IN 2005, we were on the right track. Today, not so much.(50 state strategy)
Howard Dean became chairman of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) in early 2005, one of his main efforts was to undertake a "50-state strategy," a bid to build up party infrastructure and candidate recruitment at every level and in every state -- even in solidly Republican bastions.
"We strengthened the parties so sitting governors could find good candidates" for offices high and low, Dean said. "That's much easier to do from Topeka than it is from Washington." It meant more work, but the basic theory was you have a Democrat on every ticket in every race. Resources were divided based on priorities of the locals. Local races fielded candidates who were visible in the community and repeated Democratic talking point based on pride in the accomplishments and platform of the party, and the necessity of continuing to fight the erosion of the middle class.
This was considered controversial inside the beltway; remember that most entrenched Democrats in DC and NYC felt they knew best. Needless to say Dean conflicted with prevailing DCCC wisdom that said resources should be focused on swing districts from the top down instead of the ground-up organization the 50 state strategy was.
Here's how the Democrats fared in the reddest of red states between January 2005 and January 2009, the period when the 50-state project was in operation:
State House seats: Net gain of 39 seats, a 2 percent increase of all seats in the states analyzed
State Senate seats: Net loss of two seats
Governorships: Net loss of one
Attorney generalships: Net gain of one (elected seats only)
U.S. House seats: Net gain of three seats
U.S. Senate seats: Net gain of one seat
Presidential performance: In 15 of the 20 states, the Democratic nominee saw an increase in vote share between 2004 and 2008. In three other states, the vote share remained constant. It dropped in only two states.
Now, After Howard left, DWS has reverted to this inside the beltway top down thing that has alienated many of the ground level Democrats far from DC. Her staff was author to the 2010 strategy of distancing themselves from Obama, particularly the newly minted HCA. Without a philosophy and history they were seen as adrift and out of touch and tea party firebrands prevailed in many races. The resulting gridlock has seriously limited the recovery from the recession and kept much needed infrastructure from happening.
While this election was seriously not a lot of weight, just a few areas of the country, we allowed the Press to convey it as a HUGE loss. I haven't heard from DWS yet.
I really don't expect to either. Gotta go. Hillary is in town. 
