Democrats believe the "insurgents" are winning in Iraq.

 The "idea that we're gonna win the war in Iraq is an idea which is just plain wrong," said Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean.

 When asked, do you agree with Dean's statement, 59 percent of Democrats say yes. Seventy-eight percent of Republicans disagree. When asked if "setting a deadline to withdraw from Iraq would embolden the terrorists and invite new attacks on America," only 22 percent of Democrats agreed, with nearly 70 percent of Republicans believing a premature withdrawal would make things worse.

 The Iraqis, apparently, failed to get the e-mail. According to a recent ABC News poll taken in Iraq, 70 percent of Iraqis say their own lives are "good," and 69 percent expect things in the country overall to improve in the next year. What about the security situation? More than 60 percent feel very safe in their own neighborhoods, up from 40 percent in June 2004. And what about Iraq's Anbar region, the troubled area that includes Ramadi and Fallujah? Even there, Iraqis seem more optimistic than before. Nearly 60 percent of Anbar residents believe the latest elections will lead to a stable government.

 On Dec. 15, 2005, about 11 million Iraqis voted for a permanent government. Even the Sunnis, who sat out in the past, turned up to vote this time.

Democrats think the economy is in a recession.

 Forty-three percent of Americans, according to a recent American Research Group poll, said the economy was in a recession. While this poll did not break up responses by party line, rest assured the negative outlook comes from the Democratic Party. Only 7 percent of Democrats approve of the way Bush is handling the economy, versus 74 percent of Republicans.

 But, a recession? Most economists define a recession as three consecutive quarters of falling real gross national product. Yet for the last 10 quarters, the economy grew at an average of more than 3 percent, with the latest quarter coming in at 4.3 percent. Inflation and interest rates remain low, with homeownership at an all-time high. Consumer confidence is up. Many businesses and corporations expect to increase hiring next year, anticipate more growth and remain optimistic about the future. Unemployment, coming in at 5 percent, remains lower than the average unemployment rate during the '70s, '80s and '90s.

 Democrats consider President Bush "racially insensitive," if not downright racist.

 According to a Time poll conducted shortly after Katrina, 54 percent of Democrats believe race and income level played a part in the hurricane response, compared to 17 percent of Republicans. The government's sluggish response to Katrina hurt Bush's standing with blacks. Now only 2 percent of blacks approve of the president's performance. Continued...