "We are in this fight to
win, and we are winning; the road of victory is the road that will
take our troops home. As we make progress on the ground, and Iraqi
forces increasingly take the lead, we should be able to further
decrease our troop levels -- but those decisions will be made by our
military commanders, not by politicians in Washington, D.C." Of
course, this is a familiar theme and the Dems could have pushed back
by saying, "we are not winning" and "all the decisions in Iraq are
being made by politicians in the White House." But then the respondent
was the Governor of Virginia. All he could say was - you guessed it -
"There's a better way." And, "Working together, we have to give our
troops the tools they need to win the war on terror."

Bush also strongly defended his eavesdropping initiative, "To prevent
another attack -- based on authority given to me by the Constitution
and by statute -- I have authorized a terrorist surveillance program
to aggressively pursue the international communications of suspected
al Qaeda operatives and affiliates to and from America. Previous
Presidents have used the same constitutional authority I have, and
federal courts have approved the use of that authority. Appropriate
members of Congress have been kept informed. The terrorist
surveillance program has helped prevent terrorist attacks. It remains
essential to the security of America." Dems might have pushed back by
saying "None of this is true: the President doesn't have the authority
and the courts haven't approved it. Congress hasn't been informed and
the program hasn't helped prevent attacks." Governor Kaine chose not
to respond at all.

The fourth rule in weenie world is When in doubt, imitate the
Republicans. Tim Kaine was selected to give this response because he's
an outspoken Christian; the Dem "brain trust" thought that he'd
convince the electorate that Democrats actually have values.

Kaine began his speech by reminding Americans that he worked as a
missionary when he was young. He ended it with, "Tonight we pray for
the day when service returns again as the better way to a new national
politics." In between, he didn't talk about values. More specifically,
he didn't respond to any of the coded messages in Bush's speech; the
key phrases that were inserted to assure the Religious Right that Bush
is looking out for their interests: "Wise policies, such as support
for abstinence and adoption, have made a difference in the character
of our country;" "Activist courts that try to redefine marriage;" and
"prohibit the most egregious abuses of medical research: human cloning
in all its forms, creating or implanting embryos for experiments."
Kaine ignored these.

Tuesday night, Democrats blew another chance to define their Party
positively. Instead, they took what they thought was the safe course.
The course no doubt recommended by the herd of D.C. consultants who
hang around the Democratic leadership. Those who ordered Governor
Kaine to deliver a vapid response to the President's
State-of-the-Union address.

Why should Democratic loyalists expect otherwise? It's D.C. business
as usual. Welcome to weenie world.


I like liberals, they taste like chicken.

The Democrats' Response - Welcome to Weenie World
by Bob Burnett

Weenie: A person, especially a man, who is regarded as being weak and
ineffectual.

If you've had the misfortune to be a registered Democrat the last few
years, to stubbornly cling to the belief that one day the Dems will
stand up to the Republicans, you're all too familiar with the "weenie"
effect. This is the dramatic transformation that happens when
Senators, Representatives, or Governors get tapped to represent the
entire Party. They may have exhibited great strength of character in
their home territory, but once they step onto center stage, they turn
into weenies. Their backbone disintegrates and rather than speaking
plainly, they fall into political gibberish.

Tuesday night brought us another example of the weenie effect. George
Bush gave his State-of-the-Union Address. Newly elected Virginia
Governor, Tim Kaine, followed with the Democratic response. Kaine may
be a dynamo as Governor of Virginia, but as the national spokesman for
the Democratic Party he was an instant weenie.

Having observed this phenomenon for the past five years - it reached
its nadir with John Kerry - it appears that Democratic speakers are
obligated to follow four rules of weenie world.

The first is Never, never reveal what the Democratic Party stands for.
Apparently, since the end of the Clinton Administration, Party
insiders have decided that speakers should under no circumstance say
what the Dems stand for. They believe that it is sufficient to state,
"We're not Republicans."

Governor Kaine followed in this tradition with the theme of his
response. "As Americans, we do great things when we work together.
Some of our leaders in Washington seem to have forgotten that." Which
leaders? Was Kaine talking about President Bush or someone else? What
great things do the Dems propose?

The second rule is Pick a wimpy slogan and say it over and over until
everyone knows that it sucks. On Tuesday night, Kaine repeated "There
is a better way." In doing so, Kaine implied he actually knows this
better way, that managing the US is just like managing the State of
Virginia. "In Virginia we're moving ahead by focusing on service,
competent management and results. That's how we in Virginia earned the
ranking of America's 'Best Managed State.'" Hmm, I haven't been in
Virginia recently, but I don't believe that managing it is like
running the US. Virginia doesn't have to worry about little things
like an imminent Al Qaeda attack.

The third rule in weenie world is Don't push back. Apparently,
Democrats feel that it hurts their public image to go after President
Bush when he goes on the offensive. They seem to believe that the
public expects Dems to be passive, intellectual, even effete. (That's
why John Kerry won the hearts of Americans.)

If you watched Bush's State-of-the-Union address, you'll recall that
he spoke passionately about two subjects: Iraq and eavesdropping. The
President went on the offensive about Iraq: "We are in this fight to
win, and we are winning; the road of victory is the road that will
take our troops home. As we make progress on the ground, and Iraqi
forces increasingly take the lead, we should be able to further
decrease our troop levels -- but those decisions will be made by our
military commanders, not by politicians in Washington, D.C." Of
course, this is a familiar theme and the Dems could have pushed back
by saying, "we are not winning" and "all the decisions in Iraq are
being made by politicians in the White House." But then the respondent
was the Governor of Virginia. All he could say was - you guessed it -
"There's a better way." And, "Working together, we have to give our
troops the tools they need to win the war on terror."

Bush also strongly defended his eavesdropping initiative, "To prevent
another attack -- based on authority given to me by the Constitution
and by statute -- I have authorized a terrorist surveillance program
to aggressively pursue the international communications of suspected
al Qaeda operatives and affiliates to and from America. Previous
Presidents have used the same constitutional authority I have, and
federal courts have approved the use of that authority. Appropriate
members of Congress have been kept informed. The terrorist
surveillance program has helped prevent terrorist attacks. It remains
essential to the security of America." Dems might have pushed back by
saying "None of this is true: the President doesn't have the authority
and the courts haven't approved it. Congress hasn't been informed and
the program hasn't helped prevent attacks." Governor Kaine chose not
to respond at all.

The fourth rule in weenie world is When in doubt, imitate the
Republicans. Tim Kaine was selected to give this response because he's
an outspoken Christian; the Dem "brain trust" thought that he'd
convince the electorate that Democrats actually have values.

Kaine began his speech by reminding Americans that he worked as a
missionary when he was young. He ended it with, "Tonight we pray for
the day when service returns again as the better way to a new national
politics." In between, he didn't talk about values. More specifically,
he didn't respond to any of the coded messages in Bush's speech; the
key phrases that were inserted to assure the Religious Right that Bush
is looking out for their interests: "Wise policies, such as support
for abstinence and adoption, have made a difference in the character
of our country;" "Activist courts that try to redefine marriage;" and
"prohibit the most egregious abuses of medical research: human cloning
in all its forms, creating or implanting embryos for experiments."
Kaine ignored these.

Tuesday night, Democrats blew another chance to define their Party
positively. Instead, they took what they thought was the safe course.
The course no doubt recommended by the herd of D.C. consultants who
hang around the Democratic leadership. Those who ordered Governor
Kaine to deliver a vapid response to the President's
State-of-the-Union address.

Why should Democratic loyalists expect otherwise? It's D.C. business
as usual. Welcome to weenie world.


I like liberals, they taste like chicken.