Reply #39: I'll take that challenge

[Khephra]

People complain about Dean bashing fellow Democrats, but this speech by far is the most filled with bashes against other Democrats I've ever seen. I think Lieberman might have spent more time chiding the other Democrats than he does Bush.

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Here's the meat of his Demo-Bash-Fest:

Now, if George Bush and his bankrupt ideology are the problem, old Democratic policies like higher taxes and weakness on defense are not the solution. We need to reclaim the vital center. That is the way for Democrats to earn the opportunity to govern again. And that is the leadership I offer my party and my country.

To put it in boxing terms, when the opponent is covering up on his right, a left hook is not going to knock him out. We've got to go right up the middle.

I am an independent-minded, mainstream Democrat and I am running for President to restore security and prosperity to the country and fairness and integrity to the White House.

Some Democrats still prefer old, big government solutions to our problems. But with record deficits, a stalled economy and Social Security in danger, we can't afford that. It won't work. That old way is wrong for America, and wrong for the Democratic Party.

Some Democrats respond to the health insurance crisis with a break-the-bank $2 trillion program -- leaving no money to create new jobs, invest in our schools, support our firefighters and cops, or shore up Social Security. That would be wrong for America, and wrong for the Democratic Party.

Some would raise the walls of protectionism again. But we've got a record trade deficit and our manufacturers are hemorrhaging jobs. We need more markets, not fewer. Bridges, not barriers. That is right for America, and right for the Democratic Party.

Some have said no to any tax cuts, and would even raise taxes on the middle class. But middle-class families have borne the brunt of George Bush's failed economic leadership, so we must help them, not burden them even more. That's right for America, and right for the Democratic Party.

Some let the perfect be the enemy of the good and rejected a prescription drug plan, sacrificing the interests of our elderly on the altar of politics. I stood with Ted Kennedy in saying that we must begin providing older Americans with the medicines they desperately need.

Some are silent about the marketing of violent or sexual entertainment to our children. But we should be allies with parents in the struggle to protect their kids.

Some said "no" to eliminating Saddam Hussein, or were ambivalent about it, before and after the war. But we must not shrink from the use of force when our security and our values are at stake. That is right for America, and right for the Democratic Party.

Doing what's right for America and for our party are truly one and the same. I share the anger of my fellow Democrats with George Bush and the wrong direction he has taken this nation. But the answer to his outdated, extremist ideology is not to be found in the outdated extremes of our own. That path will not solve the challenges of our time, and could send us Democrats back to the political wilderness for years to come.

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BTW, until Joe challenges the US military for pushing the propaganda/recruitment FPS "American Army" (or whatever it's called) then I will consider him a hypocrite of the highest caliber.