Joan McCarter’s front page diary “Dear Senate Democrats: You have a country to save. Shut the Senate down” portrays the Democrats as dilly-dallying on action while they try to decide what paths to take. Reality is a little different. As detailed by Talking Points Memo, Democrats are already using procedural tactics to shut the Senate down today. (Talking Points article)
I don’t diary, but I do comment a lot about my frustrations with the way self-identified progressives often seem to be looking for opportunities to tear down our party instead of looking for ways to build it up. I like McCarter’s writing typically, but her diary today is a perfect example of that. Instead of talking about the actions Democrats ARE in fact actually taking and sharing that knowledge, she focuses on the fact that some Democratic senators (in particular Sen. Kaine) statements are a weaker commitment than she thinks they should be. If that critique had been paired with a good discussion of the actions that again are already being taken, that could be useful as a call to action for constituents of the relevant Congressional people to call and support the work stoppage. But on its own, all it does is to focus people’s anger on the Democratic Party and reinforce a (IMHO, false) narrative of the party as weak, corrupt, and ineffective.
Moreover, as a reality-based community, shouldn’t we be more interested in seriously engaging with the difference of opinions among Democratic Congressional people about the strategy? Is shut down everything all the time actually the best way to go? Or would it be better to take a strategic approach of shutting down and delaying some things but participating in other legislature? After all, unlike the GOP, Democrats care about improving lives of their constituents and a functional Congress is important. Also, would it be harder for McConnell to push through rules changes if Democrats were unpredictable?
I don’t know the answer. I don’t think anyone reading this does because we’re in unprecedented times. We know that the GOP will develop their talking points to try and shift the narrative into being about blaming the Democrats. We know they’ll lie as needed. We know that we’ve had minimal success at countering that.
But what I do know is this: because we have not come out in large enough numbers to vote, the GOP controls both chambers of Congress. This means the Democratic Party literally cannot force the appointment of a special prosecutor or start impeachment proceedings. These actions will only happen with some GOP Congressional members’ support.
So yes, Democrats in Congress are fighting and should be fighting. But it is also important that WE resist in every way available. If you are in a red state, call every single day to tell your GOP Congressional critter how important an independent investigation into Russia is. If you are in a blue state, thank your Congressional critter for the work they ARE doing or encourage them to do more if you’re unsatisfied with what they’re doing. Go to town halls if you can. Join an Indivisible group or equivalent for some solidarity if you work better that way. Stay educated about Democratic accomplishments and actions and have those talking points ready.
