Once riding high, Democrats in Washington now fear a fall

In an apparent reversal of fortunes, Democrats are now on the defensive heading into next fall’s elections.

By Steven Thomma and David Lightman
Jan. 7, 2010
McClatchy News Service

WASHINGTON -- What a difference a year makes. Last January, Democrats were streaming into Washington eager to celebrate not just the inauguration of Barack Obama as president, but also their party’s ascendancy.

They’d gained ground in once-Republican turf such as the Mountain West and the Border South, added to their majorities in Congress and topped it all by seizing the presidency. “Yes, we can,” a triumphant Obama trumpeted, and the country seemed to cheer in agreement.

Now, the country seems to be yelling back, “No, you can’t,” and putting the Democrats on the defensive heading into next fall’s elections, when the entire House of Representatives, 37 seats in the Senate and 39 governor’s offices are up for election.

PARTY’S SETBACKS

The president’s poll numbers have dropped. The party’s top domestic agenda item, healthcare, is unpopular. Its candidates lost key statewide races in New Jersey and Virginia in November, and now high-profile Democrats such as Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter and Connecticut Sen. Christopher Dodd say they’ll retire rather than risk losing next fall.

Whether it’s caused by a backlash against the Democratic agenda or the natural swing of the pendulum against the party that’s in power at a time of economic struggle, the result is the same: trouble for the Democrats.

Clifford Young, however, a pollster for Ipsos Public Affairs, sees a normal turn against the party in power, saying the Democrats overstated the significance of the 2008 election results.

“It was basically an election for change, so it favored the party out of power,” Young said. “But it didn’t say anything about a major shift in values. We didn’t see a huge shift in values that would favor the Democrats in the long term.”

Either way, the Democratic Party’s push to build a durable political majority is stalling.

ON CUBA POLICY

The early retirements of Dodd and Dorgan could affect ongoing efforts in Congress to ease U.S. sanctions against Cuba. Both senators -- Dorgan in particular -- have championed efforts to ease trade and travel restrictions against the communist government and their support would be key in the Senate.

“From an ideological point of view, no senator has been a bigger opponent of U.S. policy than Dodd, and from a business perspective, no one has advocated doing business with the Castro regime more than Dorgan,” said Mauricio Claver-Carone, director of the U.S.-Cuba Democracy Political Action Committee, which lobbies in support of the embargo.

Claver-Carone noted the pair still has several months left in their tenure, but added that “it’s a game changer for 2011.”

Both senators last March introduced legislation that would allow all Americans to travel to Cuba. Dorgan in 2000 authored legislation that opened up agricultural trade with Cuba and has been a major supporter of normalizing relations with the island. Just last month, Dorgan succeeded in softening restrictions on agricultural exports to the island, but complained that another proposal to strip funding to Radio and TV Martí was “emasculated” and failed to pass.

Sarah Stephens, the executive director of the Center for Democracy in the Americas, said there’s still support in the Senate for easing restrictions.

Still, she said, “Our hope is that since it’s been such a priority for both of them that maybe there will be an extra effort during this last period of their tenure to make it happen.

“There are a lot in the Senate who want the policy to change, but the ones who have stepped up are the two of them,” she said.

Miami Herald staff writer Lesley Clark contributed to this article from Washington.

source: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics/story/1413130.html

Freedom To Travel

U.S. Travel Ban on Cuba

For more than four decades, the United States has tried to isolate Cuba, economically and diplomatically.

When we look at Cuba news, we see an increasingly public and vigorous debate about the economy. We see the nations of the region conducting ordinary and even extraordinary relations with Cuba. What we don't see is a story line involving the United States, the effectiveness of U.S. policy, or even much of a presence or a role as the possibilities of change unfold.

Top 10 List

"This top ten list is a powerful reminder to Congress and all Americans that sanctions against Cuba do nothing but violate American values, cost American jobs, stain our image overseas, and breach our basic rights," said Sarah Stephens of the Center for Democracy in the Americas. "As Cuba enters a new era, so should America, and replace our policy of isolating Cuba with one favoring engagement, travel and trade."