Brazile: Democratic Party must acknowledge power of bloggers

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.rawstory.com/news/2006/Brazile_Democratic_Party_must_acknowledge_power_0905.html

<snip>

Like most Democratic insiders, I have a love-hate relationship with bloggers and the “net-roots” community. At times, I am irritated by many of their strident, arrogant, self-righteous comments and their disapproving attitudes about us old dinosaurs. But after they helped score an impressive primary victory this summer in the Connecticut Senate Democratic primary between incumbent Sen. Joe Lieberman and unknown businessman Ned Lamont, they clearly have earned a seat at the table...

...

I never knew Lieberman was in any political trouble until I began picking up bits and pieces of information from sites such as DailyKos. Markos Moulitsas Zúniga, its founder, whom I consider to be both intelligent and extremely talented, began posting endlessly about this Ned Lamont character.

First, I thought Moulitsas was just trying to pick a fight with us “Beltway insiders” to make a point. But after watching him, together with other progressive bloggers, recruit volunteers, raise more than a quarter-million dollars and topple a long-standing pillar of the Democratic Party through net-roots activism, I believe they deserve a seat at the table.

...

There is an entire generation knocking at democracy’s door, and instead of sneaking fearful glances through the peephole, we should fling it wide open and welcome everyone inside. We, Democrats, are the party of inclusion, and it’s time that we prove it.

[Warpy]

1. Brazile is a dinosaur because of her conservatism and timidity.

I think I'm older than she is, so she'd better can that rhetoric FAST.

That she continues to fail to learn from those of us who are, what was it? ah, strident, arrogant and self righteous, she can continue to resign herself to losing elections.

Oh, the party may win a slight majority in 2006 in the House, but unless it stops trying to sound Repug, it will lose in 2008.

You can take that to the bank.

[SharonAnn]

33. She just figured it out! ROTFL!!!!

[Stinky The Clown]

2. Hey Donna ...... here's a small clue .......

There are plenty of us 'dinosaurs' out here in Blogoville.

And we're pissed off.

And you, my dear, are one of the targets of the pissed-offedness.

[Totally Committed]

6. You said it, Stinky!

Tell it like it is!!!

If Donna wasn't such a Republican-enabling timid wuss, she might escape the wrath of those of us who are "dinosaurs", but pissed-off as hell at her and her triangulated-Right DLC ilk. But, as things stand now, this could be too little WAY too late.

TC

[longship]

3. Brazile must acknowledge the existence of liberals

enough said?

[KoKo]

4. Yes......well said....n/t

[Totally Committed]

8. She's triangulated so far to the Right that she'd probably consider

Attila the Hun Liberal. Or, maybe Lieberman.

GMAFB!

TC

[Nite Owl]

5. Dear Donna,

Let's be blunt about this. We are at the table and we want you to leave. Too much is at stake to keep you on board so for the sake of democracy just go home. We work for free to win, you get a high paid salary to lose.

Sincerely,

Bloggerville

[Totally Committed]

7. This could/should win the "TC Post of the Week" Award!

Short, and to-the-point... elegant in its logic and gutsy in its message.

Outstanding, Nite Owl!

TC

[Stinky The Clown]

9. Nite Owl .... put THAT one in your journal!

Well said!

[glitch]

24. "We work for free to win, you get a high paid salary to lose" well said

and it may be truer than you think.

[w4rma]

10. Good. (nt)

[AtomicKitten]

11. It's unfortunate that the knee-jerk hatred for a person

clouds receipt of a sensible piece they have written. Instead, the all too familiar circular firing squad forms.

If people persist in turning a blind eye to what most would construe a positive development, that bias will prevent them moving outside their safe, familiar clique and they will be reduced to singing to the choir. That is precisely the OPPOSITE of what one wants to do in an election.

[Stinky The Clown]

12. There's no circular firing squad here .... all guns are aimed .....

.... to the right.

[AtomicKitten]

14. well, except for the calls for her to go away

Donna Brazile is not going away. And the sooner people come to terms with that fact the better. This negativity is pointless. It would behoove people to be fair and make an effort to acknowledge good developments as far as she is concerned (i.e., as Chair of the DNC Voting Rights Institute).

However, my experience in politics precludes any expectation that a cosmic revelation (reality) is going to descend upon this group.

Been there, seen that. Every goddamn election cycle.

[Dr Fate]

18. Which elections did she win for us? Why shouldnt she be told to go away?

Exactly why should we ask her to stay?- what do you think she can do for us?

