Pulling The Democratic Party Right-- Prevention Is A Battle Worth Fighting

All the regular suspects are inundating the media with "news" items about how the only way for Democrats to win is by turning right and running pro-corporate GOP-light candidates. You usually find Nancy Jacobson, Mark Penn, Josh Gottheimer, Mark Mellman, Joe Manchin, Joe Lieberman and billionaires Michael Bloomberg and Andrew Tisch at the root of all the anti-progressive deception and lies that groups like No Labels, Problem Solvers, Democratic Majority for Israel, the Blue Dogs, New Dems and other forces inside the Republican wing of the Democratic Party spread.

A few days ago Jonathan Weisman was elevating their toxic garbage at the NY Times, reporting on the anti-progressive midterm platform-- conveniently "leaked" to him-- and promoted by the corrupt conservatives above. "A cluster of House Democrats from conservative-leaning districts is circulating a reworked legislative agenda for the coming election season that would embrace some of President Biden’s most popular initiatives and tackle rising prices while distancing lawmakers from the left’s most divisive ideas. The plan, obtained by the New York Times, seeks to inoculate the most vulnerable Democrats from the culture wars pursued by Republicans trying to win back the congressional majority. Its existence underscores how successful Republicans have been at weaponizing issues like pandemic-related school closures and 'defund the police' efforts against Democrats in politically competitive districts. The draft agenda was written by Representatives Abigail Spanberger of Virginia, Steven Horsford of Nevada, Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey, Dean Phillips of Minnesota and Elissa Slotkin of Michigan. It includes almost 75 bipartisan bills already drafted and broader bullet points such as 'Combat Rising Costs for Food, Gas, Housing and Utilities,' 'Reduce Prescription Drug Prices, Co-Pays and Deductibles' and 'Fight Crime & Invest in Law Enforcement.' Rather than proposing cuts to funding for police departments, for example, it suggests financing the hiring of additional officers, especially in rural and small-town departments-- though it would also fund body cameras and training, demands from liberal critics of law enforcement. Taking on Republican efforts to end mask mandates and school closures, the agenda includes legislation to 're-establish faith in America’s public health system and ensure preparedness for future pandemics, so that our economy and schools can remain open.'"

It will surprise no one that anything that motivates the Democratic base is left out-- from raising the minimum wage to single payer healthcare.

One measure included in the agenda appears to accept the Republican talking point that the coronavirus was created in a laboratory in China, then covered up by the World Health Organization-- assertions that have been challenged repeatedly by scientific researchers.

The Never Again International Outbreak Prevention Act, by Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick, Republican of Pennsylvania, and Conor Lamb, a centrist Democrat running for the Senate in Pennsylvania, “would provide accountability with respect to international reporting and monitoring of outbreaks of novel viruses and diseases, sanction bad actors and review the actions of the World Health Organization.”

Not part of the right-of-center platform: a defense against racist Republican attacks on "critical

race theory." Fortunately for Times readers though, Jamelle Bouie is wasting everyone's time on the Republicans ing of the Democratic Party poison. "With the Republican crusade against critical race theory still on full blast in states and localities across the country," he wrote, "I thought it was worth sharing the results of a new CBS poll on race and education that sheds a good deal of light on where the public actually stands on these issues. The survey, conducted this month, asked respondents to weigh in on the impact of teaching about race. When asked if 'teaching about race in America makes students understand what others went through,' 68 percent of Americans said yes. When asked if this teaching made students 'feel guilty about past generations,' 23 percent agreed. Just 16 percent of respondents said that teaching about race makes current students 'less racially tolerant.' When asked if books should ever be banned for 'discussing race' or 'depicting slavery,' an overwhelming 87 percent of Americans said no. A similarly large percentage said no when asked if books should be banned for 'criticizing U.S. history' or sharing 'political ideas you disagree with.' And 58 percent of Americans, including 52 percent of white Americans, say that racism is a 'major problem' in America today." Find Abigail Spanberger and Elissa Slotkin some smelling salts.

Among the most notable results in the poll is the fact that most Americans-- 65 percent-- have heard either “a little” or “nothing” about critical race theory. Among those with an opinion on the matter, 49 percent hold a very or somewhat favorable view versus 51 percent with a very or somewhat unfavorable view.

The upshot of all of this, as far as I can tell, is that Republicans aren’t capturing the public mood on this issue as much as they are successfully using it to mobilize their supporters and send them to the voting booth. This is what appears to have happened in Virginia, where Glenn Youngkin, the Republican candidate for governor, rode conservative backlash to C.R.T. to a narrow victory. But most Virginians aren’t on board with this cultural agenda. As a result, after one month in office, Youngkin is underwater with Virginians, who oppose his effort to ban critical race theory.

For Democrats, then, this is a culture war they can win. They just have to fight it.

Yeah... but they won't, will they?