Where the Dems went wrong

In 2004 the typical John Kerry supporter was motivated almost entirely by a burning desire to bring down President George W. Bush, and the result was a Democratic party that seemed far more angry, negative and extremist than its just-as-unified opponent. Most troubling to swing voters, many Democrats associated themselves with bomb-throwing entertainers and celebrities who fairly or unfairly became the voice of the party.

Take the Democrats' relationship with Michael Moore, the celebrity filmmaker who directed Fahrenheit 9/11. Moore, who says there is "no terrorist threat in this country" and equates the Iraqi insurgency to the American Revolution, is the prime example of an individual who a major party should not associate itself with. Yet when Fahrenheit 9/11 premiered in Washington this June, Moore was joined by everyone from Sen. Tom Daschle to DNC Chair Terry McAuliffe to Sen. Bob Graham. As Graham put it: "There might be half of the Democratic Senate here."

Throughout the summer, high profile Democrats enthusiastically supported Moore and Fahrenheit 9/11, which accuses Bush of aiding Osama bin Laden's family following Sept. 11. McAuliffe identified the film as "essentially fair and factually based," while Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu said, "It's a movie that's been out there for three weeks, and there's not been one criticism that has not been refuted by the facts." In July, Moore watched the Democratic Convention with Jimmy Carter in the former president's private box. This for an individual who opposed military action in Afghanistan and compares the president to Adolf Hitler.

One would think that Bush's Nov. 2 victory showed Democrats how foolish it is to align themselves with hate-filled extremists and conspiracy theorists. This is apparently not the case, as some are already readying anti-Bush demonstrations for Inauguration Day, one of which is called "Project Mosh."

Further, isn't associating with Eminem and "Mosh" the last thing already extremized Democrats need to do right now? The video includes images like a knife going through a picture of the president's head, newspaper headlines saying "Bush Knew," references to the draft conspiracy and an animated Vice President Dick Cheney dying on the Senate floor. It even attacks the 87 Senators who voted to fund U.S. troops in 2003.

As far as the song's lyrics go, Eminem calls the president a liar, a "monster," a "coward," a "weapon of mass destruction" and accuses him of removing Saddam Hussein from power to "impress Daddy." The "blood for oil" attack is also leveled.

I am as big an Eminem fan as anyone. I have all his CDs, drove to Detroit to see him in concert, and think he is the greatest rapper alive. Yet I found it insane when Kerry went on MTV, talked about "Mosh" and said he "liked" it--just as I would have found it insane had Bush in 2000 praised one of Em's anti-Clinton rants. Like any American, I look to millionaire entertainers for entertainment, not political analysis.

The lesson of 2004 should have been that one should steer clear of bomb-throwers, even when they are throwing bombs at a candidate one wants to lose an election. Fortunately for Republicans, it doesn't look like everyone got that message.

Nathan Carleton is a Trinity senior and president of the Duke Conservative Union.