Madam Speaker, it's nothing personal.
I'm actually an Independent, not a Democrat. The Democratic Leadership has failed far too often (letting itself succumb to the Beltway's conventional "wisdom"), for me to embrace such an incompetent party. But as long as the Republicans are batshit insane, then the incompetent Democrats are the only game in town.
I’m sure I’m not the only Independent who feels this way.
The above sentiment is probably a big reason why US voter turnout lags nearly all other OECD democracies. Having to choose between two such parties, one that is malignantly insane while the other is riddled with semi-benign incompetence, leads to a dangerous level of voter apathy. The fact that both parties are beholden to corporate interests (remember Obama's backroom deal with Big PhRMA?), intensifies the electorate’s alienation.
In spite of those facts, for the past 3 decades, I have voted in every election.
When you took "Impeachment of the Table" in 2006, you kicked the accountability "can" down the road. Were you hoping a 2008 Democratic DOJ would pick it up? If so, then you were just as disappointed as I was. But prosecuting real crimes and restoring the rule of law was never a high priority, not when compared to the Beltway wisdom of "getting things done". When it came to getting things done, the Democratic Leadership started off weak and finished lame. The 2010 election is the result.
In retrospect, we can see that letting the Republicans get away with murder was a tactical error. Instead of driving the news cycles with the many REAL Republican crimes and misdeeds, you let the Republicans drive the news cycles with their outrage about "death panels" and the "the CRA's responsibility for the economic crisis". Of course, that's where the Beltway's conventional wisdom comes into play: it's OK for the Republicans to demonize the Democrats for imaginary crimes, but it's not OK for the Democrats to prosecute the real crimes of the Republicans.
But after all is said and done, a choice between the lesser of evils is still a choice:
Democrats over Republicans
Pelosi over Hoyer
You have my very unenthusiastic support: yay
What are the chances, that other Independents feel the same way I do? Do you suppose that the Democrats failure to size the initiative and push for real change, had anything to do with the recent election result? Over the next two years, will we get more of the same Democratic "Leadership"? If so, do you expect a different result in 2012?
Perhaps your plan for victory in 2012, is based on the Republicans being Republicans and Palin being the Nominee. When the electorate has to choose between the lesser of evils, then running against Palin is a real winner: the anti-Palin would definitely get my vote. But if the Democrats continue to let the Republicans seize the initiative and set the narrative, then even running against insane Republicans like Palin might not be enough....and we could get a very nasty shock in 2012.