Several bloggers across the blogosphere have responded to MoveOn’s claim that they own the Democratic Party:
WASHINGTON – Liberal powerhouse MoveOn has a message for the “professional election losers” who run the Democratic Party: “We bought it, we own it, we’re going to take it back.”
A scathing e-mail from the head of MoveOn’s political action committee to the group’s supporters on Thursday targets outgoing Democratic National Committee chairman Terry McAuliffe as a tool of corporate donors who alienated both traditional and progressive Democrats.
“For years, the party has been led by elite Washington insiders who are closer to corporate lobbyists than they are to the Democratic base,” said the e-mail from MoveOn PAC’s Eli Pariser. “But we can’t afford four more years of leadership by a consulting class of professional election losers.”
Joe Gandelman of The Moderate Voice wrote a fabulous post last week—How To Destroy Your Political Party In One Easy Lesson. Joe has some moderate advice for MoveOn. Read it.
Meanwhile, Glen Wishard of Canis Iratus muses on what he would do if he owned the Democratic Party. The first thing on his list: Experience Buyer’s Remorse. Some chuckles here.
I’m not sure I have any advice for the merry band at MoveOn. Here in Chicago where we have arguably the most powerful local Democratic Party in the country you can go weeks or months without hearing any of our Democratic pols talking about Christianity’s threat to the country, homogamy, how terrible President Bush is, the dangers of the Patriot Act, or the invincible ignorance of Red State voters. They’re too busy trying to run the city and solve its problems to worry too much about these issues which I guess form the core beliefs of the true believers over at MoveOn. I guess we’re not real Democrats here in Chicago.
UPDATE: More on this subject from The Smoking Room and George Will (hat tip: Joe Gandelman posting on Dean’s World).
You know, that’s the thing: Chicago Democrats (with some exceptions) are pragmatic, sensible people.
It probably has to do with the fact that Chicago is “the city that works,” i.e. sensible, blue collar, not hostile to the Catholic church or other religious organizations, etc.
This may explain part of why we share the same outlook on a lot of things, Dave. Even though I left Chicago many years ago.