We have heard the familiar refrain from the mainstream media for a long time now.  What Democrats have needed through the years are ideas.  This is where the Republicans have had a decided edge.

Whereas Democrats flail in the wilderness it has been the Republicans in recent years that have projected a concrete philosophy and voters have more often than not rewarded them for such ideological cohesion and sense of fulfillment.  This cornerstone was established in the eighties with Ronald Reagan's impact on the national political scene.

So the story goes.  Is this longstanding media fed concept true of 2008?  Has it ever been true?

Two leading candidates are trying ardently in 2008 to reinvent themselves to make them more palatable to the staunch right wing voters who turn out in primaries as well as the fund raisers that bankroll candidates.