It's Valentine's day, a day to close one's eyeballs and cherish a beautiful, romantic notion. No matter how quaint or naive it may seem.
So today I was struck by an article about Van Hollen, the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee downplaying the likelihood of a third Republican spanking in 2010, since the president's party tends to lose Congressional seats.
“If you look at first midterm elections historically, the president’s party loses seats,” he said. “The historical trend is pretty clear for Democrats.”
Rather than trying to expand the Democratic House majority in 2010, Van Hollen believes his job is "to hold the line."
But he expressed confidence that his party can rebuff the historic trend if they govern effectively. “I believe we can prevent those kinds of losses,” he said. “The American people will judge us by how we govern.”
--Politico
Whoa. Govern effectively.
It's a template statement for a congressional campaign committee chairman, but it has a hopeful ring to it.
Govern effectively.
Not:
- Scare the shit out of people
- "Purify" the district boundaries
- Start an endless string of intractable wars
- Smear critics as "unamerican"
- Pay out to friends and call out your enemies (a la Plame)
- Shut out and disenfranchise voters
- Make urban voters wait 5 hours in line to vote
- Transform churches and other personal safe havens as political recruitment centers
- Close off access to all information but the talking points
No.
Just govern effectively.
Just work for the people, and we'll ask you back to the dance.
In addition to being complete screw-ups and having an inexplicable allegiance to the random, made up economic theories of a 1930's film actor, the Republicans lost track of the "govern effectively" notion. Instead they followed Party Supremacy down the rabbit hole. They focused all their energy and (lack of) imagination on how to build a permanent Republican majority. Did they devote their thoughts to making America stronger or American's lives better? No. They blew their political capital on trying to get more political capital. A lot like those Wall Street folks who set up credit default swaps. Neither worked.
If I had my way, Democrats would keep their eye on this "govern effectively" notion, and not engage in the same recursive power shenanigans as the Republicans.
Govern effectively. Just work for us.