I gotta ask — Have the Democrats lost their freakin' minds?
I got an e-mail from Rahm Emmanuel and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee that was the usual twice-weekly pitch for contributions. In it was a link for a 
sneak preview of a new Democratic video that they are using the rally the troops. And speaking of troops, the video lingers over the flag-draped coffins of soldiers killed in Iraq as it blames Karl Rove and W for the ills our country is facing. Also portrayed are killer hurricanes (shown on a satellite loop) and Jack Abramoff (shown in his stylish black fedora).
Emmanuel concludes the e-mail pitch: "We are sending an important message to Americans across the country, to the Republicans, and to the media: we are here to win, we are a movement, and we are ready to work to put our country back on track."
The idea that the nation has gone to hell is a fair cop. Still, the image of our dead soldiers is sure to incense potential voters who, while they don't like being mired in Iraq, feel it is hyper-insensitive to use their deaths as a political tool. Even a House Democrat has already asked Emmnanuel to withdraw the video.
This article appears in Jul 12-18, 2006.