Efficient Democrats?

By Eduardo Reyes Cartagena

Democrats and Republicans have both their own agenda, their own project; however it is interesting how Republicans seem to easily impose their agenda and policies. It is true they spend huge amounts of money promoting them, as they did in the last two Republican administrations (the Bush clan). The first Iraq invasion named “Desert Storm”, and the “Operation Enduring Freedom” are mega war projects that take place after the Fall of the Berlin Wall. They were sponsored by the most conservative Republican Party wing: neoconservatives, military corporations and oil corporations.

Regardless of the reasoning —such as the Kuwait invasion by Iraq in 1990 or the terrorist attacks to the USA on September 11, 2001—, there is an economic argument justifying both military interventions. They used to say that war would incentive the economic growth, so invading Iraq and Afghanistan was convenient for the country economy. The truth is that this conservative Republican wing manages to convince the government and the whole population to perform their projects and policies. The Republicans materialize their agenda, their mega projects are approved and they are given all the financial resources to perform them. These projects are extraordinarily expensive, and the average citizen undergoes the negative impact. There is no doubt the military and oil corporations are benefited, but the citizens are paying the war costs. This is a clear example of losses “democratization”, as well as profit concentration in too few hands. Military operations sponsored by USA after 1990 were more expensive than a first world class health care system where every person —including the Hispanic immigrants— would access the service no matter what their incomes were. However, a health care system project is not part of the Republican agenda: it will be a Democrat issue to set it up.

Unfortunately, Democrats are not as efficient as Republicans; they are not able to impose their agenda even when in charge of the government. For instance, the health care program was blocked when the Clinton’s administration started. Why do the Democrats do not receive the same support as the elites, such as the Republicans do? Should the Democrats use the same strategies the Republicans do, by inducing fear to the population to —for example—, establish a solid health care system, or implement an appropriate regulation for the financial system to avoid as much harmful effects as possible on the free market? I do not think so, but when they are governing, they should impose their agenda by intensely promoting their programs.

Any program or government action is subject to criticism. It is possible to criticize the military USA interventions precisely because they were achieved, they are part of History. It is possible to make a positive or negative balance, and information obtained on the performed analysis will be used to sustain the future decisions of the following governments. However, this does not happen with the Democrats programs precisely because they are blocked. This project or that one might be good or bad, but we will not be able to know it if there is no a posteriori evaluation, sustained on facts and not on suppositions of what could have or could have not happened. Democrats are defeated in advanced. So in this sense, they should learn to impose their agenda as Republicans do, otherwise, what is the point on having two political parties? Also, we should consider Democrats are often devoted to fix the Republican mistakes and excesses, but are they meant to handle only that? The current financial crisis is a clear example. The Bush Republican government is responsible of its detonation, for it was predictable and it was possible to act beforehand. The most difficult crisis will be then handled by the — surely Democrat— next government. So Democrats do not only clean up the economy, but they cannot convince citizens and the establishment that their projects will benefit the country.

For a two-party system —such as the American- to work, it is necessary to have a faction to rule according to its ideological principles. It is clear that most conservative groups in the Republican Party manage to impose themselves when there is a Republican government, which is not the case when Democrats rule. So Democrats should be more efficient when promoting and performing their government programs and policies.