After Glenn Beck being elected Asshole of the Year, shouldn´t we also do the opposite - and vote for the Democratic Hero of the Year ? Since I haven´t seen anyone else doing it, I have sat up a little informal poll with the names of some of those I regard as the most prominent persons in the Democratic/Liberal/Progressive movement this year.
I have excluded Barack Obama from the poll, because as President of the United States he is kind of outstanding, so the idea is to find the democrat that has shone most brightly beside him.
I have tried to make the list quite varied, and have included people with different positions, both politically and formally. Not all are personal favourites of mine.
I am sure all of you will find some names on the list you think don´t belong there, and others you think belong there that are left out.
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It´s better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. Chinese proverb
I don´t have the time/motivation/knowledge to give a presentation of all the nominated, but I´ll start by promoting one I know a lot of you don´t like at all, but that has impressed me:
Harry Reid: named Politician of the year by Matthew Yglesias
Everyone hated Harry Reid, but Matthew Yglesias says today he proved himself a hero by squeezing 60 votes from a cranky, uncooperative Senate for historic health-care legislation.
On top of the intrinsically difficult nature of the task, he’s facing a really ugly political situation back home. Since Beltway mores dictate that you can never hold a member of congress morally culpable for actions undertaken in the name of raw politically self-interest, it must have been very tempting for Reid to get distracted. But he’s stayed on point and focused, dealt with the timid members of his caucus, dealt with the ignorant members of his caucus, dealt with the egomaniacal members of his caucus, and dealt with the all-too-typical Senatorial combination of policy ignorance, egomania, and political cowardice among some members. For his troubles it looks like we’re going to get a bill that liberals feel churlish about at best. But it’s really an extraordinary achievement
Some of the other nominated get to promote themselves in videos under here, the others are just mentioned chiefly by me, but they should all be well known.
Alan Grayson: I apologize to the dead and their families
Bernie Sanders: "Medicare For All Single payer will eventually prevail"
Al Franken: We are entitled to our own opinions, we are not entitled to our own facts
Jon Stewart smacks down Bill Kristol. Intro by Howard Dean
Anita Dunn: Fox News is wing of the Republican Party
Rachel Maddow: Completely speechless
Timothy Geithner: Was handed over an economy from hell from the Bush administration, and has started the turn-around.
Paul Krugman: The conscience of a liberal
Excellent economic analysis . Fighting the deficit hysteria.
Jane Hamsher: Queen of the Public Option. For more info, see diaries on the Rec List.
Bill Owens: Took down teabagger Doug Hoffmann in NY 23 since and his first vote in congress was a yes on HCR
I was almost tempted to nominate The Club for Growth, since they so generously added both Arlen Specter and Bill Owens to the Democratic caucus, but those two democrats got their own spots instead.
And Markos Moulitsas and Rahm Emmanuel should be well known by everyone on this site.
Feel free to mention people I have overlooked that might have deserved a place on the list. I notice myself a certain lack of minorities on my list.