General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsI gotta say, overall I'm pretty impressed by how unified Democrats have remained
People who go into politics generally have strong egos, they don't always easily "fall in line", and every elected official has their own specific set of constituents to please in order to remain in office. It's a big country and the Democratic Party tent is pretty damn large, and yet when push comes to shove Democrats have found a way to work together, with scarcely a defection of any consequence when the chips are really down. Our unity toward impeaching Trump is only the latest example
It's Republicans, not Democrats, who are showing major fissures. From Sanders to Manchin the Democratic caucus in the Senate has essentially held together. Sure, sometimes something has to give and not everyone walks away entirely happy, but if you look at Senate Democrats now, ruling with just the slimmest of majorities, I think they are functioning as a unit better than the larger Democratic majority did during Obama's first term.The potential for Democratic intramural conflict is at least as large in the House as in the Senate, but our slim majority there has similarly remained solid, even after some simmering tensions boiled up after Democrats unexpectedly lost House seats in the last election.
What Biden is working hard to accomplish is a hell of a lot more bold than just some reforms at the margins. If Biden gets 90% of what he wants Democrats to support in Congress, that's a big fucking deal. He and his team are owed high praise for his leadership so far, as are Schumer and Pelosi. But members of both the right and left flanks of the Democratic coalition deserve some credit as well. All no doubt have items they feel are worth fighting over, but it's been done to date with minimum actual fracturing. It bodes well for all of us, no matter how much we may wish for some things to be different. I think our elected Democrats in Washington, each and every one of them, know how close our nation is to the brink, and are determined not to blow this chance to pull it back from that brink due to unrestrained infighting.
Vivienne235729
(3,377 posts)Tom Rinaldo
(22,911 posts)Demsrule86
(68,456 posts)realize now how fragile Democracy and our Republic is...we came damn close to losing it in another bloody civil war this year.
Vivienne235729
(3,377 posts)That we almost lost our democracy. I think it gives perspective on what is truly important.
To add: and we are not out of the woods yet, either. I hope people realize that and maintain course so that we can truly neutralize this fascist movement.
Demsrule86
(68,456 posts)didn't believe it and advised some here to stop trying to scare folks. Boy, was I wrong. I watched in stunned horror the scenes on TV as the scummy Trump supporters attacked our Capitol with the intention of murdering Pence, Pelosi, AOC and probably any unfortunate Congressperson of any party they got their hands on. If you monitor righty sites to see what they are up to, you will see they are not fond of Republicans either. I apologize again to those who warned about this and I am sorry that I had the temerity to basically sneer at their warnings. I was completely wrong...you all were right.
Vivienne235729
(3,377 posts)It was surreal. Its easy to think that something like this would never happen. But trump knew what he was doing. He stacked the DOJ. I am terrified of this movement gaining steam. What I hope and pray for is that LE will neutralize these domestic terrorists. And maybe I am just an eternal optimist, but I truly hope that the silver lining in all this madness is that it has exposed our corrupt system. That there ARE a lot of white supremacists and extremacists working in very high levels and they need to be outed and our systems need to be reformed. I keep telling myself that, anyways. We need to expose all this ugliness so that we can fix it. But who knew the rabbit hole was gonna go that far?
Demsrule86
(68,456 posts)they are dangerous. If the get back in then Trump is back.
Vivienne235729
(3,377 posts)Demsrule86
(68,456 posts)Turin_C3PO
(13,909 posts)I was telling people not to worry about Trumpers doing anything significant, that they're cowards, etc. I was very wrong.
Turin_C3PO
(13,909 posts)Both Congress and the administration.
Andy823
(11,495 posts)divided we fall! If we want to win more seats in 2022, we have to stay united while the republicans continue to fight within their party. If we are lucky there will be trump party and a republican party fighting to win seats, which will help Democrats win more seats.
Demsrule86
(68,456 posts)May actually add seats to the House and to the Senate. We have opportunities if we hang together...if we don't we will surely hang separately.
Tom Rinaldo
(22,911 posts)These are not normal times and exactly how abnormal what we have all just gone through becomes clearer by the week. Democratic moderates, Democratic leftists, Never Trumpers, none of us are going to let down our guards now, and I expect that our mobilization will just continue to grow. And youth are more engaged in politics today than any time that I can remember since my own youth decades ago.
