Read it and weep, Republicans. This is the wind of change.

We are sick and tired of you, George Bush, his war, our dead, our economy in shreds, our infrastructure falling apart, our schools leaving almost all kids behind, etc.

You Republicans have failed, and have failed the United States.

Even if Hillary was to win the Democrat nomination, I would still vote for her over ANY Republican candidate.

America rejects you. You should do a lot of soul searching and ask yourselves why.

Good bye.

After over 30 televised debates, 2 years of campaigning, millions of dollars in television ads, door-to-door campaigners, it is no surprise that people are more aware of the Iowa caucus process. I hate to think that Feb 5 marks the "end" of only HALF the process.

The turnout for the Democrats compared to the GOP numbers evidences a real desire for change as does the 1st and 2nd place showing of Obama and Edwards. I think the country is craving a NEW approach. The GOP Bush apoligists and the Clinton brigade represent the past. This caucus is a good omen for a new beginning.

Outstanding work by democrats and independents in Iowa. Thanks for showing the nation how to revitalize American politics, one vote at a time.

This is the real news story; the resurgence of the democratic party.

The fact that the democrats almost doubled their turnout, coupled with the big losses the republicans suffered in 2006 in the House indicates to me that there will be a major change for the US in November, 2008, including a more solidly democratic senate.

The republican party as we know it is finished.

About time!

Who is "Richards"? (mentioned in last sentence)

Fred is absolutely on target.

The Republicans have brought nothing but shame, disgrace, and failure to America. They should just rename themselves The Torture Party and be done with it.

They make decent people retch.

I attended my first caucus tonight. I discovered that 4 others nearby were also first-timers. They had been independents and for the first time ever had felt compelled to stand for a candidate during the caucuses. I hope the rest of the 49 states also make the statement that it's time things start changing!

Over 218,000 people voted in the Dem caucus, and only about 93,000 voted in the Repub caucus. The Dems, Indies and many Repubs are fed up…FED UP, with the illegal and immoral leadership of the Repubs and their leaders. In appx 300 days, a Dem will be elected in a landslide and the Dems will win voting majorities in the House and Senate…and Americans will take their country back!

Fred,

Where did you graduate from college, or, did you even go to college? Your comments are as ignorant as a fifth grader's who likes to stay up late and watch CNN.

Open your mind and stop listening to the bleeding heart liberal media!

Mary

While some of the above comments may be premature, let us hope that the American people are finally rising up in disgust with eight years of the corrupt and incompetent George Bush - who wasn't even elected in 2000 - and are demanding change. I just hope it isn't too late to reverse all the damage the Bush crowd has done.

To Bob,

You don't think the Clinton administration brought shame and disgrace to our country? Seriously??

Oops, meant to say the Dems would win veto-proof majorities in the H&S, leaving the Dems free to repair the Repub damage to America over the past 7 years, and to begin the make the change necessary, and oh so desired by American's, both those that went to college and those that didn't, to restore America's honor, trust and position in the world. Nothing liberal or conservative about that.

The real story is that the establishment candidates on both sides were voted down.

People want change - on both sides.

My quick tally of Republican caucus goers (with 85% reporting) multiplied by 1.15 (to do a rough pass at the rest of the voters, inaccurately showed the Republicans topping off at 118,000.

This is fantastic for Democrats.

OK, so how many Republicans crossed and voted against Hillary in the Democratic caucuses???? CNN won't touch that one only to say that over 200K showed up for the democratic caucuses in Iowa and just over 100K showed up last year. The Republicans were so impassioned with defeating Hillary they let the standard bearer in the Republican Party lose. What a mess for the Repbulicans.

Mary Butts - I went to college and graduate school. I am a member of a National honor society.

My comments are simply those of a person who is sick and tired of watching the Bush/Cheney regime use our Constitution for toilet paper. I am sick and tired of watching our young men and women be killed and maimed in a war that never should have been and was the product of cherry-picked and falsified intelligence. I am sick and tired of watching billions and billions of dollars be diverted from essential domestic programs, education, health care, science, energy conservation, the environment, and even roads and bridges, so that it can pay the huge and virtually exploding bills in Iraq.

