I just saw this Sunday's Meet the Press with Tim Russert, and I just needed to mention that if this Sunday's show was any indication of the health of the Bush/NeoCon War on Terror doctrine, I think it has lost any semblance of legitimacy.
The new Democratic Movement, led by a new brand of Democrats like Sestak and Anderson, shut down Tom DeLay and Richard Pearl at every turn on Meet the Press March 18, 2007.
An absolute smackdown by the new Dems.
The new Dems not only made DeLay look as insane and inane as the former termite exterminator that he actually is, but they made Pearl look like a clueless old man who needs to get out a little more often. The new Dems made Pearl and DeLay look like a the chicken hawks that they are.
I admit, it was quite gratifying to observe after years of mindless, follow-the-leader-off-a-cliff Republican saber-rattling with no strategic, cogent alternative from the Democrats.
New Dems like these are different than Bill Clinton's "new democrat" brand -- this is a new type of Democrat that is cut out the Wesley Clark model -- you call them Admirals, Generals, Middle-East experts, and military strategists... as well as Democrats. Nice brand association.
What a shift from just 2 years ago, when DeLay was Washington lobbyists' gateway to power and influence, and Pearl was a key global architect of America's global supremacy strategy.
I'm not even personally convinced that the new Dem plan for Iraq is the right strategy (though Sestak sold it well). But what I am convinced of is that there is a new type of Democratic thought leadership (and spine) inside the beltway, and this has the potential to breathe new life into the national Democratic party, making it relevant once again in this era of globalization.
It just goes to show that facts and reality still matter - they just take their sweet time to make themselves relevant in this age of mainstream propaganda.
Jon
PS - Oh, and Tim Russert himself smacked down Alberto Gonzolas for declining to defend himself against Chuck Schumer on the same show. Dems 3, Media 1, Pubs 0