What Democrats must say to win the 2012 election

The next election will turn on what voters believe about five issues. Democrats need a clear message in order to win.

Their opponents are the same guys who spent most of President Clinton’s first term accusing him of murdering his friend, Vince Foster. Now they promote the notion that a birth certificate isn’t really a birth certificate. These are really the same thing. They are "misdirections," a technique familiar to any magician. Look over here, dear voter, so you won’t see what I’m doing over there.

Democrats don’t need to fight every crazy lie that will be told. Truth is they can’t. Telling a lie is much easier than debunking one. To win, Democrats need to do just one thing – keep voters focused on how Republicans don’t represent people anymore.

Here is what Democrats need to say if they want to win:

On birtherism

• Birtherism is a litmus test. Anyone willing to tell this lie in order to win an election would be willing to tell any lie. You can’t trust them.
• When someone claims that a birth certificate is not a birth certificate, that person doesn’t have the moral clarity needed for public service. Someone who does this is not fit to serve; his or her oath of office would be meaningless.
• The people telling this lie don’t believe it. They’re simply willing to steal your vote by lying.

About Medicare

• Republicans don’t have the stones to take Medicare away from you. So they’re trying to take it away from your children. And your grandchildren.
• The Paul Ryan Plan – which Republicans already passed in the House – takes Medicare away from your children and gives tax breaks to the rich.
• Republicans hope you’re too old to notice what they’re doing to your kids. But you are not. Frankly, they need a good spanking.

Regarding budget and tax policy

• The thing no one wants to tell you is that you can’t have it both ways. You can’t have a government that serves the people while paying only enough taxes to cover the cost of corporate welfare.
• Republicans are fond of saying “we don’t have a revenue problem,” but that’s just a big fib. Rich people pay the lowest taxes ever. Everyone is paying the lowest taxes since the 1950. Corporations are getting a free ride.
• “Tax rates are too high” is just a trick. The rich pay a lower tax than you do, thanks to all of their deductions. The rate doesn’t tell the story, the check does.
• First Republicans told you that we could cut taxes and still have everything. Then they told you that we can’t afford anything. By that they mean anything for you…
• I don’t think Republicans will ever give up corporate welfare. But as long as I’m a Democrat, I’ll never give up Abraham Lincoln’s idea that that government “of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” Abraham Lincoln was a Republican. My, how that party has lost its way…

On defense spending

• Defense spending is bloated by corporate welfare.
• We will not cut pay and benefits for troops nor will we cut anything they wear, carry, or use for transportation.
• Except for nuclear deterrents, we will eliminate any weapon that hasn’t been used in the last twenty years. We will eliminate any weapons program that is more than five years behind schedule. And we will eliminate any weapons program for something that doesn’t work.

About corporate influence

• What kind of idiot believes corporations are people?
• Free speech is not the same as secret speech. Our founding fathers promised that you could stand in the town square and say whatever you want. They didn’t intend for you to hide in the shadows and pay someone else to say it.
• When promoting a political idea in a democracy, hiding who you are is the supreme act of cowardice.

Republicans will have a singular response to all of these messages. "It’s class warfare," they’ll moan."Americans don’t go for that."

"You bet it is," Democrats should reply, "and you started it."