Neocons/Neodems fear a populist uprising and strong leaders on the left

You can see the fear in their eyes and hear it in their voices.

The New Corporate Dems and their GOP counterparts started to get very worried when Gore turned populist after 2000 and candidates on the 'left' like Dean and Kucinich began to gain widespread popular support during campaign 2004. Gore's speeches about Bush corruption and corporate greed and the Dean/Kucinich anti-Iraq war positions made them very nervous and threatened to expose the scam they had been running on the people and their government.

They could see that Gore, Dean, Kucinich and others were very attractive to the party's base and feared that at some point they actually had a chance of winning the nomination or taking support away from their chosen candidates. Neither the Neocons or the Neodems could afford for a populist leader to emerge just as they got the CEO puppet president, corporate state and perpetual war that they had wanted for so very long.

The New Democrats joined with Republicans in a campaign of character assassination to eliminate any chance of a strong leader emerging on the left and challenging the status quo of the corporate state they both desired. This was nothing new for RWing of the Democratic party...they had helped the Right destroy the reputation of many on the left who had threatened their stranglehold on the party. The New Democrats character assassination of other Democrats began in earnest with their elimination of anyone on the left that threatened the installation of the first Republican-lite Democratic president: Bill Clinton.

Have you ever wondered why no strong leadership on the left has emerged since Clinton? The Reagan/Clinton Democrats will tell you it's because the nation has become more 'conservative' and wants to see the Dem party move to the right. That's a lie...perpetuated by those who feel threatened by the left and their potential grassroots support that could easily topple any centrist campaign.

It's no coincidence that Social Democrats are no longer represented in the Democratic Leadership or in the party in general. They were literally driven out and their voices marginalized by the well-connected and financed right wing of the Democratic party and their allies in the GOP.

The goal of the New Democrats (Neodems) and their allies is similar to that of the new Republicans (Neocons): eliminate the 'New Deal', establish a government unaccountable to the people and neutralize anti-Iraq war activism. A strong leader with popular support emerging from the left would put an end to these plans and expose the alliance between the Neocons and Neodems. The Neocon/Neodem alliance gave the New Democrats an opportunity to use the corporate media to help eliminate opponents on the Left. They collaborated to smear and then exile Gore, characterize Dean as a crazy 'screamer' and spread propaganda that no one on the left could possibly win.

For how long can the Neocon / Neodem alliance hold at bay the growing grassroots support for a leadership not beholden to the Bush/PNAC Doctrine, corporate lobbyists and war profiteering? 2008 may be the year when the Democratic party finally splits apart and goes their separate ways. Conservative and Moderate Democrats will support anyone the DLC throws at them. But millions of disenfranchised Democrats will be looking for real leadership that represents the interests of the base of the party: Women, Blacks and other minorities, workers and the poor.

:thumbsup:

The destruction of Howard Dean was the last straw. I don't see how they will let him be party head. And the other thing we have to learn to do is completely ignore the mdeia sponsored candidates for here forward.

...and have turned on members of their own party. It's strange that the New Democrats seem to see more of a threat from people like Dean or Kucinich than they do from Bush and the Neocons.

But there is hope that things will change in 2008 and beyond. The Neodems will no longer be able to ignore the party base without resistance or use the fearmongering of the 'Anyone but Bush' rhetoric to get Democrats to vote against their own interests.

I'm not necessarily a Dean supporter..but I use him as an example of the kind of populist politician the New Democrats can't allow to gain any kind of widespread, grassroots support.

that the Clintons and their supporters are meeting to discuss plans to eliminate Dean from DNC chair.

to search for progressive leaders at the grassroots level and help them run for office and win. We will seek to takeover the Dem Party from the ground up.

...but we shouldn't underestimate the forces that stand in the way of that goal. Many rank and file Democrats are still under the illusion that the New Democrats have their best interests in mind. They could never imagine that they have cooperated with the Bush government to weaken and eliminate competition from the left.

They FEAR the emergence of a strong leader on the left that could lead a grassroots effort to take the party away from the New Democrats and give it back to the people. If you're wondering why the Neodems are so vicious towards populists like Dean and 'liberals' like Moore...it's because they're causing an awakening that could do them great damage and expose the charade.

