Lynn Woolsey is co-chair of the Progressive Caucus. She has some advice for anti-war activists. We should find people to run in primaries against the pro-war Democrats.
Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.) is encouraging anti-war activists to find challengers to centrist Democrats, with the aim of moving the party to the left and ramping up opposition to the war in Iraq, to the chagrin of top Democratic aides.
“You folks should go after the Democrats,” Woolsey said in response to a suggestion from an activist during a conference call last month organized by the Network of Spiritual Progressives.
“I’d hate to lose the majority, but I’m telling you, if we don’t stand up to our responsibility, maybe that’s the lesson to be learned.”
Democratic leaders have yet to punish Woolsey for her stance, but their aides were irked by and dismissive of Woolsey’s remarks.
“The political reality is that the real targets of the outside groups should be Republicans who have so far refused to join the overwhelming majority of Democrats in voting for a change of course in Iraq,” a top aide said.
‘Top Democratic aides’ can ‘chagrin’ this.
Our problem is that I’ve researched it, and there are hardly any candidates running in primaries against Bush Dogs. If Lynn Woolsey wants to help us find some candidates then I am for it. But candidates don’t grow on trees…and neither does money. We need a research project. For each of the Bush Dogs we need to know who the prominent Democrats are in their districts. And then we need some money to entice some people into running. That’s not something we can do without some powerful friends. The Progressive Caucus can’t do it openly, but back channels should be opened.
