"The Waterworld of White Self-Pity"

Christopher Hitchens just wrote a brilliant article about Glenn Beck and the Tea Party on Slate.com, that I highly recommend you read.

Hitchen's basic premise is that tea partiers perceive themselves as an oppressed minority, and seek to reverse the advances of other oppressed Americans, because they fear losing their white privilege. He writes,

In a rather curious and confused way, some white people are starting almost to think like a minority, even like a persecuted one. What does it take to believe that Christianity is an endangered religion in America or that the name of Jesus is insufficiently spoken or appreciated? Who wakes up believing that there is no appreciation for our veterans and our armed forces and that without a noisy speech from Sarah Palin, their sacrifice would be scorned? It's not unfair to say that such grievances are purely and simply imaginary, which in turn leads one to ask what the real ones can be. The clue, surely, is furnished by the remainder of the speeches, which deny racial feeling so monotonously and vehemently as to draw attention.

I love that last part about how much the speeches focus on a denial of racial feeling as to make you question why. Methinks thou doth protest too much.

Are Tea Partiers really going to win in November, as they constantly boast?

Tea Partiers pretend they are an oppressed minority, while at the same time they brag about how they are going to win in November. According to a CBS News poll, 84 percent of Tea Partiers believe they represent the views of most Americans, but overall Americans disagree: 25 percent say the Tea Party represents their views, while 36 percent say it does not.

The Tea Party wants to have it both ways: they claim are both an oppressed minority (89 percent white according to the poll), AND at the same time they are the majority of voting Americans.

Something's got to give. My bet is that all this braggadocio about winning in November is nothing more than boastful bullying. Let the Tea Party be the minority they claim to be - they are the last gasp of a dying population: bigoted, fearful, and exclusionary.

Win in November? Hardly. Not if we GOTV.

Beck's Rally, and the Spiritual Foundation of the Christian Taliban

Recent news articles - including those on left leaning publications - have been marveling at the fact that Glenn Beck's "Restoring Honor" rally delivered a "Religious, not political message."

Really? Anyone who writes about politics and claims this event was more about religion than politics needs to have their head examined!

They are forgetting one of the most important things about politics: All politics is moral. This rally attempts to build a religious underpinning to Beck's radical political ideas.

It attempts to blanket his followers politics under the cloak of religion, much like the way the Taliban cloaks their radical politics under religion.

We know what these folks believe, by now there should be no question about it. They have radical ideas that subvert our constitution. They believe they are the only true Americans, and anyone who disagrees is to be treated like an enemy. They believe they are at war with anyone who disagrees with them. They believe only their ideas have validity, and they are willing to engage in extreme measures - such as armed revolt - to enforce their far right ideology.

So when Imam Beck and the former Republican vice presidential candidate stand before this crowd and talk about Christianity, it must be noted they are talking about a very specific kind of Christianity: it does not include you or me, or anyone else who takes a different view. It is no less than the beginning of a spiritual foundation from which to grow an American Christian Taliban.

"Not political?" Give me a break!

On Being Angry at the President for Not Being Bolder

A lot of progressive people who voted for Obama in 2008 have been expressing anger about him not being more bold in his presidency. Its understandably frustrating that we worked so hard to elect this candidate, and we believed so strongly in ideas like the Public Option, that we feel let down when it doesn't happen 100% the way we think it should.

Its frustrating because we know deep down that if we could just implement strong progressive policies, we could solve *so* many problems. We could prosper as a nation. We could even save money.

But we are pitted in an ideological battle that has been going on in America since its founding. It predates Barack Obama. And I think we must keep this in mind as we roll up to the November 2010 Mid-term elections.

Remember, when the candidate Obama told us that the work couldn't end in the election - that even after the election he would need our help - and our party would need our help - during what would be a long hard fight to bring change?

Personally, I was under no illusions about Obama when I voted for him: I knew I was voting for someone who I believed would act from the goodness of his heart and the strength of his intellect when given the enormous and *conflicted* job of President. That whatever faced in inside that Oval Office, he would do the best he could given the circumstances.

And so he went - into that bubble we call the American Presidency. And he is counting on us out here to both support him and keep him on the straight and narrow.

The question then becomes for me: when you feel that anger, when you feel that the president is not acting as bold as he should, what do you do with it?

I strongly believe we should channel that energy into finding ways we can positively support the President and our party, while *persuading* them at the same time.

Finding hope in the candidate who we sent to the White House was not that tough; but bringing *change* well that consists of much a harder and imperfect kind of work.

Democracy is messy. And if we squander this opportunity - if we allow our party to fracture in anger - then we will lose what little toehold we have gained, and the republicans will take us back to the miserable days of Goerge Bush and Dick Cheney.