AAR's Morning Sedition reported today that the "leaderSHIT" who will be heading up the voting for DNC Chair is considering "splitting" the Chairmanship so that Dean can be the nominal "face" of the party while a NeoDem Co-Chair can ass-kiss corporations for their financial support.

Way to go, guys....

...simply another attempt to give the impression that there is some sort of democratic process in place to choose the chair. I frankly don't understand why Dean would even want the DNC chair...especially after the Neodems have made it clear that they want to water down the chair's role in party politics.

Did y'all see him on Stephanopoulos when asked about confirming Rice?

No hesitation whatsoever.


"Neodems", Ha! It's perfect.

...but there are many Democrats who see honest, straightforward comments as refreshing and much needed in a time when the Neocons and Neodems have a stranglehold on our party and government.

But please don't forget one thing: the corporate media works for both the Bush White House AND their allies. The Neodems are the allies of the Bushies...working under the radar to maintain support for an unnaccountable government, deregulation of industries and perpetual wars.

coverage of snow falling (big deal) in New York. I called the station and complained to no avail. What did Dean say?

When asked if he would've voted to confirm Rice, he responded, without hesitation, a resounding "No". No dancing, no pussyfooting, no buts, just a straightforward "No".

good to know that he is standing his ground.

The corporatists are terrified that We, the People might actually decide that we no longer want to be governed by a 'ruling' class, and in fact that scenario is entirely in opposition to the ideals set forth by the Founding Fathers, that being government by the People, of the People and for the People.

They treat the constitution and the Bill of Rights the same way they treat their religion: by isolating bits and pieces and using those to weave a narrative that is diametrically opposed to the actual intent of those documents.

These people have sullied our government, and I only hope that the grassroots efforts of Dean and Kucinich continue to gain momentum, so that we are indeed able to restore democracy to our republic.

...that can no longer be silent as both Neocons and Neodems try to manipulate the electorate into voting for and accepting a status quo that is leading to the downfall of America and democracy itself.

It's not exactly rocket science we're talking about. Democrats know when they're being played...that it's wrong for their party to support an illegal war and join with the other side in ignoring things like election reform and civil rights abuses.

But this is also why they can't afford someone with grassroots support to claim a leadership role. They can't maintain the illusion of the 'war on terror' and draining our treasury dry to 'protect our freedoms' if politicians like Gore or Dean or Kucinich are out there telling the truth and mucking up their agenda.

succeed at keeping the party - maybe we will the the true emergence of a third party, enough people are pissed off

...because that would mean that the Neocons and Neodems had achieved their goal of fracturing the Dem party and taking permanent control.

But on the other hand...with the corporate media working with the Neodems to keep progressives from leadership roles...there may be no other way. I still see 2008 as a turning point...where the current leadership will either have to swim or sink as the people become more aware of the true state of the union and the party under their control.

a migration of several prominent Democrats such as Dean, Gore, Kucinich into a minor party (Green) or into a new party altogether would give it some immediate footing in the politcal world? I do and would love to see it happen.

...and the feeling is: why should THEY be the ones to leave the party and not those who fail to support Democratic values?

Dean, Gore and Kucinich actually represent the majority of rank and file Democrats. Of course the Neocons and Neodems don't want this to be common knowledge...and will do everything they can to convince voters that a 'silent majority' actually supports their agenda for everlasting war, unregulated corporations and theocracy. It makes it that much easier for them that the free press is no longer free to report the truth and that they have become corporate entities competing for some of the loot from the US treasury.

How are we going to take our country back if we can't take our party back first?

Either Dean gets the chairmanship, or the time has come to form the new party.

No retreat. All ahead full. No Dean as DNC chair means no need to stay within the confines of a framework that allows no dissent whatsoever.

...and it takes time to build support for a third party. Do we have that kind of time? Look at the damage the Neocons and Neodems have done in just four short years. America could be utterly destroyed by the time a third party has a chance to build up enough grassroots support to launch a counter-offensive.

I'm more inclined to work to change the Democratic party. But then...I've been a Democrat for so long that I fear the unknowns of third party politics in a nation controlled by those who seem to hate democracy.