[Totally Committed]

21. All good questions....

She has done NOTHING but collude with and kiss-up to the Republicans. And, what elections has she won? What Democrats has she not bad-mouthed in the name of "bi-partisanship"? I am disgusted with her and her kind who are like vampires sucking on the neck of this Party until no vitality, no vigor, and not GUTS are left!

This Party is virtually unrecognizeable since she the rest of her DLC pals got their filthy paws all over it.

TC

[Totally Committed]

23. AK, fwiw, I cannot believe you are so ready to defend

the one person who, more than anyone else, rode the Gore Campaign of 2000 into the ground this way.

It's not a criticism, just a surprise. And, there is nothing knee-jerk or hate-based about the way I dislike her. I learned long ago to hate the sin and dislike the sinner. I don't trust her or anyone triangulated so far away from the base of this Party as the DLC is. And, she is DLC all the way.

TC

[AtomicKitten]

26. Maybe you should re-read my posts.

Not once did I defend her. Pointing out that acknowledging the relevancy of the leftwing blogosphere is a POSITIVE thing is in no way, shape, or form defending her.

The fact that I find it mind-numbingly pointless to rail against her with calls for her to disappear is another matter entirely. Again, she is Chair of the DNC Voting Rights Institute. All the rhetorical questions and caustic critiques of her don't and are not going to change that fact.

Please feel free to spend yet another thread trashing yet another Democrat. Have at. Just know IMO it is pointless beyond belief not to mention the venom grotesquely unfair (Donna Brazile is a nice, decent, caring, talented person for crissakes; yes, I've met her), and I've had enough of it polluting my consciousness.

[Dr Fate]

27. But she and the other "strategists" lost the last 3 election cycles.

I still dont understand why we are supposed to stick up for her or be thankful that we still cut her a check.

I'm sure you are right- she is not going anywhere- the "strategists" who lost the last 3 elections will see that she keeps getting her checks.

Chair of the DNC Voting Rights Institute? If that is the case, then after Ohio and FLA she really DOES need to go.

Sorry, but no one is "trashing yet another Democrat" in a pointless manner- we are pointing out the fact that people who think like her cause the party to lose elections- that is her record. If we were distorting her record and saying that she lost elections that she really won, then I guess that would indeed be "trashing."

Pointing out a record of failure is not "trashing"- and if she is just getting aroung to thanking bloggers rather than trashing them as "nut-roots" or "far left" or "out of touch with the people who think Bush is great" , then that just shows how out of touch she is.

[RaleighNCDUer]

13. At least she is admitting that she is one of the dinosaurs -

though she still seems a little confused about who are the dinosaurs and who are the grass-roots insurgents.

For your edification, Ms Brazille, the insurgents are not all newbie dems under 25. The insurgents are liberal dems of all ages who have not been able to get their voices heard in the dem establishment. And the dinosaurs are not just old dems, but are conservative DLC corporate dems who give truth to the leftist meme that there is no difference between dems and republicans.

And you don't need to open the door for us - those of us who are not already inside will kick the door down. Those, like Joe Lieberman, who try to hold the door against us are only going to get smacked in the face by it.

[sandnsea]

15. Didn't know Lieberman was in trouble???

Wow. Now that is really stunning. How could she not know Democrats are disgusted with Lieberman?? I know the media is listening to a different group of Democrats than I know, but for someone in the leadership to be that out of touch is truly shocking.

[bvar22]

16. BREAKING!!!

Donna Brazille discovers that the Demovratic Party Leadership is Out of Touch with America!

In recent polls by the Pew Research Group, the Opinion Research Corporation, the Wall Street Journal, and CBS News, the American majority has made clear how it feels. Look at how the majority feels about some of the issues that you'd think would be gospel to a real Democratic party:

1. 65 percent (of ALL Americans, Democrats AND Republicans) say the government should guarantee health insurance for everyone -- even if it means raising taxes.

2. 86 percent favor raising the minimum wage (including 79 percent of selfdescribed "social conservatives").

3. 60 percent favor repealing either all of Bush's tax cuts or at least those cuts that went to the rich.

4. 66 percent would reduce the deficit not by cutting domestic spending but by reducing Pentagon spending or raising taxes.

5. 77 percent believe the country should do "whatever it takes" to protect the environment.

6. 87 percent think big oil corporations are gouging consumers, and 80 percent (including 76 percent of Republicans) would support a windfall profits tax on the oil giants if the revenues went for more research on alternative fuels.

