Which Democrats Lost?

by Dick Mac

I watched the Rachel Maddow show last night, during its second or third repeat, when I couldn't sleep. So, perhaps I really watched TRMS earlier this morning.

I heard a fascinating report about Democratic caucuses. Before Tuesday's election the Progressive Caucus was made-up of 80 Democrats, and the Blue Dog Caucus had 37 members.

I think it's safe to assume that the Progressive Caucus was blown out of the water in the wave of so-called "conservatism" that swept the nation. The Blue Dogs, after all, sided with the Republicans often enough that they had a caucus of their own. They were not liberals, they were not progressives, yet they weren't Republicans, either.

With over 200 Democratic seats lost, I expected the Progressive Caucus to be decimated. I didn't think anything about the Blue Dogs because, well, I ignore them and vote against them when given the chance. And I DO believe: "Once a Blue Dog, always a Blue Dog" (and yes, I'm talking about you, Kirsten Gillibrand). I expected that the Blue Dogs, who harken from isolated, backwards locales throughout America, would continue to garner the conservative vote of their very "conservative" constituents.

To my surprise: of the 37 Blue Dogs up for re-election, 22 (TWENTY-TWO) were turned out of office; and of the 80 Progressives up for re-election, only 4 (FOUR) lost their seats!

The lesson here is that if you make your bed with the Republicans, you will die by their hand. Blue Dog Democrats? The GOP has no use for them in the House, because the GOP now has a majority, And that majority is riding the crest of this wave thanks, in part, to the defection and whining of Blue Dogs playing up to so-called "conservatives" who play into the lie of modern American "conservatism."

Let this be a lesson to all Democrats (politicians and citizens) that glomming-on to a fake "conservative" movement, or being seen as a moderate, gets you nowhere! You will be turned aways by people who think they are the real "conservatives" and moderates.

So, which Democrats lost this election cycle? The so-called "conservatives"! The progressive caucus is still very much intact!

For liberal Democrats who can't take a stand outside their Party's line, remember, there is only one position to take in these times: progressive. Not moderate, progressive. Moderation got us Ronald Reagan, Bush II, and now this heinous House of Representatives.

Grow some ovaries. Take a stand. Be a progressive! (At least at the Federal level.)