The cracks that divide us must be healed

[nashville_brook]

NOTE: As a "swing state" with large urban areas that received attention not afforded to rural and suburban areas, Florida provides a case-study for healing the divide in the rest of the country -- Brook

https://thefloridasqueeze.com/2016/11/16/the-cracks-that-divide-us-among-florida-democrats-must-be-healed/



The cracks that divide us among FL Democrats must be healed
by Kartik Krisnaiyer | The Florida Squeeze (POSTED WITH PERMISSION FROM THE AUTHOR)

The FDP Chairs Race has gotten off to a rip-roaring start with progressives and more moderate Democrats aggressively picking sides and trading barbs. This comes just a week after a devastating electoral defeat here in Florida. The realization that years of neglect have left us with an infrastructure incapable of withstanding GOP wave elections become more apparent on November 8 — and the solution to this will take years of hard work on the grassroots level and the implementation of a disciplined organization both from an activist and messaging perspective.

2016 was billed as a Democratic wave year – the combination of new, fairer Congressional & State Senate maps and Hillary Clinton versus Donald Trump would push the party to victory. But instead what ensued was yet another cycle of missed opportunities and outright losses for Florida Democrats — a cycle where the state was not immune from national trends and one where the divisions within our state party were once again liabilities.

The primary season was brutal, but no more divisive than it was for the Republicans. The Presidential primary divided progressives and moderate Democrats, minority voters and white liberals, creating a poisoned atmosphere entering the fall.

(snip)

Whomever assumes control of the Florida Democratic Party is going to inherit a wounded animal — one whose infrastructure and effectiveness has long since waned. Florida Democrats have lost 17 of the last 20 statewide races and 17 of the last 18 statewide cabinet races — a record which is comparable to that of deep red states in the interior of the country. The new chair will also inherit a party with a progressive wing that does not trust the establishment, and an insider clique largely based in Tallahassee who routinely does lobbying business with Republicans despite representing themselves at election time as dyed-in-the-wool Democrats.

The base of the Democratic Party has been reduced to urban counties in southeast Florida and around Orlando in addition to college campuses around the state and heavily African-American influenced rural Gadsden County. In terms of geography it would be almost impossible to cover less ground in this state than the Democrats currently. The rebuilding must start soon and should commence around the Tampa Bay area and Volusia County — the ends of the I-4 corridor which gave the Democrats a rude awakening last week while the party was racking up record margins of victory in the middle of corridor in Orange and Osceola Counties. The I-4 corridor is more than just Orlando, and Democrats need to rekindle enthusiasm in Polk, Pinellas, Volusia and Hillsborough counties as a first order of business.

The party is cracked, even fractured. But with new leadership, a fresh vision and a willingness to engage all stake-holders the rebuild can commence. For the sake of democracy, Florida needs a vibrant two-party system, and the Democrats have failed to give Floridians that option for years on now. It's time to start rebuilding, beginning in areas with large populations where the Democrats were not successful in this most recent election.

[NCTraveler]

1. It is my opinion that the FDP needs to stop running from progressives.

They truly do have a history of it. Running and promoting progressives fills coffers, builds enthusiasm, and punctuates the major differences in the two parties. I do think the FDP's intentions have been good. I think they have been trying to make positive moves in building support with moderates. I just think the goal should be to build support with progressives and that will transition to the moderates.

Thanks for sharing.

[nashville_brook]

2. we have to do something different, that's for sure.

the losses can't continue.

[NCTraveler]

3. We won a house seat in my district!!!! Took it from the Republicans.

You are correct. The losses can't continue.

[nashville_brook]

4. lot's of good wins in Central FL: HD-49, SD-13, CD-10, CD-7

All moved from R to D.

Even grabbed a REAL dem seat on the Orange Co Commission!!

[DirkGently]

28. Orlando is moving past purple into the blue.

The rest of the state, aside from some of the South, not so much.

[nashville_brook]

31. you can thank the Democracy Alliance for that

were it not for their work, Orlando would be red.

[DirkGently]

29. Blue Dogs / Neolibs / "center left" Dems / DON'T KNOW HOW TO WIN ELECTIONS.

I think that's a, if not THE, big takeaway here.

- Conservative Dems are not "more pragmatic."

- Neoliberals don't know "how things work." Unless you mean how certain people get PAID, which is not the point of elections, or shouldn't be.

- Social Democratic ideas, like nationwide healthcare or education, aren't unworkable "pie in the sky." They're things people need, and that other people in the world have, not drug-induced fairy tales.

- Telegraphing that big business and Wall Street are really okay, and can keep doing what they're doing, does not help.

- In short, the things the self-styled masters of the universe -- the donors and big business interests -- DO NOT KNOW WHAT THE HELL THEY ARE DOING.

So let's not have so much of that going forward. It's nonsense. We won with a guy the country thought was a wild-eyed liberal, even though he wasn't. We lost with "center left" (read: center-right, except for social issues, kind of) candidate, against the worst competition in history.

Enough. We need to stand for something the other side doesn't. Not the same thing with less racism and sexism.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

33. 1

[Ken Burch]

7. Indeed. We can probably trace that back to 1950...

...when Harry Truman, of all people, put George Smathers up to challenging and defeating Claude Pepper in the U.S. Senate primary. Why "Give 'em Hell Harry" wanted to replace a solid New Dealer with segregationist crook is a bonafide mystery...but it's been all downhill for Florida Dems ever since.

[DirkGently]

14. I'm going to guess "donor money" has always been the reason?

The donor class is not the Democratic class.

We could maybe understand that at some point.

