Democrats haven't always been enthusiastic about the Democratic candidate (Michael Dukakis, anyone?), but in past years have voted Democratic regardless because the risk of giving the presidency to the Republicans outweighed the less than optimal Democrat. This year, however, many of those fears are irrelevant, thanks to a strongly Democratic Congress, or mitigated because the Republicans have nominated the ideal candidate in John McCain.
Judges
Justice Stevens and Ginsburg are expected to resign within the next Presidential term. Senator McCain has vowed to nominate judges that have "a proven record of excellence in the law, and a proven commitment to judicial restraint"--code words for "conservative judges".However, he will have to get these judges by a Democratic Senate, one that promises to have an even larger majority than it does now. McCain was one of the Gang of 14, a group
of Senators who prevented both parties from excess during the Bush administration. Senator McCain could possibly be willing to cooperate with acceptable replacements, but even if he isn't, he will have no choice.
Iraq
Our troops almost certainly aren't coming home any time soon. Obama and Clinton both were playing to the left on that one. Clinton almost certainly knew she was lying; Obama may genuinely believe that he's going to remove the troops, but that's just more evidence of his naivete. However, his rapid dumping of Stephanie Powers for calling his plans to get the troops out of Iraq as a best case scenario suggests that he knows full well how unlikely it is.
Integrity and Independence
McCain will do what he thinks is right. Democrats may disagree with him often, and he's certainly not beyond political machinations. But he won't give important jobs to buddies, and he won't value loyalty and slavish devotion above competency, and that's a big step up. He is also surprisingly moderate on certain key issues, such as immigration and environmental matters.
8 years of Republicans?
Among Republican circles, many speculate that McCain may choose to run only one term. If he wins in a landslide thanks to moderate Democrat support, however, it won't matter. The Democrats won't be stupid twice. An Obama defeat leads almost certainly to a Clinton nomination and win in 2012. (Note: while theoretically, any moderate Democrat could win in 2012, it's difficult to believe Clinton would allow lightning to strike twice.)
A Very Promising Year for Bad Democrats
Given the Democrat leadership's surprising turn to the left, a maverick Republican president could be a useful brake. If Obama were to win the election without moving to the center (and thus far he shows no signs of doing so), the Democratic party would cede even more ground to the Moveon.org agenda.
In short, 2008 offers ideal circumstances for ensuring that the Democratic party doesn't drink too much of its own Koolaid. A great year to be a bad Democrat.
May 20, 08 11:15 PM