The Road Ahead for Progressives: Back to Basics

[trayfoot]

This is an excellent, though long, article!

[trayfoot]

1. Forgot the link - duh!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/thenation/20101011/cm_thenation/155316;_ylt=Am5s4WYDtZN6p5_QR71d7Oas0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTFlNmVpZmdpBHBvcwMyMDgEc2VjA2FjY29yZGlvbl9vcGluaW9uBHNsawN0aGVyb2FkYWhlYWQ-

[polichick]

2. Yes, this is a great read - glad you posted it! nt

[zipplewrath]

3. Unfortunately, the underlying message is still there

Progressives are struggling because the centrists have the leadership clearly under their control. You look at the list of short comings and mistakes that they attribute to the White House, and everyone undermined any attempt the progressives might make to advance their agenda. They admit that the White House dumped the large grass roots organization they had, and stuck what was left of it under the DNC. Progressives can go out and try to organize their own, but it will be in competition with OFA. Progressives can go out and try to create leaders and organizations of their own, but the current White House has shown a huge willingness to undercut such activities. The get on their bully pulpit and complain about the unions campaigning for Halter, or Sestak. They complain about the "professional left", and discourage organizations from running ads to influence Nelson, Lincoln, or Lieberman. They go on Fox News and talk about rejecting ideas from the left.

We are basically a house divided against ourselves. They mention that Lieberman or Nelson can be "a government of one" and don't mention that the White House has REPEATEDLY acted as a defensive force for them, going so far as to campaign for Lincoln. The DCCC and the DSCC are out, in the primaries, working for Blue Dogs and other conservative democrats. There is no "price to pay" for undermining democratic initiatives and the White House will "have your back" even if one tries to create a price.

The situation will only get worse as long as the GOP is becoming so right wing crazy that anyone one to the left of them is a "progressive democrat". We have a huge centrist administration and that is pulling the whole party to the right, and the country is going along for the ride. The #1 thing we can do is to CLEARLY establish what the goals are, and then CLEARLY estblish who the obstacles in the democratic party are, and bring that to their constituency. Otherwise the progressives can never be part of the discussion, if they always have to cover for the conservative democrats.

[Winterblues]

4. I think we are going to find the Liberal wing of Congress gets re-elected handily

while the blue dogs or Rinos go down in defeat...The lesson Democrats will take from that is we must move further right....Count on it...