It was particularly interesting to note what Markos had to say.
I asked Daily Kos founder Markos Moulitsas if he was worried about the level of despair at the conference. He replied, “The administration should be worried about the level of despair here.” Like many attendees, he brought up the failed recall election in Wisconsin. The Republicans, he pointed out, sent all sorts of surrogates to the state to campaign for Gov. Scott Walker. “Obama stayed away,” he says. “Why? Because he would be embarrassed if he lost. I’ll tell you what. If he shows that he’s going to fight for the things that I care about, I will fight twice as hard for him.” And if he doesn’t? “Then I’ll vote for him,” says Moulitsas.First of all, did I miss an appearance by Mitt Romney - the Republican nominee - campaigning in Wisconsin for the recall? No? But he feels comfortable bashing President Obama for not going.
Secondly, I have to wonder if this is the same Markos who said this a little over 5 years ago about the left's interest groups who fight for their cause over our Democratic candidates.
There's no better way to illustrate the self-centered myopia of today's progressive interest groups. That's not to gloss over their many contributions to the cause, but we lose if our interest groups remain in their silos, focused on their own narrow agenda to the exclusion of the broader progressive movement...I remember that because I was reading Daily Kos back in those days. Markos used to regularly rail about interest groups who put their own issues ahead of electing Democrats. His position today is a complete reversal of that.
Together we can move mountains. Divided, we can help Republicans get back into the game.
When Markos says that "the administration should be worried about the level of despair" at Netroots Nation, one of my first thoughts was to remember the inspiring words of President John F. Kennedy.
Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.In other words, he was forecasting the idea that "we are the change we've been waiting for" instead of simply whining about the President not fighting hard enough for the things we care about.
The loss of that kind of sentiment is, to me, a perfect example of how so many of us have bought into this age of entitlement. I get pissed off about that. And when I do, I want to shout, GET OVER IT!
Note to netroots "liberals":
ReplyDeleteElections can only be won with 50%+1 votes. As long as you comprise a portion of the electorate that is not AT LEAST 50%+1 in size, catering to you exclusively rather than forging a coalition that is at least 50%+1 in size through compromise is a sure fire way to NEVER WIN. Your insistence that a candidate is not allowed to do that if they want your effort and votes is a sure fire way to insure that you NEVER have any influence on the final compromise. This is not a difficult concept. Grow up and accept it or get ignored and become irrelevant. There is not another option.
Markos has been bitter ever since his preferred candidate (Edward) went down in a flaming mess. He then transferred over to Obama, but failed to actually read what he was saying. What made him even more bitter was that the fame, influence, and money he expected to come his way as "an influential media personality" didn't materialize. So he hooked his bandwagon to the emoprog bandwagon, because that was where the web hits and $$$ wer.
ReplyDeleteMarkos is a professional who markets to a niche. That's really all I need to know. Got a nice pad in the white part of Berkeley out of it, too. All the liberal self-satisfaction money can buy, with none of the pesky working-class Brown and Black people, except as hired, and then only temporarily.
ReplyDeleteSP--you getting rich off this blog? Didn't think so. You work for a living.
Mo'nin', Ms. Pants
ReplyDeleteEXcellent points by lockewasright and Norbrook ('course, Norbrook tends to make excellent points). Annnd, Ms. Pants, GREAT words over at TOD yesterday.
I saw this point being made by a commenter over at TOD yesterday as well. It appears that any number of these "important" PLers have never struggled for anything in their lives. Struggle for equality,and continued liberty is VERY hard, does take time, and tends to be ongoing. That's certainly what is historically true. Here's Markos with the usual entitled presentation of what PBO has to do for him (whatever the hell THAT is) when all it amounts to is goal post moving.
It's also a rather classic presentation of what pretty much any of the racial minorities and women go through when we start knockin' stuff outta the park (which we STILL HAVE to do). There is disbelief that we did it or we have to do it aGAIN and aGAIN annnnd aGAIN.
PBO has MORE than demonstrated who he is and that he, in fact is QUITE able. It's like, being a black male, still being in the role that is the most comfortable for many majority culture folk for us to be in - Entertainer. Therein, the complaint, as I hear it, is that there is more and more demand for these people to be "entertained" and they're mad because he won't "buck dance" when or how they say he "needs" to.
Even David Letterman asked what MORE does this man have to DO????
I've said this before...
We are watching another plank of "exceptionalism" bite the dust. It NEVER goes down easily. Many of us have never seen this process. THIS is what it looks like. This is why, whomever is on the scene to handle the task is so other worldly. They really do HAVE to be.
