Are you a Democrat because.......

your a yellow dog like me

OR

the Dems have the same view.opinion on an issue as you do

OR

you found yourself like Wesley Clark and wanted to run for president?

Everyone thinks their views should define the party.

I'm a yellow dog AND they have the same views as I do most of the time.

Dating actually from the late nineteenth century South, where resistance to Republicans was something of a credo, and people said accordingly, "I'd rather vote fer a yaller dog than a Republican." It has outlived its questionable origin, to be embraced into the modern day by those, such as myself, who will never vote for a Republican under any circumstance, but always for the nominee of the Democratic Party.

how good or bad they might be for the country.

on edit-or what The Magistrate said :)

In the present day, certainly, no Democrat can possibly be as bad for the country as any Republican....

I think there are Republicans more interested in liberal values than some Democrats.

And join decent folk in the Democratic Party, rather than perpetuate the grip of DeLay and Frist upon the Congress....

Miller, Sir, is no Democrat, to my mind, but a traitor and low snake, barely worth the kicking. He makes a fellow like Breaux look damned congenial, overall.

Let me ask you this. Suppose you lived in Zell Miller's congressional district, and had the option of voting for him, or the kind of Republican I'm sure they'd run against him. Please remember, the Republicans wouldn't put a moderate Republican like Jim Jeffords up against Zell Miller....they'd put up somebody to the right of Hitler.

Given that, we should THANK Zell Miller. He may not be what we think of as a "true believer" Democrat, but he's a far sight better, by God, than his likely Republican counterpart. I'd rather have Zell Miller in office under a (D) even if he's a moderate Republican in fact, than somebody like "B-1" Bob Dornan with a (R) after his name and an agenda that's so far-right that he's still living in the stone age.

No matter how bad things are, they could be worse.

<bending over> Thank you Zell,may I have another.

when it comes to committee assignments, funding for Dems offices, and even helped the Dems regain the majority in the Senate for a short time. These are not trivial matters.

:)

I agree with you,but in varying degrees.Some Dems are not as good for the country as some third party people,if the litmus test is just what's best for the country (see SF mayoral race for evidence of this).

"He'd vote Democrat even if they nominated my old yella dog to run."

Someone who always votes for the party and not for the person.

professional life as a labor rights advocate and before that my father was a labor rights activist. Without the rights and protections the work force has had in this country over the last 50 years (and even more going back to progressive labor laws passed in California in the early 1900's) there would be NO MIDDLE CLASS in this country. When there is NO middle class, there is only rich and poor.

There are many other reasons I am a Democrat but that reason is the greatest.

Flirted with the Socialists and the Democratic Socialists for a few years in college, but came back to the Dems hard for 2000. Never cared for the Greens-- too much patchouli, not enough bathing. ;-)

PS - Hey was that last part a dig at Wes Clark?
Luke 15:29-32
29: And he answering said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment: and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends:
30: But as soon as this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fatted calf.
31: And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine.
32: It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found.

Welcome to the Democratic Party, Wes! Have some fatted calf, dude.

Very cool, Sorry I missed this thread for a while.

and Magistrate you are reviving the English language.

cheers

too much patchouli, not enough bathing.

OK,that's is a good one :D

who came over from the darkside (former repug) about 25 years ago and will NEVER ever vote for a repuke. :mad:

... IF you are implying that Clark become a democrat so he could run for president.

If that is what you are saying, you should preface statements like that with, "In my opinion, though void of any supporting evidence, I feel Wesley Clark...."

If that is not what you are implying, nevermind...

After all, in many states, no party registration is required though many consider themselves democrats and vote and support democrats - as Clark has done since 1992.

With no official DNC standard nationwide for being a democrat in the 50 states, being a democrat must mean a state of mind (or your "Dems have the same view/opinion on an issue as you do" and not merely being a card holder.

Though I was a registered dem in one state, the state I live in now has no such requirement - yet I've worked on democratic causes and campaigns here with people who can only be called democrats because "Dems have the same view/opinion on issues" as the democratic party does.

And that was a long, long time ago.

I respect the rights of all people, not just wealthy white guys
I do not want to send people my age, including myself, to die in some other country because of buisness interests
I'm not a fan of theocracy or fascism

a line of reasoning that, from time to time, becomes difficult to justify.

where you can hope to impact politically for progressive ideals. bernie Sanders is a Socialist who has to work within the same framework from within the Democratic party.

I wanted to participate in a primary election.

After a lifetime of belonging to no party, I wanted to have a choice. In the general election, there is no choice. It's the democrat. Because Bush must be defeated. So, if I want to have a true choice between candidates, it's the primaries. Or nothing.

My state flirted with open primaries; I enjoyed them for a short time.

The democrats are closer to my positions than republicans, so I'm a democrat. Sometimes that's great. Many times, I'm not voting for the democrat; I'm voting against the republican. That is discouraging. I'd prefer to just vote for the candidate I believe in. Instead it feels like I'm always voting for "at least he/she isn't a republican."

Until this primary, when I get to cast a vote for Dennis Kucinich.

My grandfather told me, "Son, ain't no Republican that cares for the little man. All they care about is the rich folks."

I have never seen anything in my life that would make me feel otherwise.

Therefore, I am a Democrat.

I have wavered from being socialist to simply being liberal in my beliefs. The only option for me and my views is the Democratic party.

In a nation divided, we must take our stand.

I've yet to get out of bed. :-)

I'm a democrat only because they are, or used to be, the party of the liberals.

I'll back any candidate from any party, provided that candidate shows me he/she is liberal on many issues.

Take McCain, for example. I disagree with him on many things, but he's liberal in enough things that I'd vote for him.

and working my "tail" off for Clark

Looking at each situation on it's own, not being a knee-jerk ideologue, not seeing all things as black or white, etc.
My religious beliefs also play into my politics big-time; I think Christianity and Republicanism are mutually exclusive; I just don't get people who vote Repuke and consider themselves Christian, I really don't...