Have you seen the cover of this month's Rolling Stone? When the nation's leading rock 'n' roll magazine devotes a massive chunk of its pre-election issue to delve "Inside the Worst Congress Ever," you know there's something big percolating in the minds of Americans. People want change -- and what's more, they're planning to make it happen on Nov. 7 by voting for Democrats.

There are two main reasons for voters to chuck out incumbent candidates this fall: the war in Iraq and the increasingly apparent corruption among politicians. Since Republicans have controlled the House, Senate and presidency for the past six years, voters are turning to Democrats to clean up the mess we're in.

Americans know that we're not winning the war in Iraq. Out-of-control violence in Iraq is still front page news despite the Republicans' best efforts to assure us that everything is going according to plan. For instance, in a news conference last week, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told reporters to "just back off" about a timetable for leaving Iraq, saying that critics of the administration's "stay the course" policy should settle down and leave these decisions to someone else.

While that's always been the Republican line, Americans aren't buying it any more. Polls show that Americans are increasingly dissatisfied with the way the war is being handled by Republicans. Instead of fruitlessly clinging to the stay-the-course mentality, Democrats are putting forward specific plans of action in Iraq. For instance, Ned Lamont, a senatorial candidate in Connecticut, notes that our best course of action "requires that the Iraqis take control of their own destiny," acknowledging the ineffectiveness of our permanent involvement in Iraq.

James Webb, a Senatorial candidate in Virginia and former assistant secretary of defense for Reserve Affairs, is similarly situated. He provides an alternative to the status quo in Iraq, putting forward specific diplomatic and military steps that need to be taken to resolve the ongoing conflict -- steps that are being dismissed by Republicans. Simply put, Democrats have practical plans while Republicans stubbornly refuse to admit their mistakes in Iraq.

And then there's Mark Foley -- there's nothing like a congressman's penchant for underage pages to shine a spotlight on the most visibly corrupt Congress in years. Just check out Rolling Stone's "10 Worst Congressmen" feature for stunning examples of greedy personal gain, political sloth and just plain meanness in the 109th Congress. Americans are more aware than ever that the Republican representatives that claim to uphold moral values are doing just the opposite -- abusing their positions for personal gain and ignoring ethics in the process.

Beyond outright congressional corruption, voters are disenchanted with Republican leadership's inability to represent their interests. A recent New York Times poll showed that 70 percent of respondents think that Congress does not understand "the needs and problems of people like you." Democrats, on the other hand, are providing innovative solutions to the problems of regular people in areas such as health care, economic growth and education. It's time for a change, and Democrats are standing out as the right choice for America.

-- Annika