Differing Visions

Saturday I had the distinct pleasure of meeting someone who has actually commented on here before, negatively, while at the Pennsylvania Democratic State Committee. If this had been prior to last Tuesday, I had a whole plan of how I was going to light him up, but with the nomination basically over, I intended to leave things be. That did not happen, thanks to another individual (this one), who basically challenged me to meet the guy. When challenged, I'll accept. So I met the guy. Twice in fact we talked. Frankly, it was exactly what I expected.

This guy is a "Bernie or Bust" person, which means there isn't much for him and I to discuss. I don't agree with his world view, his vision for the Democratic Party, his impressions of our candidates, or even really what he wants. That's exactly what I told him too- nice to meet you, I don't agree with you on much of anything. Then he got to talking though, and frankly, that is when everything I thought was confirmed.

What were some of his feelings? Hillary Clinton is corrupt. The Democratic Party of today is like the Republican Party of 20 years ago. The Democratic Party should begin behaving like a liberal Tea Party. We need a political revolution, because money is automatically corrupting. We need to stop compromising in politics. We need to make demands and stick to them, down to the letter.

In short, the Democratic Party should be a rigidly ideological party, one that is willing to be irresponsible to America to get it's way. I just couldn't disagree more. I don't want a liberal Tea Party, as I think the Tea Party has been a bad thing on not just policy, but in it's tactics as well. I see no utility in being this kind of party. I don't believe it helps the public to slow down progress in the name of some sort of purity test. I think his politics are destructive.

I also couldn't disagree more with his feelings on the party either. I think that the Democratic Party of 2016 is one of the most morally just and decent institutions in American history. We have nominated and elected the first African-American President, and are poised to follow that with the first female nominee in American history. We passed a health care law giving access to insurance to roughly 20 million people. We lead the fight for marriage equality for the LGBT community. We passed Dodd-Frank. We saved the auto industry. I could go on, and on, but won't because one point is clear- we have helped millions of Americans, opened opportunity for countless more, and made the world a better place. I will defend this party against all critics. The fact that members of it take contributions to their campaigns from people that some folks have decided are the devil means nothing to me.

I would like to close this piece on a positive note, that this individual took the time to get involved and try to make things better, but I can't. He probably literally wouldn't let me. When told that delegates are now "part of the establishment," he bristled and recoiled from that in a hurry. He doesn't really intend to be a part of making things better. For him, it's about either getting his way in it's entirety, or tearing everything down by labeling it as bad. I guess we just have a very different vision for the Democratic Party, the American left, and government in America.