"Another flaw in the human character is that everybody wants to build and nobody wants to do maintenance."
-- Kurt Vonnegut, Hocus Pocus

I don't want to be one to count the chickens, but if recent polls are any indication it seems very likely there will be a Democrat in the White House very soon.  It is also looking likely Democrats will expand their majorities in both houses of Congress.  Of course this is reason for celebration, but it will not be the end of adversity and opposition to the work we must do to bring the nation back from the brink 8 years of Republican rule have put it in.

The fact that we must do this is terribly important.  The earth is dying, the American middle class is on the ropes, and too many of our children have shed blood upon the sand in a war that should have never been waged.  Change must come and it must come soon.  This much is certain.

But just as important to what we must do is how we should do it.  Democratic control of the Legislative and Executive branches of the federal government is not carte blanche for Democrats to force an agenda on the American public.  It may give our side a mandate to govern, but it does not give Democrats a mandate to rule indefinitely and the sooner Democrats start acting like they have been endowed with the moral high ground to the nation, the sooner the Republicans will be able to make a push to take possession of that ground.

If history is to be our guide, we need look back just 14 short years.  In 1994 Newt Gingrich's so-called "Republican Revolution" swept the midterm elections to gain control of both the House and Senate.  Why?  We can't discount Gingrich and other party leaders as supreme strategists, but the finger can largely be pointed at a Democratic leadership that had lost touch with the people it represented and as a result, the conservative ideology was able to gain a foothold.

It is unlikely that the Republican party will simply fall back to lick their wounds in failure.  Almost immediately they will begin to look for weak spots, wedge issues, and corruptions in the Democrat forces to exploit.  It is always easier to be on the offensive than on the defensive, and after these elections Democrats will most likely have a great deal of territory to defend, taxing both the party's resolve and finances.

But if things are done responsibly, carefully, and with a defined purpose of service, the Republican offensive will be met with a defense so powerful, so complete, and so insurmountable they will simply dash themselves against it, instead of breaking through it.  If we are to guide this nation forward, we must take care not to alienate or tread upon the new relationships we have built during this election.  Relationships with independents, moderate Republicans, and even with the branches of our own party whom at times find it difficult to get along.  Just as these relationships have been a key to our success during this election year, they must be strengthened if they are to remain a key to our success in maintaining a progressive liberal leadership in this country.  The purpose of this election is not to simply propel one man to the highest office in the land, but to help each other move forward as one, to meet the future together, stronger and more resolute than we would seperately.

How do we do this, though?  So much will be working against us.  Not just the Republican war machine backed by the nearly unlimited cash of mega-corporations, not just the horrid state of our government and our nation Bush has left for us, but also the expectations of so many hoping for a better world.  We have set up the pins of hope, and if we do not follow through, the danger is very real that many will turn away in frustration if those expectations are not met.  We must have a plan to meet these obstacles head on.

1.  Meet victory with quiet humility.  There will be time to pat each other on the back and celebrate, but we must not act like Bush in 2004 and spend our political capital trying to further humiliate the opposition.  This will only further breed blowback and add to the bitter vitriol of the defeated.  Practice good sportsmanship, shake their hands, congratulate them on a game well played, and then move on to the work ahead of us.

2.  Do not under any circumstances attempt to force legislation on America.  Just as the Republican push to amend the Constitution to bar gay marriage contributed to their undoing, Democrats should not attempt to simply force the opposite on an unwilling populace.  We may know we are right about gay marriage, but forcing federal legislation on Utah or Alabama will only breed bitter backlash. 

The days of Governor Wallace and the national guard in Birmingham are thankfully behind us and there are better ways to change the minds of the nation.  This does not mean barring the use of federal power to push states to enact more liberal legislation, we must recognize that people in Kansas may be slower to accept it than people in Oregon.  We must be patient but we must be persistent.

However, this does not mean we must wait for 100% support to move forward, nor does it mean that opposition gets to drag its feet indefinitely.  To use the old cliche, both the carrot and the stick must be used.  If a state refuses to move forward, the full power of the federal government must be used in a reasonable and measured way to change peoples' minds in that state.  The same proactive use of incentives to convince states to accept progressive legislation must also be used in responsible and measured ways.

3.  Sunshine is the most effective disinfectant.  We are of course intolerant of corruption and the indiscretions of the Right.  But what about the corruptions of indiscretions of the Left?  We should not only be intolerant of this, we should be more intolerant of it.  To simply talk about change and restoration of the public trust and to not act on those ideals is a dead end road.  Republicans will watch dilligently for any trespass of these ideals and will not hesitate to pounce on these opportunities.  The utmost responsibility must be taken.  Ted Stevens' Bridge to Nowhere served to not only be his undoing, but largely contributed to his partys' undoing nationally.  To simply allow one of our own to fund a similar self serving project, no matter what it might be, is just as reprehensible.

If we forget these immense responsibilities, this will surely be the beginning of the end of all we have worked toward these past few years.  The Democratic Party cannot just be the party of change this year, they must continue to be the party of change well into the future and not succomb to the temptation of simply sitting back and accepting the mentatlity of the status quo.  Our work will not end on November 4th, it will only just be beginning.  We have the fantastic opportunity to meet this challenge together with hope and strength.

Yes we can!