This morning, Virginia Democrats do not hold a single Virginia executive office, they're a small minority in the House of Delegates, and now they have (barring recount) lost control of the State Senate. Former Arlington County Democratic Committee Chair Peter Rousselot has written a devastating postmortem at Blue Virginia that I can't recommend enough and encourage you to read in full.
As for me, what I'll remember most about the 2011 election cycle is this ad from House Minority Leader Ward Armstrong trashing everything Democrats believe in. The leader of House Democrats - as chosen by his fellow House Democrats - distances himself from President Obama, a woman's right to choose, reasonable gun safety regulations, and limits on air pollution - all in one ad.
I understand the need to emphasize different issues and rely on different messaging in different parts of the state. But if you try to run away from the leader of your party and everything your party believes in, not only are you hurting your own team, voters don't buy it.
That's right - Ward Armstrong lost anyway. Just as former Rep. Glenn Nye did last year, Armstrong managed to not just lose, but hurt the party he was supposed to be leading in the process, making Democrats look like a bunch of gutless phonies who'd throw a friend under the bus in a second if a consultant told them it might help their chances of getting re-elected.
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3 comments:
I am completely agree, but also notice how Harry Truman put it 60 years ago:
"I've seen it happen time after time. When the Democratic candidate allows himself to be put on the defensive and starts apologizing for the New Deal and the fair Deal, and says he really doesn't believe in them, he is sure to lose. The people don't want a phony Democrat. If it's a choice between a genuine Republican, and a Republican in Democratic clothing, the people will choose the genuine article, every time; that is, they will take a Republican before they will a phony Democrat, and I don't want any phony Democratic candidates in this campaign."
C'mon now. Armstrong didn't "trash[ ] everything Democrats believe in." He mentioned three points, he's pro-life, pro-gun, and against cap-n-trade, just like some other Dems, like Joe Manchin. Is Manchin not a Democrat? Dems will stay in the minority with these purity tests in pup tents.
C. Stein, you think asking Democrats not to slam Democratic president in their campaign ads is a "purity test"?
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