Alexander Cockburn is one of my favorite columnists. He’s out there. He doesn’t mince words. I’ve been reading his stuff in The Nation for two years now as a subscriber [subscribe here!]. His latest “Beat the Devil” column titled Why There’s No Strategy to End This War takes a look at the Dems response to things like censure, the war in Iraq and little strategies from the leadership like this gem:
As reported in the Washington Times, Reid’s strategy memo advises: “Ensure that you have the proper U.S. and state flags at the event, and consider finding someone to sing the national anthem and lead the group in the Pledge of Allegiance at the start of the event.”
Read: flags and songs make Dems strong Americans right?
Cockburn continues on listing the responses of some of the movers within the Democratic leadership to Sen. Russ Feingold’s motion for censure.
Barack Obama of Illinois: “I haven’t read it.”
John Kerry of Massachusetts: “I really can’t [comment] right now.”
Hillary Clinton of New York rushed past reporters shaking her head, then trying to hide behind the 4’11” Barbara Mikulski.
Charles Schumer of New York, who would normally run over his grandmother to get to a microphone: “I’m not going to comment.”
Chris Dodd of Connecticut: “Most of us feel at best it’s premature. I don’t think anyone can say with any certainty at this juncture that what happened [the NSA’s eavesdropping] is illegal.”
And let me add that Bob Casey, who is the anointed from the top “Democratic” Senate candidate here in PA agrees with Dodd as noted in jpol’s diary. Progressive Dem Chuck Pennacchio [for whom I am volunteering many many hours a week] disagrees and stands with Sen. Feingold. As Sen. Pennacchio, he’d be on the floor with Sen. Feingold in support of his motion to censure.
The Cockburn essay is a good read. A good read if only to see your feelings on the printed page and not merely swirling around in your head. If you have problems accessing it via The Nation it’s also here via Counter Punch.
Sometimes it seems to me like we’re going to have to vote out the Dems that are there now and get in a new batch in order to remove the Republicans who are currently entrenched and festering within the three branches of government and the esteemed Fourth Estate still isn’t pulling its weight. The Washington Post hiring and not firing the likes of Ben Domenech [he resigned, and WaPo basically washed their hands of it] is not helping matters either.
This is what happens when you have a “play not to lose” strategy as opposed to a “play to win” strategy.
Republicans will say: Dems want the terrorists to win, they have a 9/11 mindset, blah blah, blah.
Dems response (based on their official slogan): We can do better.
I’m sorry, but that just isn’t good enough.
In football, it’s called a “prevent defense”, and it often loses the game.
Iraq is in an obvious state of chaos, murder and mayhem. And STILL, the Democratic “leadership” refuses to say the invasion was a mistake.
They are spineless and they deserve to lose. But America deserves better.
They actually found a fossilized Democratic spine!?!
It must be from some proto-Democratic creature that lived ages ago… like in the “Rooseveldtian Period”.
Modern age DC Democrats have even managed to lose their cartilege and now belong solely to the phylum “jellyfishia”.
Oh, sooooo this thread is talking about the mythological Democratic spine which is actually the Progressive Spine shown by Russ Feingold and Jack Murtha who are actually throwbacks to when there were actually spines allowed in the Democratic Party.
Anyway, it back to my nap now. Don’t wake me until Hillary doesn’t get the Democratic nomination.
ZZZZZZZzzzzzzz ZZZZZZZzzzzzzz
Lefty!
I think we need new blood, but I also think that the Dems are afraid to act because they know they can’t win, they can’t force sworn testimony…
They should act anyway. But when they are in the majority, they will investigate and they will show a lot more fight.
Hopefully we will get both, a new majority and a lot of new blood.
What’s there to lose by acting? Nothing, they don’t have anything. But they continue to not act. I’m losing faith that if they did have the majority that they’d do many of the things I hope that they’d do with the powers that come with majority rule.
Nothing to lose and they don’t act. With everything to lose, I see this crop of Dem leadership potntially equally as impotent.
that’s what the new blood is needed for.
The Dems I know that are running for office this year are nothing like the mealy-mouther pols like Dodd, Levin, and Biden that are afraid to fascilitate an end of our Great American Century through undermining Dear Leader in his hour of need.
the majority, if we don’t show the spine.
People don’t vote for jellyfish.
Frankly imho, Kevin Phillips summed it up nicely over at TPMcafe on Friday, 03.24.06:
Amen.
You can also access it for free at http://www.counterpunch.org .
i mentioned that in the 2nd to last graph 😉
Yeah. I know what you mean about
That’s why I hope to work with groups like PDA and Move-On.
From a progressive standpoint, we’re better off with BushCo than the DLC. Everything BushCo does validates the progressive agenda. I guess Dean is right, for the long haul, the fifty state strategy is the way to go.
That’s the only “play to win” strategy.
I’m not familiar with the group PDA, what does that stand for [aside for public displays of affection you knuckleheads]?
As for Move-On, I lost faith in them awhiles back. It seems like they’re playing by the book, the leadership’s book, nowadays.
