Why don't they just become Republicans...?

PHILADELPHIA, July 28 — The moderate Democratic group that helped elect Bill Clinton to the White House in 1992 warned today that Democrats were headed for defeat if they presented themselves as an angry "far left" party fighting tax cuts and opposing the war in Iraq.

The warning, by the Democratic Leadership Council, an organization of moderate [sic] Democrats that helped move the party to the center 10 years ago, was largely a response to the popularity enjoyed in early presidential primary states by Howard Dean, the former governor of Vermont.

Dr. Dean has attracted wide notice for his criticism of the Democratic Party for supporting the Iraq war and some of President Bush's tax cuts. [emphasis mine]

This story lays bare the true heart of the modern Democratic Party. Mark J. Penn, a Democratic pollster who worked for Mr. Clinton and now advises Senator Lieberman, is quoted, "We're at a postwar historic low of Democratic Party membership." The conclusion he and other DNC loyalists draw, however, is that the Democratic Party must move even further right.

Why don't they get it?! In historic numbers, voters are opting out precisely because the Democrats' Republican-Lite fare repels them. If they're as conservative as the DLC, they can vote Republican, for crissakes! Whereas, we leftists can only turn to underdogs, like Kucinich.

As for Dean, he doesn’t deserve the moniker of “liberal.” He’s pro-gun, pro-death-penalty and fiscally conservative. Twenty years ago, his stands would have made him a Republican!

Complete story here.