Exactly My Point

I've mentioned frequently that one reason I'm not a Dem and why I find them so disheartening in the face of the united message and movement of the Busheviks is that they have no principled message of their own around which to rally voters and base the policy choices that voters say they want. Here's a perfect example, in a book review critical of the sad Matt Bai who nevertheless says the same thing in his new book, an example that claims to refute the point:

At its most fundamental level, Bai's "no new ideas" argument seems flawed. He has organized his book around a false dichotomy; nobody is against smart ideas, but what good are ideas without political power and without the fundamental vision that has been the foundation of progressive values for decades?

But the basic tenets of progressivism -- fairness and equality; human dignity and the ability to earn a living and support a family, no matter if it is gay or straight, married or not; corporate responsibility and an end to the rampant political corruption and corporate cronyism that so dominates the Republican party; affordable healthcare for all; green economic development; cutting back a bloated military budget and investing in infrastructure and education, and real security without fear-mongering -- none of these ideas are new. And if a candidate ran on them aggressively, and had the necessary resources, he or she would be on the road to getting elected.

Excuse me, but . . . wuhhhhh???? The argument is that the Dems don't have a central message that can be their image, their brand, their reason for being, and this guy argues, "nuh-uh, we have fairness and equality; human dignity and the ability to earn a living and support a family, no matter if it is gay or straight, married or not; corporate responsibility and an end to the rampant political corruption and corporate cronyism that so dominates the Republican party; affordable healthcare for all; green economic development; cutting back a bloated military budget and investing in infrastructure and education, and real security without fear-mongering." Gosh, what a precise and memorable thing to say. And people have a hard time believing that the Dems stand for some THING?

And this review is being linked to by one of the more popular second-tier blogs as if it says something meaningful. That's the Dems' problem in a nutshell. People want to be inspired, they want to believe in a better future, they want something to look forward to, and the brighter minds of the Dems say, "Here it is--fairness and equality; human dignity and the ability to earn a living and support a family, no matter if it is gay or straight, married or not; corporate responsibility and an end to the rampant political corruption and corporate cronyism that so dominates the Republican party; affordable healthcare for all; green economic development; cutting back a bloated military budget and investing in infrastructure and education, and real security without fear-mongering." Against a strong political party, the Repubs wouldn't have a chance without cheating again. But I won't be surprised if they win the White House in 2008 straight out. And, even though the review is right that Bai is a Beltway tool, this is why Beltway tools are not going away any time soon.