Comments on: MoveOn To Reid And Van Hollen: Sorry, We’re Not Backing Off

By: Heartburn Home Remedy

Heartburn Home Remedy — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 11:58:52 +0000

I noticed that this is not the first time you write about the topic. Why have you chosen it again?

By: News Reference

News Reference — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 08:24:07 +0000

Primaries are an essential component to a healthy democracy.

Any politician that has forgotten that probably deserves to be primaried.

By: nitfan22

nitfan22 — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 16:08:19 +0000

I would call the “blue dog” democrats “liberal democrats” to distinguish them from the rest of the democrats, who are actually Socialists.

By: st0815

st0815 — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 21:09:16 +0000

So where is the democratic process in all this? You can’t vote against a Democrat in the election because then a Republican might come in. You can’t vote against him in the primaries because if you do that a Republican might come in. You can’t put pressure on your elected representatives because then a Republican might come in.

Any reason why there should be elections at all? Any opportunity for the voters to vote for the change they desire?

So it’s the moderates not the left who won the election? Ok then – try it without the left voting for you. Oh that doesn’t work either, does it? Well then there’ll just have to be some compromise where the party aligns their policy a little towards their base.

By: Rhonda

Rhonda — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 09:29:30 +0000

I think MoveOn is right. Just because there is a D beside the name, doesn’t mean you go along to get along, opposition is good. But to deliberately side with the opposition to harm your own parties President and agenda seems defeatist to me.

By: leo

leo — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 02:46:57 +0000

DCCC spokesperson Jennifer Crider: “[Van Hollen] was merely arguing against primary challenges to sitting Democrats.”

This is absolute insanity. It’s precisely during the primary that you want challengers to surface. The alternative is for these challengers to run as 3rd Party candidates in the general. Talk about a disaster.

By: DaCoach

DaCoach — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 01:52:09 +0000

Bayh’s ADA ranking the past two congresses were 95% and 70% which were higher than Obama’s. In contrast, Sen. Lugar had numers of 45% and 20%. To those that wish Bayh defeated, you are insuring another Republican whose record will closely approximate Lugar, if not worse.

It is self defeating to demand that all Democrats think alike and vote alike. That’s Limbaugh’s philosophy, not those of a party that represents diversity and openness of thought. Tell me who is the great decider in our party? In a true democracy it’s no one. hat’s one of the great differences in the parties.

Some act as if they speak for the party. They don’t. No one does. One of the great beauties of President Obama is a willingness to listen and think. It seems that many in the party are unwilling to accept that concept.

Finally, some of his detractors seem unaware of the political landscape. A recent national study points out that 34 percent of the country identifies as “conservative,” 29 percent as “moderate,” 15 percent as “liberal,” 16 percent as “progressive,” and 2 percent as “libertarian.” To suggest that liberal or progressive policies are held by a majority of voters is to doom our progress to a short term solution.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 01:40:55 +0000

Good for you Move On and the great work you do. I just read a list of fake dems that took labors money, walkers and phone calls from our members and are going to sell us out on the Employee Free Choice Act. I will gladly send Move On more money to target these two faced pieces of republican appeasing slime. I waited for eight years for them to oppose Bush and they would not. Now they are worried about deficits? How about a trillion dollar war for oil? Start with Evan Bayh and finish when they DLC is disbanded.

By: x4faith

x4faith — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 22:01:40 +0000

Moveon AS ALWAYS you’ve got my support. I’d rather deal with true republicans than have to guess what behind the mask of those “BLUE FACE” dems. I shocke at Clair McCaskil and heartbroken, as well.

By: AlSimon

AlSimon — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 21:47:52 +0000

Right on Moveon Support Obama or face a primary. Its time for new leadership Reid and Pelosi need to make way for the next generation of Democratic leaders for the lack of guts they showed in the last years of the Bush fiasco.

By: grf67

grf67 — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 20:42:01 +0000

Moveon should stop acting like republican zealots and consider the consequences of their actions, intended and unintended. The alternatives are mostly worse than the current state.

By: TomBetz

TomBetz — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 20:40:16 +0000

Great minds think alike!

By: TomBetz

TomBetz — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 20:38:55 +0000

DaCoach needs to check out Ezra Klein’s analysis of Bayh’s voting record.

Bayh may not be moderate nor conservative — he may just be a completely value-free opportunist — but right now, he’s playing a pure obstructionist of Barack Obama’s moderate agenda, to the detriment of the Democratic Party and the nation.

Now that Bayh is no longer in the running for President or Vice-President, his voting record has veered sharply to the right, at the same time that his state’s voters have veered to the left.

As far as I’m concerned, the best part of Evan Bayh dribbled down Birch’s thigh.

By: sgwhiteinfla

sgwhiteinfla — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 20:31:55 +0000

DaCoach
.
Obviously you haven’t been paying attention to Bayh. He never gave a d@mn about being a conservadem until he thought he could be a veep candidate. He is an opportunist at best and a media wh*re at worst. At least Ben Nelson has been consistent in his conservative tilt. Check out this post from Ezra Klein and the chart that goes with it then try to convince me that Evan Bayh isn’t just a clown trying to make a name for himself as a “moderate”.
.
http://www.prospect.org/csnc/blogs/ezraklein_archive?month=04&year=2009&base_name=the_strange_case_of_evan_bayh

By: Tom

Tom — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 20:25:39 +0000

@DaCoach Number one, last I heard, slightly right of center is conservative. Secondly read Think Progress » this Think Progress summary of Bayh's voting record and tell me why that isn't conservative. Third, take a look at Ezra Klein's graph and explain to me how Bayh is only "slightly" right of center. And last, be a hall nanny all you want and feel free to lecture the rest of us about how diverse is our wonderful country and how us rowdies should come to acceptance. That simply isn't the point. The actual point was, why call Bayh "moderate" when he is NOT moderate, his positions and voting record is not moderate. He record shows that he votes in lockstep with conservative Republicans, why not call him conservative. We are asking for an accurate representation of his record, that's all.