Why They Won

Why They Won
By THOMAS FRANK
NY Times
Published: November 5, 2004
Washington
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/05/opinion/05frank.html?ex=1257397200&en=60f120b9b79f92b8&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland
The first thing Democrats must try to grasp as they cast their eyes over the smoking ruins of the election is the continuing power of the culture wars. Thirty-six years ago, President Richard Nixon championed a noble "silent majority" while his vice president, Spiro Agnew, accused liberals of twisting the news. In nearly every election since, liberalism has been vilified as a flag-burning, treason-coddling, upper-class affectation. This year voters claimed to rank "values" as a more important issue than the economy and even the war in Iraq.

And yet, Democrats still have no coherent framework for confronting this chronic complaint, much less understanding it...