The Bush/Cheney administration fights anything to slow climate change tooth and nail. They are sealing the world's fate. They would rather gloat about a mission not accomplished while the world dies.

They remind me of Nero fiddling. And I am sick and tired of it. And apparently so is the rest of this country.

Like I said, we reject you.

If I'm not mistaken, Bill was the only president in at least 25 years to create a surplus. Every REPUBLICAN within that period enlarged a deficit. Bill had a plan to eliminate the national debt, and Bush did not follow through with it. Instead, he gave tax breaks to the super rich and spent more than we could afford.

The Republicans have also has their share of scandals this year…..

Congrats, Obama! I'm rooting for ya.

Mary Butts,

Seriously, no. I don't think that the Clinton administration brought shame and disgrace to our country.

George W. Bush has used the armed forces and the law enforcement agencies of our nation to violate our most cherished national principles. War crimes have been committed. Innocent people have been tortured. Our civil liberties have been trashed.

If you feel that those wrongs are equivalent to the shame brought on the country by an acting President having an indiscreet personal relationship, that's your prerogative.

The President of the United States takes an oath to uphold the Constitution. Violating that Constitution a serious offense. Having sex in the Oval Office is in bad taste.

Do you see the difference?

Mary Butts, you need to pay attention to what has happened to your own party. You have allowed it to be taken over by rigid authoritarians. You and your party have embraced a totalitarian style of government. That is not what America is all about.
Come back to the America that stands for democracy.

You need to read "Conservatives Without Conscience." You might recognize someone in that book. It was written by a Republican, a former Nixon Aide. You might also see where your party went wrong.

Hey Mary, we all know where YOUR head is at (need a flash light?)

Mary,

Does one's education determine his or her ability for free thought? Not in my America.

Blaming the "Bleeding heart liberal media?" Of course, blame anyone else but the leader of your party. Typical of Bush supporters throughout his tenure, you continue to follow without questioning for the sake and "integrity" of the Republican party.

Maybe if Bush could have admitted a need for assistance or a desire for inclusion from inside and outside of his party, the American people would have more forgiving of his failures. Instead he created the most insular team of politicians and yes men in recent memory, driving a giant wedge between those he governs and those in positions of power.

The wonderful thing about democracy is the ability of the governed to demand and create change. Enjoy the show.

I think it is high time that America becomes a country of - what it preaches. A beacon to the rest of the world. Enough with this administration that brought shame and hatred to us.

I planned to caucus tonight for Chris Dodd, who is a fine and decent man who never had a chance. In the process, I was approached by several groups of Obama, Edwards, Hillary, and Richardson supporters, and had the pleasure of talking with each of them. I had decided ahead of time to switch to Edwards if doing so would make a difference in the delegates won, which it did (score one more delegate for Edwards). We elected not to have a second round re-alignment, and I was forced to quickly change camps. This decision was very difficult for me, I lost sleep researching positions and weighing the value of compromise against steadfastness. I cannot say for certain that my choice best represents the future I want, and after all was said and done I am happy for the process to be over, and am eager to support the eventual nominee.

My impressions from my caucus (5th district, Jefferson County):
Hillary supporters were primarily elderly voters (I estimate over 50% were over 65 years old, and well more than half were female), Obama supporters were primarily younger (est. 60% under 40), and Edwards had a wide group of supporters of all ages. More than half of the attendees were female. Everyone was enthusiastic, but the Obama supporters were the most vocal group, Hillary supporters the least. I didn't see so much as a sign for Kucinich, which surprised me.

I'm not sure how I ended up here I was surfing the web looking at some sports scores and end laughing at your comments. I hate to tell you this but with all the clowns running for President more people are interested in the BCS Championship tonight than which crook got selected tonight.

David R,

Good for you. If more Americans actually lost sleep in order to figure out who would be best to lead this country, we'd truly be heading in the right direction.

Mary,

Asking someone where they went to school and calling them immature are not very persuasive ways to make arguments. If you disagree with Fred, you should argue on the issues and be ready to defend yourself with a real argument.

There are many good reasons to not vote Republican this year. The poor management of a war which is costing our country over 1 billion dollars a day, our struggling education system, our broken health care system. I don't think our country can survive four more years of Republican incompetence and hypocrisy.

