Conversation with Al

This past Thursday I felt like the biblical figure Daniel. You see, Daniel was thrown into a lion's den and forced to rely on his own beliefs to make it out.\nWhen I joined two other reporters backstage for an interview with the Rev. Al Sharpton, this is exactly how I felt. I went into the interview knowing I was going into the lion's den of liberalism and was going to disagree with most of what he said.\nOne of the issues we talked about that stuck out in my mind was why the Democrats lost in November. Sharpton refuses to accept that Democrats lost on the basis of not appealing to certain constituencies, such as religious groups and the southern region, and it is that arrogance that is likely to cause even more extensive losses in the 2008 races.\nFor example, my Indiana Daily Student colleague, Mike Zennie, asked Sharpton if he thought the 2004 election was the result of a conservative paradigm shift and, if so, what the Democrats could do to win back those conservatives.\nSharpton's response was telling.\nHe said, "A lot of it was Karl Rove manipulating public debate to very limited moral issues rather than the real broad moral issues." He went on to call conservatives radical because they don't want to keep in place the Voting Rights Act and Roe v. Wade.\nFirst off, the results of the 2004 elections weren't because of Karl Rove. I'll grant you he had a hand in President Bush's re-election strategy, but saying he manipulated the issues to the degree Sharpton is implying denigrates the very voters Democrats hope to reach. Hardcore liberals like the good Reverend just can't comprehend that maybe their positions on issues -- moral or otherwise -- just didn't sit well with a lot of people.\nSecond, Republicans aren't trying to deny people the right to vote. There might have been irregularities in the election, but evidence of significant voter intimidation and suppression is merely speculation at this point. Perhaps Sharpton is upset because more of the Republican base turned out to vote than did the Democratic base.\nI'll give you another example of Sharpton's misunderstanding of the issues. \nI asked Sharpton what role he thought the youth vote would play in 2008.\nHe said, "We saw an increase of about three to 3.5 million young votes last year. The percentage didn't go up because the right wing brought more of their voters out." He went on to say that the test for the ability to get young voters out in 2008 is going to be 2006.\nSharpton is making a big and potentially damaging assumption here. He is assuming all young people who come out to vote are voting for Democrats.\nI'll grant that some young people do vote Democrat, but some also vote Republican. If Sharpton is right, how would he explain the existence of a College Republicans organization on almost every campus in the nation? Heck, even some of my IDS colleagues voted for George W. Bush. I'd love to see Sharpton explain that one.\nIn all fairness, Sharpton was an intelligent and charming individual. He answered our questions thoroughly and with the passion that can only come from years of experience.\nHowever, we differ in our opinions on why the Democrats lost.\nThe Democrats lost in November because they could not appeal culturally to people in certain areas of the country. The party also gave up trying to appeal to people of faith, and they are exactly who turned out this last election.\nIf the Democrats hope to have a chance in 2006 and 2008, I'd suggest they take an honest look at why they lost. Thinking the way Sharpton does about electoral losses might make them feel better, but it won't prevent such losses in the future.