Democratic Congress Likely to be Far More Conservative Than Its Leadership

[Frodo]

Shift in the House would usher in Democrats of a different color

By Janet Hook
Los Angeles Times

WASHINGTON — He is pro-business and anti-abortion. He is an evangelical Christian and an avid hunter. But, unexpectedly, Heath Shuler is a Democrat and he is running for Congress in North Carolina.

Shuler is part of a phalanx of unusually conservative Democratic candidates who may deliver crucial victories over Republican incumbents and help their party win control of the House.

Republicans warn about what the House would be like if the GOP lost control: a throwback to the unreconstructed liberalism of big-government activism, tax increases and weak-kneed defense policy. They point with Halloween-season horror to a likely lineup of Democratic committee chairmen, including Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., and other liberal old-timers.

But, like Shuler, many of the Democratic candidates most likely to win Republican-held seats are cut from a different cloth. Sixteen have been endorsed by the "Blue Dogs," a coalition of conservative Democrats. Several used to be Republicans. Shuler was recruited to run as a Republican a few years ago but opted not to.

With so many conservative-leaning candidates at the forefront of the Democratic effort, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., at least for now, has stuck to a minimalist agenda that steers clear of liberal ambitions.

Instead, Democratic leaders are focusing — and almost all serious Democratic candidates are campaigning on — a limited agenda that includes increasing the minimum wage, repealing tax breaks for oil companies, restoring college-tuition tax breaks, cutting Medicare drug costs and other plans they believe could draw bipartisan support.

The limited agenda has won endorsements from Democrats as conservative as candidate Ken Lucas of Kentucky — a former House member who, before he left Congress in 2004, voted against Pelosi in the traditional party-line vote for House speaker.

[Ben.]

It's the return of the blue-dogs... after this election the BDC is going to have a whole lot of new members (with a big dose of luck they could even have a Senator... i can hope and pray ).

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

Oh great, we lost the House and Senate in 1994 because of DINOs who killed Clinton's health care plan. The GOP has been so success because they are ideological driven. We can't fight the Republicans with spineless DINOs.

[Frodo]

Right on cue....

Oh great, we lost the House and Senate in 1994 because of DINOs who killed Clinton's health care plan. The GOP has been so success because they are ideological driven. We can't fight the Republicans with spineless DINOs.

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This thread wouldn't be complete without jfern mouthing his talking points over and over and over and over.....

[Sam Spade]

If the Dems weren't running DINOs, they wouldn't be very likely to win the House with the present gerrymanders in place.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

Right on cue....

Oh great, we lost the House and Senate in 1994 because of DINOs who killed Clinton's health care plan. The GOP has been so success because they are ideological driven. We can't fight the Republicans with spineless DINOs.

-----------------------

This thread wouldn't be complete without jfern mouthing his talking points over and over and over and over.....

Do you have any rebuttal to the fact that in 1994, conservative Democrats lost by the droves?

[Frodo]

Anyways, I am more psyched than ever before on working to achieve a Democratic Congress, knowing now what to expect. 

[Ben.]

To be honest Pelosi has done a very good job keeping the Dem's united and "mainstream" since she became leader... there has been no vearing off to the left and no alienation with a strike to the right, at the same time the blue-dogs and DFA types have concentrated on attacking the GOP rather than each other... she may wind up being a far more effective speaker than many would have thought.

[WMS]

Right on cue....

Oh great, we lost the House and Senate in 1994 because of DINOs who killed Clinton's health care plan. The GOP has been so success because they are ideological driven. We can't fight the Republicans with spineless DINOs.

-----------------------

This thread wouldn't be complete without jfern mouthing his talking points over and over and over and over.....

Do you have any rebuttal to the fact that in 1994, conservative Democrats lost by the droves?

That would be in part because all of you lefty Democrats backstabbed the moderates by gerrymandering districts to gain more left-wing districts. See, oh, the entire South, for example. Just thought you should be reminded of that.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

If the Dems weren't running DINOs, they wouldn't be very likely to win the House with the present gerrymanders in place.

Tester isn't a DINO and he's leading in Montana. Brown isn't a DINO and he's leading big time in Ohio. One doesn't need DINOs to win in conservative areas. For example Senator Church of Idaho and Senator Yarbourgh of Texas.

Right on cue....

Oh great, we lost the House and Senate in 1994 because of DINOs who killed Clinton's health care plan. The GOP has been so success because they are ideological driven. We can't fight the Republicans with spineless DINOs.

-----------------------

This thread wouldn't be complete without jfern mouthing his talking points over and over and over and over.....

Do you have any rebuttal to the fact that in 1994, conservative Democrats lost by the droves?

That would be in part because all of you lefty Democrats backstabbed the moderates by gerrymandering districts to gain more left-wing districts. See, oh, the entire South, for example. Just thought you should be reminded of that.

Are you saying that liberals completely controlled the South in 1991 and 1992?

[Everett]

Anyways, I am more psyched than ever before on working to achieve a Democratic Congress, knowing now what to expect. 

Whatever you say, freedom-hater.

[Sam Spade]

Right on cue....

