Senate Democrats Hope Fear Of Tea Party Drives Supporters To The Polls

[Capt. Obvious]

The prospect of a tea party triumph in 2014 is the stuff of liberal nightmares, and Senate Democrats hope that fear bolsters their hopes in the midterms.

Guy Cecil, the executive director of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, told the New York Times that the party's majority in the upper chamber acts as a bulwark against the most conservative faction of the GOP. That, Cecil believes, should be enough to turn supporters out at the polls.

“The Democratic Senate is all that stands in the way of Tea Party control of Congress, so our supporters understand what’s at stake,” Cecil said, as quoted by the Times.

While still early in the cycle, 2014 already looks less promising to tea party insurgents than 2010 — as much of a relief to GOP incumbents as Democratic voters.

TPM

It's a brilliant strategy.

[Mass]

1. Yep, because actually promoting progressive ideas would not work.

I forgot who is leading the DSCC these days, but it frightens me when I read things like that.

I got tons of emails from Markey about Ted Cruz as speaker. My answer: stupid, beyond stupid, and it takes people for idiots.

We may lose the Senate because of idiots not understanding why people are frustrated, but pandering will not work.

[Capt. Obvious]

4. I read this strategy espoused all the time here

I don't expect it to be official strategy but here we are.

[pampango]

2. A better strategy would be to remove them from power in the House

as well. But this OP comes from someone working to get Democratic senators re-elected so I get the focus on that body.

[okaawhatever]

5. Statistically the odds of picking up a majority in the lower house are near impossible. The district

s up for reelection are heavily gerrymandered republican. If there is a huge negative event prior to the elections it may happen, but everyone from Nate Silver to the NYT has said it would be near impossible. It's important to hold on to key seats, or at least campaign heavily against some of the Repubs for the 2016 election when more voters turn out.

[Scuba]

3. Yes, let's not stand for anything except "not the other guy".

[pampango]

6. And "not the other guy's policies". We need to show that our policies are different and better.

[Scuba]

7. We have policies? Why haven't I heard about this?

[Armstead]

9. We have policies

Cut government to be austere...just not quite as austere as republicans.

Give the corporations more power -- just make it sound nicer than republicans do.

[Freddie Stubbs]

8. From Hope and Change to Fear and Loathing

I'm not sure that this is the best strategy.

[Armstead]

10. It's half of a good strategy

The other half would be to actually propose alternative liberal and progressive policies and actually work to sell those on their merits.