Will Dems "turn off" independent voters?

Move to middle hurts Democrats, By Glenn Hurowitz Baltimore Sun
Although the new Democratic Congress completed its "first hundred hours" with some important successes, such as voting to raise the minimum wage, the rest of its agenda - and specifically how much Democrats will challenge President Bush - remains very much up in the air. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid have repeatedly promised to work "from the middle." They've declined to make clear how far they'll push to undo the Republicans' tax cuts for the rich, to pass aggressive legislation to combat environmental crises such as global warming, or to use their power of the purse to chart a new course in Iraq. It seems clear that Ms. Pelosi and Mr. Reid are convinced that undoing the Bush agenda would be good for America, but they are worried that pursuing a confrontational agenda could turn off the independent voters who split in their direction just enough in 2006 to give them their narrow majorities. ...