3 years ago, would Move-On ask its members to vote whether or not they should remove the DINOs from office? 3 years ago would they endorse a candidate who is anti-choice, anit-Iraq withdrawal, anti-universal healthcare, anti-assault weapons ban, anti-embryonic stem cell research, pro Alito and Roberts, anti-censure… the list goes on and on and the candidate I’m describing, who they endorsed, is Bob Casey here in PA. Disgusting. They’re helping put in a DINO.
I heard Gary Hart interviewed on Air America this morning. He sounds like a Dem with spine. I wish his voice could be heard by a wider audience. Granted he is not currently in office, but that might give him some cover for actually speaking the truth.
Hart’s been speaking the truth for years. Most notable is the report issued by the Hart-Rudman Report: America – Still Unprepared, Still in Danger from 2001…information that was ignored by BushCo™.
Details HERE and HERE
The man is extremely knowledgeable especially in regards to foreign affairs and terrorism. It is unfortunate that his views have not received wider attention.
Peace
Thanks for the links.
that some of our strongest voices (Hart, Gore, Dean) are not in public office, nor are they running for public office.
The Democrats in this case are no different than the Republicans — they’ll say anything they think the voters want to hear in order to get into office, then they’ll say nothing so they can stay there.
I haven’t watched the Geena Davis show “Commander In Chief” (got a backlog on my iPod), but supposedly in one of the early shows Mac (her character) who has just ascended to the Presidency on the death of her predecessor (over his objections and those of the hawkish Speaker of the House), says something like, “I might as well do what I think needs to be done — I’m not going to be re-elected anyway.” That’s the attitude we need from our elected officials — they need to do what’s right, not what’s politically prudent. They need to treat every term like it’s their last term in office.
So true.
I think your comment also shows the result of being independently outspoken. Anyone who has been a credible threat to the GOP has been defamed in the MSM and public debate. No wonder the rest of them ‘got in line’. Maybe if fellow Dems had defended the outspoken ones we might not be as deep in this mess as we are.
This is a very sad thread, to me.
It starts with a list of of Dem movers and shakers, who to a MAN (and to a woman, too) have refused to go after Bush in public no matter WHAT kinds of opportunities and evidence have been presented to them. Even by members in good standing of their own party like John Conyers and Russ Feingold.
Then some wistful questioning of why the only members of the party who DO speak out are no longer in office.
Duh.
IT’S BECAUSE THE FIX IS IN AGAINST THEIR BEING IN OFFICE, YA DUMMIES!!!
I firmly believe that if the Democratic mainstream powers-that-be hadn’t cooperated in offing Howard Dean from contention in 2004, he would have mopped the floor with Bush and would now be the President of the United States.
And…on the evidence of his tenures as Governor of Vermont and Chairman of the DNC. he would have been a damned GOOD president, too. He’s a good politician AND he has a moral backbone.
What a combination THAT could have been!!! (Shoulda coulda woulda…)
The whole world would be different as a result.
But no…here the Dem bosses still stand, prevaricating their asses off as we hurtle towards a media enforced crypto-fascism that promises a war that will REALLY end all wars…as in the BIG KABOOM.
And here we all are, discussing why the Dems have no backbone.
They don’t have a backbone because they have been very nicely filleted by the corporate-run PermaGov, and there is not a DAMNED thing that you can do about it except start another party. Which in itself is a slim-to-none chance. But it’s the ONLY chance, as far as I can see.
PermaGov Strategy: Continue the policy of economic imperialism…around oil particularly…into the next decade and even further if possible.
PermaGov TACTICS (Tactics being the means by which strategic goals are reached): Maintain a state of unrest in the underdeveloped nations of the world. Especially in the oil-rich underdeveloped nations.
PermaGov problem: How to do this.
PermaGov solutions:
A-BushCo/NeoCon. Go in and kick the shit out of them, then install another sham government and make extra money building back the infrastructure that was trashed during the shit kicking in the first place.
B-If THAT doesn’t work…and it looks like it has not…then withdraw to a safe distance and let them kick the shit out of each OTHER.
The “Let’s you and him fight” gambit.
But in order to do that…you have to replace the discredited BushCo/NeoCon admin with a kinder, gentler version.
Enter the candidates for ’08.
On BOTH sides.
Do you think that they will allow someone to run for office and possibly win (shudder) who is not TOTALLY in line with this program? Who has not PROVEN their loyalty to these forces for 8 or 10 or 20 years?
Perish the thought!!!
Get real, here.
So you may get a local Dem or two in office who really means what he or she says.
NATIONAL office?
POWERFUL office?
Ain’t happening.
BET on it.
Not unless…not unless you start a party that owes NOTHING to these forces.
Which, as I said before, is an almost impossible task.
I mean…hell, even well-meaning , thoughtful lefties like yourselves can’t see the woods for the trees.
How can this idea reach the people?
BUT…witness what is going on in California now. The Hispanic marches.
There are NEW “people” to be reached.
MILLIONS!!!
Reach `em!!!
Minorities, women, the young, the (out-of-work) working class.
Reach `em, and it can be done.
Do not….and:
Bye-bye, Miss American Pie.
Drove my Chevy to the levee,
But the levee was dry.
And them good old boys were drinkin’ whiskey and rye
Singin’, “this’ll be the day that I die.
“this’ll be the day that I die.”
Ka-BOOM!!!
Our choice, now.
OUR choice.
Make it.
AG