What's the Matter with Democrats?

What's the Matter with Democrats?
By Lakshmi Chaudhry, AlterNet. Posted November 30, 2004.

Author Thomas Frank tells us why the Democratic Party lost the 2004 elections and how it needs to rebuild – and address the needs of American working families.
It's hard find anyone on the left who hasn't heard of Tom Frank's latest book, "What's the Matter with Kansas?" Its brilliant analysis of the political impact of the culture wars made it a must-read from almost the moment it came out in June. That the book was published in an election year made it all the more timely – and, as it turns out, prophetic. On Nov. 3, many progressives were left shaking our heads and asking ourselves, "What's the matter with America?"
The outcome of the 2004 elections offered most visible and spectacular confirmation of Frank's analysis of backlash politics. In red states across the nation, working class Americans put their social values ahead of their economic well-being and voted for George Bush. It wasn't the economy, stupid! It was god, guns, and, of course, gays.
So what now?...