I see the Democrats went with the establishment candidate over the Sanders wing guy. The progressives made a lot of speeches about demanding that Democrats "join the resistance". Various folks been coming out of the woodwork since the confirmation hearings began to try generating some 2020 attention. It looks like politics will be hard to avoid over the next few years.
It seems to me that as the Democratic Party base drifts further and further left, the DNC recognizes the very real likelihood of further banishment from the halls of power, on all levels. The narrow victory of Tom Perez seems to show the favored direction of the party elite although Chairman Perez's immediate motion to elevate Keith Ellison to the position of Deputy Chairman seems to be a dangerous nod to the extreme left.
It will be interesting to see how the party balances the pragmatism of the moderate wing while placating the socialist wing. I think that's a tall order for a party hoping to remain relevant.
"Things should be made as simple as possible, but not one bit simpler." ~ Albert Einstein
I,suppose,we,could try,courting the whit nationalists. That seems to have worked out pretty well for trump.
Extreme left? That's a knee-slapper.
The extreme left is totalitarian communism--practically as far as you can get from Democratic values.
I'd be perfectly happy with a Social Democratic party in this country--you know--European-style concern for the citizens, but I suppose I won't live long enough to see that. Just more of the unending, never-slaked greed of the oligarchs.
+100Originally Posted by JaneV2.0
"Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it--every, every minute?" Emily Webb, Our Town
www.silententry.wordpress.com
And the extreme right is totalitarian fascism - also as far as you can get from Democratic values. Funny how that works. If anyone has an example of a centrist totalitarian government, could they post it?
The center has shifted so far right in the past 50 years - and a lot of what was right is now left. Although it's just really common for folks to attribute "far left" or "far right" to anything they don't agree with regardless of where it is on the political spectrum.
Well, it seems a great way to start out by Tweeting the President with:
"@keithellison and I, and Democrats united across the country, will be your worst nightmare."
Neither of these parties cares anything about the governance of the country, the business of the people. A pox on them all.
I think both major parties may have some adapting to do if they want to remain major.
There are divides in the Democratic Party between the more traditional interest-trading "establishment", the identity-politics wing that seems to be spontaneously splitting into ever more granular identities clamoring for respect, the shrinking but still important trade union/trade protectionist wing and the Sanders/Warren class identity wing.
There are divides in the Republican Party between the traditional values conservatives, the deficit hawks, the libertarians, this new (and to me somewhat disturbing) economic nationalist Trumpian wing, the Constitutionalists, free-traders and a dwindling group of foreign policy hawks.
I don't see much future for Euro-style Social Democrat Parties here. For various reasons, I don't see Americans accepting the tax and regulatory burden that would require. The SD approach may even be starting to unravel in Europe.
I once thought that identity politics would dominate the Democrats for the new few generations, but now I'm not so sure. It looks like it may break down under the increasing weight of intersectionality and create an opening for the class warriors. If that group dominates, I suspect they will do better at the national than the state or local levels.
The Republicans are also at a sort of ideological crossroads, made perhaps more urgent by the Trump phenomenon. The small-government/free-market movement conservatives could very well decide they can't live with the statist approach the Trumpists appear to favor. That, and the grinding, relentless obnoxiousness.
I think things could look very different here ten or twenty years from now. That will have implications for the whole world. Restricting American markets could make the global economy poorer. Many countries that have sheltered under the American defense umbrella will either find a need to re-arm or see new opportunities for aggression.
I saw him on one of the Sunday morning political shows. He seemed to be reasonable but I don't know enough about him to attach a label. The talking heads brought up how Trump was once a Democrat and an independent and really isn't a Republican. And Bernie was never really a Democrat. I think the boundaries around political parties are changing or at least expanding. The Democrits were once the party of the working people and that image is gone. Call it left or right but IMHO they need to get back their connection to the common folk, not just the minorities and downtrodden poor. Real or imagined they need to shed the image of elitism.
What are Democratic values? That seems like a moving target in recent years. Holding the President's 2008 view on same-sex marriage in 2012 could get you vilified. Trade deals negotiated by one Democratic administration were repudiated by candidates for the next one. I'm put in mind of Groucho's line: "Those are my principles. If you don't like them I have others."
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