MSNBC:Right :: Democrats: ???

Remember the analogy section from the SAT?

Well, on my jog the other day I put together an analogy I hadn't heard anywhere else (I know, possibly an original idea, from me).

You may or may not know the (his)tory behind Phil Donahue's show on MSNBC (read some about it here or in this book. The short story is that MSNBC wanted a show to compete against Fox New's O'Reilly Factor, and started off with the liberal-leaning Phil Donahue. However, over time, the executives at MSNBC forced the show to become more "balanced" - so much so that it had 2 or 3 conservatives for every liberal on the show (Phil Donahue (the host) counted as a liberal). The ratings plummeted (to a level still above the rest of the shows on MSNBC), and they canceled the show. It turns out, the executives thought Donahue would be "a difficult public face for NBC in a time of war".

So, you have a major news network starting off trying to present an alternative to the conservative Fox News, but the suits panic and force the shows to get in line with the administration. Heaven forbid any media actually question the administration.

Now, look at the Democrats. They've been saying, "out of Iraq," "Republicans have a culture of corruption," and that Bush has overstepped his authority. Sure, that sounds great, but what happens when it actually comes time to doing anything?

They vote for continued funding, they refuse to impeach bush or do much of anything to shed light on the corruption surrounding this administration and the war.

They're just like MSNBC, gutless.

Oh, and the solution to the analogy is: Executive Branch


Note: Democrats have more than enough votes to cut funding for the war, they simply don't want to (just need 41 to filibuster any funding bills).

Note: I'm not certain an immediate pull out is wise, but we should certainly be starting the withdrawal now (and, no the proposed draw down to pre-surge levels doesn't count b/c 1) that's the definition of "surge", and 2) it's known that our military simply lacks the bodies to maintain anything about 130k troops in Iraq.