Cenk Uygur: I Officially Give up On the Democrats

[babylonsister]

http://www.smirkingchimp.com/thread/10361

I Officially Give up On the Democrats
by Cenk Uygur | Oct 9 2007


It's going to take a generation to move these spineless Democrats out of office. Unfortunately, that is our only alternative. You can't vote for a Republican these days and the Democrats make you embarrassed to ever be associated with them.

Jack Goldsmith is one of the most conservative lawyers in the country. He was the head of the Office of Legal Counsel for George W. Bush. He is telling you that what the Bush administration did for years in its first term was definitely illegal (that's why he demanded changes in their practices when he was at OLC) and strongly suggesting that what they are doing now might also be illegal.

So, what is the Democratic response? They are considering changing the law to make it legal in hindsight. The equivalent would be if the Republicans tried to pass a law saying it was acceptable to lie under oath after they saw Clinton perjure himself in the Monica Lewinsky scandal. Could you imagine?

snip//

Let me tell you a quick story told to me by a former staffer of one of the Democratic leaders. He said a consultant told this senator that the only way he could lose his senate seat was if he challenged the Republicans in any meaningful way. His advice was to give in to them on every occasion, and specifically at the time, on the Alito nomination.

This particular senator did not give in on the Alito nomination (nor did he put up any kind of effective fight, either). But the message from the "Democratic" consultant was clear - you will never be challenged from the left, so always give in to the right.

There is only one way to change that way of thinking. Challenge them from the left. Because this group of Democrats is hopeless. We need a whole new class of leaders.

[xchrom]

1. something has to change --

and this is at least an idea -- but it's gonna be a long slow slog.

[frazzled]

2. Well, considering he was a Republican and Federalist Society member

until not too long ago, I guess he just doesn't have the kind of "team spirit" to be on either side.

I find it odd how many personalities on the young left are recent converts: Markos, Cenk, Glenn Greenwald ... I've never held up much hope for such born-again types to be useful in transforming the party from the inside. There's a kind of idealism and impatience that makes them move from one side to the other, so it doesn't surprise me that such folks are the quickest at being frustrated and giving up (not that I'm not frustrated ... but I've been with the party for 30-some years, and have been in this place before).

At any rate, I'm curious as to how we put so much stock in such recent converts anyway, at least in terms of political strategy. Kind of like Christopher Hitchens going over to the right and then saying he gives up on the Republican party. Who cares?

[Dr.Phool]

3. I've been a Democrat since the first time I cast a vote in 1972.

And I never voted for a Republican until 2004 in a County Commissioner race. And that was for revenge. We'd worked for over a year, studying the problems with electronic voting machines, and we were trying to get our findings on the agenda for the commission meetings. The Chairman, the only Democrat on the commission kept blocking us. We finally got in during the public comments time at the end. Fifteen speakers allowed 2 minutes each, so we split up our presentation among 15 people. After it was over we were approached by a Republican who said it was very interesting, and we should get it on the agenda. We told her to tell her buddy, the Chairman, to let us on. He still wouldn't.

He lost the election by a very small margin.

I'm getting very fed up with our leaders also. I'll never vote for another Repuke again. But, I may not vote for a Democrat either.