Wounded Bear
(58,598 posts)Pass most of Biden's Recovery Package is the obvious big one, but if we can improve the ACA and repair some of the fiscal shit in the Trump tax cut giveaways, I think Dems could surprise in 2022.
Demsrule86
(68,456 posts)GOP back in charge means Trump's back in charge...I could see us missing the debt ceiling, shutting down the government, no judges...all tricks the party Andrew Jackson now and not Lincoln would employ.
TexasLefty29
(190 posts)And in full agreement. We almost lost our great nation. We have all had a personal brush with the fragility of this great American experiment. The Democratic Party, this year, has been full of the real patriotic love. Not whatever this convoluted (and at times, schizophrenic) Republican party has been up to.
However I blame a lot of this Ancient Aliens, the Code, America Book of Secrets, and all this other rabbit-hole cinema that causes people to question their world to the point of self destruction.
Demsrule86
(68,456 posts)Johnny2X2X
(18,969 posts)I think that is more clear than ever. If Dems fail to deliver the things that the American public want this time around, Trump can be right back in office in 2025. Our democracy will not survive another Trump term.
And that's why you'll see Reps fight harder than ever, if Dems deliver what we've promised, they'll be out of power for a long time.
The stimulus will get the economy back on track and get Covid under control. Student loan reform will happen. A $15 minimum wage will transform the country dramatically. These 3 things alone will be things the people will thank Dems for forever.
dalton99a
(81,392 posts)peggysue2
(10,823 posts)We're not out of the woods yet. Getting Trump out of office was Step One. Now we have the arduous task of cleaning up and pushing forward with policies that are overwhelmingly popular with the American public while making sure the public knows where the relief is coming from.
We were nearly pushed over the brink. I truly do not think the majority of Americans desire to return to that danger zone.
Joe Biden's task is enormous but doable. Right now he has momentum and the American public's approval/support. It's a moment of great opportunity but not without risk. Getting the pandemic under control, for instance, is huge and will affect all other policy desires. Biden's advantage is the assemblage of the best medical and strategic minds to tackle the problem. Success in containing and extinguishing the the virus will have an enormous influence on the economy, jobs, small business, all the bread and butter concerns.
As for the GOPQ? I wouldn't be surprised if we saw the party fracture. Over the weekend I read that there's been a lot of conversations between traditional conservatives, in and out of office, of forming a separate party, one presumably dedicated to democracy and conservative principle (whatever that is ).
In any case, a Republican split would favor the Dems certainly in the short-term and perhaps for a generation. It would give us a chance to purge the Trumpers out of the system and returning to an American value system made better and stronger.
Demsrule86
(68,456 posts)they threaten our nation.
lindysalsagal
(20,581 posts)Inner party bickering was putin's goal all along. We didn't fall for it this time.
I still adore Senator Warren. But strategically, I knew it had to be Biden. Strategy matters.
Demsrule86
(68,456 posts)glue or no one gets what they want or what we need in this party.
lindysalsagal
(20,581 posts)soldierant
(6,791 posts)Strategy matters, and bigotry and misogyny are real. 2016 should have been a dead giveaway that success in opposing them doesn't always make things better for future elections.
CaptainTruth
(6,576 posts)grantcart
(53,061 posts)And that has made us more sensible.
Harker
(13,976 posts)We're all getting to see it.
BobTheSubgenius
(11,559 posts)That experience has a large component of being able to hold your caucus together while the chips are down and a lot of people would give up. Yet, they persisted. And it shows.
Tommymac
(7,263 posts)It may seem that we have a lot of internecine slug fests going on, and frankly we do.
But over the years I think We have learned to discuss things rationally; and debate heatedly and passionately among ourselves, but in the end come to a compromise to remain united. We do not let these internal discussions destroy Party Unity any more.
Most of this process is a sausage factory, very messy, but it is done in full public view for accountability, but because of this transparency outsiders may think we hate each other and have a dysfunctional Party.
We are sane reasonable adults. We may hate the other wing's stance, but I dare say we don't hate them personally. Big difference.
We are not the party of hate. We are the party of love in all it's forms.
I'm proud to be a liberal Democrat, and also proud to stand shoulder to shoulder in solidarity with my moderate and conservative sisters and brothers in the Big Tent. Like family, we argue a lot but always have each other's back.
murielm99
(30,717 posts)the chair of our Illinois Democratic Central Committee Association and 97 other people. The call was about the proposed criminal justice reform act.
She said, "The other side wants to find wedge issues. Democrats are about solutions."
This is so true.