We Won

[yesthattom]

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2004/2/16/192836/733

"But Bush's slipping poll numbers, combined with large turnouts of angry Democratic voters in the presidential primaries, seem to have emboldened and united the Senate Democrats. In a private meeting with Senators on Jan. 20, Daschle warned it was time to "put the past behind us. If we don't hang together, we'll hang separately." He has hired Phil Schiliro, an aggressive and seasoned House Democratic operative, to craft a more combative legislative strategy. Instead of going along with bipartisan compromises, the plan is to introduce more "message" legislation to rally the Democrats' base and force Republicans into unpopular votes. Senator Ted Kennedy plans to introduce a bill next week to raise the minimum wage to $7 an hour, and he plans to attach it to the next measure the Republicans want to push through the Senate. Democrats last week pounced on N. Gregory Mankiw, chairman of Bush's Council of Economic Advisers, who said the outsourcing of U.S. jobs was "a good thing" in the long run; bills were quickly introduced to repudiate him and require firms to give employees three months' notice before they are laid off because of jobs being moved abroad.

Daschle will also be more aggressive in using parliamentary maneuvers to block House-Senate conferences if they exclude Democrats from key decisions, as happened on the Medicare legislation. At the same time, Daschle plans to impose more party discipline. Democrats who supported the Republican Medicare bill, for example, will not be given seats on the Senate Finance Committee, which writes health-care legislation, when the next vacancies occur."

Dean will drop out in the next few days. However, we've won. The Democrats aren't going to be pussies any more and its because we proved that fighting back can work.

Comments

[cyan-blue.livejournal.com]

What's your own plan for after he leaves the race?

[alyxyn.livejournal.com]

I'll be sad to see him go. The more I listened to him, the better I liked him. Kerry may look more "presidential" (whatever the hell that means), but I think Dean would make a better president.

Nuts.

[grendelgongon.livejournal.com]

"He gave the democrats...backbone. That is his enduring legacy" - Overheard on C-Span

Random thoughts

[mrfantasy.livejournal.com]

1) Tom, when are you coming home :-(?

2) Dean did great considering this was his first run for the presidency. Kerry's run more than once before. Most presidential candidates (although not the last 2 presidents) have been in the race at least once before they win. Dean might be ready in 2012 (let's hope it's 2012).

Re: Random thoughts

[barking-iguana.livejournal.com]

Kerry's been mentioned as a possibility before (1988 and 1992), but not run, I think. Bob Kerrey (note the diffferent spelling) ran one of the times that Kerry was mentioned.

One way for the Democrats to guarantee victory in the future

[sierra-nevada.livejournal.com]

All they have to do is end medicare and social security. Then all those conservative old people will die off and the remaining leftist youth will vote for a socialist society...

Cynical? Me?