Wednesday, October 11, 2006

The voters have been pointing a symbolic gun at the Republican regime in Washington for many months now. All that remains is for them to pull the trigger on Election Day.

[...]

What all this suggests is a settled judgment on the part of the majority of Americans that the current leadership of the nation is not doing the job that people expect. This is the government the people chose in 2004, but now they are showing clear signs of buyer's remorse.

The disillusionment is not the product of the Foley scandal, which is shifting few votes, as far as I can judge. And it also reflects more than the continuing bad news from Iraq, though that has had a large effect on public opinion.

What is driving public opinion is an overall impression that those in office -- meaning mainly Republicans -- have let things slide out of control and need to be relieved.

Fortunately, the voters have the power -- if they pull the trigger on Election Day -- to create a new plot for the Washington drama. This election campaign has been a learning experience for candidates of both parties, incumbents and challengers alike. They have been bombarded with messages from their constituents, telling them that the public is tired of the partisan bickering, tired of the gridlock and eager to elect people who will focus on the real problems and work together to find solutions.

If that lesson is reinforced by the election results, Washington will change. Congress will be run by people who talk with each other, across party lines. And even the White House may learn that it needs to end its isolation and engage more broadly at home and abroad if it is to salvage some substantial accomplishments from Bush's final two years in office.

...these children that you spit on
As they try to change their worlds
Are immune to your consultations
They're quite aware of what they're going through