We cannot allow that to happen. We've already passed some of the most historic reforms in a generation - and we have made the largest ever investment producing a Green Economy with the stimulus. These are changes we should cherish. Can you imagine the chances of these things passing under Republican leadership? Other presidents have tried for decades and failed.

So. How do we channel that energy into ways to support our party and increase voter turnout in November? Because if we don't do that, any hope we did once have, will surely never come to be.

On Recess Appointments, and the Vote in November

There's a report on the Huffingtonpost today about President Obama and the possibility of recess appointments for important nominees, should the GOP continue to block votes on them.

According to press secretary Robert Gibbs, the President said it would depend on Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell whether or not recess appointments were made.

These important appointments have been held up for political reasons. I'm sorry to say it, but you can't help getting the feeling that some in the GOP *want* our country to hurt, so they can benefit from it in the November elections.

In addition holding up important nominations, the GOP has been filibustering a record number of bills from coming to a vote - including a much needed Jobs bill.

These actions have a damaging effect on our country, because they are blocking responsible plans to recover our economy. And the longer we wait, the worse it gets.

So, while Democrats are doing the hard work trying to get something *done*, the very-powerful minority has actively worked against them.

Meanwhile the powerful minority offers no plans of their own, and when pressed the only thing they offer is the same plans George Bush had.

Yeah, we saw where that got us. And these guys think they should get *more* power?

I think that in November - when presented with a clear choice of the party who is actually working on solutions vs. the party who jeers from the sidelines - the voters might give the GOP a big surprise.

Republicans of Yesterday Considered "Liberals" by GOP of Today

There is a lesson in here for us progressives and liberals. We should take note.

Justice John Paul Stevens announced he is going to retire during Obama's term - most likely within then next couple of months - and already Republican leaders are vowing to fight against anyone the President nominates who is not deemed conservative enough. The GOP may even hypocritically filibuster Obama's nominee, despite their long-held position that nominees deserve an "up or down vote."

The problem for Obama lies in the fact that today's Republicans are far more conservative and ideological than those of the past. Justice John Paul Stevens considers himself a Republican, and he was appointed by a Republican president. So how is is that he is widely considered "the leader of the liberal wing" of the Supreme Court?

The answer is simple: he is apolitical (as all Justices should be), and since his appointment the court has become highly politicized. In today's Republican party, and its lurch to the hard-right, objectivity is not enough. For the rabid members of today's Republican party, if you are not outwardly ideological; if you are not overtly politicizing everything to the benefit of the fringe right, you might as well be a liberal. Therefore, in his objectivity and his attempt to stay out of politics, Justice Stevens is deemed a "liberal" in the eyes of his Republican brethren.

This toxicity is bad for America. The GOP is moving so far to the right, that people once considered centrist republicans are called liberals. In fact, for today's Republican Party the rule is simple: if you are not for them in every way, you must be against them. A party cannot govern with this kind of ideological purity - this litmus test - And thus, we have the Tea Party fielding candidates against their own party if they are not deemed "pure" enough. They will fragment the GOP in their desire for extreme purity.

I doubt the Republicans - or the Tea Party for that matter - can win enough voters to turn the tide in their favor. They have painted themselves into an ideological corner. But if they do gain seats in Congress despite their extreme views, it will be bad for America. We are a nation of diverse views and beliefs. We cannot be governed with an ideological iron fist.

So get out an make sure your neighbors and friends are voting in 2010! We have so much work left to do, and the election of our new President was only the beginning. We need to support him and support our party, because we are the party of inclusion, not exclusivity; we are a big ideas, big tent party and we will not let the toxicity of ideological purity paint us into a corner.

This is what our President believes in. He is a moderate Democrat. I know my colleagues feel he is not liberal enough, but remember he never promised to be. We all knew from the beginning he was much more of a centrist - and if you didn't realize that I'm sorry but you must not have been paying attention.

I am as liberal as they get, but I will not hold progress hostage to my own sense of ideological purity. Look at the Republican party of today as an example of where that kind of certainty and purity leads.

Thank you for reading,
D. Tree

On Opposing the Senate Healthcare Bill... Don't Do It!

Dear Fellow Democrats,

We worked so hard to elect a Democrat majority in 2006, and Barack Obama in 2008. We accomplished this by coalescing our different internal groups: progressives, liberals, independents, and - yes - even Conservadems.

Now that we have some amount of power, I am so saddened to see our party do what it has done in the past: our diverse groups are fragmenting because we expect some "perfect" version of policies to be enacted immediately. We seem unable to act like a TEAM.

How will we ever be able to govern, if we cannot compromise with each other? It will be impossible, and we will lose the power we worked so hard to attain... before we ever have a chance to show the American People that our ideas will make this country better.

