A recent diary about an open letter sent by U.S. Uncut to Democrats touched off, entirely predictably, a bitch-fest between those that think Democrats ought to work to attract voters, and those who think that voters ought to show up, regardless, to show support.
The former group is correct, of course, and the latter, wrong.
First, we live in a representative democracy, meaning that our Democratic representatives are supposed to represent us. That is, it is their job to vote for Democratic principles and policies, and to clearly articulate arguments for those principles and policies. Again, that's their job.
Second, never forget that a campaign isn't just a series of advertisements and interviews leading to an election - it's a job interview. Those Democratic candidates are out there giving reasons why the rest of us should be giving them a job for the next two or six years. Any job candidate that can't clearly articulate why they should be hired, and how they would bring value to their constituents doesn't deserve to be hired. I've been on both sides of that equation, and the truth is compelling: job candidates, including for political office have to make the case themselves why they should be hired.
In short, Democrats looking for jobs can't sit on their asses expecting voters to come out and vote for them just because they have a "D" after their name. They have to actually find out their potential constituents' needs, and make a great case how they're going to meet those needs. No one should expect to get hired, and none of us should expect anyone to get hired, just because the other guy is worse. Democratic candidates have to actually lead.