Karl Rove could teach President Obama and David Axelrod something about politics...

[David Zephyr]

You NEVER alienate your activist base because you will need them. Karl Rove knew that running to the middle (Nixon's old advice) sounded good, but to win elections you had to gin up your base, you had to deliver for them and never, never alienate them.

Well, here we are days away from a special election to replace Ted Kennedy in Massachusetts, the only state in the Union to vote for McGovern in 1972 against the 51 state landslide, the home of the Kennedy's and a bastion of liberal and Democratic political history...and what do we have?

We have a sitting President that is so toxic right now politically that he doesn't even venture to Massachusetts help out our Democratic candidate. That speaks volumes.

We have our candidate fighting for her life just days before the election there and down by 4 points in the latest poll.

There will be a lot of people just sitting on their hands. "Why bother" some will say. "Too many broken promises". "Why would this Democrat be better than the rest who sold out?" That's really sad.

Karl Rove knew better than to ever let anyone in the White House mock their activist base or label them as "irrelevant".

David Axelrod should take a note...if it's not too late.

Dropping from 80% to 46% approval rating in eleven months is stunning. Stunning.

Triangulation, Dick Morris' old card trick, seems to have caught the fancy of this White House. But that card was never in Karl Rove's deck. He knew better.

You dance with the one you took to the party. And you certainly don't mock them once you are there.

I hope President Obama gives a great speech (he's good at that) when he meets with the Republicans at their upcoming retreat. Somehow, that GOP retreat merited to be in Obama's schedule, but Massachusetts apparently didn't. That's quite a "schedule" our Democratic President has. Quite a schedule.

[Writer]

1. And what, pray tell, is the state of the Republican Party at present? n/t

[David Zephyr]

2. They are close to taking Ted Kennedy's Senate seat. That's the "state" of their party.

Don't whistle through the graveyard.

We are in trouble.

[Egnever]

6. No they arent

50% favor teds replacement 35% favor her challenger in most polls that aint close. I'ts a blowout, despite hysterics over one polsters results.

[avaistheone1]

3. The state of the republican party is not good. However, there would be even less

rank and file republican loyalists if their leadership mocked their own base. It is just common sense.

[Egnever]

4. beat me to it!

Yes Carl Rove succeeded so well! Short term gain for near total destruction of the party. I bet he is proud of himself.

They may never recover from it. These next elections are going to be very interesting,if the tea baggers splinter the pukes any further the losses could be epic.

[riverdale]

8. The great failure

The Republicans could be basically finished as a party by now, if Democrats had actually opposed them and fought for progressive legislation.

[avaistheone1]

12. Yet the Democratic leadership would prefer to mock progressives and cater to the corporations.

The Dem leadership believes that is our winning ticket.

[Egnever]

17. blah blah blah

what a bunch of crap. Congress is bought and paid for on all sides. On the dems side you get bought and paid for with a little humainty sprikled in on the puke side you get bought and paid for.....or did you think cause Obama got elected all those senators that have been sitting there for 25+ years would suddenly become screaming liberals?


Politics is what it is and its all about power. Until we get the money out of elections it will only get worse.

[David Zephyr]

18. You write: "On the dems side you get bought and paid for with a little humainty sprikled (sic)"

How sad is that? I agree with your assessment, but unlike you I don't like it.

[Egnever]

20. Who says I like it?

its reality. I try to base my expectations on reality instead of fantasy as much as possible. I find it a lot less frustrating.

Thats why should this health care reform pas it will be an epic feat as weak as it is just the act of getting it through the senate with any restrictions whatsoever on big business is a herculean task. People who pine for single payer are deluding themslves.

[David Zephyr]

21. You just made my case.

You just justified this lousy health care bill that will make matters worse. As I said, you like it. I don't.

[Egnever]

23. How will it make matters worse?

[Egnever]

14. They are basicaly finished as a party

this disco aint over yet. The tea baggers are the Carl Rove base and they are about to cause some serious damage.

Course we have our own tea baggers just itching at the chance to negate some of the damage thy will do but still theres lots more dark days ahead for the GOP.

[leftstreet]

5. K&R...and did you know there's a Libertarian nut running named Kennedy?

Just saw this on Google news

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/15/us/politics/15massachusetts.html

3rd-Party Candidate Named Kennedy Could Tip Senate Race in Massachusetts

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — In most elections, a politician calling himself the Tea Party candidate would cheer Democrats, raising hopes that he would siphon votes from Republicans by attracting some of the disaffected anti-Washington, anti-Obama electorate.

But when the election is being held to fill a seat that was left vacant by the death of Senator Edward M. Kennedy, and the Tea Party candidate happens to be named Joe Kennedy, things get a little murkier.