Published on Sunday, January 23, 2005 by The Sunday Times (UK)

Empire Building
America and Its War with the Invisible Kingdom of Satan
The US wants world domination, but its people are heedless pleasure seekers. What’s needed is a morality tale to scare them in the shopping malls. 9/11 came just in time

by Norman Mailer


"...If by 2008, the Democrats hope to come near to a meaningful fraction of such voters, they will have to find candidates and field workers who can spread the word down South - that is, find the equivalent of Democratic missionaries to work on all those good people who may be in awe of Jehovah's wrath, but love Jesus, love Jesus so much more. Worked upon with enough zeal, some of the latter might come to recognize that these much-derided liberals live much more closely than the Republicans in the real spirit of Jesus. Whether they believe every word of Scripture or not, it is still these liberals rather than the Republicans who worry about the fate of the poor, the afflicted, the needy, and the disturbed. These liberals even care about the well-being of criminals in our prisons. They are more ready to save the forests, refresh the air of the cities and clean up the rivers. It might be agonizing for a good fundamentalist to vote for a candidate who did not read the Scriptures every day, yet some of them might yet be ready to say: I no longer know where to place my vote. I have joined the ranks of the undecided.

More power to such a man. More power to all who would be ready to live with the indecision implicit in democracy. It is democracy, after all, which first brought the power and virtue of good questions to the attention of the people rather than restricting the matter to the upper classes.

http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0123-10.htm

A sidenote:

Have you noticed that the Neodems are becoming more shrill and nervous as they watch the waves being made by the grassroots movement? You can hear their warnings that if the party 'moves to the left' that we'll lose everything. They don't seem to realize how empty this threat is considering that they have already lost everything for us with their coddling of the anti-democratic forces in control of our country.

Supporting and defending the Constitution must be a requirement and not an option for political opportunists. Ignoring election fraud and civil rights abuses will mean the downfall of many politicians. Voting for Gonzales and Rice will be a wakeup call for the grassroots to mobilize against Dems who appease tyranny.

Their bull-shit travels the internet faster than they can spin & kill it. The neoLiberal newspapers are as complicit in the cover-up as Fox is for the neo-cons. Right down to the NYT beating the drums of war and its latest contribution- editing the transcript of the Senate Confirmation Hearings to magically erase a few very damning words that came out of Condi's mouth.

Their alliance between themselves isn't so much crumbling as the entire structure falling down before our very eyes.

I am loving the sight!
Thanks for these posts Q. Right on track!

...those they call the 'fringe element' and 'radical far-left'. Or trying to make an 'example' out of Michael Moore by calling him a traitor to the 'cause' of the war on terror.

The Neodem's support for the Iraq 'war'...aggression that would have made Hitler proud...will contribute to their downfall as a meaningful force within the party. Like with the Vietnam 'police action'...they can keep a lid on the truth for only so long. After a while...the canon fodder have a tendency to get pissed off when they're sent to die in a war that didn't need to happen.

Bush and his neocon and neodem friends may think they have a mandate for another four years of the same old tired crap...but I think they're going to be shocked at the resistance from a grassroots movement tired of being told that they work for the government and not the other way around.

They sprang into action parroting the neocon/right wing talking points, dissecting FRAUDULENT results and were far more interested in assigning blame to pro-choicers, Moore bashing, and those of conscience OUTRAGED by the LIES and MURDER of this admin..

Neodem take over of the DNC.

In the grand scheme of things, this is logical.

Makes perfect sense to me.

Both are corporatists and are not very different.

...in that they call themselves 'New Democrats'.

They want nothing to do with the 'old' Democrats and their New Deal. They are fighting against everything the 'old' Democrats used to stand for.

Although they're both 'corporatists'...they're very different. The Neocons that took control of the GOP don't mince words about their intentions. The Neodems on the other hand still pretend that they don't want many of the same things the Neocons want. Neodems have to lie about their intentions to get votes. Neocons are being more truthful when they say they want perpetual war, corporate state and theocracy.

IMHO, even though he was a complete kook, the following he garnered coupled with the way the two major parties addressed him, best displays the alliance over mutual interests between the neocons and neolibs.

