Ummmm, if memory serves, Junior pulled out all the stops for his coronation in the midst of a deadly war of his own making.  Goose and gander time once again.  A Republican specialty.

It is important that Reid and Pelosi are empowered to take on the conservative establishment, but we must ensure that they remember why the Dems are now in control.

Harry Reid and other Democrats have expressed support for the notion of sending more troops to Iraq. They are not listening to the will of the people, whose opposition to the war gave them control of the Congress. Only 12% support sending more troops to Iraq -- the overwhelming majority want the troops to come home now.

Here are three things we can do about it:

1. Tell Senator Harry Reid you expect the Democrats to follow the clear wishes of the electorate and bring the troops home from Iraq. Call Reid at 202-224-2158 or 202-224-7003 or email his chief of staff at Susan_McCue@reid.senate.gov

2. Plan to mark the 3000th U.S. death with a vigil or other event in your community. Under the slogan, "Not One More Death, Not One More Dollar," the American Friends Service Committee is coordinating events all around the country. http://www.afsc.org/3000

3. Join United for Peace and Justice in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, January 27 for a massive peace march, calling on Congress to use their power to bring the troops home now. http://www.unitedforpeace.org

I agree Pelosi is right to attempt this, but there will be an attempt, as signaled by Murphy, to ridicule her as vain (just like a woman).

The best defense against this is to emphasize the historic importance of Pelosi as the first female speaker.

We would observe, respectfully, the same degree of ceremony if it were Deborah Pryce who were making history. Nancy Pelosi, who is not only the first woman to achieve this high and important office, but also the first Italian-American.

Pelosi, daughter of immigrant roots, and the mother and grandmother of five, is an inspiration to mothers, grandmothers and, especially, granddaughters everywhere, regardless of party.

Murphy and others are attacking Pelosi because of her gender and ethnicity, and that's just plain wrong. It's un-American. They should reflect that, with a vice-president in precarious health, and a president in danger of potential impeachment, that Rep. Pelosi might be president of the United States.

This is a time for women and their fathers, husbands and sons to rejoice, not a time for snide anti-female remarks. Women are only 15.5% of the House of Representative. We should encourage more young women--from both parties--to become active in politics and run for office.

http://www.opendemocracy.net/democracy/r epublican_system_3197.jsp

"After the Republican sweep in 1994, Gingrich held a mad celebration featuring people dressed as the cartoon Power Rangers and Rush Limbaugh."

I wonder where Bob Novak and Mike Murphy were on this?

Remember those polls about how the more that people knew that Republicans were in charge of congress, the more likely they were to vote Democrat?  I believe one of the writers here said (half seriously I assume) that we could just advertise "Republicans control congress" and win elections.  Looks like thats what they're doing, letting people know there is a change in leadership, and then legislating change.  Seems like a good idea to me.

btw, has been dismal.

I did post on this earlier, and I think I got sent to the troll world, so I'm not going to bother repeating myself.

My fellow Dems, since I was 20 in 1980? have been super sensitive about their crappy messaging ability, preferring to hide behind big fancy degrees and big fancy papers as justification for not having easy effective message.

As someone who broke 50 grand once in my life, I wish the Dems were doing more than getting boxed around about this escalation in vietnam - I mean surge in Iraq - and countless other things from the wingnuts the last 6+ weeks.  

Can the sell the inauguration as the beginning of something new ...???

Well, given the shitty job they're doing on surge protection, I doubt it.

Message matters, and effective message has to have lots of nice fit together soundbites.

We have the truth, why can't we have effective message for talking to normal people ??

rmm.

Glad someone else noticed those quotes from Mike Murphy.  My post is here.  Murphy is trying to make himself relevant again after retreating for a year following the disaster of a special election in California.  This sexist language is nothing new for him.  He is still pushing the SF liberal nonsense, the Republican spin about change, and tries to reignite the leadership battle all in a few short sentences.

Not exactly that they're leading with their chin.

But they're also not exactly showing themselves risk-averse in their plans for starting off the 110th.

The Pelosi ballyhoo; plus running the Congress through the usual fallow period from swearing-in to SOTU; working more hours a week; and making a production number out of the ethics bill (with different freshmen introducing different elements on the House floor):

The overall effect should be to increase the Dems' profile (Pelosi's in particular, as noted upthread); which is good if everything runs like clockwork, but not so good if the Dems going in are not quite ready for prime time.

(Which would be no great criticism, given that they've been in the minority for 12 years.)

Now, on other hand, we're told that the 100 Hours bills are going to the floor on closed rules. Which should ensure that, whatever happens, they'll pass at least one house on schedule. (Though not necessarily without incident: the vote(s) on the OPI in the ethics bill, for instance, may split both parties.)

The danger comes with what comes next: the GOP will no doubt be looking to hold back the 100 Hours bills in the Senate (for the best of possible reasons, natch!).

There'll be other stuff going on; but the 100 Hours stuff is the marquee Dem product - and the bigger the circus to start the session, the bigger the embarrassment if the works get gummed up.

So we can send all these jokers back to 1994/5, and they can tell it to Newt!
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No egomania on that front, right?

I like that she is focusing on her roots.  I hope that the message gets through that the people are getting their Congress back.  

I feel WE should be in Washingotn, D.C. with OUR OWN major celebration, organized by MoveOn, true Majority, bloggers, labor and eco-groups.

We are missing a GREAT opportunity to celebrate and BE SEEN and heard by major media.  

Conservatives made a MAJOR presence in D.C. after their first election victory (summer of 1978), after having defeated an incumbent Republican in the primary with one of their own.
They basically introduced themselves to the U.S.