The Progressive Frontier -- Important lessons to teach Democrats

[Larkspur]

The governor of the Big Sky state has important lessons to teach Democrats across the nation
http://www.inthesetimes.com/site/main/article/2240/

Last November 2, as progressives watched state after state turn red in the presidential race--and in Senate races that were supposed to be close--something funny was happening in Montana. The state that went for Bush by 20 percent handed a solid victory to a new Democratic governor, 49-year-old rancher Brian Schweitzer. And, unlike other elected red-state Democrats, it quickly became clear he was not going to be alone at the top.

Along with the governorship, Montana Democrats seized three other important statewide executive offices, held their majority on the state's Public Service Commission, took a majority in the State Senate and fought their way to a 50-50 draw in the State House.

Since then, Democrats across the country have turned to Montana for answers and hope. Some critics denigrate Schweitzer's victory, claiming that a red-state Democrat must simply be a Republican lite. But that analysis falls flat: Schweitzer is a strong proponent of choice, as well as an advocate for the environment and for middle-class Montanans. And those who have seen the outspoken Schweitzer challenge the Bush administration in the press lately realize: Real Democrats, not faux Republicans, won in Montana.

If Democrats can succeed this well in Montana, they can win anywhere. The question is how.
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...other lessons are more concrete and there are some signs that Democrats are beginning to implement them nationally:

Fight everywhere. Schweitzer didn't write off the rural areas of Montana that have recently become Republican strongholds. He campaigned statewide, winning two counties typically lost by Democrats and narrowing the margin in dozens of others.

Fight back. When Schweitzer got "Swift Boated," his campaign staffers didn't sit silently. They hit back fast and hard. And in his first months in office, Schweitzer didn't refrain from criticizing the president who received more votes than he did. He aggressively criticized Bush on a number of fronts. Now he's more popular than the president among Montana voters.

Actions speak louder than words. Unlike other Democrats who revel in meta-analysis or theorizing over values, Schweitzer simply did it. Rather than saying he was a real Montanan, he talked about his homesteading ancestors. Rather than talking about reclaiming the flag, Schweitzer just did it--prominently on his Web site and on pens the campaign distributed. And both Schweitzer and the Montana Democrats had plans. They just realized that having the plans was more important than talking about them non-stop.

If Democrats across the country learn these lessons, they'll be on the right road to winning America back.

We know that Howard Dean is helping teach those lessons to national Democrats. I sent this to my gubernatorial candidate, Susan Bysiewicz.

It's Dems like Howard Dean, Barry Schweitzer and Elliot Spitzer, who keep me in the Dem Party and give me hope that the Dems have good quality leaders that will rise in the near future.