Not Liberal Enough

Lots of punditry going on about the Repub win in Mass as well as the inability to pass health care and the general animosity toward government in general and Obama and the national Dems in particular. Some are trying to say that the problem is that Obama and the Dems are too liberal for the country. Here's my take, and many polls are backing this up:

The problem is that Obama and the Dems have not been liberal enough.

What did people vote for last fall? In a word, change. A different set of priorities, a different way of working. An emphasis on progressive values, a government engaged in making a difference, a new view of the world and our place in it.

What have we gotten instead? Deals with banks, deals with pharma, deals with interest groups. An escalation of the war in Afghanistan. A delay in closing Gitmo. A pass on fixing don't-ask-don't-tell. And now, a freeze on domestic spending that is seen by both sides as a sop to the right.

You don't win by becoming your opponent. As Harry Truman said, "Give people a choice between a Republican and a Republican, and they'll choose the Republican every time." It doesn't do any good to move to the center if the right won't join you there ... and the current crop of Republicans in Washington have made it clear that their only goal is obstruction and playing to THEIR base.

Obama needs to decide if he supports liberal and progressive values and causes, or not. If he does, then he needs to fight for them, hard. He needs to stop relying on speeches and bi-partisanship and start pushing his own party to act, to win. He is trying to let the process play out, not realizing he is supposed to be part of the process.

Politics is pretty basic, really. You get things done by holding your base and winning the center. Obama and the Dems are losing their base AND the center because they are trying to reach the right. The right had made it clear that they aren't interested in playing. Stop trying to be all things to all people; instead, build a progressive agenda and fight for it. Figure out how to both stand for your principles and move the ball down the field. Teddy Kennedy figured out how to do it -- you can too.

Make it clear: "I'm a liberal, and here's the agenda. I'm going to do all I can to move this agenda forward. If you've got a good idea, I'll listen; if you want to work with me to make it better, I'll welcome your help. But if all you want to do is stand in the way, then don't expect me to change to help you, 'cause that's not happening."

It's time for the Dems to be progressive, not pansies. And it's time for Obama to lead, not talk.