This is the crucial period for the National Democratic Party. Last years crushing defeat has afforded it a singular opportunity for rebuilding itself as a Party representing all the people - including those who voted for President Donald Trump. If the Party advances true economic security for all, it will have achieved real substantive progress instead of empty cosmetic change. If it does not, it will have contributed to immense suffering at home and abroad for years to come. Many Democrats authentically care about real justice for real people but risk the destruction of their careers should they speak out against the corporate influences now controlling our political and legislative processes. These business alliances threaten their re-election prospects with better funded primary election opponents assuring that a focus on maximizing profits while minimizing jobs is facilitated day after day on the “Floor” and in the hearing rooms of our U.S. Congress.
As a result, representatives and their staffs traverse the corridors of Capitol Hill tense, on edge, with hair-trigger responses at the ready any time they are approached. Virtually every decision made on the basis of self-protection rather than constituent interest - unless of course that interest aligns with re-election priorities. Recently, I found myself the only non-Member of Congress on a packed elevator of Democrats enveloped in an atmosphere of intense argument nearing fever pitch. Being polished professionals, several Members employed humorous witticisms in efforts to defuse the tension but not one was satisfied with the orders coming down from Caucus leadership. Deep resentments over the "hitjob" (as one insider termed it) on U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison pressuring him to concede Party leadership to Tom Perez - still boiling just beneath the surface. And just last week, an open letter to Chairman Perez calling for an emergency meeting to discuss the continuing lack of African American women in leadership roles within the Party - signed by black women activists, community leaders and elected officials nationwide.
If these weren't enough, the development of alternative political initiatives from constituencies within the Party such as the Draft Bernie for a New “Peoples Party” Movement and the “Ungovernable’s Resistance” have exacerbated an already strained internal political environment.
Its like a pressure cooker which at times seems ready to explode...
Democrats must redirect and refocus this pressure on restoring the faith of the people who elected us while simultaneously working to reduce our funding dependence on the corporate state. Doing so will inspire voters to come out and work to reverse the almost complete Republican takeover of our national and state legislatures. This renaissance must occur throughout the entire electorate - national, state and local. Hell, even former Vice President Joe Biden is speaking out differently - calling for "public funding" of elections.
The time for internal rancor has passed.
The Party has an historic opportunity to authentically recreate itself - in spite of and because of - the corporate domination of its policies and politics. However, we must keep in mind that tactics such as hiring "systems management types" trained to follow orders rather than to think critically; or sending young political operatives into congressional districts two months before an election condescending to long-time community leaders only foments resentment and replicates outmoded thinking - neither of which we need. I can recall, how in an all-out effort to gain a strong majority in the House during the 2008 election, Democrats accepted - and even pushed for - marginally progressive challengers who later broke with Caucus lawmakers and then-President Barack Obama on important legislative initiatives which prevented the Party from taking full advantage of its majority position. We have to be careful not to be so desperate as to back conservatives in liberal clothing again. Too much dependence on the exotic modeling toys of paid consultants has contributed to the bleak political landscape we currently face. We have to go into these districts early and develop solid relationships with folks so we can learn the lay of their land and work together to maximize our support potentials. We have to talk with people not at them. Sometimes the old ways are the best and in this political technocracy may, in fact, be new. So not considering these and other suggestions may become a recipe for political disaster of the worst kind.
The Party leadership has changed, so lets make sure Party policies have progressed. To paraphrase an oft-used maxim: "to do the same thing looking for a different result is the very definition of insanity..."
What we need now - as in no time before - are new ideas and new approaches totally dedicated to the uplift of the people... not the enrichment of the corporate state. And merely singing "Heh Heh Goodbye" on the Floor of the U.S. House of Representatives isn't one of the new approaches I'm referring to. This will require a special kind of commitment from the Party. A commitment which demands the kind of courage true democracy deserves.