As I wrote in my Sept. 21 column, "Republicans may not entirely represent conservative interests, but they are a far better alternative to the Democrats-and better at winning, too."
I was correct on one point. Apparently Republicans are not always better at winning, but when it comes to policy, they are better than Democrats. While the Republicans are sometimes incompetent, the Democrats are just plain insane.
Hence, the recent shift in power after the mid-term elections should not be celebrated by right-wingers dissatisfied with President George W. Bush; it should be feared.
If they haven't already, these deluded voters of conscience will soon regret their decision to vote a Democratic ticket, and they will realize the true costs of indulging their discontent by "teaching the Republicans a lesson."
With the Democrats in power, the nation's immigration laws will have no chance of being properly enforced, defense spending will be cut significantly and power will be further diluted by the international community.
The signs of a leftward, degenerative drift are already there.
Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., will become the speaker of the House. The American Conservative Union, which has rated every representative and senator since 1971, gives her a lifetime rating of 3 out of 100, while the anti-war organization Peace Action gives her a score of 100. Statistically, she is one of the most liberal members of Congress.
When it comes to illegal immigration, Democrats like Pelosi simply do not care.
Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., has said Congress might revisit (READ: revoke) the Secure Fence Act. The act, passed this year, mandates a 700-mile fence, in five sections, along the Mexican border. Interestingly enough, on Thompson's Congressional web page, neither national security nor illegal immigration is featured in his "on the issues" section. And he is set to be the new chair of the House Homeland Security Committee.
I am sure the Democrats will also pursue a more "progressive" agenda for other domestic policies. The nationalization of health care and overly dramatic legislation concerning global warming have already been mentioned.
But the most dangerous changes are likely to occur in foreign policy-particularly in Iraq.
Let's start with the terrorists' celebrating the midterm election results-a good sign that American foreign policy is headed in the right direction for our enemies, not for us. After the election results were in, Abu Hamza al-Muhajir, a former aide to the brutal Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, stated, "The American people have put their feet on the right path."
Al Qaeda wants secular liberals in power. Why? Because with people like Pelosi and Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., determining our foreign policy, the United States will be more vulnerable to attacks.
Victory, once the priority in Iraq, has fallen completely off the table. The current Republican priorities are stability and security. But if the Democrats have their way, our forces will be withdrawn prematurely, causing a true civil war, and fundamentalist Islam will spread even further than it already has. A situation already riddled with problems will become even worse.
If that alone does not frighten conservatives, then this should: The Democrats plan to vote on their leadership this week, and the most likely pick for House Majority Leader is Rep. John Murtha, D-Penn., over the more moderate Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., the current minority whip.
In November 2005 Murtha called for a complete withdrawal from Iraq, saying, "The U.S. cannot accomplish anything further in Iraq militarily. It is time to bring them home." He later qualified this statement by saying that such a move would constitute a "redeployment" of troops.
But in truth Murtha's proposal is nothing more than a cut-and-run policy-yes, I said it-that would lead to even more horrific violence than we have already seen.
When Murtha proposed a resolution along these lines, the GOP decided to put the Democrats to the test. The House Republicans submitted a counter-resolution, which simply stated: "It is the sense of the House of Representatives that the deployment of United States forces in Iraq be terminated right away."
Of course, no one dared vote for it-save three Democrats, one of whom was disgraced Rep. Cynthia McKinney, D-Ga.
If this were at any other time, Democratic control would not be that bad. But during a war on terror, when so much is at stake in Iraq, as well as on the homefront, the damage to this country could be irreparable.
Jamie Deal is a Trinity junior. His column runs every other Thursday.
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