Electing Democrats
Steve Benen breaks down a Times article on whether America is ready to elect center-left Democrat:
That sounds about right to me, and it’s been one of the interesting undercurrents of the campaign. The Clinton pitch is that Obama is naive to think Democrats can re-work the electoral map in the party’s favor, and the Obama pitch is that Clinton lacks the vision and ambition to even try. For those who perceive the U.S. as a center-right country, the Clinton approach sounds safe and reassuring. For those who think the pendulum has swung, and Dems have less to be afraid of, Clinton’s approach sounds stuck in the ’90s.
For what it’s worth, I tend to think a liberal — more specifically, Obama — can be a “unifier.” The WaPo recently asked Americans which party they trusted more on the economy, immigration, Iraq, the deficit, taxes, the campaign against terrorism, and health care. Dems led Republicans in every category, in some instances, by quite a bit.
It doesn’t look like a center-right nation, and there’s very little reason for Dems to campaign from a defensive crouch, assuming that it is.
The entire thing is worth a read. I think the real point, which is glossed over, is that the American electorate is ready, not just for the country to move to the left politically, but for a Democrat (Liberal, Progressive, or whatever) to be unapologetically a Democrat.
Whether it is the "New Democrat" model of the Clinton's, or the Progressive message of Obama, is not the issue, per se. To me, it appears that voters are not looking for someone who says "I am a Democrat", but says, unapologetically "I am a Democrat, and proud of it!"
If we have to rely on the media to get that message out, then we will be stuck with the debate over whether America is "ready" for a "center-left" candidate, versus a "center-right" candidate.
The media today naturally wants to be able to frame things in a convenient little box. Only I don't believe that the environment today warrants that. Republicans have been unapologetically Republican, yet the Democrats in Washington seem to wallow in this middle-of-the-road self-pity that has created the very situation that many in Left Blogistan are pulling their hair out over.
I long for the day, when a true Liberal can, and will, stand up and wear that badge with pride before the American public. Until then, just give me a Democrat, who will stand up for Democratic values, and proclaim them proudly, and not run from them. I believe the American public will, by and large, respond positively to that message.
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