Howard Fineman is right. Next year's election is looking to be a culture war of the highest order. The best I can tell is that the Republicans have taken the offensive in every single battle so far, and are consistently winning. It's time for the Democrats to not only strike back, but also start a few battles of their own. Here are some examples of recent fights:
- a ban on "partial birth" abortions is passed by Congress
- Florida Governor Jeb Bush signs a one-time only law ordering that tube feeding be resumed for severely brain-damaged Terri Schiavo, who has been in a vegetative state for 13 years
- Republicans nominate to the federal bench Janice Rogers Brown, a conservative idealogue who happens to be black, and accuse Democrats of racism for opposing her
- Gen. William Boykin gives speeches in uniform where he refers to the war in Iraq as a crusade between good and evil.
Boykin sounds like someone straight out of the Middle Ages - he must feel right at home working for the Bush administration. Here are a few choice Boykin quotes excerpted from a piece by Fareed Zakaria:
"I knew that my God was bigger than his God. I knew that my God was a real God and his was an idol." He has also repeatedly explained that America's enemy was "a spiritual enemy . . . called Satan." The enemy, he added, will be defeated only "if we come against them in the name of Jesus."
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has refused to condemn Boykin, stating, "We're a free people." Amen to that, and to women having the freedom to have an abortion, to people having the freedom to die with dignity, and to Americans having the freedom of a government which hasn't been hijacked by radicals like Bush, Brown, Boykin and Rumsfeld.