Democrats & The Rancid Politics of Retreat

William Greider explores why Senate Democrats are considering capitulating and supporting a full repeal of the estate tax, which falls primarily on the super-wealthy. He comes to an interesting conclusion: it is because "Dem leaders know they will likely offend rank-and-file supporters, but they also figure they can get away with it. Past experience tells them they will pay no real price beyond a certain amount of angry wailing for going against the party's popular base."

Greider calls this "the rancid politics of retreat" whereby Democrats "are allowing the weakest collaborators in their ranks to define the party's position" and "then wonder why the public doesn't think their party has any values." Such pathetic behavior "created the [Democrats'] minority status and promises to sustain it." He says "the party in Washington is not likely to change much until groups of aroused outsiders, progressives and others, are truly mobilized to punish their wayward and disloyal incumbents. That is, attack them frontally for selling out, run candidates against them in party primaries, weaken their public reputations...[Democratic leaders] believe they're free to serve up the high-minded rhetoric to the party's faithful foot soldiers while they work out the money deals with the other side."

I agree with him even though he also notes that "loyal Democrats are naturally reluctant to employ this hardball strategy for fear of further weakening the minority party." But that's the point - the party is in a perpetual state of weakness unless it actually starts taking real positions on key economic issues. And as Greider points out, "nothing changes minds in Congress like seeing one or two colleagues cut down by their own loyal constituents on matters of principle the pols didn't take seriously (this is essentially how right-wingers transformed the Republican Party)."

What this means is simple: keep your eye on which Democrats cave, support a full estate tax repeal, and thus sell out America's middle-class. This is a defining issue of fairness - and will show us whether the party has any ability to stand up for average Americans anymore.