Some Democrats Have Forgotten How To Oppose Republicans [UPDATED]

by Jason Rosenbaum :: Filed Under Elections 2008 :: March 24th, 2008 @ 10:00 am EST

Some Democrats simply don’t understand what it means to be an opposition party.

Democratic congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, of Florida’s 20th district, definitely doesn’t get it. As co-chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s “Red-to-Blue Program,” a program designed to “highlight top Democratic campaigns [who are challenging for Republican seats] across the country, and offer them financial, communications, and strategic support,” Wasserman Schultz is supposed to be a partisan attack dog. That’s her job, to seek out Democrats challenging for Republican seats and turn those seats from red to blue.

Unfortunately, Debbie doesn’t get it.

You see, when three strong challengers from her home state, Annette Taddeo, Joe Garcia and Raul Martinez, decided to take on three incumbent Republicans, Wasserman Schultz, along with another Florida Democrat, Rep. Kendick Meek, refused to endorse them. This left the challengers without the Red-to-Blue money, training, and support they deserve. Why? Because the three Republicans are fiercely for a continued Cuba embargo - the same embargo that has failed to work for over 40 years - and something the Democratic challengers are against.

It’s amazing to see how strong the Cuba lobby is. Wasserman Schultz’s seat is in a safe Democratic district with few Cuban-American constituents, so she’s not simply voting the will of her people. Instead, this is about money:

Some 58 of the 66 Democrats who voted against the Rangel amendment [which would have simplified some trade with Cuba and which Wasserman Schultz aggressively campaigned against] had received one or more contributions from the Republican-oriented U.S.-Cuba Democracy PAC in the months prior to the vote, with contributions running from $1,000 to $11,000. Wasserman Schultz has reportedly received more than $22,000 from the PAC.

Even in a safe Democratic district with a low Cuban-American population, the Cuba lobby can still buy off members of Congress. Amazing!

Now, I can understand that not all Democrats believe the same things. Elected Democrats hold a range of policy positions, and they might sometimes even agree with some Republicans on some things (hopefully not too often). However, leadership positions are different.

Debbie Wasserman Schultz is a leader within the Democratic party. That, by definition, means you have to agree with what the party stands for. If these three challengers won the party’s nomination - which they did - and if Wasserman Schultz’s job is to help take back Republican seats like these, then Wasserman Schultz has a duty to endorse and support these candidates. If she doesn’t, she does not deserve the leadership position to which she has been appointed.

More than that, she’s missing the big picture, and she doesn’t understand what being an opposition party means:

On so many fronts, the Republicans are standing in the way of progress, on Iraq, SCHIP, health care, fiscal responsibility, corruption, civil liberties, and so on. Those three south Florida Republicans are part of that problem. And she’s going to be “frustrated” that people demand she do her job?

Schultz thinks the twenty grand the Cuba lobby donated to her campaign is worth more than winning on issues like Iraq, health care, the economy, torture, and warrantless wiretapping. Why the DCCC is allowing this kind of behavior is beyond me. One thing, however, is clear: Debbie Wasserman Schultz should step down from the Red-to-Blue Program.

DavidNYC over at the Swing State Project has laid out a list of grievances and actions I’d like everyone reading to take:

1) No Democrat should be permitted to recuse him or herself from campaigning on behalf of fellow Democrats - especially not the co-chair of the Red to Blue program.

2) No Democrat should gush to the press about how wonderful any particular Republican elected official is, especially not those targeted for defeat.

3) No Democratic party organization, the DCCC included, should tolerate either of the above two behaviors.

…

So it’s time we made our voices heard. If you have a problem with the co-chair of the Red to Blue program saying she won’t campaign for our excellent Democratic candidates Annette Taddeo, Joe Garcia & Raul Martinez, please let her and the DCCC know about it. Whatever you say or write, I urge you to be firm but exceedingly polite. Our message is strong and true - we don’t need to cloud our cause by giving those in power an easy out to attack the messenger.

And what are we asking for? We want Debbie Wasserman Schultz to vocally endorse our South Florida trio and do everything she can to help them get elected (including hosting a fundraiser for each). If she won’t do that, then we’d like her to resign from Red to Blue. And we also want the DCCC to stop tolerating Members of Congress who want to “remain neutral” in contested races.

Debbie Wasserman Schultz (campaign office):
E-mail: AskDebbie@DWSforCongress.com
Phone: 202-741-7154

DCCC Chair Chris Van Hollen (campaign office):
E-mail: chris@vanhollen.org
Phone: 301-942-3768

DCCC Headquarters:
Contact form
Phone: 202-863-1500

Take five minutes and contact the people and organizations listed above. Tell Wasserman Schultz to start acting like a party leader or to step aside and let someone who’ll do the job take over. Tell the DCCC to appoint someone to their programs who will actually fulfill their duties.

Let’s teach Democrats how to be an opposition party again. Maybe then we’ll get some progress on the issues we’ve been so frustrated about for the last eight years.

Update: People have had a lot to say on this topic today. For more background and analysis, check out Crooks and Liars, Open Left, and Down With Tyranny.