Democrats Need to 'Come Home'

The electorate has a voracious appetite for wolfing down misinformation, and many voters continue to vote against their best interests, influenced by media loud-mouths instead of attending to what candidates themselves actually say and do.

Disaffected Clinton supporters threaten to vote for McCain in the fall; some have even begun organizing to accomplish this perverse undertaking. What did these folks like about Hillary? Were they concerned about health care, a woman's right to choose, education, job security? What exactly drew them to her in the first place? And which of the two parties is most likely to express their values and fulfill their expectations?

It's hard to fathom how anyone who supported Clinton could vote for McCain. However, many of them believe Hillary was treated badly by the media, a contention she and husband Bill encouraged, and which seems to animate much of their angst. Charges of misogynistic bias gained traction over time despite the fact that her opponent was a person of color, not exactly a guaranteed political asset in America.

Senator Clinton's stumble was a result of her own unforced errors, driven as well by the appeal of Obama's message to a country ready for real change and a new kind of leader. Some inclined to support her early on stopped listening when her campaign deteriorated into a racially tinged, divisive and less than forthright affair. After two duplicitous Bush terms, voters wanted to be able to trust the next president, and Hillary's claims of experience became less compelling than growing concerns about her honesty.

Leaving aside whatever mischief Rush Limbaugh was able to create in a few primaries by getting Republicans to vote for Clinton just to keep the contest going, her insistence that she won the popular vote was disingenuous at best. There were other variables besides Limbaugh's exhortations - - the tainted primaries in Michigan and Florida and the lack of reliable vote totals in caucus states. Still, fences will likely be mended, with Hillary's embrace of Obama's leadership role.

It is crucial that Democrats unify because, for all McCain's failings, he and his minions must be dealt with in coherent, focused fashion. And regardless of what McCain does, Obama, with his huge fund-raising advantage, should rethink accepting federal funds in the fall - - especially since there is no guarantee that well-heeled Republican contributors won't finance 527 groups like the so-called "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" as they did in the last election, thus thwarting any attempt to create a level financial playing field.

Defrocked Republican House leader, DeLay calls Obama a "Marxist". And Fox News is actively trying to frame the Obama candidacy as a far-left enterprise supported by people who "hate" America, according to Sean Hannity. Pastor Wright of course tops the list of haters although he served over six years in the US military, whatever animus informed his rants at Chicago's Unity Church. Sean, on the other hand, who defines patriotism as the way he sees things has no record of military service.

On a recent Hannity & Colmes show Hannity and guest Daniel Pipes attacked Obama because of Wright and others only tangentially affiliated with the candidate. But, when Colmes noted that Senator McCain had actively sought the support of right-wing religious fanatics, Hagee and Parsley, Pipes called Pastor Hagee a "mainstream" religious figure and said he plans to attend Hagee's conference this summer, despite the pastor's assertion that Hitler was a God-inspired force propelling Jews to Israel.

Pipes, a virulently pro-Israel advocate, supports a combative, non-conciliatory, non-negotiating role for Israel, but as with Hannity, there is no record of his ever having served in the military. Funny how so many on the right wrap themselves in the flag and engage in hawkish sloganeering, encouraging the sacrifice of others to a combat commitment they have never been willing to make themselves.

Ill-conceived rationales sometimes pass for truth, but ad hominem attacks are best refuted by clearly enunciated policies - - the next hill to climb for Obama and the Democratic Party. This is no time for split loyalties and petulant defections. There are far too many dangerous minds already at work on the other side.