Rahm and DCCC recruit and support against progressive Ds in Primaries

[bread_and_roses]

I know much of this has been posted before in various threads, but thought this a nice little reminder, especially to all those good soldiers always advising that the Primaries are the place to duke out changing the face of the Ds in Washington.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/090607J.shtml

In May 2004, a former candidate for the New York State Legislature named Cynthia Pooler founded November Victories and Democrat Unity, online forums for new candidates who were running for Congress as Democrats.

"Before you knew it, candidates started talking about the difficulties they were having with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic leadership," Pooler said.

According to Democratic candidates who ran for House of Representative seats in 2006, Rahm Emanuel, then head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, took sides during the Democratic primary elections, favoring conservative candidates, including former Republicans, and sidelining candidates who were running in favor of withdrawal from Iraq.
...

According to his critics, Emanuel played kingmaker by financially supporting his favored candidates during primary contests with other Democrats. His critics say that this interference was in direct contradiction of a DCCC policy to "remain neutral" in party primaries.

Discusses the Cegelis/Duckworth race (I didn't recall Obama as one of the "heavyweights" who convinced Duckworth to run against Cegelis), Schneider vs. Jennings, McNerney vs. Filson, Lutrin vs. Mahoney.

(edit: typo)

[mod mom]

1. We no longer donate to the DCCC and won't until Rahm is removed from any

oversight for $ distibution.

[defendandprotect]

11. Exactly! I feel the same way --

[MannyGoldstein]

2. Thank God For Emanuel!!!

If it weren't for Emanuel, our shattering loss in last year's election would have been even worse than it was. Dean should just give up, and hand the reigns to Emanuel.

At least that's what Carville tells me.

Of course, reality finds that Emanuel's candidates fared far worse than Democratic candidates as a whole.

[mod mom]

3. You mean the Carville that tipped off bu$h in '04:

Did Carville Tip Bush Off to Kerry Strategy (Woodward)
By M.J. Rosenberg | bio

?On page 344, Woodward describes the doings at the White House in the early morning hours of Wednesday, the day after the '04 election.

Apparently, Kerry had decided not to concede. There were 250,000 outstanding ballots in Ohio.

So Kerry decides to fight. In fact, he considers going to Ohio to camp out with his voters until there is a recount. This is the last thing the White House needs, especially after Florida 2000.

So what happened?

James Carville gets on the phone with his wife, Mary Matalin, who is at the White House with Bush.

"Carville told her he had some inside news. The Kerry campaign was going to challenge the provisional ballots in Ohio -- perhaps up to 250,000 of them. 'I don't agree with it, Carville said. I'm just telling you that's what they're talking about.'

"Matalin went to Cheney to report...You better tell the President Cheney told her."

Matalin does, advising Bush that "somebody in authority needed to get in touch with J. Kenneth Blackwell, the Republican Secretary of State in Ohio who would be in charge of any challenge to the provisional votes." An SOS goes out to Blackwell.

The rest is history.

http://www.tpmcafe.com/blog/coffeehouse/2006/oct/07/did_carville_tip_bush_off_to_kerry_strategy_woodward

[cascadiance]

4. I still remember Carville coming up with excuses after "throwing in the towel" on election night

...back in 2004 as a talking head right as the final vote tallies were coming in and Ohio was "called" for Bush! I was so angry with him at that point. I was asking to myself, "WHY is this bum saying its over and trying to analyze why we 'lost', when we really don't have a firm idea of all of the vount counts just yet!" It seems to me that most Democrats would be pretty noncomittal at that point and answer to those asking them questions that we still need to look at more of the returns, and their integrity, in light of all of the problems that Ohio had before we do any heavy analysis of what happened. It seems like he was trying to close the door then too!

[beachmom]

5. Can you elaborate? Did Carville call it for Bush that NIGHT?

That is significant because the Kerry campaign did not concede until the next morning.

[cascadiance]

8. I don't think he was "calling" it, but the way he was talking...

... at length and was the first "analyst" that was trying to explain why the Dems and Kerry "lost" that very night, instead of trying to caution that there were still many variables to look at before Kerry should concede made it almost seem intentional that he was trying to put us already in a "surrender" frame at that point instead of still trying to challenge the authenticity of the results. Something smelled the way he was talking WHEN he was talking then.

[mod mom]

9. He was feeding Matalin insider info according to the Woodward book.

[maximusveritas]

6. It doesn't have to do with being progressive or conservative

Rahm just supported the candidates he thought had the best shot to win and tried to avoid having primaries. Did he go too far and push some good candidates out of the race? Yes, but you can't argue with the results.

[bread_and_roses]

7. I don't call supporting one Primarycandidate in contravention of the DCCC policy

"trying to avoid Primaries." And of course the Party would always like to avoid Primaries, but there's this little "d" concept called democracy that gets in the way. And how are progressives - or anyone else for that matter - to interpret such support when the constant mantra of the Party faithful is to challenge the big D you don't agree with only in the Primary?

Notice that this support was extended in Primaries where a there was a strong voice against the war and against "Free" Trade. And then some wonder why some voters see no big difference between the two major Parties.

[PassingFair]

10. Bullshit I can't.

Cegelis might have won if not for his interference.

He botched campaigns in Florida and elsewhere, too.

[Greyhound]

18. Yes, we can. He lost.

We would have a larger majority if he had been on vacation the whole time, but then that was why he was there.

[illinoisprogressive]

12. Kenzee, Rahm is DLC and a clintonista. Of course he would side with repuke lites.

[defendandprotect]

13. Rahm's arguing to support this war and keep it going is right-wing --

neoc-con territory ---

[defendandprotect]

14. Carville has always been a question re Matalin -- are we the only ones challenging him????

Are any Democrats asking why he's not with the Republicans -- ???
Are any Democrats pointing to the Woodward book and Carville's slipping info to the GOP????

[tritsofme]

15. Good for Rahm

Running a Kucinich in a district that sends uber-conservatives to Congress is not a winning strategy, no matter how much you want it to be.

[Greyhound]

16. Were you even watching 2006?

Progressives win when they get to the general, it's when the party strangles them in the primaries and forces the evil of two lessers on the voters the Democrats lose.

[tritsofme]

17. I watched the ranks of "blue dogs" swell

as moderate Democrats ousted Republicans in marginally conservative districts that Bush carried in 2004...

[ProudDad]

19. Not in my district... (n/t)