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The False Eternal Dispute: Swing v. Base | 26 comments (26 topical)

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Expanding the base (5.00 / 4) (#7)
by Stellaaa on Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 04:14:24 PM EST
In my naive way, I thought this year America was ready to embrace the Democratic agenda.  I thought we could use the primary to further the agenda:  health care, environment, Iraq, etc.  But what we got was a personality battle.  Distraction.  I find Ferraro's editorial today in the Times relevant, in that it raises how Ted Kennedy once before cut the party into two and distracted from the Democratic Party.  Feraro

I blame the party establishment for feuling the distraction from expanding the base in real substantive way.   All the Lakoffian framing, is just manipulation that will ultimately catch up with us.  We can be honest about the Democratic issues and get people to vote for Dems.  We don't need all the new false language.  America was ready.  

Stellaaa (5.00 / 2) (#9)
by Kathy on Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 04:24:47 PM EST
another insightful post.  I, too, see this as a great blown opportunity.  Reminds me a bit of Bush telling people to watch TV and go shopping after 9-11 when, in truth, he could have asked us anything--to make any sacrifice--and we would have because we were desperate for actions that spoke to the heart of who we are as Americans.  Same here.  The dems could have gotten us cohesively behind important dem issues and reminded the nation of all the good we stand for, but unfortunately, we have postponed helping the people we are supposed to be fighting for so that talking heads can posture and preen for the cameras.

Speaking of postponement, I know that today is a sad day for you...original date of the Rezko trial...

[ Parent ]

His time will come (5.00 / 2) (#11)
by Stellaaa on Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 04:26:49 PM EST
It's not over.  I will not listen to the polls till people have voted.  How sad.  

[ Parent ]
Speaking of.... (none / 0) (#25)
by Teresa on Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 07:49:58 PM EST
London Times

Sorry to feed you this and get you riled up, but I read the article on Yahoo.

[ Parent ]

And who knew (5.00 / 1) (#17)
by TeresaInSnow2 on Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 04:48:05 PM EST
Who knew that the challenges we're facing are actually the Democrats fault because we didn't "unite" with the Republicans.

(LOL!)

I'm with you.  I wanted the campaign to be about the DIFFERENCES because the differences made us better than the Repubs.

But you know what?  The corporate constituents wanted it this way, so that is the way it is.

[ Parent ]

I find some concepts in ferraro's article (none / 0) (#16)
by hookfan on Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 04:47:05 PM EST
very disheartening. Especially about the superdelegates being "leaders not followers" (the same mentality as Pelosi holds about elected congress members) of the voters' expressed will. Explains alot, IMO, about the acceptance of caucuses, and why congress doesn't vote for what over 65% of the populace wants. Seems my vote doesn't matter much to the Democratic Party who must lead me (by ignoring me?) rather than do my bidding even after elected.

[ Parent ]
Both Agree and Disagree (none / 0) (#18)
by Socraticsilence on Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 05:04:57 PM EST
I agree that America is ready to embrace the Democratic parties key values, but that these need to be tempered (not for us, but to be acceptable to the mushy middle) ex:

Gun Control: we can float an Assault Weapons ban but anything beyond that, closing the Gun Shop loophole, and extendign Brady is going to be a hard sell even with the spate of recent shootings.

Health Care: I want single payer, but while I think Obama's plan is inferior to Clinton's I also think it is far more politically feasible, mandates (beyond child mandates which can be easily spun and already have a low cost alternative in S-Chip)  than any plan with mandates.

Choice: I think we can preserve what we have and at the executive level push rollbacks in current restrictions

Gay Marriage: I think we can push Civil Unions as a wedge issue, but I might be to optomistic.

[ Parent ]

On health care (none / 0) (#24)
by RalphB on Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 06:15:30 PM EST
if what you get from Obama is an expansion of S-Chip, why not just go for it now?  That's the biggest cop out of this whole campaign.


[ Parent ]
To that list, I hope we see (none / 0) (#27)
by Cream City on Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 10:11:09 PM EST
immigration law reform really happen -- either way, with that being one of the issues that makes McCain a moderate (in GOP terms). Sleepless nights about what we are doing to people in other countries get even longer when I toss and turn about what we are doing to people in this country, just coming here to work hard and raise families for a better life, as my immigrant ancestors did here. I may take this a bit hard, too, because of being from the state that gave this country and its Congress our idiot Senselessbrenner, the great Fencebuilder. And he faces no real opposition again this time, so we have to work to keep him from being in the party in power. He loooooves power.

[ Parent ]

The False Eternal Dispute: Swing v. Base | 26 comments (26 topical)

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