Democrats: Are They Trying...

to lose their asses?




"Democrats on Capitol Hill are drafting a strategy to attack the Bush administration and Republicans as having little regard for the privacy of Americans.
"We will initiate at the beginning of this year one of the most serious debates and discussions on Capitol Hill in our history about individual rights and liberties," Minority Whip Richard J. Durbin said just before Christmas.

The topic will be a major focus of the Supreme Court confirmation hearings of federal Judge Samuel A. Alito Jr. as privacy rights -- the political code phrase for abortion rights -- already has become a major issue, Mr. Durbin said.

Democratic leaders then plan to keep the issue alive as they continue their opposition to key parts of the USA Patriot Act, which is set to expire in early February unless extended.

But the real payoff, Democrats say, will be the hearings into President Bush's authorization of warrantless spying on terror suspects. Already, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, Pennsylvania Republican, said he wants to hold hearings on the matter."

"Voters, Republicans say, will agree with Mr. Bush's decision to use extraordinary efforts to thwart terrorist plots and already support the Patriot Act as an effective tool in the fight against terrorists.
"Essentially, Democratic leaders themselves have exposed the weak underbelly of the Democratic platform," said Mr. Madden, noting that key Democrats such as Mrs. Pelosi have advocated an immediate withdrawal from Iraq.
"At a time when our military is fighting a war in Iraq against terrorists, while the law-enforcement community is trying to track them down is an effort to prevent attacks here at home, Democrats are advocating retreat on the battlefield while seeking to restrict law enforcement's pursuit of terror suspects already amongst us," he said.
Senate Republicans say the strategy reminds them of the Democrats -- such as former Sen. Max Cleland of Georgia -- who opposed the creation of the Homeland Security Department after the 2001 terrorist attacks.
One Republican aide said he looks forward to posting pictures of Mr. Cleland around the Capitol during the Patriot Act debate as a warning to Democrats that they will face a similar political demise."

I've come to the conclusion that many Democrats fit into the category of those who actually enjoy having their asses handed to them on a regular basis.

Not that there's anything wrong with that...