Perot put one issue on the table in 1992 that neither the neocons nor neolibs really wanted to talk about -- FREE TRADE. It was no surprise that people from BOTH sides of the political aisle came to join him on this issue. Of course, the raising of this issue came about only because Perot was included in the 1992 Presidential debates.

This mistake was not repeated in 1996. It's not as if either political party genuinely feared that Ross Perot would be elected President. What they feared most (and correctly, from their POV) was the airing of his IDEAS. They came to realize that the last thing either the neocons or neolibs wanted was an airing of ideas that did not fit within their tightly scripted discourse. Perot, Nader and even Buchanan have all presented this problem to the two major parties, and their easiest course of action has been to simply not allow them to take part in the debate of ideas that should be central to our system of governance.

I don't believe that they really fear the left at this point because they still cling to the notion that we will vote for them as "the lesser of two evils".

The only way that the Democratic Party will move to the left and start working in the interests of the people rather then the politicians, is to make our votes valuable to them. When they started trying to figure out ways to "capture the left" rather than "capture the middle" will the effect be felt.

I, for one, am switching to Green. They will cease their pandering to the red states when some of the "safe" blue states like mine stop being safe.

we vote for the candidates they foist off on us as being "electable." Up until Nov. 2, many of us were duped into believing their lies. Then, thanx primarily to the internet and the learned voices therein, we found out just how thoroughly we had been reamed.

We have to start media campaigns insisting that voices other than those of the DLC and its children are heard. Enough demand on our part WILL make this happen. These are business people after all and they do not want to lose our viewership/readership/listenership, regardless of what the corporations may say.

I wish I could disagree with you but I can't. The people of this country are being denied basic civil rights, health-care and education.

Instead of taking several elections for politicians to adjust to their market, now we can accelerate their 'evolution' by keeping the heat to their feet in real time.

Unless the NeoDems REALLY fear losing the herd to better shepards, they will never be accountable to US and change their ways.

We have nothing left to lose by re-building. The Dems are already a moot political force. I want them back stronger than ever after re-hab.

on edit: Oh, hell. Does BBV disconnect mean the Dems know they can't win so they won't adjust to the market?

SHIT. I THINK THIS IS THE CASE! THEY KNOW THE ONLY CHOICE THEY HAVE IS TO PLAY WITH THE NEO-CONS.

Damn. Why didn't this occur to me sooner. BBV is our only issue, people!

I have seen the acronym but never clicked on a post describing its meaning. Please summarize for me and give me a link for more info.

Also, JohnO'Neil'sMemory, I would like to suggest that you post a basic BBV education message every week or so to catch those like myself who may not have paid attention or who are new or otherwise are not hip to the subject. Repetition is a major educational tool.

TIA

(Good idea, info should stay up front on DU for all to see. I have many links for you but need to pick up someone at the airport so start here and search engine topics for details.

THIS ARTICLE IN COMMONDREAM.ORG IS A GREAT PRIMER IF YOU READ ONLY ONE
http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0225-05.htm
(Diebold, Electronic Voting, and the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy)

http://blackboxvoting.com/

http://www.bartcop.com/111402rose.htm

http://www.votersunite.org/info/previousmessups.asp

80% of this country's votes are now counted using BBV software:

1) written by a convicted bank-fraud felon and

2) used in the three main voting machine private companies(!)owned and supported by hard-core right-wing Republicans and

3) who were financially backed by a right-wing billionaire who wants to eliminate the Constitution.

4) A programmer named Clint Curtis has signed an affadavit stating he was approached by then FL Republican state rep. Tom Feeney who asked Curtis to write software that could invisibly alter election results. Clint refused and only recently came forward to blow the whistle.
This means the 'count' has been removed from election accountability.

1) BBV machines have been found to count backwards (FL and OK)

2) BBV machines have arrived with almost 3000 votes already in them for Bush**

3) BBV machines have changed voter's selection in front of their eyes

4) BBV machines have wireless modems in some of them

5) BBV machines give no evidence of the vote, a receipt that can be checked in a recount

6) BBV machines gave unexpected wins to Bush** that conflicted with previously extremely accurate exit polls at the same time that non-BBV methods of voting matched perfectly with exit polls

7) BBV machines showed up only a few years ago and suddenly winning results completely departed from previous elections and land-slides for weak Republican candidates started to happen regularly.

also perhaps archive the info in Demopedia for research purposes.

