BuzzFlash Reader Commentary - With a Little Spine, the Democrats Can Turn Back The Bush Barbarians at the Gate
The only reason why Bush was close to Gore in 2000, as an example, was that swing voters figured it was better to vote for an idiot than a liar. If Gore had assaulted the Republicans for assaulting his character, refuting the charges one by one and turning the spotlight on Bush's character, staying with it until the issue went away or was neutralized by a focus upon Bush's own tendency to distort the truth, he would have won with 55-60% of the popular vote. Since they are on the wrong side of most issues, the only way Republicans can even compete with the Dems is through character assasination--and until those efforts are vigorously refuted, such as in Daschle's speech, the GOP will have strength beyond their numbers.