7. 69 percent agree that corporate offshoring of jobs is bad for the U.S. economy (78 percent of "disaffected" voters think this), and only 22% believe offshoring is good because "it keeps costs down."


http://alternet.org/wiretap/29788/

8. Over 60% oppose the War on the Iraqi People.

9. 92% support TRANSPARENT, VERIFIABLE elections!
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x446445

The Democratic Party is a BIG TENT, but there is NO ROOM for those
who advance the agenda of THE RICH (Corporate Owners) at the EXPENSE of LABOR and the POOR.

[Totally Committed]

19. Outstanding post, bvar22!

I may save that one to a file, it's so good!

Ditto Dr. Fate! -- No longer needed, indeed. The only reason she wants us to have a "seat at the table" is so she can keep an eye on us... 'cause she knows she and her ilk are next to go!

TC

[Dr Fate]

17. Donna Who? Go home, whoever you are. You are no longer needed n/t

n/t

[cybildisobedience]

20. this part is interesting....

She writes:
"But after they helped score an impressive primary victory this summer in the Connecticut Senate Democratic primary between incumbent Sen. Joe Lieberman and unknown businessman Ned Lamont, they clearly have earned a seat at the table..."

We all know that Lamont won because the votes actually got counted in Conn. (They used the old-style, harder to hack lever machines this election).
Can you imagine how many races we've been winning that were stolen? Can you imagine how different the political climate in this country would be if Max Cleland really did retain his seat (after being 8 points up in the polls the day of the election), or if all of Kerry's voters actually got to cast their vote and then -- astoningly -- had it counted? Correctly?

The Dem leadership in this country has been responding to what I think has really been a false sense of reality -- and that is that there are millions of "values voters" or "security moms" or "Nascar dads" mysteriously crawling out on election day and skewing the elections to the Republicans.

I'm becoming convinced that not only do these people not really exist, they shouldn't be used by pundits and election strategists to either explain away bizarre, statistically impossible Republican victories, and to "adjust" Democratic strategies to counter them.

And that's only one reason why Brazille and her ilk are the dinosaurs of the party -- they can't see the reality right in front of them.

[Totally Committed]

22. "interesting" is not EXACTLY the word I'd use....

"disgusting" is more like it. Only after we prove we can disappear the likes of Joe Lieberman do she and her fellow dinosaurs decide we're for real, and that maybe those elections WERE STOLEN AFTER ALL.

Ugh.

TC

[glitch]

25. I believe that is exactly what these vapor voters represent

"I'm becoming convinced that not only do these people not really exist, they shouldn't be used by pundits and election strategists to either explain away bizarre, statistically impossible Republican victories, and to "adjust" Democratic strategies to counter them."

[Arugula Latte]

28. Wasn't Donna B. the one responsible for getting Gore to pick Asswipe Joe?

Thanks a lot, Donna! Yet another example of your brilliant political insight! :eyes:

[Dr Fate]

29. Stop making factual statements about strategy error- that is "DEM bashing"

;)

[flpoljunkie]

30. Evidently, Donna Brazile gets it, and is willing to say so. Not so, with

some in the Democratic party. She deserves credit for this--not denigration.

[Dr Fate]

32. Not really. She is like the bully who wants to be your best buddy...

...after you finally turn lose & kick his butt.

She acknowledges bloggers and hard working activists now that they have kicked the butts of her and the other "strategists" whose "lets pretend to go along with Bush" gargabe lost us the last 3 election cycles.

You have a point, but in my mind, we dont need any acknowledgement from proven losers like Brazile- who CARES if she "gets it"- her opinion is meaningless. If she really "got it" she would have been on board from the get go, not trying to make friends after getting her butt kicked.

She deserves credit? Credit to be used towards what? We dont need her approval or acknowledgement for anything.

[seabeyond]

31. o.k. so i will say it. GOOD FOR YOU brazille.

lets get it on...... inclusion. do the work. use us. listen to us. and maybe we can do the same for our representitives.

like kick some ass

[OnionPatch]

34. I wonder does it occur to people that we "bloggers"

are just regular people like everyone else? Just because we have an outlet for our voices they make us out to be something other than the regular people we are.

[proud patriot]

35. any friend of rove is no friend of mine

sorry Donna but that creeped me out .

[Totally Committed]

37. Thank you!

Me, too. Not to mention the DLC affiliation.

TC

[ldf]

36. Donna Brazile needs to acknowledge

that she is completely irrelevant.

end of story.

[FrenchieCat]

38. So I guess it means "she gets it".....? Doubt it.