What is wrong with the democratic party?

[saddemocrat]

I feel really discouraged right now...with the lead-up to the 2006 election, the republicans have already managed to pick up on what could have been 'our' issues....security (thanks to Bush's Dubai bs) and healthcare. They are now pulling away from Bush on both the Dubai deal and medicare cuts...they will end up turning things around in time for the elections to TAKE these issues from us...while our guys are basically standing there with their thumbs up their behinds! I want to hear strong, clear speeches from my democratic leaders. I want them to use this period of Bush's weakness to their advantage!

What is WRONG with the democratic party? Why can't we as a group get it together, get organzied and get...slick on some of these issues to actually have the upper hand. We're right...the republicans know we're right and they know what their weaknesses are. How can we take charge?

[sui generis]

1. our leadership sucks.

we should be drafting a counter budget proposal all year long and just fine tune it when ready to attack.

We're just a herd of cats, basically, right now, and our divisions are getting deeper.

[saddemocrat]

7. Exactly....

We aren't being proactive....we're just reacting (often in a lame way) when a situation arises and it's just not 'smart' politics.

We should be anticipating some of these things. The dems have been waiting like sharks circling their prey for Bush to weaken in the public perception and in the eyes of the republicans. We have known what the major issues are for 6 years now....do we honestly have no other 'plans' that we've been working on? This would be a fabulous time to come out with some medicare reform ideas that have been well-thought out...a great time to talk about port security...a great time to take the LEAD as LEADERS....The opportunity is now being wasted and I don't know why...but it is disheartening.

I'm so frustrated!

[Atman]

2. There is no "democratic party" anymore

At least, not in Washington. Just a bunch of fat, lazy, rich assholes more concerned with lining their pockets than protecting our nation, or fearful that BushCo will "leak" their NSA files.

[magellan]

6. There's no GOP anymore either

Just neocons, neolibs, and a whole bunch of voting machines they can use to keep themselves in power when fear and propaganda fail.

[0007]

11. Hurry hurry get what ya can and get out! Fuck the people,

fuck the country attitude and don't look back. The "Duke" was just a thumbnail of what's taken place.

Wake up American your country is going down the toilet.

[Walt Starr]

3. They have yet to evolve into chordates. n/t

[genie_weenie]

4. The Same thing that has been wrong with the Democratic

party since Andrew Jackson and the 1830s! They have convinced and bamboozeled enough people into believing the Democrats actually care about the common man. They don't.

Democrat/Republican the illusion of choice, USA the illusion of democracy...

[Name removed]

5. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[mdmc]

8. progressives continually want the dem party to stand up

for individual rights and freedoms. The dems just want to be "a little less corporate" then the GOP.

[saddemocrat]

9. corporate...

I see what you mean...I don't want us to be corporate either...at least not in the corrupt sense that I see the republicans. It's just it seems that we aren't able to gain solid footing with the american people because we're not selling ourselves well and we're not taking advantage of our opportunities to gain the upper hand.

[mdmc]

12. RFK jr. or Bernie Saunders could sell the Dems to America

:kick:

[fasttense]

10. There use to be an old joke.

I don't belong to any organized political party, I'm a member of the Democratic party.

Part of what you feel is simply the corporate media getting to you. Democratic leaders have done a lot but you don't hear about it and they can't seem to get their message out.

Repukes are good at organizing campaigns but really awful at organizing the government. Democratic leaders are awful at organizing campaigns but really good at organizing the government.

Democrats still have a pre-KKKarl mentality, where they think a good message with a good man/woman will win them elections. It is no longer about the right man or woman for the right job. It is about who can smear who the worse. It is about how much money you have to buy elections and the media.

[Strelnikov_]

16. Hear Hear! Their Message Is Not Permitted On The 'Liberal' Media

All one has to do is take a look at Media Matters and the tracking of Reich vs. Progressive 'guests' and commentators on the 'liberal' media.

