We've gotten our hearts broken before. Clinton, many of us hoped, was really a closet progressive who somehow also attracted moderates. His fellow southern governor, Jimmy Carter, looked to be a fine reformer for the post-Watergate era. But both presidents left legacies more conservative than liberal. Both were anti-party men. Both failed to use their high office to enhance credibility in government, the Democratic Party, or the liberal cause.

Republicans now control the executive and legislative branches of government and
are aiming for a lock on the third branch, the federal courts. All that stands in their way
are 50 Democratic senators, 40 of whom can mount a filibuster. But will the Democrats
be as unified and as tough as the Republicans?