Let me give you an example: Like you, I am receiving emails from various liberal and progressive causes - causes I supported during the elections, and during the fight for a public option. These action groups are now calling on me to petition the President to fire his top adviser. They are calling on me to demand my senators and congresspersons vote against the Healthcare Reform bill because it doesn't have a public option. In essence, at the same time conservatives and independents flee our party, my liberal fellows are actively fighting AGAINST the president we worked to hard to elect!

My fellow Democrats, don't you see how wrong this is? Have you ever heard the phrase "Cutting off one's nose to spite their face?"

Please don't misunderstand me. I am as liberal as they get! But I am also a PRAGMATIST. We need to learn a bit of pragmatism in our party. We have a Healthcare Reform bill that will cover over 30 millions uninsured Americans, will end discrimination against pre-existing conditions, and that will reduce the deficit. What, pray tell is wrong with that???

In politics there is a concept called a "Strategic Initiative." It is an idea that Republicans have long used to powerful effect: When you can't get a "perfect" bill, you pass something as close as you can get. A bill that opens the door to more progressive change, and that makes it harder to turn back time. That is what the Senate Health Reform bill is. Its not perfect, and it doesn't include a public option - something I fought very hard for, and something I know in my heart is necessary for effective reform. Heck, I support a Single Payer system, but I understand its too early for us to get that right now.

The House has passed its bill. The Senate has passed theirs. The time for insisting on a Public Option in THIS bill is passed. But, ask yourselves this: Are we more likely to get a public option in the future if we let this bill die? Or, having passed this bill that gets us one step away from a Public Option, will we be in a better position to pass it in the near future?

Fellow Democrats, we MUST seize this moment and pass reform now. We have delayed long enough. Debated long enough. If we work against this bill now, we are only playing into the hands of Republicans who want to kill the bill and start over. This is wrong politically, and will be the death of progress before it even has a chance.

Look, Democracy is messy business. Its not perfect, and it will never be! We cannot afford to hold progress hostage to our own perfect versions of reality! If we do not learn how to compromise with each other to form a Governing Coalition, we shall never achieve our progressive aims and our beloved country will only suffer further under the leadership of a party that CAN work lockstep together - and you know who that is.

Thank you for your time,
D. Tree

Unacceptable: 40% of Democrats Say They Won't Vote Next Year

My fellow Democrats we should be very alarmed at a new report that says forty percent of Democrats "Probably won't vote" next year

Forty percent of self-identified Democratic voters say they are "not likely" or "definitely" won't vote in next year's Congressional elections, according to a little-noticed poll released over the Thanksgiving weekend.

Sure, the Republican Party is in disarray and imploding on itself, but we cannot allow that to make us lazy. In electing Barack Obama, we made a promise that we would stay involved. It was as much about us, as it was about him. Now we have as much responsibility as he does in fixing the problems America is faced with.

We worked so hard over the last 4 years rebuilding our majority and strengthening our moral position in politics, and we cannot afford to let that go at such a critical moment in our history. Our country needs us, Democrats. So get up off your butts, and start spreading the news to your friends and neighbors: We are all depending on you to stay involved, and to help fix our country.

We have huge challenges before us. Goals that will take years to achieve. Like building a green economy to revitalize our industries, or stopping out-of-control health care costs. These goals can't be achieved if we allow Republicans to take back any seats in Congress next year. Do you realize all it takes is ONE more republican senator getting elected, to kill our majority and hamstring the president? One. Think about that.

In addition, there is doubt these goals can be achieved with the fractional majority Democrats currently have in Congress. What we need to be doing now is gearing up for the 2010 elections, inspiring our fellow voters, and making sure that every Democrat gets out and votes in the 2010 Congressional Elections, so we can INCREASE our majority.

We cannot allow this present state of affairs to stand. 40% not voting is unacceptable. It is up to us to make sure this doesn't happen, so let's get out there start waking people up!!

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P.S. - a note to Chairman Tim Kaine and the staff at the DNC

It long been known that many Americans only get involved in politics once every 4 years for the presidential elections. But under the leadership of Howard Dean, the Democratic Party was jarred out of this lethargy and inspired to pay more attention. He initiated the 50-State Strategy, the Democracy Bonds project, and his grassroots organization Democracy For America funded and encouraged new candidates for local and national offices in every one of the 50 States. Where is this energy now? Where is Governor Kaine on these important issues? We hear almost nothing from him! What has he done to continue growing and strengthening our party? When we hear that 40% of Democrats probably won't vote next year, we have reason to be VERY concerned. Step up to the plate Mr. Chairman, or get someone else in who will!