Nothing gets my blood boiling faster than Democrats who completely miss the real reason why the American people prefer Republicans to our party on terrorism and war issues.

Fools like the Democratic Leadership Council, and other so-called “centrist” Democrats think that adopting tough rhetoric and positions on foreign policy will convince the public that we mean business.

Or worse, that we should practically adopt Republican foreign policy goals and tactics.

The problem the Democrats face on terrorism and foreign policy is not based upon rhetoric. It’s a psychological visceral reaction by the public. They sense that our politicans are weak and vaciliating, despite what they say about terrorism, not because of it.

Think about this for a moment. If you see a party and a politician that backs down from Republican attacks, and won’t stand up for its own principals when challenged, would YOU trust them to defend you from terrorists? I mean that at a gut level. If you had to pick either Dick Cheney or Tom Daschle to back you up in a barroom brawl, would you REALLY pick Daschle?

We all mock Bush’s pigheadedness and resoluteness, but when it comes to the issue of fighting terrorists, it worked dramatically to his advantage.

Why? Because no matter how withering the attacks were on his Iraq policy, he stuck to his guns. He didn’t back down.

And, in the end, it mattered in the election. He convinced enough people that when he said he was going to be tough on terrorists, he meant it.

John Kerry could have sounded like some comic book vigilante, and it wouldn’t have mattered. Bush painted him as a vaciliating, poll taker. A man without core principles who would say anything to get votes. Which, sadly, was probably true to a great extent.

So how do the Democrats fix this problem? By NOT caving in to Bush and the GOP on core issues. By not backing down, even if the polls seem to be against us. By taking the fight to our opponents, instead of waiting around for them to manufacture some issue to whcih we are forced to react.

If the voters see the Democrats as aggressively fighting for its core DOMESTIC policy principles, not taking and crap from the Republicans, and vigorously pushing its ideas and agenda…they will RESPECT us on foreign policy.

You see, that is what is at the heart of the problem. A significant portion of the electorate that might otherwise agree with the Democrats and many issues, doesn’t RESPECT us.

There are no FDR’s, or JFK’s or even Lyndon Johnson’s in our party anymore. Towering figures who command respect and fear from our opponents and the public at large. The closest you get to that is Bill Clinton, who probably gained respect more for the way he fought off Republican attacks than in any single polcy initiative or foreign policy goal he achieved.

It’s not about policy or rhetoric. It’s about R-E-S-P-E-C-T.

That’s why Howard Dean will turn out to be the Republican party’s biggest nightmare.

So, beware the Democrats who are moaning and groaing about being too aggressive and heate din its rehtoric attacking Bush and the GOP. THEY are the reason we are in this mess. And, guess what folks. They will chicken out and fall in line the more aggresive we are in attacking them.

They are, by nature, gutless. They will not leave the Democratic party. They will bwo down to the aggressive wing of the party.

Let us forever banish the stupid and inaccurate “left vs center/rightt” split in the party.

That is a fallacy perpetuated by the GOP media and the weenies in our party.

The true dichotomy lies between the tough, aggressive, take no prisoners Democrats, and the gutless, yellow-stained coward Democrats.

I know which side of the divide I am on. It’s time everyone made their choice.