A lot more than progressive Democrats didn't show up in Florida. Mainstream Democrats should realize that progressives have it right when it comes to the Obama White House and the current crop of congressional Dems and those yellow dog Dems should be standing in solidarity with progressives. Failure by mainstream Dems to support progressives will cause massive losses in November, not Progressives not showing up.
What's a progressive to do? There's a growing sense of panic that progressives are going to sit this one out.
The Florida primary, this week, proved that the fear is based on a reality even worse than what Democrats imagined. Though there are more 750,000 more registered Democrats than Republicans in Florida, the turnout in this weeks primary yielded about 900,000 Democrats and 1.25 million Republicans. I don't think you can attribute that massive no-show situation to progressives petulantly staying home or voting third party. No, there are a whole lot of Democrats who are disappointed, pissed, outraged or who have just given up on Obama and his can't-do congressional enablers. Look at how this week, even one of his few positives-- stem-cell research-- was turned around and the White House didn't have a plan on how to respond in a way that didn't make it look like they were caught un-prepared and incompetent... again.
Progressives, young voters who voted for Obama for the their first presidential election and a lot of other Democrats who expected a lot more delivery on promises have very good reason to be dejected an unmotivated to show up.
Progressives in particular have good reason to be beyond furious with Obama appointee @%&*s (expletive replaced) like Rahm Emanuel and Robert Gibbs, who have shown the hostility the White House truly feels for progressives. We have been stabbed in the back, kicked out the door and spit upon by the White House, as well as lied to, and deceived.
It's a bit ironic that Democrats who failed to do their jobs and keep their promises now expect progressives to get behind them, like loyal puppies that have been underfed, whipped and abused. Abused!! Did you know that sexual abuse victims actually develop a psychology where they keep coming back for more. They learn to like being abused. It's part of the pathology.
"But the alternative-- Republican victory-- is much worse," these Democratic victims of chronic Dem congressional abuse opine.
Yes, I know the GOP politicians are far worst in some ways. They have their heads AND shoulders up the butts of the corporatists and banksters, while too many of the congressional Democrats simply have their noses inserted. Well, then there are total whores like Chris Dodd who may still have a toe sticking out. That lame duck will surely have a job, as soon as it is legal, making high six or seven figures somewhere in the banking and finance industry.
But we still come back to the question, "What's a progressive to do?"
Personally, I'm working to primary Obama. I gave up on him. I'd like to see another Dem, not Hillary, but ideally, a woman, maybe Elizabeth Warren, beat Obama in the primaries. Otherwise, the Republicans will take the White House. There's no way Obama is NOT a one term president. Of course, the DNC protects its incumbents, so it is likely that the Democrats will do to the USA what they did to Arkansas, with Blanche Lincoln, and put up a candidate who is destined to lose.
Getting back to the 2010 elections, a big part of the problem is the two party system. It is killing America, so is gerrymandering.
I will be fighting for parity for third party equality, talking to my congressman about making elections equal for third parties, about requiring instant run-off elections or something similar, so third party candidates have a real chance. We need to be aggressive in pushing for legislation that enables equal treatment for third parties. It will probably have to start at the state level, in states like California, where citizens can get laws put on the books, since there is such a conflict of interest keeping elected Democrats and Republicans from supporting such legislation.
Progressives have an opportunity now to make some negotiations. The problem is, there are not strong progressive leaders. I never heard of alpha male or female leaders of herds of cats, which progressives really are like. But leadership is more important now than ever. We need a conversation, as difficult as it may be, which leads to some clear leaders coming forward-- true progressive leaders, not liberal, Democratic party apologists and enablers.
Progressive need, more than ever to get organized. We need to build our local bases and be willing and able to take a stand, facing down, when necessary, the local Democratic party leadership, which is all too often picked and selected from the top down, by people in the state capitol. We need to build our mailing lists, hold face to face meetings and get organized. Then, we can go to our state and federally elected officials and tell them what we want with the leverage of numbers-- not just our own numbers, but the numbers the legislators know we can bring to the table as connectors and activists who reliable get out the vote.
So, I return to the outcome of the primaries in Florida, where the facts were, the reality was that Democrats of all kinds did not show up at the polls. Not a possibility, a historic fact, a harbinger of the DOOM that looms ahead if the White House and the Democrats don't wake up and do some things drastic.
The only way to turn this situation around, where Democrats of all kind are not showing up at the polls is for Obama and the Democrats to take some serious actions that show they are getting the message, like:
-appointing Elizabeth Warren,
-firing the Generals who are virtually engaging in mutiny, speaking out against Obama,
-taking serious, credible action to create jobs-- millions of them, from the bottom up, no more of this giving billions to banksters bullshit.
-fire Rahm Emanuel
-Fire his economic Rubinomics team
-Give up on being nice to Republicans and get tough and play hardball
-Direct Holder to start prosecuting the real bad guys that OEN has published thousands of articles about
I know that a whole lot of centrist, moderate Democrats are going to respond to this saying that progressives will be electing Republicans if they hold out or don't show up or vote third party. The truth is, if moderate Democrats don't join with their progressive brothers and sisters and truly hold Obama's and the Democratic congress's feet to the fire NOW, then those loyal Democrats-- you know who you are-- will have failed the Democratic party. You can no longer allow Obama and his enablers to get away with their slide to the center right.
That's right. I'm putting the onus on YOU in the middle. The new middle is no longer moderate. Former moderate Democrats should be shouting, Ich Ein Progressive.
Put that in your pipe, even you're not from california, and smoke it.