As the Democratic primary season fades and our nominee becomes apparent, Howard Dean's supporters are struggling with what to do. How do they leverage the energy of the campaign and the principles that brought them together into a continuing influence upon the party and the country?
It's a non-trivial question. Indeed, Kerry supporters are not shy about suggesting that Dean is done and that the only realistic approach for his supporters is to forget Dean and become fully invested in the Democratic party.
But there is reason to believe that the Dean organization has a bigger and brighter future ahead of it as a cohesive group, operating within the larger party.
It has to do with being friends
Much of the talk about a continuing Dean organization focuses upon political strategizing, as to how the traditional roles of political factions - fundraising, door-knocking, GOTV etc. - can be used as leverage to gain influence within a party that sometimes fails to live up to the ideals it claims to stand for.
Maybe this approach will work, maybe not; wiser heads than mine disagree on the potential. But there is yet another reason why Dean People need to stick together and another way to achieve the goals that Howard Dean made into the centerpiece of his campaign.
Over the last year, my political journey has allowed me a peek within the Democratic party and I've begun to see where the power centers lie and how they form. I've attended county committee meetings, hobnobbed with the local Democratic Club and talked with state party officials. What came to light is not an "establishment" in any real sense of the word, but rather an informal, community of Democrats who have gained influence over the years through the simple expedient of showing up regularly.
Looking over the crowd at these party functions I see a network of friends and acquaintences that have been together for twenty, thirty, forty years of even more. These folks came into the party as boosters of Kennedy, Stevenson, Truman or even FDR. Their political worldviews were forged in those campaigns and gave them a belief system that is, even today, an undercurrent in all they do.
These old friends have showed up for party meetings for all these years, gaining influence and credibility with each other all along. As some of their number have gone on to elected office, the power of the network has grown accordingly.
This is what Democratic party politics is really about. Rather than shady backroom deals, it is more about the influence that old friends have upon each other, especially when some of them are part of government. Politics is not a game for loners.
So if you want to change the party and the country, you won't do it by yourself nor will you do it by virtue of a party membership card. Changing the country is a job for you and your friends - together.
Ten, twenty, even thirty years from now, the Democratic party will still be composed of a network of old friends and acquaintences who share a unique history and a common belief in how our government ought to function. They might as well be you and your friends.
It seems to me that the most patriotic thing that Dean supporters can do to change the country is to keep getting together over beers, laughing at each other's jokes and telling stories about the good old days. In other words, we need to be friends forever. Sure, we need to keep showing up at party events, to keep running for office and to keep campaigning for what is right. But if we all remaing friends and if our bonds remain strong, one day, we'll look around and find that we do, indeed, have the power.
So if I were asked to give advice to Dean supporters, I'd say, "Have fun, stay friends and don't stop showing up." The rest will take care of itself.