Ross
-Harvard Class of '88

As a person who has traveled the world extensively, I can say Clinton was well respected and liked around the world. I can't say the same for Mr Bush. Congrats to Mr. Obama, but I must admit my heart is with Mr Edwards.

Out of Iraq
National heathcare for all
Stop global warming

Sicko! Sicko!, SAicko!

You may want to look at the real caucus numbers from KCCI, the local CBS affiliate (channel 8 for those who live there). The Democrats had pathetic numbers compared to anything the GOP had. Even Rudy's numbers - at 3% - were massive compared to the numbers for the Dems combined.

http://www.kcci.com/index.html

Yeahhh for Fred..

the republicans told us for years (before 2000) that they had all the answers, that they were right about everything. Well they had their chance, now .. for six years virtually unobstructed in absolutely every way. They had carte blanche to do just about ANYTHING, and they DID IT.
And everything they did was to build the power of their own elitist party.
And now the country is worse off in EVERY way.
By any measure you can offer, the US is diminished.
They have destroyed America in ways terrorists could not.

They have acted ONLY in the interest of their party, their power, and their wealth, to the detriment of us all.
.. and then denied accountability to themselves for their bad decisions.

yep.. we are sick of it.. good riddance

Hmm, just discovered that the Dems don't show the "true" caucus numbers. Instead, their numbers are based on the number of "delegates" for them, or some such. Crazy. In which case, there's really no way to tell just who had the biggest turnout.

Rich in Salt Lake City: The world is a scary place, and you are one reason why. It would serve our country well, if more people would pay attention to the political process, and try to make informed, intelligent decisions on which candidate will bring positive changes to this small country in a global world, than worry about sports scores.

Hey Rich, do us all a favor and go to a game somewhere on election day. One of the problems we have is idiots voting who never bothered to inform themselves on the issues, but take their freedoms for granted.

@Rich:

You know, you may think you're being cool and slightly cynical in that knowing kind of way—well, guess what, buster? The joke's on you, and it has been for decades–and you've just been too hooked to your need to score easy "sophistication" points to see it. Well, if tonight's any indication, those days are over for the good ol' U..S.A. Step up to the plate already or get out of the way.

As a strong Democrat over 65 I'm elated with the Obama Edwards wins in Iowa. The heavy turnout by the Democrats is a message of doom to the "Republic" party and their absurd president. To the "republic" righties who still consider CNN part of the "liberal media", whatever that means, I salute your ignorance and outdated Rove arrogance. I stopped watching CNN long ago. Lou Dobbs is about as bad as it gets. He should be doing sports for FOX noise. Bye bye Repubs and GOOD RIDDANCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is the real story of the night, disenfranchised America is finally waking up and getting up to vote!

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2154/2165475302_2c27b7a72e.jpg

This is because Iowans — like many Americans, I believe, are desperately seeking a chance from Bush-Clinton-Bush-Clinton in their future.

I'm an Independent and I attended my first caucus last night. Figured the Democratic field is strong with many good/great candidates, so decided to caucus Republican to help choose the best possible candidate on that side of the fence. I tend to vote for the person who best aligns with my own personal beliefs rather than blindly following a party line and I really wish more people would do the same.

This election truly is about changing and undoing the damage that has been done by the Bush/Cheney regime and I can see a desire in both parties to do this…its not Just the Dems that are stumping on change, tho they Are the most vocal about it.

I love the fact that we saw record turnouts on both sides last night…the Democratic caucus was just down the road from my house and there were people parking blocks away from the location…truly an impressive turnout. On the Republican side, we saw 1300 caucusers cram into a community college gym…again, Far more than anyone expected to show up! People are passionate on both sides about changing from the current regime. Some of you need to get over the idea that all Republicans are evil minions of Bush and buy into Obama's message of unifying the people of the United States of America…it shouldn't be an "us vs. them" world all the time; we can all learn to work together.

I guess that's part of the reason I becam an Independent…I don't feel the obligation to espouse on the virtues of any one of the 2 parties and denounce the other one as evil and "rejected."

