Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2018/03/07/democratic-rumsfelding.html
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Oh man, the establishment Dems are really pulling out all the stops before the '18/'20 elections, aren’t they.
I know that a lot of the “right wing of the left” has been pretty corporate-owned for decades, but it’s horrifying to see the acceleration of money and corruption in the party core now that the Republicans are clearly in trouble.
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Michael Madigan represents nearly everything wrong with party politics in general, and Illinois Democrats in particular. Literally the only thing he cares about is the preservation of his power, and policy ranks a distant second if at all. He doesn’t even meet face to face with members of his own party any longer, just issuing marching orders from behind closed doors without input or consensus.
Between the Madigan and Daley/Emmanuel cabals, I honestly wouldn’t mind of the Republicans would run a sane, moderate candidates to get these people out of office. But they insist on running people like Rauner and Ives, so the shitstain Democrats are still a better option. Booooo!
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Is it time for a Blue Brothers “I hate Illinois Democrats”?
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I heard they don’t bother wiping the bottom of their coffee mugs before setting them down on important documents! True (middle of the road) patriots unite!
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Chicago gonna Chicago, Establishment Democrats gonna Establishment Democrat.
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Nobody gives money to the central Democratic Party in Illinois (except in the form of bribes for individual party operatives). This is an internal leadership battle for the party, in Illinois that has always been a slimefest, even decades ago when I was playing in that muck.
No, don’t do that, you’re just subordinating your judgment to a different set of people with their own cronies and prejudices. For example, in the Texas 21st they anointed Washington insider Derrick Crowe as “the progressive” over a lesbian minister mathematician activist. (Fortunately, the latter did better in the primary, and will be in the runoff. Give money directly to her, or in the Illinois case to Lindberg, not to some other special interest group just because they have a lefty-sounding name.)
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I suppose that to an establishment Democratic apparatchik, all bottom-up movements look the same.
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For what it’s worth, Madigan is not Chicago.
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NPR had a similar sort of story, but on the Texas midterms, touching on the estab-DEM fear that the Dem candidates who are veering “too far to the left” (for Texas’ taste) could be just too much for fed-up REP voters, scaring them off. To me, that signals a fear that these too progressive candidates can’t be trusted to have the political skills to at least GET into office. Whether that fear is justified or not, I can’t help but think that at least a few of the new faces out there (riding the Big Dem Wave) are not astute enough to calibrate their messages, and believe that 100% messaging to the Dems will guarantee a win.
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TX Estab-Dems: “If we allow these upstarts to win the nomination, the district will end up electing someone who will vote with the GOP 100% of the time for ideological reasons. So instead, let’s elect one that will vote with the GOP 90% of the time for politically strategic reasons.”
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Yep. I do think that a politically savvy, smart progressive with enough financial backing could win. Unfortunately, the current wave (as all such waves) can draw out kooks (and from across the spectrum).
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Well, it sure is heart-warming to see that the GOP and its like-minded ilk do not stand alone in devotion to certain fundamental facets of 'Murican Politics. Reassuring in a way to know that whoever the “new boss” will be…they will have the same integrity as the “old boss.”
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Though I think people ought to rethink what “too far left” means. Are tariffs on steel too far left or too far right? I don’t even think they existed anywhere on the political spectrum four years ago. Right now I kind of wonder if the best thing isn’t just something new. I think Texas voters would be far more willing to give a Democratic candidate a chance if they thought that candidate was pissing off the Democratic establishment.
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I have no idea how an establishment Democrat in Texas is viewed by swing voters there (they being – surely – the prime target). But I can guess that a deep red state such as Texas will knee-jerk pure hate at any howling, over-the-top, extreme left Democrat and go blind to any otherwise persuasive argument, i.e., argue against a WALL by stating the money should be spent on infrastructure, and schools, etc. What’s needed is a politician… and not an irritating screaming face offering no attractive solutions.
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For the Within Temptation song, see Whole World Is Watching.
Sweet band. The song is just OK, though. I recommend their live album more, “Black Symphony”.
You’re much too charitable.
The corporate Dems are not worried about leftist candidates losing; they’re worried about leftist candidates winning.
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I’m talking about Texas…not Illinois (it being one of the most corrupted states).
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