Democrats here are concerned that some uninformed voters might confuse him for a member of the better-known, well-loved Kennedy clan, which he is not. And Mr. Kennedy’s libertarian positions make him even more of a wild card in the last days of the race: some could appeal to the right, like his call to abolish the federal Department of Education, while others could appeal to the left, like his call for immediately ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The underfinanced, little-publicized campaign of Mr. Kennedy, 38, is not likely to get many votes on Tuesday. But if the race between the major-party candidates — Martha Coakley, a Democrat and the state’s attorney general, and Scott Brown, a Republican state senator — is as tight as some polls suggest, Mr. Kennedy could play a key role by drawing just a few percentage points from either of them.

[merh]

9. Wouldn't the libertarian tea party guy get more republican

votes than democratic votes?

After all, many conservatives are so disgusted by the GOP that they call themselves libertarians and attend those tea parties.

[leftstreet]

11. You'd think. But it suggests the 'Kennedy' name could get Dems

Kinda bizarre really

[Egnever]

10. "In most elections, a politician calling himself the Tea Party candidate would cheer Democrats"

seriously? The ignorance in that statement is stunning. Most elections tea baggers? LOL cheer democrats! :rofl:

[katandmoon]

7. K&R. So sad, and so true.

[David Zephyr]

34. It's looking more grim there since I made the original post.

Not good if Dems stay home.

[sandnsea]

13. Axelrod says to consider the shape they left the country

"But given the shape in which the last administration left this country, I’m not sure I would solicit his advice. And given the backhanded advice he offered, I’m not sure he was all that eager to help."
http://obama-mamas.com/blog/?p=988


I think most of us prefer people who know how to govern rather than people who know how to steal elections and destroy democracy.

[David Zephyr]

16. Your comments have nothing to do with my OP.

Unless you agree that dishonoring the Leftist activist base is '"how to govern".

Answer me this: Why won't Obama help in Massachusetts. Ponder that.

[avaistheone1]

19. That's the million dollar question....

:think:

[sandnsea]

24. I prefer Axelrod's take on Rove over yours

That's what my comment has to do with your OP. Anybody who would recommend taking advice from Rove hasn't really thought about what that advice has led to. Or maybe, if you want to put it another way, perhaps Rove paying attention to their base is what caused them to govern so badly and maybe your way wouldn't be any better.

Let's let the people who know how to make government work, make it work.

Why won't Obama help in Massachusetts? What shit are you people spreading now.

[emilyg]

15. kick

[democracy1st]

22. K & R

[truedelphi]

25. This was not accidental. This is how the Powers that be set things up.

At least, I have no other way to explain how any Party in the World, even the Democratic Party, could take a 62% mandate and fail to gain one huge advantage for their base. Unless their real base is not us progressives, but the Military Industrial Complex and the Wall Street interests and the Big Pharma, Big Health Insurance, Big Medical Interests, to boot.

[Name removed]

26. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[truedelphi]

31. Welcome to DU.

And glad to hear that maybe I am not crazy (Or at least, if I am, I have some company.)

[David Zephyr]

32. Welcome to the DU.

:hi:

[leftstreet]

29. +1

[truedelphi]

30. If I ever meet President Obama, my quesiton will be:

"Et tu, Brutus?"

[scheming daemons]

27. Idiotic OP.... Rove got hammered in two straight elections... and...

...his President, who's approval ratings were in the 90s after 9/11.... was below 30 when he left office.


You talk about Obama's poll numbers... but in the internals of just about every poll, Obama has held his base.

According to Gallup, Obama has 90% approval among Democrats.

Where he has lost support is among Independents.



This OP is completely, 180 degrees, off base in its analysis.

[David Zephyr]

33. Then tell us why a Democratic President will not go to Massachusettes?

If he's so popular with 90% of all Democrats, why won't he jet a mere 50 minutes up the coast and help out in an election where Democrats outnumber Republicans in overwhelming numbers?

Why isn't that on "his schedule"?

[scheming daemons]

35. Um.... he IS going to Massachusetts.....

[democracy1st]

28. kick

[Karmadillo]

36. K&R.

nt

[dave29]

37. This is a disgusting display of profound ignorance.

Karl Rove preyed mercilessly upon his base and watched it dwindle to only the complete nutjobs. He, more than anyone is responsible for the downfall of the Republican Party. Democrats are imploding because now every interest group wants to be catered to in the same way. Rove tried that, and a lot of other bullshit that is despicable on levels that make me shudder at the thought that you would even consider we could learn anything from him -- other than how to be better liars, hypocrites, cheats and the lowest of the low. Rove lost. In a big way. That you are jealous about how he used his base says more about you than anything else.

What. The. Fuck.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/articles/03/12/p/13_rove.html