I have copied and saved your post for my own use. Thanks again. :)

It is worse than anyone is willing to admit.
US democracy is an illusion-
January 18, 2005: FTR #494: "Another Interview with Daniel Hopsicker about Electoral Fraud"
http://www.wfmu.org/listen.ram?show=13923

--------
Archives for Dave Emory
Tuesdays 6pm - 7pm on WFMU 91.1 fm 90.1 fm
http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/DX

...where half of the citizens don't bother to vote and the other half pretends they live in a democracy where they can choose the leadership to run a government of, by and for the people.

As long as Reagan and Clinton and Bush can maintain the illusion of freedom and democracy for all...citizens will continue to vote in CROOKED elections like lemmings following the herd over a cliff.

I can be cynical...but even I didn't think the Democrats and the American people would allow TWO ELECTIONS TO BE STOLEN. I wonder if they understand that a lack of free and fair elections means the end of democracy?

There was a chance to beat election fraud when Kerry and others told us that they would COUNT EVERY VOTE and make every vote count. But little did we know that they intended to keep this PROMISE only if they won.

But even the dullards must know by now that neither the Neocons or Neodems have any intention of repairing a broken and corrupt system of elections. That opportunity has come and gone. And now we're left with the impression that a faction of the Democratic party and the Neoconservatives are working together to bring an end to democracy and establish a ONE PARTY STATE in America.

Meanwhile...the 'centrists' of the Dem party are busy trying to get rid of the last remnants of social conscience in their party with their witch hunt on liberals and progressives. It's pretty clear that they want what the neocons wanted of their party: full control and no dissent.

...Bush**s fake scripted 'press conferences?'

If the NeoCons and NeoDems are in alliance to keep the American public out of the way of their American Empire, how to get back into the equation?

On the ground with grassroots tactics like freewayblogger.com to banner the nation's highways AND what I think must be done:

THE MOURNING IN AMERICA PROJECT-

1) Print out those horrible photos of bloodied war victims
2) Get lots of quarters
3) Every morning open up newspaper boxes and insert them in every paper
4) Repeat
5) Repeat
6) Repeat etc.
7) Put in the evidence and news the NYT doesn't see "fit to print."

I don't think the Neodems are actively in cahoots with the neocons, but I do think they are scared. Scared of losing personal power, scared of losing insider influence and corporate sponsorship, and scared of a rising populism in the democratic party that leaves them uncomfortable.

...than accept the truth. I can't blame you for that.

You can call something an accident or coincidence if it happens once or twice. But certain Democrats have been ACTIVELY working WITH the Bush gang since 2000. And like the Bushies...they are reaping the benefits of a country controlled with fear and a war only good for war profiteers.

Being 'afraid' is no excuse. They have taken an oath to protect and defend the Constitution. They have broken that oath and have joined with the Neocons in the looting of our treasury and the destruction of every social program designed for the benefit of the 'have-nots'.

They don't look scared to me. They look like accomplices.

I admit that. But I think they really buy into the Clintonesque thinking that corporate money is how elections get won, and pursue that money, much to the ill of the party.

I don't think the neodems and the neocons are working together. I think the neodems think of themselves as a slicker, more efficient, more effective kind of democrat, willing to pursue power by compromise of principle, in order that the ultimate good -democrats in control again- will be accomplished.

I don't think they are neocons. I do think they are misguided, and I do think they are driven by fear. I think they are afraid of losing the five seats in the senate that stand between them and effective oblivion. Unfortunately, the compromised and weak-kneed policies they pursue virtually guarantee that they WILL lose those seats.

So scared and ultimately misguided, yes. A conspiracy of NEOs, I don't buy.

Joe Lieberman is living proff of the fact!

Lieberman I grant you.

He IS virtually indistinguishable from a neocon. I still believe he is the exception, not the rule.

Dean is the exception. Boxer is the exception.

The exceptions line up on the side of representing people rather than colluding with the neocons.

Reid and Pelosi have sold out to their evil masters in PNAC, IMO.