Vote Or Die

When Jim Geraghty's Voting to Kill: How 9/11 Launched the Era of Republican Leadership first landed on my doorstep, I have to admit that my expectations were not high. Another partisan take on why Republicans are good, Democrats are bad, and this is the most important and pivotal election ever, I thought. The sort of inside the Beltway wonkery that only a political uber-geek could love. With 332 pages of such sausage-making ahead of me, it looked like I was in for a long, hard slog.

But it turns out that, despite its rather off-putting title, Geraghty's book is a good read. In large part because of his engaging and entertaining writing style. More often than not he succeeds at making even the driest of voting statistics seem interesting and he does it with a heavy dose of wit and whimsy. You gotta like a guy who starts off a chapter with a quote from Sideshow Bob.

Geraghty's view is that 9/11 did indeed change everything, especially when it comes to politics. He traces the Democrats decline as a party considered strong on national defense and security from the days of Kennedy to the days of Dean. Clinton was able to win because voters did not consider security a priority, but when it's the issue du jour, Geraghty believes that voters will always prefer the GOP. His thesis will once again be put to the test this November.

You can hear for yourself this Saturday, when we will welcome Jim to the NARN Volumo Uno. He'll be on at noon to discuss Voting To Kill and how he thinks national security will influence the election. We'll also be talking some local politics on the show and trying to get a grip on one of the harshest political attack ads we've ever heard.

Listen live to the whole NARN kit and caboodle from 11am-5pm on AM1280 The Patriot WWTC or on the 'net stream. It will interesting to hear how Michael Brodkorb handles this week's shocking revelation that he is in fact a Republican (gasp) during NARN III: Extra Innings from 3pm-5pm.