BartBlog

AM 1090 in Seattle is one of the leaders in liberal talk radio. For the past three years this station has organized a town hall forum in which various talk show hosts form a panel and discuss topics and issues that are pertinent to the progressive movement. See http://www.am1090seattle.com/pages/4536082 for more information. Thanks to my brother who lives near Seattle, I have the opportunity to attend this year’s forum.

This year is somewhat monumental, because for the first time since the advent of progressive talk radio, we have a democrat in the White House and a democratic majority in the House and Senate. The title of this year’s forum is “Embracing Change: Moving Forward as the Majority” and one of the questions that will be posed to a panel consisting of Stephanie Miller, Thom Hartmann, Bill Press, Mike Malloy and Ron Reagan is: “We have the power to forge a different path, but how?” I am sure regular bartcop readers would have many suggestions.

I think the key to the success of the Democratic party is to redefine itself as the party of the people and clearly differentiate itself from the Rethuglican party. Trying to remain defined as a centrist party was a recipe for failure in 1992 and things are no different now. Almost everyone has heard someone say “there is not much difference between either party” or “all politicians are the same.” That perception leaves the door open for the fascist dogs to sneak back in. Despite what the right-wing noise machine and the corporate media would like people to believe, the truth is that progressive ideas are more widely accepted now than they have been in generations. There has been a clear shift to the left in public opinion and it is time for the Democratic party to seize this opportunity and move in that direction.

There are several things I would like to hear when that question is addressed. First and foremost is how to convince the pink tutu Dems in congress that they actually DO have the power to forge a different path, with or without the cooperation of the minority party and with or without special interest money.

Here are a few more things I am hoping to hear from the panel:

Stop trying to compromise with the fascist dogs. Politics has become a game and the only real losers are the American people. The Republicans have only one motive – keeping their jobs long enough to get back into power. The only way they can do that is by obstructing any progress. Progressives may or may not get credit for progress, but they will certainly be blamed for any failure to get things done. Remind the Republicans that their votes are no longer needed in order to get legislation passed. Any progressive legislation will not earn their votes, regardless of compromise.

If compromise is absolutely necessary in order to get something passed, then start from an extreme so that any compromise ends with what was originally intended. With health care reform, for example, instead of starting with a proposal to include a public option, demand single payer so that the public option becomes the compromise.

Challenge the Blue Dog Dems in their primaries with real progressive Dems. Frame them in the context of what they really are – Republican lites and corporatist sell-outs. Point out that the Blue Dogs are Democrats in name only and do not represent the progressive agenda of the new majority. The Blue Dogs pose a more of a threat to passing any real progressive reforms than the minority party and they need to go. I think Bart’s idea of landing Air Force One in their districts to campaign against them in their primaries is a great idea.

Put the corporate media and the right-wing fascist talk show hosts on the defensive. When the corporate media refuses to tell the truth, reduce their access and find other means to get the truth out. Give progressive media and bloggers increased access to the white house and congress, because with that comes increased credibility. Address the lies and omissions in the corporate media with speeches, press conferences and appearances in more objective forums. Have prominent progressive Dems appear on the Daily Show and say “I’m here because John Stewart is the most trusted newsperson in America.”

Reduce acceptance of special interest money from large corporations and increase grass roots fund-raising. Push for some real campaign finance reform that limits the amount of special interest money that can go into any campaign. Make it known to the American people that true progressives are ones that represent the majority of Americans, not the health care insurance industry, the financial industry, the military-industrial complex or the energy industry. Let the fascist dogs and the Blue Dogs take the big money. Then publicly frame them as nothing more than corporate whores.

The above ideas are on more of a macro level than any specific issue and are what are needed before any real change can happen. The specific policy ideas I would like to hear discussed are:

• Bringing an end to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
• Reducing defense spending.
• Reducing the tendency to meddle in the affairs of other nations.
• Reducing the number of overseas military bases.
• Reducing dependency on foreign oil.
• Reducing the trend of privatization of anything traditionally in the public sector.
• Reducing the trade deficit.
• Creating a more equitable tax code.
• Investing more in clean energy.
• Investing more on our infrastructure.
• Increasing taxes on corporations that ship jobs overseas.
• Enacting a health care plan that includes a public option.
• Investing more in education.
• Increasing environmental regulations.
• Auditing the Federal Reserve.
• Creating more incentive programs for consumer spending.
• Restoring regulations of the financial industry such the Glass-Steagall Act.

The list literally could go on and on… The key to moving forward with a progressive agenda, however, is for the Democratic party to become more progressive and less centrist. No meaningful changes can come without a fundamental change in the political philosophy of the Democratic party, and that means a shift from the center to the left. Anything less will mean failure and another fascist dog administration.

It will be interesting to see how many of the above ideas are discussed by Malloy, Hartman and company at the forum in Seattle. I definitely will do a follow-up post on the blog regarding that, hopefully accompanied by some photos with the new bartcop logo.