Reply #11: glad I am not the only one

[m berst]

I thought I would be eaten alive here, so it is nice to see that others saw what I saw.

The first 25 Republicans - and I mean solid rural lifetime Republicans over 40 - to whom I showed Clark's platform and a video of him that I carried around with me back in the day, were very, very enthusiastic and ready to support him.

That tells me - in spite of all the opposition and nay-saying by Democrats on this - that a very progressive platform would appeal to 70% of the public if it could be divorced from the Democratic party divisive and inflammatory rhetoric and condescending and elitist demeanor.

You see hundreds and hundreds of posts at DU talking in the most derogatory terms about fundies and repukes as idiots and Neanderthals. If you suggest to people that there is anything wrong with that, they assume that you are recommending compromise or telling them to back down from strong positions and become moderate and DLC-ish. Yet these same people seem to have only the most rudimentary understanding of core traditional Democratic issues such as racism and class and the needs of the working poor, judging by the arguments here and Democratic activists I talked to during the campaign.

There is a lot of talk now about how to "frame" issues so as to communicate to people. Yet the party doesn't have a clear and powerful message that is reaching its own rank and file very well. There is actually controversy among Democrats about "free markets" and "reverse racism" for example.

You have to be a real partisan insider and something of a mind reader to get Kerry's message very clearly. I say this as a person who has been active in the party for over 35 years, and I say it with sadness and in the spirit of constructive criticism.

Clark was an easy sell to Republicans not because of his style or his charisma, and not because he "framed" the issues the right way. Clark was an easy sell because there was something to sell. Income tax? How about 0% for everyone under $50,000 income? - and he presented it in a confident way that made it seem like no more than common sense. He spoke with conviction about class issues, the struggles of the working poor, and on race and gender he spoke form experience and commitment, not from worrying about balancing the wishes of the interest groups in the party.

Clark was rejected by the hard core Democratic party people because he hadn't paid his dues in the corrupt, hypocritical, elitist and out of touch Democratic party leadership structure, and because he was retired military.