The last thing that the Democrats are going to do is play winner take all because that means that the Democrats have to take responsibility for the outcomes of their policies. That is the last thing that the liberal, progressive culture will do. Do you really think that the party made up of lawyers, government employees, minorities, and academics will ever accept responsibility for anything. I doubt it.

The Democrats would rather now have a policy rather than take responsibility. Look at how all of the progressive blogger keep posting constantly about an irrelevant Republican Party instead of holding any Democrat accountable for anything.

When you are the political party of nitpickers (like Ivy league trained lawyers) then do not expect to be the party of decisive policy decisions.

Before there was an Ann Coulter, Gore Vidal was her liberal counterpart,

Bullsh*t, fifty years from now people will still be reading Gore Vidal, how many will remember who Ann Coulter is?

Agree with your comment. Before there was an Ann Coulter, Gore Vidal was her liberal counterpart, say or do the most outrageous thing possible to keep your name in the spotlight and your book sales up.

Vidal needs to understand that Obama is not incompetent. Obama is intelligent. This intelligence tells him that certain policies that liberals dislike must stay in place for the time being.

I was amazed at how quickly Clinton supporters turned their backs on her and jumped on the Obama bandwagon…now those same people are turning on Obama. Pathetic.

Maybe he can state that in a press conference, nobody watches them anymore anyway, since that formulation worked so well for Nixon.

This bitter old fart, (Vida who Gore what?), has simply lost his mojo. Besides his writing was always stodgy, cobwebbed, clabber anyway.

Vidal debated William F Buckley over the US constitution on Jack Paar's show in 1968, and he so infuriated Buckley by his comments that Bill called him a “queer” on national TV. Vidal's is an intellectual Don Rickles, he insults and negates everybody. That's his shtick. His political/philosophic beliefs are secondary to his acerbic personality.

Careful reading of the interview also shows the man pretends to have no inner reflection, or at least, he wishes you to believe that. Exposing his own foibles would be far too dangerous to such a man. He puts on a front of outward acid criticism and icy internal remoteness.

My point in all this is simple. Gore Vidal likes no one publicly, and sees every one and everything as part of the “mad house” he has made the point of his wit. What he believes about Obama or Afghanistan is pretty useless in the real world. Having said this, however, consider reading “Burr.” His story may have been the first to show the founding fathers in a more realistic way than the usual Hollywood version of early America. Besides, much of the story is based upon facts gleaned from letters, newspapers, and personal accounts from the period.

You stated: “We are unable to do something as simple as studying other country's health-care systems, seeing what works and duplicating and integrating the good features of these health-care systems into ours”.

Ok great. But the partisans in DC are unwilling to at least TRY to regulate the industries that grease their wallets – namely insurance, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, and tort/trial lawyers.
Would you at least agree to try to regulate the crap out of those first? If that doesn't work, THEN go ahead and do the single payer. If you were to offer that option in a poll, I'm sure it would be overwhelmingly supportive of the regulation first.

And in response to your proposed legislative action for the democrats:
That is the quickest way to lose control of the Senate, and lose seats in the house. I'm a democrat, and my own representatives are going against our wishes in our state. They will feel some pain next year for it. If they want to hop in Obama's pocket and ignore their constituents, then they can do it as lobbyists, but they will not do it as my representatives if I have anything to say about it.

So basically President Obama has to become a dictator and “terrify” the political opposition? Sorry Mr. Vidal. That is the province of dictators. And we're not going to roll in that area.

All he should do is play the game the same way the republicans do… Winner take all, no mercy… when they are down, kick them…

In legislative terms, what it boils down to is this:

Get the Democrats in a room, have them hash out their differences, write a bill and take it to the floor. Once on the floor, a straight party vote, any democrat who votes against the party for any other than pre-agreed conditions loses the support of the party and is 100% guaranteed to have a nasty primary that will either get them thrown out of office by the Democrat in the Primary or by the Republican in the General Election. If any media outlet shows pro-republican bias, you don't go on it, you cut their access to the President and his Administration, you make sure that your supporters in the media get all the goodies (Interview with the President, Off the record briefings, etc…). If they break your trust, you freeze them out.

This is politics, you reward your friends, you punish your enemies. Obama isn't willing to do that, he believes that if you talk to the Republicans and offer good logical arguments they will see the errors of their ways and compromise, so far they haven't and I seriously doubt that they will anytime in the foreseeable future.

But remember – the Republican Party is not a political party. It’s a mindset, like Hitler Youth. It’s full of hatred. You’re not going to get them aboard. Don’t even try. The only way to handle them is to terrify them. He’s too delicate for that.

So basically President Obama has to become a dictator and “terrify” the political opposition? Sorry Mr. Vidal. That is the province of dictators. And we're not going to roll in that area.

First he says: “America should leave Afghanistan. We’ve failed in every other aspect of our effort…”
Then he says: “The Empire will collapse militarily in Afghanistan.”

If the US leaves today, it's prestige will take a real beating, if it leaves 10 years from now the same way it left Vietnam, it will not only be only its prestige that will have taken a beating, but its economy and its military. It cannot afford to piss away a few trillions in the sands of Afghanistan…

I'd much rather try to change our “empire” for the better, than to ever live under a Chinese one.

Good Luck…
We are unable to do something as simple as studying other country's health-care systems, seeing what works and duplicating and integrating the good features of these health-care systems into ours, despite the fact that our health-care cost twice as much with underwhelming outcomes.

Our financial elites are unable to think any further than the next quarter, our politicians are unable to think beyond the next election cycle, and our mass-media is no more that the propaganda outlet of Corporate America. Unless we can change those three things, and the elites that run these three sectors of our society, we are doomed…

Kind of a self-fulfilling prophesy? We should leave Afghanistan – our “Empire” will collapse militarily in Afghanistan. Typical liberal nonsense.

He is correct in one thing. If our “empire” collapses, the Chinese are the next ones in line.
Sounds to me like we should get our act together, don't ya think?
I'd much rather try to change our “empire” for the better, than to ever live under a Chinese one.

Think about it.