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MONDAY EDITORIAL

The issue ~ Democratic Party losses

Our opinion ~ Party moderates right to advocate national strategy

Democratic group has plan for rebound

While Republicans celebrate victory around the country and claim a mandate to govern, Democrats continue to ask, "What happened?" Depending upon the Democrat to whom you're listening, there are conflicting views on what it will take for the party to make a national rebound.

Some say the party must move more to the left, representing so-called traditional Democratic themes. Others are of the view the party must be more centrist if it is to again be the electoral choice of middle America.

That's not an uncommon thing to hear from Democrats in South Carolina, where politicians such as Calhoun County Rep. Harry Ott had to fight off a GOP opponent's claim that Ott was acting more like a Republican than a Democrat — and thus should join the GOP. Ott reminded voters he is a Democrat, but one working to move the party and its positions.

On the state level his efforts are similar to those of a group known as the S.C. Democratic Leadership Council. Nationally, there is an umbrella group by the same name. It is made up of Democrats who see the party being marginalized without finding ways to get support of moderates and conservatives in all regions of the country. Bill Clinton's candidacy was born of the organization.

The Democratic Leadership Council cites three persistent "truth gaps" that account for the party's defeat this year and troubles in general:

n National security, "which became a crucial issue after 9/11, and will remain so for the foreseeable future. (John) Kerry tried very hard to close this gap, and refused to accept the advice of those who suggested he simply concede the issue to (President) Bush (which would have expanded the gap to catastrophic dimensions). But while he convinced Americans we would be smarter on national security, he could not overcome the party's reputation for being weaker, and that was a deal-breaker for many voters who didn't want to take any chances with their security. In other words, Bush didn't pay the ultimate price for his foreign policy failures because we couldn't put to rest doubts about Democrats."

n The reform gap. "Having lost control of every nook and cranny of the federal government during the last two elections, Democrats were perfectly positioned to run as bold, outsider, insurgent reformers determined to change Washington, and the public was ready to embrace such a message and agenda. While Democrats did made a strong negative case against Bush, we never conveyed a positive agenda for reform."

n Values and culture. "Here the evidence of a Democratic handicap is overwhelming. As every exit poll has shown, ‘moral values' was the number one concern of voters on Nov. 2 — more than terrorism, Iraq, the economy, health care, education, or anything else. And among voters citing ‘moral values' as their top concern, Democrats got clobbered. ... The problem is that many millions of voters simply do not believe that Democrats take their cultural fears and resentments seriously, and that Republicans do."

Wisely, the DLC does not advocate an internal battle among Democrats. But it does advocate a national strategy that moves the party and its positions more into sync with the entire nation.

If Democrats are to be winners again, they must appeal to voters beyond the Northeast, West Coast and upper Midwest. If the party continues to have no hope of winning the South and West, it cannot be dominant in national politics even if a Democrat wins the presidency.

Democrats must decide whether they will publicly champion the issues of gay rights and abortion even as they try to convince a worried middle class the party is best for its pocketbooks. At least for now, the moral concerns have won the day.

"If, as the DLC has long argued, the test for Democrats is to convince voters that they will defend their country, share their values, and champion their economic interests, it's pretty clear Democrats continue to come up short on the first two tests even as they pass the third with flying colors."

As the DLC says, the situation adds up to an "urgent need for a party strategy and message that's strategic, not tactical; that conveys a comprehensive message, not just targeted appeals to narrow constituencies; that's national, not regional; and that's based on ideas and hope, not just on opposition and anger.

"There will be a powerful temptation for Democrats to simply go to the mattresses, fight Republicans tooth and nail, and hope for a big midterm sweep in 2006. That would be a mistake, just as it was a mistake to believe that Bush's weakness would be enough to produce a victory in 2004. It's time for Democrats to clearly stand for values, principles, and ideas that will earn us the opportunity to become the majority party of the future."