What a week, right? Trump continues to behave inappropriately, Republicans continue to work on stripping away healthcare, a panel exists to conduct voter suppression and we haven’t even started on the damage happening in our state houses.
No matter what issues you truly care about, if you are an activist or a concerned citizen, now is your time to make an impact in the world around you. All hands on deck, we need you.
With everything going on, we are again trapped in a running debate over leadership and fights over what the Democratic party means.
You know how to help Republicans smile? Watch a president fall into a collapse and throw them continuous life preservers by continually attacking each other. This week we have national voices as well as local ones here on Daily Kos talk about the problems within the party and disputes over how hard it is to move forward.
Whether the fight is with Nancy Pelosi, Tom Perez, Markos, the DNC, the DSCC, DCCC, or your local county and state organization, a quick way to get a lot of progressive eyeballs is to go on the attack. So, on this Sunday, where Trump is using media from /r/The_Donald, I’m offering some short thoughts. An Open Letter to Democratic members & progressives.
The greatest problem we face is..
Over the past two years, I’ve spent time in 17 states, met with county and state leadership in multiple communities and sat through numerous state meetings. From Wyoming to North Carolina, South Dakota to South Carolina, Utah to Missouri.
There is a lot of energy out there within our base. People who want to get out and make a change it the world. Kudos! When I attend meetings and start talking to people about how we build our party together, it takes an average of about 22 minutes before someone finds me or a conversation starts about how to fix the party. In all but two state meetings, the answer provided me was the same: “Our party would be better and we’d win more if we could get rid of X” “X is the problem.”
Now, this isn’t to say there haven’t been specific instances where someone might need to do something else. However, this approach has the same result everywhere: running people off isn’t a way to grow the party.
In most cases, there are people involved in the party who are either overwhelmed or, frankly, may not know exactly what to do next. This is true whether they are county or state officers. It happens. What I have to tell you though, is that with very few exceptions, most individuals in leadership roles privately talk about their mistakes, the things they need to do better, and how to get better about it.
It is time for new leadership!
There are two great mistakes made in thinking about the Democratic party. The first is that it is a single-focused entity and all tied together. The second is that leadership of the party controls what happens.
Let’s tackle the first one. If you haven’t read David Jarman’s fantastic breakdown of some of the entities that make up the party, I encourage you to do so and bookmark it. Jarman’s breakdown of infrastructure is good, but even it doesn’t go far enough. The Democratic coalition includes outside groups too. From unions like AFT, NEA, AFL-CIO, SIEU to advocacy groups like Planned Parenthood, Environmental Resources, NAACP, NOW, Federated Women’s Organizations, etc.
One of the first things I want to clear up is that all of these entities have their own role in what happens for our Democratic future. Because of the fact there are so many potential roles available for individuals within the party, it is rare to say an individual is locked out of participating.
All too often, in public meetings, one of the first things that comes up is: “why is XYZ not a leader within the party?” Well, let’s talk about how that person can get there.
While the party infrastructure needs you, it may not be in the role you quickly desire. If you want to be involved within your local county or state party, the starting spot, for the most part, is precinct person. Tens of thousands of these slots are wide open and unfilled nationwide.
Before anyone will turn over real authority to you in an election of officers, they generally have to know you and respect some of the work you put in. This isn’t just true in politics, it is true in every single job and hobby you will have in your life.
If those posts aren’t open, but you still want to be involved, look for outside groups that connect. Is there a women’s organization? A “Drinking liberally” nearby? Do you have an NAACP chapter or NOW? If not, what is stopping you from forming one? Absolutely, positively nothing. In fact, if you need help setting up your own organization, I encourage you to DM me here, and I will connect you.
The second issue is that there is an assumption that leadership is the root of our problems and that leadership has all the power.
In most states — there are some exceptions — but in most states, candidates decide to run on their own. They form their own exploration efforts, they reach out to others and decide whether or not running for office is something they want to do. If you are unhappy with the candidate, you have the option of working to primary them, to hold them to task, or to bring up issues.
The reason is X issue!
Over the past few weeks, I’ve heard these answers for how to fix the Democratic party:
- We need to run a lot of anti-choice candidates
- We need to run a lot of single payer candidates
- We need to stop talking about (X) and talk about income inequality
- We need to talk more to religious Democratic members
- We need to stop sounding like Republicans
- We should sound more like Republicans
- We should listen to (the writer/speaker) because they know everything wrong.
