Unifying The Democratic Caucus
Since it's Friday, I'll pass along two good things from “Kos” – unified Democrats producing good results.
In the Senate:
U.S.
Senate Democrats admitted on Thursday they did not do enough to protect
their ousted leader, Tom Daschle, from Republican attacks and vowed to
defend his successor, Harry Reid, who is now under fire.
Reid's
43 fellow Senate Democrats, along with a Democratic-leaning
independent, wrote [Bush] to protest a partisan offensive.
They
called on Bush to halt what they denounced as personal and unfair
attacks by the Republican National Committee and the Republican
senatorial campaign committee against Reid. The Nevada lawmaker
replaced Daschle last month as Senate minority leader […]
“Calling
him (Reid) names is pointless and silly,” Democrats wrote in the letter
sent on Thursday. “We feel that suggesting Democrats are simply
obstructionists because they have honest policy disagreements with your
administration is dishonest.”
From the House:
Rep.
Paul Ryan (R.-Wis.) was asked at a CATO conference in Washington
yesterday whether he had persuaded any Democrats to back his plan to
rescue Social Security from its financial troubles. Under his
legislation (HR 4851), no new taxes would be needed to pay for
“transition costs,” participation in the new system would be voluntary
and individuals would be allowed to divert a portion of their payroll
tax into a mutual fund.
A questioner from the audience, stressing his own Democratic
credentials, said he believed Ryan's plan should attract members of his
own party and wondered whether the Wisconsin lawmaker had secured any
Democratic sponsors. Ryan said he had been working with friends on the
“other side of the aisle” who were favorable toward his solution, but
he faced an enormous problem: intense pressure on his colleagues from
the minority leadership.
“We were in planning stages [with friendly Democrats],” said Ryan. But each essentially told him: “I
like what you're doing. I like this bill. I think it's the right way to
go. But my party leadership will break my back. The retribution that
they are promising us is as great as I have ever seen. We can't do it.”
Aside
from the “posturing” from Ryan – Democrats acting as a unified block is
paying dividends, particularly in uniting Democrats to stand against
proposals like Social Security phase-out.
Kos also passes along this from the National Journal:
In
the latest example of his muscle flexing, incoming Democratic National
Committee Chairman Howard Dean agreed during a meeting Wednesday with
Reid to cede full control of the party's policies and agenda to
congressional Democrats and to provide financial and message support to
Reid's efforts, Senate Democratic aides said.
Dean
told Reid “he wants clear lines of communication [with Reid] to …
amplify what the Democrats up here are doing,” an aide familiar with
the conversation said.
While
careful to avoid criticizing former Minority Leader Daschle, many
Democrats also privately argue Reid's early emphasis on unity is
welcome within both the moderate and progressive factions and has
helped bring about the current détente between the two wings after
several years of increasing tensions.
Democrats
point to the fact that none of the party's moderate senators has broken
ranks with Reid's position on Social Security, despite an aggressive
White House conversion campaign aimed at “red state” moderates such as
Sen. Max Baucus of Montana.
The DNC, state parties and Congressional Democrats working toward the same goal. I like the sound of that.
Along those lines, Paul Krugman wonders if the Democratic Party will finally stand up to Republican class warfare.
Democrats
have surprised the Bush administration, and themselves, by effectively
pushing back against Mr. Bush's attempt to dismantle Social Security.
It's time for them to broaden their opposition, and push back against
Mr. Bush's tax policy.
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