Cross-posted at Winning Progressive
Are you enthusiastic about the November elections? If you are a progressive, you should be, as we have a strong track record and better candidates to present to the American people, and a real opportunity to continue to move our progressive goals forward. But we will only win in November if we all get involved in fighting back against the conservative media’s doom and gloom about the Democrats’ chances and get our base fired up to vote. This is the political battle of our lifetimes, and one that I relish to take on. I hope you’ll join me.
If you have been surfing through the blogosphere recently, you have likely come across various progressives internalizing the conservative media’s spin that the November elections are effectively over and that Democrats are going to get swamped. Two months, however, is a long time and it is way too soon to be calling the election. More importantly, the media narrative ignores fundamental facts that provide a clear route to victory for Democrats. In particular:
- The Polls Are Better Than Reported: The media has reported top line numbers suggesting that Republicans have a lead in the generic congressional ballot. But digging deeper into those polls show that there is fertile ground for seeding a Democratic victory. For example, the reported poll numbers are based on likely voters, which is a subset of all registered voters. The two most recent polls of registered voters, from Gallup (46-46%) and NBC News/Wall Street Journal (43-43%) show that the Democrats are tied with the Republicans. Similarly, a recent Washington Post poll found that more Americans trust the Democrats rather than the Republicans to cope with the problems facing our country over the next few years. That same poll found that more Americans believe that Democrats better represent their values and are more concerned about their needs than Republicans are. In short, the votes are there to more than hold our own in November. We just have to reach out to them and give them a reason to vote for Democrats.
- Democrats Have a Track Record of Success: Contrary to the carping on the right and from some on the left, President Obama and the Democrats have achieved a significant series of progressive successes that have benefited the American people. Those successes include economic policies that kept our country out of a depression, health care reform, financial reform, student loan reform, credit card industry reform, and the ending of combat operations in Iraq, just to name a few. Democrats have made real progress, and we must sell that message to increase enthusiasm in our base and to get some independents to return to voting for the Democrats.
- We Have President Obama: If you have not watched President Obama’s Labor Day speech in Milwaukee, go do so now. With the election really heating up now, there are few things out there that are better at firing up our base than a barn burning speech from President Obama.
- We Have a Proven Ground Game: President Obama and the Democrats won in 2008 in large part because they had a ground organization that was able to reach voters directly and counter balance the media circus and Republican noise machine. That organization, Organizing for America, is back in place and gives us a good way to get out our vote on election day. Watch this video to see an update on the organizing strategy.
- The Republicans Have a Damaged Brand: The simple fact is that Republicans are highly unpopular. The NBC/WSJ poll mentioned above puts the Republican approval rating at only 30%, with only 7% of voters having a very positive view of that party. Meanwhile, 53% to 60% of voters blame the policies of George W. Bush for our nation’s current economic situation, while 62% of American are very or somewhat uncomfortable with a candidate who supports the economic policies of Bush, which is exactly what the Republicans today are offering.
In short, we have the ingredients needed for victory. Now we just need to all get fired up and go out there and fight to make sure that we get our voters to the polls. With the media and corporate donors pushing to give the car keys back to the Republicans, it is up to us to achieve this victory by getting involved. Three simple steps you can take are:
- Write letters to the editor: Send a letter to the editor of your local newspaper to explain to your community why you support President Obama and the Democrats. We are beginning to compile links to major newspapers in various states, and will be updating that list over the next couple of weeks.
- Volunteer for Organizing For America: President Obama’s campaign folks are putting together a great ground game for reaching out to voters and turning them out to vote in November. Click here to join the effort.
- Talk to your family and friends: Personalized contact can be the best way to get people to vote. Speak to all of your friends who are Democrats, independents, or undecided, and let them know why you support our President and why it is important that they vote.
As mistermix at Balloon Juice said yesterday, the fight has just begun. Let’s go out there and win it.