LIBERADIO(!)

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.”