Eliminate the Bad Dogs

Down With Tyranny turns frustration with the corporate-owned, anti-Democratic, repug-loving Blue Dogs into practical action. But first, the justification for campaigning against incumbent "Democrats:"

History says the president's party loses in the election two years after he's first voted in. 1934 was a spectacular exception, when obstructionist Republicans screaming "Socialist" at everything FDR tried to do to rescue the country from the mess Republicans had left it in. They were shocked to see themselves further marginalized as the electorate completely rejected them and their obstructionism. Unfortunately, Obama, as we've seen, is no FDR and his tepid and uncourageous politics don't seem to be inspiring anyone who bought into his Change or Hope messages. So... those of us dreaming of seeing the worst of the Republican hypocrites getting what's coming to them-- not likely, not next year.

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Sounds like bad news? There's a bright side. Most, though not all, of the endangered Democrats are reactionary Blue Dogs. The loss of characters like Bobby Bright and Parker Griffith in Alabama, Glenn Nye in Virginia, Charlie Melancon in Louisiana (who is leaving his House seat to run for Senate and will probably be replaced by a Republican) Walt Minnick in Idaho and Frank Kratovil in Maryland-- all likely GOP pickups-- will be no loss to progressives. Democrats will still firmly control the House leadership and these half dozen anti-progressive voices inside the caucus inexorably pushing the Democrats further and further right and away from supporting working families, is a really good thing, despite the fact that in every case the Republican replacing them will be far worse.

But how to do it? The same way we elected by a landslide a candidate who couldn't possibly win.

The 2010 mid-term elections have to be, have to be, recognized as a repudiation of the spineless wing of the Democratic Party. This is our opportunity to prove that we are for real, that we're not just pajama slackers wedged between sofa cushions. We need to run at these people head first, so they always have the thought in their minds, "What do Democrats in my district want me to do, how does society need to work better, for people who need help? What does the Progressive Caucus want, and what are they going to do? What are these Blue America people going to do?"

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The phony Blue Dog principle of 'fiscal discipline' covers their votes against real Democratic principles; votes against health care reform, the stimulus bill, the energy bill, bankruptcy cramdown. Their so-called fiscal discipline doesn't extend so far as to prevent them from voting for the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy, which will cost $3.9 trillion over the next 10 years. They vote mindlessly for supplemental appropriations supporting the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Iraq has cost $694 billion so far, and that doesn't count the human cost.

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The upshot of your ability to raise money online has encouraged members like Alan Grayson to speak forcefully on behalf of our agenda. Can anyone deny that just one member of the House has changed the whole tenor of the health care debate? Don't think for a minute that your support goes unnoticed by incumbents; when we say that they're influenced by campaign contributions, we have to have confidence in our own thinking. These people are constantly campaigning, with an election every two years, and the campaigns become more and more expensive. Having you as a backstop takes the pressure off people like Raul Grijalva, frees him to work on organizing the progressive caucus ....

Real Democrats in House campaigns have never needed financial parity with Republican candidates. They need adequate funding to communicate; when they've had it, they win against Republicans who have far superior funding. It's one of the assumptions of the DCCC and of political professionals who run Democratic House campaigns. You're not wondering why, are you? "Never overestimate the intelligence of the American people" [Mencken] is b.s.: when adequately informed, voters elect candidates who endorse Democratic principles.

It's the phony Democrats who need huge warchests, because they're trying to make enthusiastic voters out of Democrats while saying the following: "Let me be clear. I do not endorse this idea, as it was just one of many ideas we, as legislators, have brought up and discussed in the numerous, ongoing negotiations and discussions we have had on healthcare reform over the past several months." That's Blue Dog Mike Ross trying to squirm out of a previous statement that made it sound as though he might be in favor of opening up Medicare to everyone.

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We all of us believe that Progressive politics makes sense for the country, and we have to trust the voters to recognize the same. Given enough information, and a demonstration of competence by the Democratic candidate (which a well-funded program with multiple voter contacts proves), people discern the difference between common sense and corporate hucksterism, and they vote their hearts instead of their selfish interests. If it were not so, we'd still be living in monarchies. Progress comes from the abiding desire of a vast majority of people for a more equitable and caring society.

There's a good chance that the 2010 elections will be different from any we've seen in our lifetimes. Conventional wisdom that I've always relied on may not hold true this year. The availability of adequate campaign resources (not just money but the numerous progressive organizations which now provide the nuts and bolts of competent campaigns), will bring out numbers of progressive candidates, more than we ever imagined. Anyone who has talked to me about elections knows I'm skeptical of efforts to 'recruit' progressive candidates. People who need to be coaxed to run for Congress don't usually have the drive to do the amount of work a campaign entails. I'm on the way to being convinced that we won't have beat the bushes for willing candidates. We just have to be ready to support them in primaries against the usual suspects, the political hacks who end up joining the Blue Dogs.

Click here and scroll down to see the full supplement The House That Rahm Built.