The political outlook - bad for Republicans

Jim Geraghty:

The interesting thing is the post-Tipping Point view on the Muslim world is alien to Bush; I suspect he would find it abhorrent. Unfortunately, that puts him out of step with a large chunk of the public — a vocal, angry chunk that is likely to have plenty of politicians courting it.

Courting these voters will mean supporting proposals that are supported by wide swaths of the American people, but are largely considered nonstarters in Washington circles: much tougher immigration restrictions, including patrolling the Mexican border; racial profiling of airline passengers instead of confiscating grandma’s tweezers; drastically reducing or eliminating entry visas to residents of Muslim or Arab countries; and taking a much tougher line with Saudi Arabia and coping with the consequences of that stance. Since 9/11, the Bush administration, and most leaders on Capitol Hill in both parties have dismissed those ideas as unrealistic, counterproductive, or not in accordance to American values.

Could the Democrats court this chunk? They’ve got to be sorely tempted, even though it would mean abandoning their kumbayah multicultural we’re-all-the-same-at-heart worldview.

They've already signaled that they are willing to drop their multiculturalism and civil liberties whining. How do you think the Patriot Act got extended? This is the first issue they've found that might have traction. Now all they have to do is keep the public from noticing their rank hypocrisy They've changed direction so fast there's a trail of stripped gears behind them.

I wish somebody, besides the Onion, would just have the nerve to tell the American people to quit expecting perfect outcomes. Everybody seems to be alarmed to find out that there are a lot of foreigners who own a lot of America. Who do they think is financing our national debt? It's not just our homegrown coupon clippers.

America is on a tightrope. To get through this, we're going to need strong nerves and resolve. If we can't be bothered to pay attention, we're going to see more people killed here at home. The Democrats will no doubt demand a return to protectionism and isolationism, reversals of tax cuts and more entitlements. Don't expect them to come down hard on illegal immigration, however. Not if they want Hispanic/Latino votes.