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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsRE: Howard Dean
Ed Schultz is making great points about why Howard Dean should have been put in as the chair of the DNC.
They're refusing to cut a $500,000 check to help recall Gov. Scott Walker in Wisconsin on June 5th.
Dean had a 50 state strategy that put us in charge, and it's been abandoned. We can't win back the House and hold the Senate in 2012 without better leadership.
DJ13
(23,671 posts)I suspect they are'nt fully supportive of the recall, as they also dance with many of the same business interests as Walker does.
Raine
(30,541 posts)I've come to believe they're all on the same side and it isn't the side of the people.
longship
(40,416 posts)Nor have I followed the WI business closely. But I totally agree that Dean's 50 state strategy was brilliant. It gave Dems seats all over the place, many totally unexpected surprises in very Red states.
The extent to DNC doesn't adhere to that strategy is the extent that they will lose seats in Congress.
Recursion
(56,582 posts)and that lost their seats two years ago.
ljm2002
(10,751 posts)...it's also true that once the Democratic Party abandoned Dean's 50-state strategy, they began losing seats again. Whereas, had they kept winning seats, the Blue Dogs would have had less power within the party, since we would not have needed their votes as much with bigger majorities.
Alas, that's not what happened. No one can be sure, of course, that the strategy would have continued to reap such success. But dammit, the party gave up a winning strategy when it was succeeding brilliantly. Which leads me to believe there's more going on than the simple 2-party narrative that the politicians want us all to buy into.
Recursion
(56,582 posts)I think there's some confusion here about what the "50 State Strategy" is: it means the DNC gives money to every state party. Dean introduced that, and the party hasn't stopped doing it.
longship
(40,416 posts)Each blue dog caucuses with the Dems. Each blue dog gives Dems one more seat towards a majority and consequently the right to form committees and select committee chairs, to have the right to decide what bills get to the floor for votes.
But go ahead and stop supporting blue dogs because they don't adhere to your specific version of political purity. Then, you will be no better than the lunatics in the the Republican party. This is precisely what separated Dems from the dispicible Repukes. And frankly, it's our sole chance this year.
The Repukes want to divide us. I'll take all the blue dogs if it means we have majorities on both sides of the capital.
Don't you understand that the alternative to a blue dog is probably one from the party-not-named, a guy like Rep. West of FL?
You choose.
Recursion
(56,582 posts)I even volunteered for Gene Taylor, for all the good it did.
Honeycombe8
(37,648 posts)to Pelosi and/or others.
Taverner
(55,476 posts)Recursion
(56,582 posts)It meant that every state party would have paid staff (something the GOP had done for years).
nanabugg
(2,198 posts)states that are trying to deny voting rights to so many.
Pryderi
(6,772 posts)helps build a county party! WI is an opportunity to grow the power of dems within a red/swing state! LET'S NOT BE PENNY WISE AND POUND STUPID!
progressoid
(50,011 posts)I have even heard Dems removed from the internal machinations of the party express dislike in him. I guess the third-way neo-liberals have more sway than us regular old liberals.
Kicking and reccing for Dean.
Recursion
(56,582 posts)A lot of the party thought it was stupid to spend money in, say, Alaska or Wyoming, and never believed in the Ralph Reed "first get the school boards" argument.