Will Dems Remember Their Progressive Base?
The LA Times has an interesting article about the expectations of progressive groups, members of which worked hard for the Dems in the election and are expecting action, not compromise, on their issues. Among them: the repeal of the worst provisions of the Patriot Act.
Turning off those new voters could undermine Democrats' hopes of solidifying their new majorities and taking the White House in 2008. But to the leaders of interest groups who are core supporters of the Democratic Party, and who had been barred under Republican rule from the inner sanctums of power, the new Congress means a time for action, not compromise.
"We are not going to let them off the hook," said Caroline Fredrickson, the ACLU's legislative director, of the newly empowered Democratic leaders in Congress. "We will hold their feet to the fire and use all the tools we can to mobilize our members."
Other issues and groups with high expectations:
Similar vows are coming from lobbyists for abortion rights, who want to expand family-planning options for poor women and scale back Bush's focus on abstinence education, and from gun-control advocates, who hope to revive a lapsed ban on assault weapons. Labor unions, a core Democratic constituency, are demanding universal healthcare and laws discouraging corporations from seeking inexpensive labor overseas.
"It's been kind of a drought for 12 years, and there is some pent-up energy," said Bill Samuel, legislative director for the AFL-CIO, the labor federation that has long been a Democratic Party stalwart and spent millions of dollars on get-out-the-vote activities.
So what's on the Dems' agenda? First up will be:
Day 1: On the first day of the 2007 Congress, adopt new rules to "break the link between lobbyists and legislation."
Day 2: Enact all the recommendations made by the commission that investigated the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Next two days: Raise the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour. Cut in half the interest rate on student loans. Allow the government to negotiate directly with the pharmaceutical companies for lower drug prices for Medicare patients. Broaden the types of stem cell research allowed with federal funds. Institute a "pay as you go" system, requiring that any spending or tax-cut proposal must include a way to pay for it.
What's likely not to be on the agenda for the remainder of this year?
Apparently dead for the year is legislation approving Bush's wiretapping of suspected terrorists' phone calls and e-mails from abroad without court warrants.
I think we are all going to have to be patient. Rome wasn't built in a day.
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