Campus Times
March 2, 2005
Nearly three months after the 2004 presidential election, Democrats are still wondering exactly what went wrong in the race to unseat President Bush from the White House. With some people labeling the loss a disaster, Democrats and democratic thinkers turned from licking their wounds to strategising about how to gain control of the White House once again.
Three Democratic thinkers gathered Friday night at Pomona College to discuss these pressing issues before a crowd of mostly Pomona College students.
“We didn’t just lose the presidency, we were completely blown out of the Senate as well,” said Jonathan Cowan, co-chair of The Third Way, a progressive centrist advocacy group.
With so many pressing issues, social reform or lack there of for the Democratic party was the overwhelming issue to debate.
“There was and still is no clear method for the Democrats,” said Amy Sullivan, editor for Washington monthly and expert on the intersection between religion and politics. “People had no idea exactly what they wanted to reform.”
Harold Meyerson, at large editor for The American Prospect and a weekly columnist for the Washington Post, cited American capitalism as an issue that needed reform.
“The Democratic party needs to come up with a completely different vision,” Meyerson said. “The kind of security we offered in the ‘60s just isn’t there anymore.”
Cowan also noted the years of decline for the Democratic Party even with the recent eight-year tenure of Democrat Bill Clinton. He explained the party’s struggles for making a presence in 20 to 30 red states, including the infamous Ohio, which plays a huge role when it comes to electoral votes.
“The Democratic brand is so bad in so many states,” Cowan said.
Cowan added that the Democratic Party has it’s “lowest percentage” of Senators in the House since 1929.
With the 2008 elections still 42 months away, the three speakers nonetheless focused much of their attention on the issue of how exactly the Democrats should go about regaining majority control.
“We need to appeal to the voter,” Sullivan said. “Eighty-seven percent of Americans say religion is a big concern and yet people view Democrats as antagonistic to people of faith, that is a problem.”
Cowan offered a proposal on exactly how to get Democrats back in the White House. He said he believes that if Democrats focus on reforming national security and pay attention to social, cultural and economic issues then they will have a chance.
Cowan referred to the Democrats lack of a “national security vision,” and explained how the party should attack cultural issues as “Democrats did in the ‘60s when we were dominant.”
“We are the definition of the status quo, we have no new ideas and we are not compelling,” Cowan said. “We have no realistic chance for any path back unless these three things change.”
Sullivan then touched on how things are being handled by the current administration and the GOP.
“How are people going to hold a party responsible if they don’t know who has majority control,” Sullivan said. “Sixty percent of people ages 18 to 30 have no idea who controls the Senate.”
Meyerson summed up the discussion plainly.
“You know your not in good shape when we have no control but we are to be blamed for everything.”
Steven Falls can be reached at sfalls21@msn.com.