[DirkGently]

30. WELL THERE'S A THOUGHT. n/t

[DirkGently]

5. Time for some progressives up in here.

After the blue-dog barbecue we're all choking on, we could use a palate cleanser.

[nashville_brook]

6. Blue Dog BBQ needs to exist...the name is just too good.

[Ken Burch]

8. Please tell me that place would just serve brisket and ribs...

[DirkGently]

9. You must try the pulled Blue Dog as well.

Sometimes it's the best thing on the menu!

[DVRacer]

34. I will take some burnt ends n/t

[DirkGently]

37. Ummm. Burnt ends. n/t

[geek tragedy]

10. I don't know what Florida Dems need to do to fix it.

Move left? Move to the center? Just get their shit together?

Whatever it is, the only thing we know is that the answer is not "what they're doing now."

[DirkGently]

11. Stop taking orders from the DNC?

Might be a start. Every Republican-Lite they pick for us gets crushed. Patrick Murphy? Really?

[geek tragedy]

12. Where are the good statewide candidates?

Alan Grayson was Murphy's main opponent in the primary.

Governor 2014: Charlie Crist.

Senate 2010: Charlie Crist.


Good grief.

[DirkGently]

13. Grayson was far better than Murphy.

Grayson was enormously popular in the all-important I4 corridor. But Schumer, Biden and Reid, and even Obama personally campaigned against him in the primary. In favor of the Romney voting son of a big donor developer.

And Crist, like Murphy, was literally a Republican for years. This is what the neoliberal donor class thinks is "pragmatic."

[Ken Burch]

15. I preferred Grayson, but the domestic violence thing did him in as much as anything.

DV is indefensible in any circumstances, but even more so if you're in politics.

That said, there was no reason for the Dems to recruit a guy who had lost his old House seat and been a Republican to start with.

[DirkGently]

17. There was never any indication there was "DV"

Grayson's own kids said it was their mother who did all the hitting in the house. The story was that ex-wife had called the police; nothing more. Helpfully floated by Grayson's Dem frenemies, as I understand it.

Edit: I will say Grayson's feet were full of many holes shot from his own gun. But Murphy was a non-starter from the jump. And the Dem establishment threw Grayson overboard before any of that.

Some shady deal was clearly made.

[geek tragedy]

18. that, and Alan Grayson ran multiple hedge funds nt

[DirkGently]

19. The "Hedge fund" was another blue dog cheap shot.

One fund, and the only issue was that it couldn't be in his name after he was re-elected. Murphy's people filed an ethics complaint and falsely implied there was some kind of tax dodge happening, which there was not.

More conservative-Dems wrecking the party because only they know how to get elected. Which it turns out,they actually don't.

[geek tragedy]

21. He also has temperament issues. He was an extremely flawed candidate.

The only Democrats to win statewide races in FL are Bill Nelson and Barack Obama. Something's broken down there with the state party.

[nashville_brook]

32. there was no DV

there was an organized effort within the party, having to do with an ugly congressional race for his former seat. the DV story was planned, and timed, and executed by those in a snit about CD-9.

[DirkGently]

38. Yep. Saw that play out. Ugly.

It wasn't Republicans that threw the race into chaos. We saw a ferocious effort from know-nothing conservative Dems to wipe out progressives across the board.

I think the calculation was that things had improved enough under Obama that "Republican- lite," the flavor Florida big-dog donors prefer, would be good enough.

It wasn't.

[geek tragedy]

16. Grayson flamed out. He was a walking ethical/legal time bomb

Domestic violence and running hedge funds ain't a way to run a Man of the People campaign.

[DirkGently]

20. Both lies from his Dem opponents.

You'll note Grayson was not actually charged with anything at all.

Perfect examples, really, of how conservative Dems play, and how they lose for all of us.

[geek tragedy]

22. and the Republicans wouldn't have used that against him? nt

[DirkGently]

23. They hadn't managed to before.

The disputes with his wife went back years. The fund thing had no legs. Meanwhile Murphy had a fake resume and a history of voting Republican, yet Dem leaders found him (or his Daddy's money) more "pragmatic."

It was some small satisfaction that the DNC abandoned Murphy entirely when Rubio entered the race. More pragmatism from the donor class I suppose.

[geek tragedy]

24. he was in a safe D district, a lot different than running statewide nt

[DirkGently]

25. True, and Rubio might have won regardless.

Grayson should have stayed in his House seat. But the bloodshed from our own side during the primary was despicable. I got a robo-call from -- I kid you not -- President Obama -- during the PRIMARY -- recommending Murphy, a man who publicly supported Mitt Romney and donated the maximum to his campaign.

Tell me there's no national problem there?

[geek tragedy]

26. here's the alternate theory:

national Dems concluded/realized that Grayson was going to implode because of the issues we discussed, even against a weak non-Rubio Republican. they weren't huge fans of Murphy, but no one else stepped forward.

I totally get being disappointed that Murphy was the nominee. But, that's one race. Democratic nominees for the big ticket races have all been Republican retreads. Where are the talented Democratic candidates?

[DirkGently]

27. So,it was a "helpful" dishonest torpedoing of good Dems?

I'm sure the people that did it told themselves something like that.

Sure worked, eh?

[nashville_brook]

35. the party destroys the talent.

Florida is the perfect fishbowl to watch this in full effect.

races won here have been due to non-party work.

[DirkGently]

36. The donors are literally the Republican funders

in many cases. I know at least one big one in Central Florida is a banker who sings that tune about SS being an unsupportable expense and all that.

We need some fresh blood all around.