2006 may be remembered as the year the tide turned.  The word “liberal” was much less effectively used a pejorative.  Despite the best efforts of the right wing talking heads attempting to sow fear into the hearts of voters by repeating the mantra “Pelosi/San Francisco values” the Democrats won both the House and Senate midterm elections.

Folks who labeled themselves conservatives were forced to announce that while they were conservatives, they were not THAT kind of conservative (Bush/Cheney/neocons).

I believe that the tide began to turn in 2005 with the Terri Schiavo debacle.  The American people began to see that this right-wing cabal had gone too far. 

Then, Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, and the images of New Orleans showed that our government was completely unprepared and unable to perform the most important job we gave them after 9-11; protecting us and helping victims of catastrophe.

There is no doubt that Mayor Nagin and Governor Blanco should shoulder much blame for the inadequate response, both before and after the disaster.  However, in a post 9-11 world, the American people expected that the billions of dollars spent, creation of new bureaucracies dedicated to protecting the homeland, and repeated chatter from the President about constant vigilance would have prepared our national government to handle a long forecast weather event. 

What the people saw, instead, was a President who was un-involved.  They saw images of him playing the guitar, and eating birthday cake in the sunny west.  Tapes showed the President not asking one question when being briefed on the potential catastrophic storm headed for the region.

Meanwhile, things in Iraq were getting worse, month by month, with no end in sight and no apparent plan to improve the situation.

Over the course of 2006, Fox News Channel lost viewership.  Rush Limbaugh lost listeners. MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann’s show began to gain on Foxs’ O’Reilly program.

Scandal upon scandal fell forth from the Republicans, showing that the morales and morality of the right wing was not holier than thou, but rather just full of holes.

The American people awoke from their slumber.  They instinctively knew that the country was on the wrong track.  They figured out that dissent was not unpatriotic and just maybe the “liberals” had a point.  Our country needed a change of direction.  

Of course, there are still those who believe that “you liberals just need to shut up” as the caller to yesterday’s Voice of Arizona radio program said.  Unfortunately for the caller, his subsequent premise for this enlightened view (that Ford never said he was against the Iraq war) was entirely refuted.  Four years ago, the majority of the people would have cheered his statement, now they listen to the other side and find that the truth can be inconvenient. 

The Democrats have been given an opportunity to right the ship.  It is listing badly, and the American people are not going to have the patience or time for wringing of hands.  They are going to demand a course correction immediately.  While Captain Bush-Cheney remain at the wheel, the majority of the crew is much less likely to blindly follow orders.  Soon we will know, was 2006 a watershed moment in U.S. history, or will the neo-cons and the extreme right wing just shed water?

2007 is going to be a very interesting year.