Democratic Partisans

I know that there are people complaining about “partisanship” in Washington, the “tone” in Washington, and the lack of civility in current U.S. politics. But I find it hard to sympathize with them. Partly this is because Republicans make frequent, vehement, inflammatory rhetoric directed at liberals, Democratic leaders, and Democrats in general. Right-wing Republicans write books with titles like:
"Deliver Us from Evil: Defeating Terrorism, Despotism, and Liberalism" [Sean Hannity]
"If Democrats Had Any Brains, They'd Be Republicans" [Ann H. Coulter]
"The Road to Hell is Paved with Democrats" [Richard H. Collins]
They deserve nothing in reply but scorn and ridicule.

Beyond the name-calling, there is a more important struggle: authoritarian Republicans have sought, repeatedly and forcefully, to ignore and undermine the U.S. Constitution. Their goal has been to impose their “religiously correct” beliefs and their fantasies of national and world domination. Although I believe in cooperation and compromise, I also believe in limits. Democrats should never compromise the national Constitution to satisfy the demands of authoritarian religious beliefs, paranoia, and prejudice. The Constitution is the contract upon which our democratic national cooperative is based. For this reason we must struggle continuously against authoritarian Republicans. We must be partisans in the name of democracy, to defend the principles and vision upon which our country was founded, and upon which our democratic social cooperative depends for its survival.