The Democrats Will ...

End the failed war in Iraq that was a mistake from day one? Not according to the one-time thought-to-be "anti-war" candidate Howard Dean.

Impeach President Bush for his crimes - far worse than the allegations underlying the Clinton impeachment? Not according to San Francisco liberal Nancy Pelosi.

Not that the Dems would do either of things correctly if they promised to do them. Pulling out of Iraq for most Democratic politicians means redeployment - nothing anti-imperialist about the politics of either major party in Washington. Impeaching Bush would probably just be an exercise and a distraction from their own problematic conduct.

Still, if they win it will be a positive sign that the country isn't buying into the ultra-right or fiscal conservative ideology of the various stripes of Republicans. But a mere positive sign may not yield positive results if we sit back and wait for the Democrats to fix things. It just isn't in their interest and they care far more about winning office than making things better for most Americans.