And, whomever the woman will be...
Hi Smartypants,
ReplyDeleteI have reached the point where I honestly could not care less what figures like Moulitsas do. If President Obama secures a second term it will because the tireless and determined efforts of organizers and volunteers like yourself and others. I've just spent the latter part of this morning reading furious tweets of what I can only assume are former Up with Chris Heyes viewers. In one exchange Hayes all but admitted that indeed he choses to focus on President Obama despite the overwhelming evidence of GOP malfeasance and obstruction. My point is, the pro-left have decided for whatever reason to put purity ahead of progress and ideological stridancy over stratigic thinking. That is their perogative of course, but then the challenge for us in my view is to articulate a compelling vision to the majority of Americans who are neither far left or right. Our purpose must be to marginalize the extremists and authoritarians both left and right and regain the center. President Obama, I think has offered us an example of how this can be acomplished. I am convinced our moment has come, the question is do we have the courage and skill to sieze it?
Kath
Markos' transformation into a purity troll has indeed been beyond weird. Particularly considering that he somehow is able to make concessions to reality and dirty his hands when doing things like helping to recruit a moderate Republican to run (against a bona fide progressive Dem) as an Independent in the Florida senate race in 2010 (and of course please note that the whole thing ended up as a mess of epic proportions and a hardcore teabagger won that seat).
ReplyDeleteI agree with the other commenters. Markos Moulitsas doesn't factor in my world. I work hard to be able to send money into PBO's reelection efforts. When I have had time during the past few years, I've traveled across county and state lines to help Democratic election efforts. That MM sits on a blog sourly running his mouth about how much more we need to be doing for him, raking in money while doing so, pisses me off but in reality that's neither here nor there. He likes to ascribe bad personal characteristics to PBO which are totally unwarranted as a childish payback to PBO not doing what he wants (ex. stating that PBO didn't want to be "embarrassed" by the recall failure--if he's watching the same PBO I'm watching, personal embarrassment has zero to do with his decision-making; he games out whether he can help or harm a situation and then acts accordingly regardless of personal sacrifice--he's probably unfathomable to the incredibly immature nutroots).
kath says:
the challenge for us in my view is to articulate a compelling vision to the majority of Americans who are neither far left or right.
I couldn't agree more, and this is an area at which PBO excels and is the route to his plan to be a Reagan for the left. Articulating leftist ideas in a common sense, non-strident, non-stereotypical liberal, non-sanctimonious fashion. This is a really great POTUS, beyond worth going to the mat for.
Markos was WORKING for Henry Hyde -- yeah, the guy for whom the anti-choice Hyde Amendment was named -- while I was busy with pro-choice organizations. Including ones that tried to find funding for poor women to obtain abortions, because Markos and his boss fucked them over. He and the other Johnny-and-Jane-Late-to-the-Progressive-Party folks like Ed Schultz, Taylor Marsh, Arianna (who really IS just a naked opportunist), and Glenn "I never voted because I figured the system worked just fine for me, a white wealthy guy, and by the way, I supported the Iraq invasion because I thought Georgie was such a dreamy statesman after 9/11" Greenwald can kiss my ass. They haven't done a damn thing to build progressive values and organizations in this country.
ReplyDeleteMarkos runs a successful website, and he believes he is leading a movement. I was at the Daily Kos party last night where he compared that movement to the right wing movement that began in 1964. He says he is in it for the long haul.
ReplyDeleteThat means that for Markos, Obama is just a stage in a long process. Obama is not the enemy, but he is not the goal either. I think Markos perceives himself as the referee between the rabid anti-Obama folks and pro-Obama folks on his website. He calls them the "Obama rox" and "Obama sux" factions, and he does not align with either side. He finds them both tiresome, and he thinks that debate gets his movement nowhere.
I'm not trying to defend him or attack him. Just trying to understand where he is coming from.
I think there are times Markos can come off as reasonable compared to other blogs and folks on his site. That doesn't go far enough for me.
DeleteAs I see it he has 2 choices:
1. If he wants to build a movement, then he needs to distance that from electoral politics, ie the Civil Rights Movement.
2. If he wants to stay in the fray of electoral politics, he has to be smarter than he's showing himself to be. Pick candidates and GO FOR IT. But don't undermine Democrats. In other words, when you lose, don't blame Democrats.
Let me give a shout-out to ALL of you who commented here. Some very GREAT wisdom.
ReplyDeleteThank you!!!!!!