Tuesday Open Thread

by Chris Bowers, Tue Aug 01, 2006 at 12:25:24 PM EDT

Here's what's up:

Thursday is the last day you can use the Family, Friends and Neighbors tool for Ned Lamont. After that date, the only way to volunteer will be to actually be on the ground in Connecticut. So, please, sign up to use the tool now. If you have already signed up, invite others to use the tool. This is a very effective tool that will be used to contact a very large percentage of voters in Connecticut. After Thursday, it won't work, so sign up now.
Democrats seem to have achieved unity on good Iraq policy that includes a call for withdrawal to begin by the end of 2006. Now that we have good policy, we need a good message to go along with it. Many Democrats unfortunately confuse reading a position paper with a good message. We can't let that happen when it comes to Iraq, considering how it saturates the national mind and impacts almost every other policy area.

Not surprisingly, Joe Lieberman is the only senator who did not sign this policy, once again dividing him from Democrats can uniting him with Bush.
Mystery Pollster has an excellent article up on the ramifications of the recent NPR poll of the fifty most competitive House districts in 2006. Please read the whole article, especially the chart near the bottom, but for those among you pressed for time the short version is this: in the top tier (23 races, 20 held by Republicans) Democrats are up 16 points over where they finished in 2004, and in the second tier (27 races, 20 held by Republicans), Democrats are up 21 points over where they finished in 2004. That means that Democrats are actually receiving a larger swing within the competitive districts than they are currently receiving nationwide. That is just huge, huge, huge, and helps allay worries that our gains were coming from districts that were not competitive. It almost makes you want to believe Charlie Cook.

This is an open thread. Chit-chat allowed.

Tags: Activism, CT-Sen, House 2006, Iraq, Joe Lieberman, Ned Lamont, Open Threads, polls, Senate 2006 (all tags)

Comments

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And as we all know...

...the Democrats actually gained seats in 2004 if you don't count the Texas redistricting.

You know, I myself have no idea whether I wrote that sarcastically or not.

by MNPundit 2006-08-01 12:37PM | 0 recs

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Re: Tuesday Open Thread

I refuse to chit chat. I hate reading chit chat on the internet.

by Matt in VA 2006-08-01 12:51PM | 0 recs

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Re: Tuesday Open Thread

Then there will be none.

by Lizzy 2006-08-01 01:44PM | 0 recs

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Re: Tuesday Open Thread

Nor will I chat. Though I feel this comment certainly qualifies as perhaps a bit of a "chit," with which I am perfectly happy. Though not totally sated.

by Nezua Limon Xoloquinta Jonez 2006-08-01 06:55PM | 0 recs

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Re: Tuesday Open Thread

It's the "a miss is as good as a mile" rule.

And Dems lost 6 Senate seats. It was disaster brought on their refusal to stand united against Bush's Debacle in Iraq. The air sure went out of my sails when they failed so misreably to do what was right. I voted in that election, but I suspect many liberals who would have were so demoralized that they didn't.

That also marked the end of my days as an apologist for DCDemocratic betrayel.

by Sitkah 2006-08-01 12:54PM | 0 recs

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Re: Tuesday Open Thread

"Many Democrats unfortunately confuse reading a position paper with a good message."

Agree 100%. Dems think like policy wonks and I love policy. However, we also need to think like marketers in order to sell our great policy ideas. We don't do that enough.

by John Mills 2006-08-01 12:55PM | 0 recs

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For "Message" re: Iraq Policy

I also agree--so how about this for a basic "message" re: Iraq policy, to counter all the Republican language of "cut and run"? (If nothing else, this kind of Democratic message would at least make the Republicans more reticent about slinging simplistic three-word slogans at Democrats):

--The Republican Strategy is one of keeping American Soldiers in Iraq to STAY AND BLEED while the Bush administration continues to act without any clear policy whatsoever for decreasing the violence in the Middle-East.

--A STAY AND BLEED strategy of doing nothing constructive while soldiers continue to die for the failed and inadequate policy agenda of the Bush administration is unacceptable on basic political, national security, and moral grounds.

--Until our Congressional representatives of both parties get to work to produce a strategy that will either decrease the violence or get our soldiers out of it, US soldiers will continue to die in an ill-concieved, deceptive, and profiteering war created by an administration without vision or concern for the real suffering of American or Iraqi families, and for the increasing levels of violence this failed policy has been producing throughout the Middle-East.

(condensed from my previous diary entry)

by policybusters 2006-08-02 08:51AM | 0 recs

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Correction:

Somehow I got to reliving 2002 instead of 2004. Oh well, there wasn't much difference in those elections, or the way many DCDems conducted themselves, anyway.

by Sitkah 2006-08-01 12:57PM | 0 recs

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Re: Correction:

Actually, if you combined 2002, where we lost 2 seats, and 2004, where we lost 4 seats, then you would be right on the nose. We gained 5 in 2000, and one in 2001, but gave it all away after 9/11.

by Chris Bowers 2006-08-01 03:42PM | 0 recs

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Re: Correction:

.....

by Sitkah 2006-08-07 12:13AM | 0 recs

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Re: Tuesday Open Thread

I just finished reading all of Chris's posts today and he is on fire. Great posts.

by John Mills 2006-08-01 03:30PM | 0 recs

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Re: Tuesday Open Thread

Thanks man. I think MyDD is really coming together for the campaign season. Matt, Jonathan, myself and the guests--I'm liking this a lot.

by Chris Bowers 2006-08-01 03:41PM | 0 recs

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Re: Tuesday Open Thread

Agreed.

by John Mills 2006-08-01 04:08PM | 0 recs

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Lieberman's not a democrat anymore

Come the 8th, he'll be out of the party offically.

by delmoi 2006-08-01 03:52PM | 0 recs

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Going to CT this weekend

Haven't decided whether to make it Friday-Saturday-Sunday or Saturday-Sunday-Monday. I can take one day off from work, but not both. Which one would be more helpful?

I'm in Maryland. I'll be driving up the evening before and be ready to roll early the first full day. I'm trying to recruit some others to come along, though I haven't been successful there yet.

What CITY needs the most help? Should I just pick a field office at random?

Any answers will be much appreciated. Go Lamont!

by Master Jack 2006-08-01 04:29PM | 0 recs

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Re: Tuesday Open Thread

Not surprisingly, Joe Lieberman is the only senator who did not sign this policy, once again dividing him from Democrats can uniting him with Bush.

I assume Ned will be pointing this out?

by Bob H 2006-08-02 02:25AM | 0 recs