Like other smart people in business ( believe me, politics is a business–maybe our m0st important one), the folks at the DLC are looking ahead and making plans. As Markos and Jerome have been saying in print and on their tour, the netroots is behind in the race to create an infrastructure to support political idea-making and governance.
Ok, so let’s talk policy for a sec. Here’s what Bruce Reed and Rahm Emanuel intend to implement should Democrats gain some measure of control in 2006. Policy is being hashed out by something called the Hamilton Project at the Brookings Institute, which is what Bruce Reed is going to use as a basis for his book ‘The Plan’ later this year.
So if Democrats take control of a House, there will be a fight within the party over entitlement reform, otherwise known as gutting Social Security and Medicare, over school vouchers, and over trade. Right now, the centrists are in the drivers seat.
The next forty years are going to be hard work, for real. But first, whether Democrats win or lose in 2006, we’ll have to save Social Security again, and maybe this time from the Democrats.
-Matt Stoller on MyDD.
OT: did something happen to the front page formatting or is it just me? I’ve tried loading with IE and Firefox and it still looks totally screwed up.
Hi Catnip.
For about 10 minutes all I got was a blank page with the logo. Seems to be working now.
Yup, it’s working for me now too. I hate it when I think I’m hallucinating. 🙂
I bet your car stops making that rattling noise when the mechanic gets into it, too. 🙂
I don’t know why we can’t and shouldn’t all band together and write our own “plan” as well. Candidates and officeholders are increasingly going to turn to the Netroots and ask for fundraising, volunteers and support. We should be telling them they’ll have it on the condition they back our ideas.
The problem with this is that traditionally, getting large groups on the Internet moving in one direction has been like herding cats. Throw in the fact that none of us is a member of an organized political party, and it compounds the problem exponentially.
I agree with you, we would be a formidable force if we could get everyone moving in the same direction. I just don’t have any idea how to accomplish such a thing. A charismatic leader might help — Russ, are you listening?
My thought is that it might be a good idea to author something like this in a wiki-like setting. The dkosopedia makes as good of a place as any.
The GOP basically got where it is today by bringing all of the different groups together and agreeing upon what they can agree on. I don’t see why we can’t do the same, I think the netroots is actually more united on most issues of importance than conservative groups were in the 60’s.
I might write up a diary or something on it in the future, see where it goes.
Read the post and the concept, and as usual only pundits, politician’s, and the top 10% of income earners need pay attention. How to put this? Idiots. There is no room at the table today for a third rail, but I’m convinced there will be in ’08. I know entirely too many people who voted both democrat and republican and have had it with both.
Doesn’t have to be a registered politcal party, just enough people gathered as independent voters. Funny how not one Democrate has advocated simply being fair: a living wage, universal healthcare, and repeal of the tax cuts. Can’t even get close to “security” ’cause I can’t string that many bad words together at once.
Bah.
truthout
I did not, along with a whole bunch of others! thanks
Your welcome. So many different things are going on, it is damn near impossible to keep track of them all.
Expect them to also attempt to ban gay marriage and abortion, dispose of separation of Church and State, and support wars on Iran, Palestine, and North Korea. All in the name of electability, of course.
The DLC is determined to lose another few major elections, and I doubt we’ll be able to prevent them from inflicting further damage on the real Democratic party until after those future defeats.
Maybe by 2012 these hapless, greedy, delusional bums will have been exorcized, but I don’t think anything much of substance will happen in time for electoral contests in ’06 and ’08.