[by Cliff Day]

The following article was recommended by Gov. Howard Dean in his phone conference during the November 3 MEETUP.

Cliff Day – Davenport, Iowa (The Quad Cities)

New York Times

Op-Ed Columnist: Living Poor, Voting Rich
November 3, 2004
By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF

In the aftermath of this civil war that our nation has just fought, one
result is clear: the Democratic Party’s first priority should be to
reconnect with the American heartland.

I’m writing this on tenterhooks on Tuesday, without knowing the election results. But
whether John Kerry’s supporters are now celebrating or seeking asylum
abroad, they should be feeling wretched about the millions of farmers,
factory workers and waitresses who ended up voting – utterly against
their own interests – for Republican candidates.

One of the Republican Party’s major successes over the last few decades has been
to persuade many of the working poor to vote for tax breaks for
billionaires. Democrats are still effective on bread-and-butter issues
like health care, but they come across in much of America as arrogant
and out of touch the moment the discussion shifts to values.

“On values, they are really noncompetitive in the heartland,” noted Mike
Johanns, a Republican who is governor of Nebraska. “This kind of
elitist, Eastern approach to the party is just devastating in the
Midwest and Western states. It’s very difficult for senatorial,
Congressional and even local candidates to survive.”

Click here to read the rest of this article.