1. This is the way of democracy. Surprising. Take nothing for granted. America has been split 50/050 politically at least since 2000. Every race is potentially close. Next time, if you're running for the Senate in a race crucial to the country - and these days, all races are - don't take any votes for granted, don't take a Christmas or any holiday vacation.
2. Health care reform is not dead, it's just more complicated. Think about this: if Franken had not won by that narrow margin in Minnesota, would Obama and all those interested in meaningful health care reform just have given up and gone home? Of course not, they would have figured out another way to get there. That's what they and we need to do now.
3. One of the ways that could work is the House just signing off on the Senate's bill, which would send it straight to Obama for his signature. This would at least have one big advantage: the Senate bill has no Stupak amendment.
4. Other people running for the Senate next year - incumbents and otherwise - better wake up. If Democrats run anyone other then the strongest possible candidates, they'll be in for more of the same. In Massachusetts, think about what might have happened tonight had someone from Ted Kennedy's family - or the larger Kennedy family - stepped up.
4 comments:
to point four - even Ed Markey - it seemed that the big Dem players did not want to go after the seat. I think Coakley has accomplished a lot but is not a good campaigner and she went up against a slick one. Brown never once said he was a Republican in any of his ads - he presented himself as an Independent which was dishonest but people bought it. He should have been called on this as well as the JFK comparison. As I said in a post today it is too bad that people voted for the person they would rather have a beer with than looking at what the person has actually done. We went that route with George W to dismal results. and people have short memories.
Good points, Bill. Thanks for coming by!
1. There is no Kennedy ready or willing to step up.
2. Don't blame it all on Coakley's campaigning style. Blame some of it on the way Harry Reid bought votes from Nebraska and Louisiana at the expense of the other 48 states. Blame it on Obama for giving the Unions a free ride on the health care taxes. Blame it on all of these things being announced just weeks before the special election.
3. Some of the blame does have to go to Coakley's record as A.G.
4. She also had a way of alienating potential voters.
5. She should have kept up on foreign affairs, at least on the wars.
Maybe if she had shown the woman who gave her concession speech she might have won.
I feel your pain, but I think Martha was thrown up as the sacrificial lamb. When even the Kennedy's who are campaigning for her are calling her by the wrong name you've got to wonder if they really wanted her to win.
Paul: as usual very good analysis, especially point 2. we still have a path forward, to use a basketball metaphor -- , the Dems have taken a layup and turned it into a half-court shot ... but REMEMBER Obama is a deadly outside shooter ... ;) .. let's hope for the best. as for better candidates than Coakley -- a while back I saw a YouTube clip of a fiesty Michael Capuano, a congressman from Cambridge, and I thought: this fellow was rejected in favor of the inadequate Coakley? .... so how did the Dems get here? they didn't learn any lessons from VA and NJ governors races and let's face it, NY-District 23 was a gift from the teabaggers. the Dems better wake up as a party. the GOP in victory (2001-2008) and in defeat (2008) have shown what it takes to survive: 1) set a message and painstakingly walk that message every single day of the week, month, year, election cycle; 2) a single voice that is plain and simple (arguments suitable for a debate class are forbidden ... being right is not as important as successfully communicating your position to the average voter); 3) build a media megaphone that will promote your easy to undertand, simple message and will ATTACK VICIOUSLY ANY OPPOSITION TO YOUR narrative (let's face it there is no real "liberal media" out there but a convenient rallying tagline created by The Right (it's one of the ingredients in their red-meat recipe) ... the only media is a "conservative media" machine represented by the likes of FoxNews and right wing talk radio); 4) please don't confuse me with the Facts ... turn 'truthiness' into Facts; tell people what they want to hear and dress it up with a bow -- leverage your "conservative media" machine to deliver a non-stop 'truthiness' marathon; 5) keep the group in unity ... anyone who speaks out of turn in public is severely punished and made to kneel before and kiss the ring finger of Russ Limbaugh. you get the idea ... we need to be more "goosestep in lockstep" with the simple single plain easy-to-understand message/narrative that is presented by ALL party team members and reinforced 24/7 thruout cable TV/Internet/radio/next-gen-media. I'm not sure if the makeup of the Democratic Coalition can reform itself to succeed in this new battlefield. last thought on Mass. senate vote -- there is no irony deficiency here: we have a state that already has universal health care and they could potentially block the rest of the nation from enjoying that same universal benefit. that is a cavity-fill. stay thirsty my friend, jimy_max
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