A NEW KIND OF DEMOCRAT
by Darrell Lewis
Much has
been said of the Howard Dean-inspired movement inside the Democratic
Party all across America. Last night, I had an opportunity to
talk to dozens of young people who are newly registered and will be
voting in their first election on Nov. 2. Their excitement,
optimism and youthful energy are inspiring and gave me cause to ponder
just what is going on within our party.
The best
I can conclude is that there is a new kind of Democrat emerging.
We don't play by the same old rules and we dare to believe that by our
involvement we can make a difference.
We have
watched over the last two decades as the Republican Party has been
dragged to the right by its most radical religious elements. We
listen to our moderate Republican friends talk about how their party
has been hijacked and how they now have to rely on the votes of the
radical right to win elections. Many conservative Republicans
have found themselves forced to abandon their traditional values of
“states rights” and balanced budgets. Democrats, frustrated with
the success of the emerging ultra-conservative Republican Party,
somewhere along the line came to the conclusion that they, too, had to
abandon many of their core principles and also pander to the radical
right. Democratic insiders like to point to the election of Bill
Clinton as evidence that this move to the right was necessary and
successful; yet we all know the real truth about Clinton's success and
his name was Ross Perot.
Howard
Dean was the first voice who loudly cried foul almost two years ago and
asked where the real Democrats are. His bold challenge of the
inside party establishment rallied hundreds of thousands of us to
action. Our sense of higher purpose created a bond and community
that still mystifies the traditional Democratic Party insider and
scares to death politically-savvy Republicans.
This new
kind of Democrat is both a throwback to traditional Democratic values
and at the same time embraces some of the traditional aspects of
conservative Republicans. Yes, it’s a bit of an odd mix and your
politico types still don't understand it. Yes, we truly do
believe fiscal responsibility is necessary. We are firmly
committed to a balanced budget and only spending the resources we
have. However, we do believe that given the choice of eliminating
corporate tax breaks or cutting a needed program, we will choose to
keep the needed program and not cut corporate taxes. We come very
much from a “libertarian” perspective, that the government simply has
no business in our personal lives and we value highly our personal
liberties.
Yes, in
many ways we are Boy Scouts. We believe in helping the little old
lady cross the street. We believe in doing a good turn
daily. We believe that it is NOT a crime to be poor and YES, we
believe government has a responsibility to make sure everyone's boat
rises.
So, what
are we? We are a new kind of Democrat and as Howard Dean loves to
say, we do have the power – the power to change America for the better.
Darrell Lewis is a DFIA Founding Member. He runs the Drury for Iowa Senate blog.
Blog For Iowa 
Spot on, Darrell! Enjoyed the article. Thanks.
Alta
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