In the wake of the Texas primary Tuesday, there have been a number of posts in a number of blogs trying to draw meaning from the results…the results in TX-28 in particular.
There has been quite a bit of traffic regarding the influence of the “netroots”. RedState offers these thoughts:
First, let’s put things in perspective. The “netroots” did not rally behind Ciro. The lefty netroots rallied behind Ciro — that’s not the same thing as saying the “netroots” generally.
Second, the Democrat establishment should recognize, though hopefully not until after November, that the lefty netroots is increasingly out of touch with the average voter and, consequently, we should legitimately be able to say the party chairman, who they aggressively backed, is also out of touch with the average voter.
That’s a pretty decent assessment, IMO. However, with such an observation, I should throw in my obligatory comment that this is a sign of why the Dems should consider splitting into two parties, or why a centrist party ought to form. As long as the Democrats are split internally and lack the leadership to be able to guide that herd of cats in the same general direction, they’re going to find it difficult to compete with the GOP, where the iron boots of the party leadership generally keep their factions marching to the same beat.
Steve Gilliard, via MyDD points out:
[I]t is important to remember that the netroots doesn’t actually run campaigns–we just have the ability to offer resources that can give candidates the chance to win. The rest, ultimately, is up to the candidate, the campaign, and the voters. I’m not saying this to throw Ciro under the bus, but rather so that we all get a little more perspective on the role we play online. We are not an alternative party apparatus unto ourselves.
At Connecticut Local Politics, a similar point is raised:
Can internet activism, especially on the liberal/progressive side, actually win a race for a candidate? Rodriguez may have been helped by the support of the liberal blogosphere–in fact, he almost certainly was–but it apparently wasn’t enough. The Web is still growing in clout, though, and we may see political blogs and other sites actually pick up a win or two here and there later this year. The fierce endorsement of Daily Kos, Eschaton and similar sites will translate into votes for Ned Lamont in August. The money flowing from these sources guarantees more exposure, which should garner him some actual votes. Will it be enough to win? In Rodriguez’s case, turnout in his home county wasn’t much above what it was in 2004. Therefore, it seems that the answer may very well be no.
Pretty good points, I think. However, I’m not sure that seeking “netroots” to be a force unto themselves is necessarily the right idea. I think it’s more likely that candidates and political parties are still in their infancy when it comes to finding ways to effectively harness the net.
Kos picks up on the concept that the lack of Democratic feline herd management skills is a problem:
If one of the problems we face as a party is lack of discipline from our elected officials, this is the way to start enforcing some discipline. Just the threat of being primaries could force some Dems to take a step back from certain votes, no matter how many lobbyists dangle scrumptious checks before their faces.
If we want to build the kind of Democratic Party we all yearn for, we can’t let “Democrats” like Cuellar continue to burn our brand and harm the party. Doing something was better than doing nothing. We’re a nascent movement a scant two years old. The Right built theirs over 30 years. We won’t take over the world in two. But this netroots/grassroots/labor coalition is the blueprint for a more effective national progressive movement, and this was the first time we all worked together.[...]
It’s important that primaries be closed. Independents and Republicans have no business meddling in internal party decisions (like they can in Texas). There’s a worthy project for someone to take charge of — which states have open primaries, and what is the process for closing them.
Kos’ closing point is one that I have a problem with, writing as a person who’s more centrist than anything else. I don’t like it when the GOP or the Democrats throw nutcases into office. I want to be able to vote for the “best” candidate, and help him or her through the electoral process, and closed primaries interfere with that.
If my tax dollars are paying for an election to be held, I ought to be able to participate in it, dang it.
Here in Connecticut, I get around that by changing my party affiliation on my voter registration as needed to maximize my ability to vote for preferred candidates. However, not everyone is as savvy when it comes to pursuing that sort of a technique.
Centerfield, naturally, chimes in with a centrist viewpoint:
Last night, centrist Democrat Henry Cuellar beat up on liberal Democrat Ciro Rodriguez to hold his seat in Congress, a seat he wrestled away from Rodriguez in 2004. Then, it was a tight race. This time, it wasn’t even close. Rodriguez had the entire left wing of the Democratic Party, most of the Texas Democratic Congressional delegation, a slough of unions, MoveOn.org, DFA (the Dean PAC), and the overwhelming histrionics of Kos and Atrios on his side. He came into the final week with a massive advantage in money, much of it raised from out of state by the Angry Left.
On his side, Cuellar had….well, not much. Less than a full term of incumbency (vs. Rodriguez’s previous four terms in that seat), some minor funding from the DCCC, and the support of the local businesses. And less than a term’s worth of defying his party’s leadership to support what he thought was best for his district, instead of what his party’s leaders wanted him to do.
I can’t vouch for the details, and I don’t necessarily agree with Cuellar’s positions…but that seems like a pretty good assessment.
Right Talk CT offers these thoughts:
It may turn out that the “Democratic Revolution of ‘06″ is a movement that has only manifested itself in Lefty blogs and on the nation’s editorial boards. The Lefties are out in the blogosphere [...] but for all their talk, Joe Lieberman will still be the Democratic nominee for Senate, Diane Farrell isn’t any cooler than she was two years ago, and the Dem Leadership still doesn’t have any more of a clue now than they did in 2004.
Harsh, but fairly accurate. Compare that with my observation yesterday that at least one poll-monitor isn’t calling for that dramatic shift in the balance of power in Washington…a significant shadow over the dreams of some of the Democratic Revolution of ‘06. I can already almost hear Limbaugh and O’Reilly doing their verbal victory dances come 8th November.