If Governor Bredesen had welcomed Barack Obama to Tennessee during his campaign he might have learned something about fostering party unity with grace and quiet leadership. Hell, he could have learned that from Republican Jason Mumpower much more recently.
Instead, the titular head of the Tennessee Democratic Party decided, with his latest statement funneled through spokesperson Lydia Lenker, to ignore the old axiom “When you find yourself in a hole, stop digging” and make public his “trust issues” with current House Majority Leader Gary Odom.
“Unfortunately, there have been some trust issues with Rep. Odom,” Bredesen spokeswoman Lydia Lenker told The Associated Press in an e-mail exchange late Wednesday. She did not elaborate on what those issues have been.
“We’re actively exploring options other than Rep. Odom to carry the administration’s legislative package,” she wrote.
Has the Governor’s relationship with the Democratic caucus deteriorated so badly that he has to communicate his leadership preference through the press? Or is his intended purpose to embarrass Rep. Odom?
Regardless, during the past year our Governor “suggested” the Democratic nominee for President not visit the state, all but disappeared from the stump when the State party needed his 95-county-winning-ways the most, and made public a long-standing political feud within his own party.
Perhaps now would be a good time for him to take a play from the Obama book and put an end to the petty bickering. Yes, he has a state to run and a budget to balance and he may not always get the cooperation of his fellow Democrats on the hill, but the people (remember them?) who make up the Democratic Party of Tennessee – those who foresee two hellish years of fighting the last gasp of this country’s culture war – are aching for leadership.
Despite what he and many others may want to believe, the United States is not a “center-right” nation. No political candidate needs to wallow at Walmart for votes. Nor are we “center-left.” In the words of WaPo’s E.J. Dionne, we are a “fundamentally non-ideological nation” because “Many who would like the government to act more boldly still need to be persuaded of government’s capacity to succeed.” So use the skills of your able-bodied spokesperson for good and not evil, Governor, and help develop a message that will define Democratic ideas and persuade of the capacity to lead and succeed. Then choose the right language with which to present the message and build an infrastructure to communicate it.
And what is the Democratic/Progressive message? It’s simple, really. Smart and efficient government. Freedom, equality and security for all. Responsibility to ourselves and to others.
UPDATE: Senator Andy Berke is on it: “So I find nothing wrong with our party that can’t be solved by talking to voters about Democratic accomplishments, Democratic commitments and Democratic values.”
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You know, it is sad that Bredesen seems not to have any good politicians around him — people who would know that dissin’ the Presidential candidate, throwing in the towel on the U.S. Senate, and openly trying to humiliate members of your own party in the legislature (in a body that is divided by only one seat, where every vote will count) is just not smart or helpful. As much as we might not like it, Bredesen is all that stands between any kind of rational government in Tennessee and complete surrender to the dittohead-morons.
Until we can elect Andy Berke Governor and recapturing the legislature (hope springs eternal), we need Bredesen to step up to the plate. But he needs our positive encouragement. Just bitching about his not being progressive enough really accomplishes nothing over the next two years.
Maybe Andy Berke or Byron Traugher or Harold Ford or Dave Cooley or Larry Woods or Ned McWherter or someone from Gore’s organization or just someone, anyone, with some sense will help the Governor figure out how to be a courageous leader in times of trouble. They don’t have to b good liberals, just good politicians. It’s clear his close advisers are not much count.
I had high hopes when he appointed Bill Mason to his staff. Bill has the unique position of being the one and only real liberal on the Governor’s staff or in the cabinet. And he has real political experience. It seems, though, that other than engineering some pretty good appointments (especially maneuvering Robin Smith off the Human Rights Commission and exposing her racism and stupidity in the process), he is not being utilized by Chilly Phil.
Yes, the General Assembly has been overcome by the right wingers, but we have a popular new president, plenty of good people in Tennessee, and every reason not to give up. We just need him to lead. And I am ready to be a positive reinforcement for anything he is willing to do along those lines. But is he willing?