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Left Watch: 2009 Agenda

by Jon Henke | June 12, 2008 at 4:46 PM
in

Open Left's Chris Bowers provides some insight into the progressive's perception of the likely Democratic agenda for 2009...

In our attempts to build a large Democratic trifecta in Washington, D.C., what, exactly, are we fighting for? To answer that question, here is a comprehensive list of legislation that is certain to pass if Obama wins the White House, we pick up 20 more seats in the House, and 8 more seats in the Senate...

You can find the full list at his post.  Suffice it to say, from legislation that puts a thumb on the scale for Labor Unions to government price controls for health care to massive regulatory expansion, there's something there to worry everybody.....including elements of the Democratic coalition. 

But this point from Bowers should raise the most concern.

The most exciting bits are the positive, progressive feedback loops around increasing unionization (the employee free choice act) and election reform (D.C. voting rights, verified paper trails). These are laws that will make the country itself more progressive, thus building a progressive majority down the road. If we can get more of these, including sweeping media reform (about which we should be optimistic), real immigration reform, (about which I am not optimistic) and the progressive budget (which might just happen by 2011, if all goes well), then we will be on our way to a progressive majority in America that will last for an entire generation.

Policies that redistribute the media to liberal interests, make the public more dependent on liberal institutions and give the government more largesse to distribute to the public.  Policies that entrench Democratic power.

That's the agenda. 

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And we need republicans to get out in front on these issues

Submitted by karasoth on Thu, 06/12/2008 - 16:49.

Do Not accept the terms of the Democrats. Argue them on our terms and establish reasons for the people to buy our terms on these issues

We can deal with this agenda and survive, even thrive.

Submitted by davidfarrar on Thu, 06/12/2008 - 17:44.

Indeed, if you really believe your conservative values are correctly held, following a liberal, Democratic agenda will only serve to re-empower the conservative agenda and make a political comeback, with massive grass-roots support, all that much more inevitable.

Look, we have been down this road before. We have been in a political time-warp for the last twenty years. It's time to break the cycle. It is time to realize as conservatives we can no longer vote for the "Republican" candidate who doesn't share our values. Indeed, the recent Supreme Court decision on Gitmo, and McCain's support of it, is just the latest example.

We have two choices here, either we go along with the liberalization of our party now by supporting John McCain or we hold our conservative values up as the guiding light of the Republic, of this democracy, when the people are ready to turn to it.

ex animo

davidfarrar 

What's wrong with election reform?

Submitted by Samwise06 on Thu, 06/12/2008 - 19:00.

 Forgive me for asking, but I'm curious—many of the objections that have been raised to the Democratic agenda seem defensible with conservative philosophy, but I'm confused about election reform.  Is a verifiable paper trail for ballots actually an objectionable idea?  If so, on what grounds?  Thanks.

Nothing

Submitted by Jon Henke on Thu, 06/12/2008 - 19:03.

I didn't object to every item he listed.  I would agree wholeheartedly with some form of election security verification.  

Not a sure thing

Submitted by Sean Hackbarth on Thu, 06/12/2008 - 19:33.

Not to discount the potential of liberal empowerment Bowers sounds as triumphant as Karl Rove was about building a GOP majority like what happened in 1896. Such Leftist dominance is not a sure thing.

We better not lose 7 senators.

Submitted by St. Louis Conservative on Thu, 06/12/2008 - 20:34.

If even half of this stuff gets through, we're f***ed.

I love the Orwellian title they give for the union thug bill:  Employee Free Choice Act.

The labor unions are putting everything they have into this election, because they think that they can get all kinds of goodies out the Democrat Party if they control all three branches of government.

Could Media Reform Extend to Internet

Submitted by Keith_Indy on Thu, 06/12/2008 - 20:48.

That's the big question.  Could "progressives" extend their quest for media reform be extended to the internet?  They already want to eliminate most of talk radio, what makes anyone think they wont try to eliminate conservative/right blogs and news sites.

Heard about this yesterday when Mike Pence was on Hannity's radio show.  Why is it that the Democrats aren't even discussing this issue?  They're stalling in the hopes that they'll have Obama to rubberstamp any old thing they pass in Congress.

23 more signatures are needed to get this on the docket to even be discussed.  I think one think the Next Right and every other conservative, republican and libertarian blog should be doing right now is promoting this, and hounding people on this list.

Surely this is something everyone can get behind.  Free speech isn't always fair, but that's why the market provides choices.

That is precisely their agenda

Submitted by Soren Dayton on Fri, 06/13/2008 - 03:09.

From the  media reform conference over the weekend.

Robert McChesney, one of Free Press’s founders, outlined the shape of the modern media reform movement from its initial reaction against relaxing media ownership rules, to more recent battles for public broadcasting, fighting fake news and propaganda, and supporting community radio and TV. McChesney noted that while these issues will remain of vital importance, they are now utterly bound up in the future of the Internet. Increasingly, if we care about broadcast news and journalism, we must also care about net neutrality and bridging the digital divide.

 

2004 Canadian Election: Tories 'Hidden Agenda'

Submitted by RedMango on Thu, 06/12/2008 - 21:48.


the progressive budget 

A progressive budget is a budget that progressively gets bigger.  I think that's what they mean.