Big Picture: Congress and what we have to do to take it back
It seems as if the honeymoon for the new Republican majority in the House is beginning to end with a return flight to reality coming sooner than most of the new members of leadership had hoped. In Doug Rubin’s column in the Herald today, he brings to light what the Republicans have called their “taking back America” pledge through their early actions in this new Congress; redefining rape with regards to abortions, attempting to repeal Health Care Reform without a replacement bill, and trying to extend the Patriot Act (which all I will say about is this quote from Ben Franklin: “Those who sacrifice liberty for security deserve neither” ).
Now, not long ago, I hope that many of my fellow Democrats, whether they are progressive, moderate, or conservative, remember that beginning with the election of Senator Brown, the Republican Party fell under the mantle of “Jobs are Job Number One.” I call on my fellow Democrats that we must keep these people accountable. The news media is going to do their best to keep these people honest, but we have to be there with our mantle to make sure the citizens know what we stand for as an alternative to their gut shot reaction of voting the Republicans into power in the House.
In my infinite interest in history, as it does tend to repeat itself, I ask you all to consider this. Ronald Reagan’s similar pledge of “taking back America” led to his severe alienation of the people that put him in office; those considered by some to be Reagan Democrats, or the more blue collar, hard working folks. I find it ironic that the Republicans claim jobs, but don’t explain that cuts lead to unemployment in various ways. Keep them accountable, for my sake, and for America’s sake because if we don’t, the myth of a Republican balancing a budget for once will surely sweep the country once again.
US Senate race 2012; Could there be 2 seats up for grabs in MA?
With the recent news that Hillary Clinton may be ready to move on from Department of State, it has become growingly apparent, especially with his recent trips to Sudan, the Middle East and his high profile remarks regarding Egypt, that our recently made senior Senator John Kerry is angling for one of the top 5 highest constitutional offices in the United States. If anyone didn’t see this coming, they should check their pulse. Think 2004 convention; then nominee Kerry basically gave then Senate candidate Barack Obama the median he needed to get where he is now. If this were the case, then something unconceivable could happen; two seats up for grabs.
While I still believe that Mike Capuano will be our nominee against Senator Brown, it is too early to tell what bombshell may be thrown into this race. Most of time, there are instances where a contested primary can hurt either side. For our party, I believe it is imperative that we don’t just crown someone as David versus Goliath. A primary would be very helpful, especially if the two seats are not up for grabs at the same time. But more so to the extent I believe a strong contested primary brought victory in the end (i.e. 2010’s State Auditor race). I won’t speculate who will get in but I sure do hope it’s someone uplifting and new to the scene who can reel in those voters from our party that “thought” Scott Brown was their best choice last January. Think Setti Warren, Kim Driscoll, Joe Curtatone….I think we need a Mayor in the race (Would Tim Murray bolt for the Senate??)
Thanks for taking the time to read, feel free to reach me at myteapartywas2008@yahoo.com
The Dems biggest mistake in 2010, first in MA and then across the country, was forgetting to make job creation priority number one. There was a candidate in the 06 race for LG who annoyingly repeated ‘jobs’ over and over again. But her strategy is not so laughable now, and I would argue it’d be good to repeat that over and over again and really measure this Senator and this Congress with the metric of how many jobs were created under their watch, a play on the Reagan question are you better off than you were four years ago?
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p>Second, regardless of Windbags intentions, and it does seem patently obvious that Hillary is bored/drained at State, where she has down a laudable job (and I am one of her harshest critics) that Kerry is angling for a promotion. Makes sense, its his last shot at a legacy seeing how he’s been a mediocre Senator and no one remembers the losers. In that case its essential we nominate compelling nominees that can credibly talk about job creation, talk about local concerns, and run optimistic campaigns that also contrast with the horrid Brown record. Murray and Capuano remain obvious well known favorites. But I like Seti Warren, Curatone (a likely Capuano successor IMO), Sonia Chang Diaz, Alyssa Pressley, and other young up and coming progressive leaders that can all speak credibly about job creation.