The Sleeping Giant

Here's my pitch: in spite of what the DLC (and apparently Hillary Clinton) believe, I'm convinced that on the whole, Americans believe in the fundamentals of liberalism. The thing is, for the last few decades, the righties have devoted hundreds of millions of dollars to ng their messages to sound liberal, and to ensure that theirs is the voice heard 'round the world. Theirs might not be the most popular position, but as the perennially squeaking wheels, they keep getting the grease, so to speak.

Now that the nation is heading in a direction none of us would have thought possible a few years ago-- with the rise of corporatism, fundamentalism and cronyism-- the left is starting to fight back. Hallelujah!

At least 80 wealthy liberals have pledged to contribute $1 million or more apiece to fund a network of think tanks and advocacy groups to compete with the potent conservative infrastructure built up over the past three decades.

The money will be channeled through a new partnership called the Democracy Alliance, which was founded last spring -- the latest in a series of liberal initiatives as the Democratic Party and its allies continue to struggle with the loss of the House and the Senate in 1994 and the presidency in 2000. Many influential Democratic contributors were left angry and despairing over the party's poor showing in last year's elections, and are looking for what they hope will be more effective ways to invest their support.