And the ports issue is a planned 'operation' to inoculate the Reich-Wingers standing for election this Nov from charges that they are a rubberstamp for an unpopular Chimp. I was starting to have my doubts, but it appears to be playing out now like I predicted three weeks ago.

[Atman]

17. I agree completely. This is The Royal Scam.

UAE will get our ports. I have no doubt. And the GOP will trumpet this from every rooftop, about how they kept us safe while the dems did nothing. This is a total charade for the benefit of the GOP in 2006.

[wiggs]

25. If your message is not getting out, then you're doing something wrong

I agree MSM is not helping. So dem leaders have to think of some other way to connect, speak, get attention, reach middle America. They have to think outside the box a little. Conyers is able to do it. Others not so much. They can stick with press releases calling for apologies, speeches on cspan once in a while, long complex explanations of simple issues, cautious and mild criticism of irresponsible administration misdeeds, email letters sent to the choir, etc. But if they do, things aren't going to change much.

Reid's Rule 21 play was outside the box...THAT'S the kind of thing that needs to be done every week. Doing it once and forgetting about the issue is...questionable.

On a national level, old politics doesn't work against new politics. Sadly, things are not like they were 6 years ago. Adapt or perish.

[saddemocrat]

32. I agree

The dems have been able to gain traction at times...and there ARE outlets where these politicians could make a splash. There are plenty of 'news' shows that would have a good dem come and share their plans..as well as plenty of newspapers willing to put news out there.

No one is really putting the news out.

[Strelnikov_]

37. Then We Are In Disagreement

Not to say that the message is more muddled (diverse) than the Reich-Wings. Thing is, the Democratic Party is a real political party, made up of members with diverse views. It is not the monolithic Corporatist front the GOP has become, and never should be.

The media's bias is borne out by the numbers. Their guests are GOP leaning well over half, and often times 2/3rds or more, of the time. And the left wing balance is generally represented by a centrist at best.

If there really was not a bias, would not the access (coverage) be nearly equal, muddled message or not?

[wiggs]

42. MSM is definitely biased. That's not my point

My point is that, even in the face of bias, dems have to find better and more effective ways to manage issues and messages. I didn't say it would be easy...just that they have to do something different.

Take out full page ads in magazines and newspapers

Coordinate message (even though party is diverse)

podcasts

Pay for prime time commercials and telecasts

Create a forum each week that is televised, talking about policy and misdeeds. Roundtable.

don't let issues die. Keep running track of misdeeds

Hire an excellent pr person

Be honest, not political.

...and more

[The Straight Story]

40. Said it before, will again - We need to use the baptist/mormon play book

Door to door evangelizing. DU'ers on bikes in white shirts :)

Create pamphlets - put them in bathrooms, restaurants, buses, and so on. Word them in a variety of ways from 'the end is near' to 'their is hope for a better tomorrow'.

Preach it!

[wiggs]

43. like it. nt

[Comadreja]

13. The only time I hear from any interest group

Including the various Dem groups, is for fund raising. I am at or below poverty level. Like many here, I have done a lot of activist footwork, but the candidates' and/or their campaign managers were only concerned about "dialing for dollars." IMO, that's what's wrong.

Living in WA, there are things I can be proud of and pleased about, such as the victory of two Dem Senators and the election+recount victory of Governor Gregoire. The State session ended early with a budget surplus and a funded biomass fuel program for business and agriculture. Of course, we have majority rule in Olympia, but even then got a tort-reform bill through (thanks to a spirit of compromise). Isn't this the way things are supposed to work?

[mattclearing]

14. Nothing.

The media won't report anything good they do.

Every time the Democratic Party does something of worth, the media steadfastly ignores it.

The storyline is that the Republicans in Congress are the opposition to Bush.

Democrats are merely hapless onlookers.