Here's looking forward to watching the outcomes of the primaries…Can't wait to see who we get to choose from for the general election!

Fred,,, this is just the first caucus of many to come,, calm down man. your gonna ruin your keyboard with the froth drippin from your mouth, lol,,,, this is not a mandate of american voters, this is alot of excited people showing up at the FIRST caucus. Hasn't this caucus been hiped for the last month ? Fred let me burst your froth bubble with this little fact there has been only one president elected to office in recent times who one there caucuses,,,,,BETTER GET A TOWEL FRED,,,,,,,,GEORGE WALKER BUSH,, OUCH,, WOW,, ZING,,,, caucus in our times only sway dumb people to vote for someone they would not have otherwise voted for,, Don't be dumb,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

john ralston,,,, as I agree with you that some of the comments above are at best premature,, your comment,,, bush wasn't even elected in 2000 was rediculas, old , and until you and whoever can get rid of the electorial vote,, YOU are wrong my friend. Move on Man,, it's not healthy,,

Ignorance is rampant today, amazing.

The surplus in the 1990s was due to a REPUBLICAN congress and had nothing to do with Clinton, he just needed to sign the paper, but he didn't support the changes. In fact, Newt needed to send the same bill to him 4 times before Billy Boy signed it because it had significant welfare reform.

Difference between the last 7 years and the previous 8? We're at war. Roosevelt and Truman didn't have a surplus during their years in war. Surely you can't expect this administration to have one. Not to mention the HUGE unemployment during the WWII years compared to record low unemployment numbers during the Bush administration.

The sad truth is that if Clinton wasn't so "busy" spending "quality time" with his interns, he would have taken care of the terrorist threat after one of the four previous attacks on American interests. We most likely wouldn't be in a situation where we needed to destroy the surplus. So in reality, Billy Boy himself is responsible for the the current deficit, albeit indirectly.

Some people want to say America has rejected the Republicans. Well, it's less to do with rejecting one party over the other. After Roosevelt and Truman (both Democrat) successfully defeated Germany and Japan in WWII, the Americans elected a Republican, Eisenhower. After Kennedy and Johnson (Democrats) messed up Vietnam, America elected Nixon (Republican). After the cold war win by Reagan/Bush Sr (Republicans), America elected Billy Boy (Democrat).

If you don't know, when a sailor wants to sail "into the wind", she will actually zig-zag through the wind. That is sort of how Democracy works, I believe. Democracy is sailing into the wind, not with it at our backs. In order to sail into the wind, we will need to zig-zag from left to right and left again.

record??????

should we actualyy pay attention to the 2% of the residents of Iowa?????

Freaks! It's like a political hype-man convention here. I can understand the excitement felt by Democrats concerning the turnout. It does give the impression that the states 7 electoral votes will go to the Democrats.

In 2004, Democrats turnout was about 125,000 caucus goers. Republicans had about 87,000 people take part in 2000 since President Bush ran unchallenged for a second term in 2004. 1,505,814 votes were cast during the 2004 general election. Bush got 751,957 (50%) of the vote and Kerry received 741,898 (49%). Very close.

The Iowa Caucus had a turnout of about 347,000 - not 1,505,814. Plus, votes cast during the caucus are still subject to change depending on any late entries or “breaking stories” the campaigns have planned.

Enjoy the perception of momentum because it can feel the minds of the weak with joy. Just remember about 1,158,814 Iowans have yet to cast their vote and November is still a long time away.

Well said Chad. Rather than re-hash all that you said I'll just state here that I second your opinion, and state that what we need in this country is more independents.

Fred and Bob,

I understand where you are coming from. Let me just add that Dems are just as bad as Repubs! I am tired of politics as usual on both sides! To blame one side and not the other is biased but you have every right to do so! Iowa has spoken and the other 49 states are awaiting their turn. It will be an interesting ride.

Mary Butts: Your comment is a distraction from the truth that the Republican party is a miserable failure.

I'm not quite sure how many of the commentators see what happened last night as the end of Republicans, I sure don't. Just the opposite.

Mccain will make Obama look like he is a candidate for Student Council President., if Hillary doesn't destroy him first - and she is surely going to gve it her best.

