Effort for Liberal Balance to G.O.P. Groups Begins

[alp227]

Source: The New York Times

In what may prove a significant development for the 2012 elections, David Brock, a prominent Democratic political operative, says he has amassed $4 million in pledges over the last few weeks and is moving quickly to hire a staff to set up what he hopes will become a permanent liberal counterweight over the airwaves to the Republican-leaning outside groups that spent so heavily on this year’s midterm elections.

Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, a former Maryland lieutenant governor and the eldest of Robert F. Kennedy’s 11 children, has agreed to serve as the chairwoman of the group, which will be called American Bridge, lending to the still extremely nascent undertaking the weight of what remains one of the most significant families in Democratic politics.

Leading Democratic donors who have already pledged money to the group include Rob McKay, heir to the Taco Bell fortune and chairman of the Democracy Alliance, a partnership of wealthy liberal donors; Robert Dyson, who heads Dyson-Kissner-Moran, a takeover and acquisitions firm in New York City; and Marcia L. Carsey, a television producer who gave $1 million to Democratic outside groups in 2004.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/23/us/politics/23money.html

[NBachers]

1. Too bad John F Kennedy Junior's not around to be part of this

Over eleven years gone already . . .

[JDPriestly]

2. Good news! I hope they will hire really good scholars and

publicists.

[WCGreen]

3. They have to find some new people...

Not just the usual suspects that they have been running in and out since the Clinton Administration...

New Blood, New Blood....

[elleng]

6. Scholars? Publicists!!!

[BlueMTexpat]

4. Why not just give the $$$ to Democracy for America and

help Howard and Jim Dean keep up the Good Work that they already do quite effectively?

As others here have already noted, those mentioned are the Same Old Same Old, just recycled. As someone whose voting residence and US base is MD, I remember Kathleen Kennedy Townsend well. She is an excellent administrator and probably would have made a good governor for the state - certainly MUCH better than the Erlich-Steele (yes, THAT Steele) combo who beat her out for the spot.
But she was a tone-deaf campaigner, hardly inspirational and nothing like her father, and really could not stir up the base.

JMO

[old mark]

5. Agreed- there are several worthy progressive groups already working to get the

progressive message out. Trying to re-animate the rotting corpse of the Democratic Party is a real waste of effort - they want to be republicans, so let them go and start something new. The current Democratic party in Washington is worthless cowardly appeasers who have sold us out man times since 2008 and won't change for the better.

I have voted for Democrats since 1968, but I have given up on the party completely - they don't represent me at all, and will get none of my support again. They are better than the GOP, but not much.

I support Howard Dean's group, and that's about as close to the Democrats as I am willing to get.
They suck.
mark

[BumRushDaShow]

7. They need to buy media outlets

buy bundles of radio stations, set up syndicated liberal and progressive programming, and run it 24/7/365. As long as the RW lunatics own all the airwaves and print, no liberal or progressive message will EVER break through to the masses.

[BrklynLiberal]

8. THAT would be a great start!!!