Democratic Party Needs to Heal and Unite to Beat McCain
With Clinton still in the race, party leaders are searching for something to unify the party behind Obama
Howard Dean likes to tell the story about how he raged against the Democratic Party during a late-night phone call in 2004 with former Vice President Al Gore. Dean's dream of riding his insurgent, Internet-fueled candidacy to a presidential nomination had disintegrated. He felt betrayed by his party, and spared no invective during his rant about how he owed Democrats nothing.
Gore, who lost the bitterly contested 2000 presidential race, listened patiently and then counseled. "Howard," he said, "you know this is not about you. It's about your country."
Dean heard that message—he has chaired Democratic National Committee since 2005—and used the Gore story last Saturday to open what became a tumultuous and acrimonious party meeting. Delegates from Michigan and Florida were seated with half votes, ending the uncertainty over how the states would be represented at the convention. But perhaps more significantly, the gathering exposed for a national audience the bitter divisions the party must quickly figure out how to heal.
Dean's argument that day that the contest wasn't about Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton but about the country just as it was four years ago, fell flat. The restive, partisan crowd wasn't buying it. And by the end of the day, Dean—and every other Democratic leader—knew they had tough work to do to unite the fractious party before they could go full-bore into a general election fight with presumed GOP nominee John McCain.
Obama has now staggered across the finish line. But Clinton has stubbornly refused to leave the stage. (That awkwardness was reflected this morning in a statement by the DNC and party leaders extolling the "transformational election" and shifting attention to the general election battle, but there was no celebration or even mention of Obama's historic accomplishment.)
And while the Democrats are waiting to hear what it is that Clinton wants and her surrogates push her for vice president, McCain is out on the stump fishing for disaffected Democrats. Those include Clinton's more radical supporters who have vowed that without her as the nominee, they'll either stay home in the fall, or, like Lee Myszak, a lifelong Florida Democrat who demonstrated outside Saturday's meeting, will vote for McCain. Why? "I think he's a patriot," she said.
The Republican National Committee today launched a video using Clinton's own criticisms of Obama as not prepared to be commander in chief. And McCain and his surrogates, including Sen. Joseph Lieberman, continued to step up their criticism of the presumed Democratic nominee's foreign policy bona fides.
DNC spokesperson Karen Finney says that the party faces a challenge to channel the widespread "good feeling, energy, excitement, and passion" felt by Democrats into the general election campaign. There needs to be a healing process, she says, after the long primary battle, during which there were rough moments, including displays of sexism and racism. "We have to be as a party strong enough to have our disagreements, talk about them, and get them in the open," Finney says.
Clinton today showed signs of movement. Her fight-on speech last night gave way this morning to her assurances to the American Jewish community at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference that "Senator Obama will be a good friend to Israel." But party insiders say the longer she keeps Obama and the party hanging, the more she damages herself in the long run.
Dean says that Gore, because of what he had been through, was the only person who could have given him the get-with-the-party advice. Gore, an uncommitted superdelegate and one of the party's most popular and influential leaders, has been nearly invisible this campaign season. But it looks like the party sure could use him about now. Paging Al Gore?
Reader Comments
Radical supporters?
I stumbled upon this article and see where I am referred as a radical supporter. I suppose I will take this as a compliment even tho I am an ordinary person and only went to DC in support of the FL/Michigan voters. It was there that I saw what my party had become. Obama did not win the primary. He was selected by those in the party who wanted to bring the Clintons down. The MSM did a hatchet job on Hillary but it was the self-serving democrats Pelosi, Dean, Reid, and others led by Donna Brazile who awarded the nomination to Obama. Donna Brazile stated she would resign if the SD awarded the nomination to who she thought at the time would be Hillary Clinton. With their strong-arming and the Obama campaign money awarded to the SDs, in conjunction with the picking and choosing of the rules of the party, Obama was selected. Donna Brazile who stated that she was told by her mother not to lie did exactly that. She has not resigned as of this date. The democratic party put forth the least qualified candidate in my lifetime. They permitted the demeaning of Hillary Clinton by the Obama campaign and the MSM and did not have the decency to object. This is not the party I had believed in. If putting my country before party is radical then I proudly wear the name. Yes, I believe John McCain cares deeply about this country and that makes him a patriot but that is not the only reason I will cast my vote for him. First, I own my vote and will not be strong-armed into voting for an arrogant, racist, self-serving person who cares nothing for this country but only for his advancement. Second, I believe Obama to be dangerous for this country. We are not voting for an editor of the Harvard Law Review. These are dangerous times for the country. The economy is in shambles and we are at war. It is no time for an OJT president. Especially one who has ties to William Ayres, Resko, and Chicago sleaze politics. I do not buy unknown, untried merchandise which is what we will be getting with Obama. Obama and his cohorts are trying portray John McCain as another George Bush. John McCain is a reasonable man. He has proven that he can work in a bipartisan way. I do not fear John McCain and his VP Sarah Palin even tho their ideals are not mine. But I know that Barack Obama cares nothing about the will of the people just as his backers in the democratic party. I am now a registered independent and resent that I have had to follow my conscience and leave the party that I no longer recognize as the party I supported my whole lifetime. This democratic party is on a slippery slope to Hades. If it takes the defeat of Obama to show the party leaders that this is not their party but the party of the people including, not excluding, the 18 million Hillary Clinton supporters, so be it. If that makes me a radical then I proudly wear the title. But this country is more important to me than the election of one man. I hope this clears up my position.
Hillary Supporters Owe Obama Nothing!
We owe nothing to Senator Obama after how he sexually bashed HIllary Clinton and than disparaged her husband's legacy! If you want to point the finger point it at the Democratic party and Obama's left wing camp who took up the right wing hatred mantle against Hillary and Bill Clinton. What a bright idea that was for him? He turned a huge block of women voters against him thinking he would not need them in the general election. Wow! He's a real Einstein and you guys think this guy is prepared to lead us! What a joke! And, we have not heard so much of a whimper from Obama regarding how he treated us! He is toast in November! Good riddance to bad rubbish! Obama the thug should take his big mouth wife and go home to Chicago. HE WILL NEVER BE OUR PRESIDENT! And if he gets elected by some fluke we will never acknowledge Steve Erkel or his VP Bluto! They're a joke!
McCain in '08-I will not vote for Obama
McCain has never said anything negative about women, and his wife is beautiful, loyal and manages a multi-million dollar company. Obama calls women "sweetie"and married an unpatriotic woman who neglects his daughters. Hillary was cheated and she is only supporting Obama because the party would rip her to shreds if she supported McCain.
I dont care what McCain thinks about abortion, health insurance, or Iraq, he is much more representative of the average American than Obama and is more representative of what is best for America. Obama only got where he is because people like him always get more preferences from the government.
McCain in -08!
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