Obama's gaffes on foreign policy will resurface and his hat in hand diplomacy style will result in a huge defeat.

Is it me or is CNN overly trying to downplay the big story last night, the vulnerability of the brilliant, presumptive nominee?

Wolf looked like he was choking back tears. All that access and nowhere to go with it.

It is great to see more and more people becoming involved in the political process and getting their voice heard. This brings more meaning to "We the people…"

I disagree with Fred's assessment of the results from the attendance at the Iowa Caucus:

In 2004 59% of Iowa Caucus participants were Democrats and in 2008, 65% percent of participants were democrats. In 2004 Democrats had the majority at the Iowa Caucus but still voted as a Republican State come election day. Is Caucus attendance a fair assessment of voter turnout?

In Iowa both parties can use these numbers to get voters excited to get out the vote. If the results of the Iowa Caucus are the ballot come voting day I think the United States of America will be in good hands - no matter what the outcome!

Iowa may have won a PR result by getting the World's Press and TV to spend their money in your State.

But Iowan citizens should feel ashamed: You have 1,900,000 registered Voters - 334,000 decided to contribute to the Democratic process.

5.69% of the electorate - 94% of Voters felt that the exercise was a waste of time.

Why does your State Governor, Chet Culver, do nothing to galvanise people to exercise the right which so much blood, sweat, tears and tragedy over the centuries has given them?

Kind Regards

Shannon O'Hara

People on both the Republicans and Democrats should be happy. Why you ask? It is important to note that more people came out than before. That is a good thing because it shows (at least for right now) more people feel it important to take a role in the process. I hope that this leads to more of the public involvement in all of the governmental process. We, as Americans, should be ashamed and embarressed because our turn out for voting for president or any other elected office is so low. I am sure that most other countries that have open, free and fair elections have much higher turn outs. Why can't we, as Americans, have regular turn outs for election in the 70% to 80% range. I know that asking for 90% is asking for too much.

As a caucus goer in Des Moines last evening, I want to say I am very proud of the intelligent and well informed Democrat participants we have in Iowa. Speaking as a member of the Democrat party, this is very serious business for us and we do not take our caucus votes lightly.
To JITO463, what in the world are you talking about? I cannot understand your math - I also watched KCCI last night after the caucus and read the Des Moines Register this morning. - the turnout for my party was tremendous. My precinct in anticipation of a large crowd, moved our caucus from our local elementary school to the local high school cafeteria and it was packed!. Also I have spoken to a number of people who attended other precincts in Des Moines and surrounding towns and they reported the same - We came out in huge numbers!.
I would like to make a comment about the republican vote for Huckabee - My prayer is that the republicans who vote for him because he is a "Christian", remember that our country's laws are based on the United States Constitution and not the Chrisitan Bible. We are a country of all faiths, cultures and races - not mainly Caucasian "pseudochristians" who wave Bibles and shout Bible verses but in turn, advocate war, do care not about the poor or global warming, believe corporate greed is okay and intolerance of all who do not believe or "act" as they do. Remember Christians - bottom line from Jesus - "The Golden Rule."

Record attendance is NOT a tribute to any particular 'rock star'.

Record attendance is merely a response to how important this particular White House race happens to be to the folks.

America (and the world) truly is facing some heavy duty issues. Immigration, Social Security and the welfare state, Economy, Islamic radicalism, Globalization, Healthcare, etc. Americans are KEENLY interested. Congress owns it's all time lowest ratings. Americans want change and are showing that they are ready to fight for it.

Americans are showing that this particular race is not ordinary. It is about extra-ordinary issues. Extra-ordinary fears. This translates into extra-ordinary participation.

Go Obama.

Go Huckabee/McCain.

While I'm very happy with last nights results (okay, Kucinich was my man, but Obama and Edwards were right behind him imho), let's not get too cocky.

Remember all the vote suppression in 2000/2004/2006? Voter caging? It's still going on, just not in the primaries. There are criminal activities going on with respect to voter suppression (vice the handful of cases of voter fraud).

The thing that worries me is what the Bush administration will do between Nov 2008 and Jan 2009. Will the shredders be running overtime? What criminal acts will they attempt to cover-up? What will they do when they realize that their criminal acts will get hit the full light of day?

