Democrats are Doing Soul Searching of Their Own

For months, and maybe years, we have heard about the Republican Party and its "soul searching." Is it the Party of moderation and John McCain? Is it the Party of the three legged Reagan stool (limited government, national security, and pro-family) epitomized by Sarah Palin? Or is it the libertarian wing, largely represented by Ron Paul? Well, for once, we are seeing the Democrats have an identity crisis of its own as we saw in the surprising results of the Virginia Democratic Primary for Governor.

The race included a carpetbagger former Chair (and icon) of the national Democratic Party, Terry McAuliffe, who until this election cycle had been openly discussing running for office in Florida; Brian Moran, the very liberal former state legislator from the Northern Virginia area; and the underdog, State Sen. R. Creigh Deeds (the most conservative of the Democrats) who came shockingly from very far behind, to get his party's nod. It is this "come from behind" victory that only happened in the last several weeks, that has the Democratic Party so worried.

With Barack Obama, the Democratic Party and (it is safe to say) the entire country has taken the most dramatic turn to the left in our nation's history. This left turn included the state of Virginia, which had close to 2 million votes for Obama (53%) versus 1.7 million for McCain (47%). Barely a half a year after Obama's historic election, the Democratic Party of Virginia seems to be having buyer's remorse, with Democrats choosing the most conservative candidate by far of the three choices. Deeds, in his race for Governor, proposed a $10,000 tax credit for businesses, supports the death penalty (with additional restrictions), and he received the endorsement of the National Rifle Association. It is true that he is considered a "consumer advocate," pro-green jobs environmentalist, and soft (to the disliking of the right and left) on gay marriage. On the other hand, Deeds is, without question, the most Conservative of the Democratic Candidates for Governor. Slightly over a year ago, over 60 percent of Democrats in Virginia chose Obama over the other candidates. To make matters worse for Democrats, Pollster.com is reporting that the Republican nominee (Attorney General Robert McDonnell) has a 46% to 40% lead over Deeds. None of the Democrat choices had strong numbers against Republican McDonnell.

There is a growing theory since the 2008 elections that, although Obama is personally popular, that support appears to be exclusively for him, a mile wide, and an inch deep. He will not be up for election in 2010 and if Virginia is indicative of the rest of the country, the Democrats have plenty to worry about in the next election cycle. "The Party" may already be over.

Kevin Price is Host of the Price of Business, the longest running show on AM 650 (M-F at 11 am) in Houston, Texas and on AOL Radio. Eric Bolling of Fox News and Fox Business says that Price’s Blog “is very influential and moves the blogosphere.” Steve Moore of the Wall Street Journal calls Price the “best business talk show host in the country.” Find out why and visit his blog at www.BizPlusBlog.com and his show site at www.PriceofBusiness.com. You can also find Price on Strategy Room at FoxNews.com.