Republican Party leaders Karl Rove and George W. Bush plan to run an identical campaign to that of 2002 and 2004. They plan to lie. They plan to drive home themes that are just crazy and untrue. They plan to use THE SAME social wedge issues to divide America and pin people against each other.

You can see it coming and if the Democrats don’t stand up now and fight, they risk being labeled by the Republican slime machine. Once that happens, it a game of catch-up all the way to November.

The New York Daily News ran a story today on the GOP’s strategies and themes for the 2006 election. It makes my stomach turn.

Ignoring criticisms that Iraq is not going well, the middle class is not cashing in on a growing economy and gas prices are out of control, Bush is telling candidates, “When we see problems, we solve them. The Democrats are good talkers; we’re good doers.”

But at the urging of political wise man Karl Rove, Republicans are being foremost advised to paint Democrats as “cut and run” on Iraq.

More…

Rove laid out the November line earlier this month at a speech to New Hampshire Republicans: “Like too many Democrats, it strikes me they are ready to give the green light to go to war, but when it gets tough and when it gets difficult, they fall back on that party’s old pattern of cutting and running.”

A week later, Bush put it in his own words: “It is important to have members of the United States Congress who will not wave the white flag of surrender in this war on terror.”

Bush and Rove’s campaign themes include:

-Tax cuts: Make them permanent and prosperity will follow.

-Seal the border: A guest worker program isn’t amnesty.

-Medicare: Democrats talk about it; the GOP reformed it.

-Energy: It’s time to just say no to Mideast oil.

-God and family: Increase faith-based programs and confirm conservative judges who promote family values.

-Blame the media: They hate us anyway, and now their leaks are damaging national security.

Elections are about debate and about differences. I am looking forward to a very spirited and aggressive debate as we heads towards 2006. We know that if this election is a debate on the issues, Democrats will win. If this election is a referendum on the Republican Party and the White House’s leadership, Democrats will win, hands down!

Rove, Bush and Mehlman are everything wrong with this country. They use dirty and despicable tactics and they will stop at nothing to win. I just hope the Democratic leadership is reading this. Fight back now! Call a spade a spade. Don’t let these guys score again on the same old tired play!

This is an interesting story from National Public Radio. David Welna does a good job of humanizing the issues surrounding immigration and America’s need for immigrant labor. This great policy divide is certainly at the forefront in the 2006 election and even in Nebraska, a deep-red state, politicians, as well as citizens are concerned that legislation around the immigration issue could hit hard in small town U.S.A.