I hate to break this to you, but I have never, not one time, met anyone inside the party who knows all the answers. I don’t know that person. I have met a lot of people smarter than I am, I’ve met people who understood their issues better than I do or ever will, and I’ve met people that were not always that friendly about how things could come together.
The secret is simple: try to learn from the people around you. Just because someone says something is the case, remember it is their perspective. And absolutely no one holds all the wisdom to make unilateral decisions as to what works and doesn’t for the party.
Nancy Pelosi/Tom Perez/DNC/Federally elected D in another state
Now I will complain. How often do I see fellow Republicans complain about lunatic Republicans in other states? Rarely. But Democratic members seem to take a special joy in attacking successful Democratic elected in other states for whatever reason. Remember when I said no one has all the wisdom? Well, the one piece of wisdom I do wish to convey is: chastising people in another state for electing any Democratic member is the equivalent of shaking your fist at the clouds. Good luck with that.
There will be Democratic candidates in 2018 who run and when asked will say they will not vote for Nancy Pelosi. We’ve already seen that as a preview among incumbents and challengers. That’s fine. What exactly does replacing Nancy Pelosi right now get us? I promise you, absolutely guarantee to you that if you replace her with anyone right now, the new person will be blamed with being “even worse” than Pelosi. Because that is what Republicans do.
Stop playing the Republican game.
Our way of thinking about leadership is wrong. We need more blue-collar leadership. Like me!
First, I want to say: thank you for your commitment to service. In most states, our state chairs and Democratic members are unpaid. It is volunteer work. Done well, it is a lot of work. It can be very rewarding, but it is a serious demand on your personal resources. Trust me on that one!
I’m not alone. In a recent diary the case was made that we need to get away from Democratic candidates and leaders who are doctors, attorneys, and those with masters degrees, etc.
I’ve spent a lot of time recruiting candidates for years, in multiple states. The one thing I can tell you is that you take the candidates who show up. Becoming a candidate means you have to be financially free enough to miss a lot of work, to be able to educate yourself on the issues and to learn how to be an effective candidate. The bigger the race, the more pressure there is on you to do these things well.
For many, the idea of becoming a candidate is too much of a difficulty on their family life or their finances. It isn’t something they can afford to do personally or financially. That is the truth. I’m always happy to see individuals run for major offices who come from different backgrounds. They can be compelling candidates. They also chose, for themselves, whether or not they were ready to run and serve.
The party has no power — zip — to tell someone they “must run” and the party has no power — again, zip — to tell someone that because they have great education or money they shouldn’t run.
We also have to recognize that there are many people who have wealth who are (shock!) not bad people. In fact, some great people are there too.
I’ve been in the shoes of those who struggled. I remember staying in “pay by the week” hotels with my wife shortly after we were married when a business partner took advantage of many of us. I know the feeling of real struggle. And I know people who are there, today, who want someone to advocate for them. If that person is their local pediatrician, civil defense attorney or owner of the bank they don’t care as much as if that person is with them.
There are plenty of roles out there. Take them.
Before you pen a letter about how terrible the national or state or county party is ask yourself what you have done to be a stakeholder. Then ask yourself these questions:
Are you working for that organization? Donating to that organization? Voting in that organization? Did you communicate your concerns in writing to those around you? If your concerns were turned away, were they acknowledged as received? Did you offer to become involved as a precinct person or as a member of an advocacy group? Have you attended county / state functions? When you attend those functions, are there people there who know who you are? Have you worked on any campaign as a volunteer?
You don’t have to do all of these things, but they are the opportunities available to you that can help your voice carry more weight. Realize, the fewer of these things that you have done, the less weight your voice will carry in a room when you want to make change.
If you want to bypass all of this and become a part of the leadership discussion immediately, I have an answer for that too: decide to run for local or state office. Become a mayor, a city council member, a school board member. As an elected Democratic member, you will be welcome in every meeting you attend.
If that is too difficult or something you cannot personally do, remember, before you ask the question or complain about the candidates the Democratic party does run how difficult it would be for you, personally to do so and multiply that by hundreds of thousands of seats around the country that the Party works every year to try and fill.
That’s the challenge. To bring some sense of sanity back to our country. Find a role on the right side of history.
Are you ready to suit up?