We need to keep creating our own media and taking back coverage.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

15. Nothing. They're getting their share of the $$$$ from the capitalists.

Not as much as the "bad cop" wing of the Capitalist/Nationalist party, but they're working on upping the proceeds.

[SaveElmer]

18. Seems like things are going pertty well if you ask me...

Poll after poll shows the Republicans are on the ropes...the DSCC and DCCC has recruited an impressive array of congressional candidates for this years election, compared to the bungling of their Republican counterparts. We are poised to pick up a large number of Governor's races, and W is sittin at a 34% approval rating...ALl in all a pretty good time to be a Democrat!!!

[MrBenchley]

19. The better things go for Democrats and the worse they go for the GOP

the more vehement these "Democrats suck" threads get.....funny how that works, isn't it?

[SaveElmer]

20. Some people just like to have an enemy...

The Republicans are getting weaker, Democrats stronger...so now they turn their ire on the Democratic Party.

[MrBenchley]

22. cui bono?

It sure isn't the Democratic party that benefits from this dreary daily witchhunt.

[SaveElmer]

24. Luckily....

The DU universe...as much fun as it is...is not that representative of the rest of the party

[MrBenchley]

27. So true....

[spanone]

21. They have probably been wiretapped and blackmailed.

Our esteemed president is illegaly wiretapping our own citizens with the APRROVAL of the Republican Congress. If he can break that law, he can break any law he wishes.

[trudyco]

23. Yep, yesterday I happened to turn on FSTV and saw a GREAT

rebuttal to the state of the Union. Did anybody else see it? They started out parroting Werner or whoever it was that gave the official Dem rebuttal (the guy with the eyebrow that goes up) and then the parroting guy says "Stop. Let me go off script a bit." and he gave the kind of rebuttal Dems SHOULD be doing. It was inspiring. It was truth to power.

It's like the Dems are 10 years behind the ball. They still think they have to look good and "positive" because they don't want to get the negative campaign label. Except that the other side has Rove. You can't play positive next to Rove. Worrying about negative campaigning when you are dealing with the Swiftboat folks is so YESTERDAY.

All the Dems messages sound like they came from a committee. They have no spunk, no authenticity. I guess that's what bothers me most about Hilary. She is being groomed just like Kerry and Gore. Too many "experts" telling her what to say and how to say it. Bill Clinton always mostly came across as authentic, maybe because he wrote a lot of his speeches. I dunno. It seems like such a good opportunity for the Dems, the Repub party is really looking like the Evil Empire, and the Dems are more worried about looking civilized than they are in saving our civilization.

OTOH, I hope the Delay/Abramoff/Cunningham/Plame investigations really root out the evil.

I'm also supporting the gal who is going after the outright lieing campaigning. I hope she wins her lawsuit. Unfortunately going to court takes too long, but maybe it will act as a deterrent. Maybe.

[Yollam]

26. The problem is that it's a steadfastly establishment party...

...when the party that is desperately needed is a revolutionary one. From the war, to progressive taxation to health care, the party over the last 15 years or so has shown itself to be so wedded to corporate interests that it can no longer be looked to as an agent of positive change, but merely a bulwark to slow further destruction of the working class by the GOP.

Anyone who believes that THIS democratic party is going to bring about Single-Payer National Health Care, end the Offshoring frenzy, make corps and the rich pay their fair share, NOT support unnecessary wars on behalf of the petrochemical industry, is believing in an absolute pipe dream.

Not that I think it's wrong to want to use this pathetic excuse for an opposition party as a bulwark - that may be the only wise thing to do at this point, but for those of us who want progress, who are tired of one step forward, two steps back for decades now, a lot of us have started to wonder whether our energies and money wouldn't be better utilized in the formation of a non-corporate, progressive party. This is not Naderite utopianism either. The party is no longer just Repug lite, it's even become ineffective at that. Elected dems cave on almost everything, seeming to think nothing is worth a fight.


There are no easy answers, but I'm amazed by those who seem to think something substantial will change once we have a dem majority in the house and senate. What incredible naiveté.

