This is a chance for us of the myDD community to talk about what we think of Hugo Chavez.  Here, let me start with my opinion.

Bill Kaczor, of the Associated Press (here, via Tulsa World ) wrote :

One of his proudest achievements.  Wow.  Just . . . wow.

Furthermore,

A member of the Bush family ignoring things that are clearly written in a consitution?. . .  go on!

To me, the annoying thing about this voucher debate is that it is supposedly about creating competition and accountability.

See:

But the fact is these voucher laws get crafted in such a way that if a school is failing, students in that school may take their voucher money and run.  Okay, fair enough, I suppose.  But what is the accountability for the privite school or the home school that they will then attend?  I assure you there are plenty of religious private schools, especially in my home state, that are not paragons of education quality.  

In the name of "competition" and "fairness," Republican voucher schemes are a lot like playing a basketball game where only one team gets called for traveling, and other team could pick up the ball, run with it out of bound, run around the stands, then come back in-bounds, and run up to basket and shoot.  

Now, I don't know for sure which team is going to win that game, but I don't see how the game would be fair.

One of the most vexing things about George W. Bush is how in many ways the reason he is such a horrible president is that he has done the exact opposite of what his stated principles were in the 2000 election. As ignorant as that Bush was, he would have been so much better for this country if he had kept to some of those statements, which are inherent in conservative philsophy, and not become the King George that we have before us today.

There are few states more red than Oklahoma, but this has not always been the case. Oklahoma was once a progressive strong-hold. What happened?

The primary issue that holds this counter-intuitive alliance of working class people and corporate interests together is abortion. But as we work to reenergize the party and pursue the 50 state strategy necessary to win back America, I believe abortion can be turned away from a weakness into a strength for Democrats in red states.