In the wake of Sen. Blanche Lincoln's narrow renomination over challenger Bill Halter, and the subsequent spat between the White House and organized labor, the New York Times offers a warning and some advice:
For the White House to minimize the efforts of unions and others who helped support that challenge suggests a tone-deafness to the growing restlessness in the Democratic Party.
Let us count the ways. And let us point out that while most of us support the White House and the Democratic Party, a growing number of us would like to see more evidence that the White House and the Democratic Party support us. The Democratic base. We, the people.
Clearly, many of the voters who complained that Democratic officials had lost their phone number after being elected were also referring to President Obama. Many Democrats don’t understand why the administration and Congressional leaders are giving in to trumped-up Republican fears about the deficit and not doing more to revive the economy. Rather than dismissing such concerns and ridiculing efforts at change, the White House should consider just how powerful they have become. There are virtues to pragmatism, but it should be in the service of an underlying principle.
One might even say that serving principle can be the very essence of pragmatism.