Lakoff's analysis may be correct, but it robs too many on the left of their own self-worth, by removing the belief of their own intellectual superiority over Bush, and in turn, over the people who voted for and support him. So he can point out the successes all he wants, but the best he's going to get in response is that evil Cheney, Rumsfeld and their Halliburton/Neo-con cronies are doing all the work (because the only way you can be on the right and be as smart as people of the left is to have entered into some sort of pact with Beelsebub, even if that violates their religious non-beliefs).

He does get extra points for sneaking in the reference to the "controversial" Patriot Act, which was passed overwhelmingly and never fails to poll well.

1) Who are these "progressives" everyone is talking about? It seems as though the word refers to pepole who like things the way they used to be a long time ago.

2) Lakoff is really quite correct, but it is much too late for them to turn this ship around. The Democrat party has been set up the way it has been set up. It cannot get out from under all the witches, queers, schoolteachers and aging draftdodgers.

It is all really quite impressive, how Chimpy has snookered them. Like the Swiss patriot who gathered the enemy pikes to his own chest, (drew a blank on the name here, sorry) the President has let himself be the target, thus setting up the next shot for our side. The left is running against Bush, but Bush isn't running anymore.

Let's take on his list, shall we?

* Centralizing power within the executive branch to an unprecedented degree
What's his beef with this? It just means that when St.Hillary takes over, everything will be ready for her to act.

* Starting two major wars, one started with questionable intelligence and in a manner with which the military disagreed
If those are the criteria for not going to war, I'd like to see this guy's criticism of our Bosnian, Kosovo and Haiti adventuresl And what's his definition of "major", anyhow?

* Placing on the Supreme Court two far-right justices, and stacking the lower federal courts with many more
Again, if his guy were in charge, he'd have no problem with stacking the courts with far-left justices.

* Cutting taxes during wartime, an unprecedented event
I don't get it. He's opposed to cutting taxes, or opposed to unprecedented events? To want higer taxes in wartime to support the military, which in itself would be an "unprecedented event" for the Left.

* Passing a number of controversial bills such as the PATRIOT Act, the No Child Left Behind Act, the Medicare Drug bill, the Bankruptcy bill and a number of massive tax cuts
When did being "controversial" ever mean that an act shouldn't have been passed? If memory serves, the Civil Rights acts of the 1960s were "controversial" too.

* Rolling back and refusing to enforce a host of basic regulatory protections
So? I seem to remember the previous administration did the same things with things the GOP congress passed.

* Appointing industry officials to oversee regulatory agencies
As opposed to appointing people who hate the industries they are supposed to regulate objectively.

* Establishing a greater role for religion through faith-based initiatives
Of course the feminists and homosexuals and the Black Caucus and the unions won't won't get a say when St.Hillary is elected, right? But religion is singularly bad, because, well, ... they're Christians!

* Passing Orwellian-titled legislation assaulting the environment -- "The Healthy Forests Act" and the "Clear Skies Initiative" -- to deforest public lands, and put more pollution in our skies
He left out the law to put arsenic back in the water, and shouldn't "climate change" put in an appearance here somewhere?

* Winning re-election and solidifying his party's grip on Congress
Oh, my God! Don't they realize they have a patriotic duty to lose elections?

And this guy Lakoff is considered an intellectual heavyweight.

That Swiss patriot was Arnold von Winkelried.
http://www.biography.com/search/article.do?id=9534501

Lou Gots:

Well done! I remember reading the story when I was a kid. I tried locating it on the Internet after you mentioned it but no luck.