What real change did we get under Clinton? An UNPAID family leave act? A meager increase on income taxes for the rich, nothing near reversing the huge Reagan tax cuts? A balanced budget? Whoopee! If that's the best we can get, it hardly seems worth it.

[derby378]

28. When is your state primary?

Do what I did just a couple of days ago - become a Democratic precinct chair. Be the change. DU the Democratic Party.

In this election, there are only going to be three types of people - those that make things happen, those that let things happen, and those that ask, "What happened?" Once again, be the change. We've got your back.

[blm]

29. WHO do you think controls almost every aspect of broadcast media?

You WON'T hear the strong speeches or legislation submitted by Democrats because the Corporate media makes SURE you don't.

Did you hear either Dean's or Kerry's truthtelling and factchecking about Bush's photo op in New Orleans yesterday?

Both put out strong statements and Kerry factchecked Bush to kingdom come but NO MEDIA gave their statements any coverage.

[spanone]

31. This is so true. I have only seen republicans railing against UAE.

I know the dems are out there, but they won't give then ANY face time. Democracy is dead as we've known it.

[saddemocrat]

35. actually

The initial outrage that I saw was from the dems on all the stations. I think one of the reasons that the pugs have become the story is that it is so unusual for them to back away from Bush...he usually has them all in his pocket. I just don't want the republicans to end up getting the credit for doing away with the Dubai ports thing.

[blm]

41. The media is making CERTAIN to book the Republicans over the Dems on this.

They do it on everything. Check the research from FAIR or MediaMatters.

Until Dems work to expose the GOP control of the media, we will never have our message on any issue heard the way we intend - look how Murtha's redeployment plan has now been defined as "cut and run" by BushInc and their mediawhores.

[LSdemocrat]

30. We let our infrastructure wither and die from the '60s through the '90s

Meanwhile the Repubs built an electoral machine during that time. Unfortunately there is no quick fix. We have to get organized again in local precincts, organize sympathetic groups, build up a progressive media, build some actual progressive think tanks, and change the mindset of the people who are currently in power.

[saddemocrat]

33. I think

getting organized is the first step...and that we also need to decide what the 'mainstream' in america wants to see. It isn't Michael Moore (as entertaining as he is! :) ) Somehow we've managed to be painted as extremists...but part of that is our own doing. Look at this thread. The mere mention of a criticism of our beloved party caused some people here to throw out obscenities at me...If we can't take an honest look at our weaknesses, how do we remedy them?

The republicans keep getting elected now because they've developed this sleek packaging that seems to appeal to the average american. It's disgusting...but..it works.

[iconoclastNYC]

34. Read "Crashing the Gate" by Markos and Jerome Armstrong

It tells you all you need to know.

http://www.powells.com/partner/30569/biblio/1931498997

[opihimoimoi]

36. There is NOTHING WRONG with the DEM Party

It should be WHATS WQRONG WITH THE REPUBLICAN PARTY.

Look at the Historical evidence....

Dems have Produced and the Pub Party has not

[crispini]

38. It's missing something... YOU.

Why not become an activist in your local Democratic party? Become a precinct chair, go to a convention and work on your party platform, get involved at the grassroots level, blockwalk, phonebank, and build your Democratic community locally.

[sendero]

39. In 1996, DJ Shadow..

.... released a song on his debut album "Endtroducing..." entitled "Why Hip Hop Sucks in '96".

Listen to this song and you'll have your answer! :)

[Clarkie1]

44. We can win by running vets for congress, and that is happening.

The vast majority of vets running for congress are Democracts. If the Democratic Party embraces our vets, America will embrace the Democratic Party.

The party ought to be putting more resources into races where a Democratic Vet is running, and the party as a whole should highlight the fact the so many Democratic Vets are running. Making them higher profile will raise the image of the Democratic Party tremendously in the mind and heart of the average American voter.