The Charles Foxtrot that is our voting system needs to be fixed before we can truly fix the problems facing this country. Gerrymandering also needs to be fixed to get some new blood into Congress.

To quote Robert F Kennedy Jr, "Republicans are 90% corrupt, Democrats are 60% corrupt." I'm just thankful that the apparent move towards 'change' is advancing those who apparently are not largely beholden to lobbyists and corporations.

And Mary, you can't seriously think that President Clinton's actions are in the same league as the Bush administration? What he (Clinton) did was wrong. In many other democracies (yes there are other democracies in the world, many truer democracys than our shambles), the same action would have led to resignation. But what President Clinton did pales in comparison to Bush, Cheney, et al.

What the Bush administration has done and continues to do is criminal and has done damage to the nation's reputation that will take generations to fix (domestically and internationally). Mary, you're the one that needs to open your eyes and mind.

All I see on this page is a bunch of ignorant democrats bashing the republican party for trying to keep the United States from becoming a socialist society like France. Heck I think the dems wouldn't mind if we became a communist society. That's the problem with democrats, they think everyone should be on an equal playing field even if you don't work for it, that to me sounds like comunism.

Republicans will overcome.

Its too funny that Libs in this country are just so ignorant. Just because you hear or read something from our wonderfully corrupt liberal media doesnt make it true. Learn some history, open your minds and get an education. Both political parties are corrupt and have been for years. However, you better be real scared of the party that has the entire main stream media as a cheering squad.

I find the truth is somewhere in the middle. Bush is not as bad as what you are told he is, and the Dems are not as shinny clean as you are told they are. There will be no REAL change in this country with the media we have in place and without vast changes in our political system.

My personal prediction for 2008 is this (and please dont think I care if you agree with me or not): Obama gets the nod and no matter who the republican cadidate is wins due to the lasting (unspoken) prejudice that still exists in this country. Like it or not, there are a very large number of people in this country that will not vote for a black man. Especially one that is a Muslim.

I'll end on this note which makes a strong point about the media. Why is it every time a Republican candidate is mentioned in a "news" article, thier religious beliefs are noted, yet if I didnt look it up myself I would have never know Obama was a Muslim and Hillary an Atheist ?

The Republican's campaigns are for the most part based on anthropogenic climate change denial, picking on Mexicans, and talking about Christianity without actually practicing it. Considering this, and what they've done for the country in the past few years its no surprize that the Democrats had double their turnout. Winning the Republican nomination is going to be the political equivalent of winning the NIT.

These results are close to what we will see nationally. Iowa is essentially a microcosm of the United States. Its a little whiter than average, but thats a surface difference - the attitudes are similar. Yes, there is alot of farmland here, but most of our residents live in cities, just like the rest of the country.

Shannon O'hara, check your math. 334,000 voters out of 1,900,000 registered voters is 17.6%, not 5.69%. The computer you typed your message on should have a calculator function, so it should have been a trivial matter to get the numbers right.

Jito463 wrote:
"Dems don't show the "true" caucus numbers. Instead, their numbers are based on the number of "delegates" for them . . . there's really no way to tell just who had the biggest turnout"

Actually the Democrats do track the number of attendees as well as the number of delegates sent. I was there and they counted and reported all attendees. Thats how we know the tally. You should probably listen to Rush or one of the other professional writers to get your spin. Amateur right wing spin is generally pretty weak.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again ,and expecting better results.

Why don't we try Ron Paul all the way. Let's go by the Constitution and stop spending money around the world that is paid back to our politicians in lobby money.(read " The Economic Hit Man") Let's secure our borders so, not only illegals are stopped, but the one million felons would have been stopped that are killing, raping, and robbing us. Let's stop borrowing trillions from China, and giving them our technology. Let's pay off our deficit instead of adding to it every year. Let's stop the Repubicans and the Democrats from turning the U.S.A into the North American Union( google Security, Peace and Prosperity act of 2005). Our country's sovreignty is being taken from us: do any of you know this is happening,(other than the Ron Paul voters).

Lot's of uninformed individuals here, but I am not surprised.

Fred - what single dollar was taken from domestic programs to 'pay for the war'. Name one.

