Earlier this week, Heather Caygle, writing for Politico, reported about the Blue Dogs-- the most right-wing and pro-GOP wing of the Democratic Party-- it trying for another comeback. Beltway reporters have bought into the Blue Dog propaganda that describes them as "moderates" (rather than conservatives), which says what about normal Democrats?
Ryan and McCarthy love to brag about how their most toxic legislation passes with "bipartisan" support. And technically, they're right. There is always a pack of bribe-hungry Blue Dogs and New Dems eager to sell their votes to the highest bidders. So far this cycle the 10 most corrupted Democrats in Congress so far-- from bad to worst:
Gil Cisneros-- Does this look like an "ex"-Republican to you?A trusted political operative told me today about an encounter he had with a scumbag multimillionaire "ex"-Republican who the DCCC is trying to impose on a district filled with progressive Democrats. The "ex"-Republican is running as a Democrat and pretending to take progressive-- or progressivish-- policy positions.
In 2006, the Republicans greeted the midterms as a spent force. George W. Bush was historically unpopular-- bogged down in an unpopular war and-- along with congressional Republicans-- an unending parade of scandals. Democrats defeated 22 GOP incumbents and won 8 open seats that had been held by Republicans who retired. And, for the first time since the GOP was founded, Republicans didn't beat a single Democrat or win a single open Democratic seat.
Would you defend a really bad Democratic incumbent against an even worse Republican challenger? How much energy and resources is it worth devoting to? Personally, I wouldn't even vote for Orlando area Blue Dog Stephanie Murphy, let alone defend her or contribute to her campaign. Her "F" grade from ProgressivePunch barely even scratches the surface about how she-- and other reactionaries like her in Congress-- are destroying the Democratic Party brand.
The thermometer on the right puts the strongest and most effective voices of congressional Resistance to Trumpism all on one page. The men and women on the page that opens if you tape the thermometer are the ones who have put a lot of effort into calling out Trump on his outrageous excesses. But look at the names on that page. None of them are just sitting around all day taking pot shots at Trump, the way, for example, Adam Schiff-- who wants to run for Feinstein's US Senate seat-- does.
If you've been reading DWT even in the most cursory of ways any time since 2005, you know we spend a lot of time on the DCCC and on the Republican wing of the Democratic Party. It's been a theme as much as the DC culture of corruption and the bankruptcy of conservatism and the banal evil of the Republican Party.
When Dan Lipinski inherited his father's Southside Chicago district in 2004, he hadn't lived in Illinois in 15 years. He was a Tennessee conservative-- eventually he even voted for Tennessee Blue Dog Jim Cooer as Speaker instead of Nancy Pelosi-- but returned "home" to hold the family fiefdom. It's widely acknowledged that his corrupt father manipulated and subverted the Democratic process to get him into the seat.