Oh great, we lost the House and Senate in 1994 because of DINOs who killed Clinton's health care plan. The GOP has been so success because they are ideological driven. We can't fight the Republicans with spineless DINOs.

-----------------------

This thread wouldn't be complete without jfern mouthing his talking points over and over and over and over.....

Do you have any rebuttal to the fact that in 1994, conservative Democrats lost by the droves?

That would be in part because all of you lefty Democrats backstabbed the moderates by gerrymandering districts to gain more left-wing districts. See, oh, the entire South, for example. Just thought you should be reminded of that.

Remember, most of that was because of the forced creation of minority-majority CDs per VRA of 1965 (one of the worst pieces of legislation ever).  In the redistricting, the Dems were forced to push their PVI even further towards to Republican side, which made the old-timers even more vulnerable if the electorate wasn't happy.

Nearly every CD the Democrats lost that year had a PVI towards the Republicans vis a vis 1992.

[WMS]

Right on cue....

Oh great, we lost the House and Senate in 1994 because of DINOs who killed Clinton's health care plan. The GOP has been so success because they are ideological driven. We can't fight the Republicans with spineless DINOs.

-----------------------

This thread wouldn't be complete without jfern mouthing his talking points over and over and over and over.....

Do you have any rebuttal to the fact that in 1994, conservative Democrats lost by the droves?

That would be in part because all of you lefty Democrats backstabbed the moderates by gerrymandering districts to gain more left-wing districts. See, oh, the entire South, for example. Just thought you should be reminded of that.

Remember, most of that was because of the forced creation of minority-majority CDs per VRA of 1965 (one of the worst pieces of legislation ever).  In the redistricting, the Dems were forced to push their PVI even further towards to Republican side, which made the old-timers even more vulnerable if the electorate wasn't happy.

Nearly every CD the Democrats lost that year had a PVI towards the Republicans vis a vis 1992.

Oh yes, the VRA's M-M districting is just terrible.

And there were a lot of retirements as well in 1994...

[Democratic Hawk]

It will be. There will quite a few more Blue Dogs in the House Democratic Caucus from 2007

Dave

[Democratic Hawk]

To be honest Pelosi has done a very good job keeping the Dem's united and "mainstream" since she became leader... there has been no vearing off to the left and no alienation with a strike to the right, at the same time the blue-dogs and DFA types have concentrated on attacking the GOP rather than each other... she may wind up being a far more effective speaker than many would have thought.

That is a distinct possibility Ben. Granted, seniority will give prominent liberals committee chairs, but a common sense pragmatism on the part of the House Democratic Caucus, be they liberal or moderate-to-conservative may be what's on the menu. If they do that, and avoid the nonsense, and endeavour to get things done, then it makes the prospects of a long-term majority easier

All of this assumes, they'll win the House in the first place and whether they'll be faced with some stubborn, recalcitrant, or a more willing to co-operate, President

Dems need to focus on legislative initiatives that will resonate with the American people. Much to the chagrin of their critics, if they win the majority, the Democrats might not blow their ship at all

Dave

[Frodo]

To be honest Pelosi has done a very good job keeping the Dem's united and "mainstream" since she became leader... there has been no vearing off to the left and no alienation with a strike to the right, at the same time the blue-dogs and DFA types have concentrated on attacking the GOP rather than each other... she may wind up being a far more effective speaker than many would have thought.

That is a distinct possibility Ben. Granted, seniority will give prominent liberals committee chairs
Dave

That would be quite a turnaround from the days conservative Southern Democrats used to have a stranglehold on the party given the seniority system then in place. 

[Boris]

I don't particularly care whether the Dem congress is liberal, moderate, or "conservative" as long as it governs effectively and with some degree of competence. Ideally, I'd like to see a mix of all three views so that this party can attract a broad spectrum of voters in future elections.

[Democratic Hawk]

To be honest Pelosi has done a very good job keeping the Dem's united and "mainstream" since she became leader... there has been no vearing off to the left and no alienation with a strike to the right, at the same time the blue-dogs and DFA types have concentrated on attacking the GOP rather than each other... she may wind up being a far more effective speaker than many would have thought.

That is a distinct possibility Ben. Granted, seniority will give prominent liberals committee chairs
Dave

That would be quite a turnaround from the days conservative Southern Democrats used to have a stranglehold on the party given the seniority system then in place. 

It would. The problem for Democrats in the South is that as those center to center-right Democrats have retired, they've become increasingly replaced by ever more conservative Republicans

Still, at least, contemporary Democrats of that ilk can compete with the GOP

Dave

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

It is good that the leadership is supposedly liberal. Hopefully they can convince the rank and file to not do brain-dead stuff like supporting warmonger and torture. Otherwise, we might as well have a Republican congress. A lot of these conservative Democrats have no leadership ability.

[Conan]

This is a myth. I know some of the house candidates are conservative as there are many conservative, moderate, and liberal dems. Most of these pickups arent conservative. Some are, most arent. All of the senate pick ups are liberal to moderate. Ford was the conservative running and hes going to lose. The rest are liberal.