LIBERADIO(!)

Benintn writing for Daily Kos adds his thoughts about Jackson Day. Many of the attendees brought to their feet by Al Gore’s rousing speech were, he writes, “mostly Southerners – many from rural communities – many “Blue Dogs.” What does that mean? It means Tennesseans should stop spreading the prevailing myth of Southern domination by the Republican party:

We have a 5-4 majority of Democrats in Congress and a Democratic governor. (And while Gov. Phil Bredesen is hardly a radical, he is someone who has a lifelong connection to the Democratic Party and who understands the need for good government and effective leadership.)

Gore made two simple points: We have a moral obligation to provide care for the least of these, and it makes good business sense for us to manage our economy effectively.

That’ll preach – even in Tennessee.

Republicans in Tennessee have tried to play the Reagan game for too long now. As my state representative, Mike Turner, said earlier this year, “Republicans run for office complaining about how corrupt and ineffective the government is, and then they get into office and prove it.” The GOP strategy is simple – get members of our democracy to forget that we are the government, and make government into some scary “THEY”. (Then give big handouts to your corporate donors to make sure that you can buy more votes and fool more people.)

We might be rednecks, but we’re not stupid. Tennesseans don’t want to be talked down to, and they don’t want to be taken for granted. But our state still leans blue – and we want courageous leadership, not centrist waffling.

We also want clear, consistent messaging and Vice President Gore helped us with that as well:

But let me tell you one thing that really impressed me about the service today. They had a passage that had been written by Senator Kennedy about his religious faith. And he said that the center of his Christian faith was the Gospel of Matthew. And many of you know the famous passage that begins in chapter 25 where Jesus says to the gathering that, “You gave me food when I was hungry. You gave me water when I was thirsty. And when I was sick, you cared for me.” And they said, “Lord, Master, when did we do these things?” And he said, “When you did these things for the least among us, you did it for me.”

[Applause]

And let me tell you, we hear a lot of talk about liberal and conservative, and left and right, but let me tell you – ladies and gentlemen, when there are tens of millions of people – IN OUR COUNTRY – who cannot afford or get access to healthcare, WE HAVE A MORAL DUTY TO PASS HEALTHCARE REFORM. And we need to pass it this year.