Others - what exactly has President Bush done that is criminal? Draw the exact same conclusion from intelligence that President Clinton, Senator H. Clinton, John Kerry and a majority of world leaders had. Why did the vast majority of public officials here and abroad have the same views on Saddam Hussein up until it was decided to be a political issue for Dems to win in 2004?

Are people so ignorant that we should not listen to terror suspects communicate with terror leaders oversees to stop their plans. We have used the exact same technique domestically for organized crime for years. Ignorance seems to be bliss in this country, at least on the left.

Nick:
I am abroad in France this year and it is hardly a communist society. People mobilize and are educated about the political system and when they strike–the system listens. It is the best example of a working Democracy which is responsible to the reactions of its citizens–in the world.
The republicans have in NO way prevented a sway from democracy in america. Instead, they have misinformed the public and ignored the citizens' reactions to their crimes and defiances of the Constitution… doing whatever they please, unchecked, to inflate their bank accounts. They have killed thousands of Americans and Afghanis and Iraqis to secure oil supplies which will be withheld until the best price can be demanded for them from the American people. The current administration has turned us into more of a totalitarian state than a true democracy.

It's time to turn it around.

I dont know if any of the candidates can make us more of a successful democracy in a few short terms of presidency, but if anyone can do it, Barak's my man. And the fact that he's muslim?? Well that just means he is the most fit of all the candidates to deal with foreign affairs in the Muslim countries we are facing in conflict NOW. Anyone who would not vote for him because of his skin color or religion is ignorant and racist and I can only hope there are less of those turning out to vote than Americans dedicated to righteousness and democracy.

Patrick,

Clinton did slow the growth of the national debt, but the debt continued to grow under his presidency. Here are the figures taken from the U.S. Treasury Department website.

————————-
Clinton's 1st day as President
National DEBT on Jan 20, 1993………… $4,188,092,107,183.60 $Tril

Clinton's last day as President
National DEBT on Jan 19, 2001………… $5,727,776,738,304.64 $Tril

DEBT: Down/(Up) under Clinton…….. ($1,539,684,631,121.04) $Tril
—————————————
The national debt is now at about 9 trillion under Bush.

I would urge everyone to be wary of extreme right or left propaganda. The truth USUALLY lies somewhere in the middle. Clever elites throughout history have played the masses against one another to prevent true change. Don't be played, don't play the hate game or we all lose.

It's amazing how people manage to contort history. The last 25 years of politics have been dominated by REPUBLICAN leaders and in the last 25 years massive amounts of wealth have been created, millions around the world have been lifted out of proverty because of beneficial trade agreements, homeownership has soared to record levels, etc., etc. The last 25 years have been good years in America; that is, if you actually look at the numbers and stop listening to the rhetoric of opportunist politicians.

There's no doubt that the country is ready for change and we still have a long way to go and many things to fix; but I wish we could stop being Republicans and Democrats and start being just plain old Americans. I also hope that we as a country do not succumb to the siren song of populism and socialism. History has shown that capitalism is the only economic organization that works. It was not until China adopted more capitalist practices that their people began to enjoy greater prosperity and higher standards of living. It was not until the communist regime in soviet Russia that people stopped regularly starving. The citizens of these nations have paid a great cost to learn these lessons. Let's learn from their mistakes and not endure the poverty, disease, and lower standards of living that are sure to come if we should embrace things like universal health care, protectionist policies, government mandated caps on CEO pays, etc. Economics is not a game of opinions. Just like math 2+2 will always be 4 and capitalism will always result in a nation that is more prosperous and enjoys a higher standard of living than socialism.

What I don't understand is if NAFTA and these "beneficial" trade agreements are working so well, why are the immigrants pouring over the border from Mexico? I thought NAFTA was supposed to STOP that, not increase it.

The trade agreements are a sham.

Mary,

Thanks for being willing to take such treatment! My turn.

Bush isn't doing what he has promised to do in protecting our national security in terms of immigration. He is doing an excellent job protecting it in terms of the war in Iraq - however, that is not his call.

The moral equivalancy of the Clinton administration does do more harm to the moral underpinnings of the country, in my opinion.