From rollcall via kos :Reid Seeks to Keep Caucus on Same Page

Mass

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Thu Dec-08-05 06:09 PM
Original message

From rollcall via kos :Reid Seeks to Keep Caucus on Same Page

Edited on Thu Dec-08-05 06:13 PM by Mass

Obviously kos seems to think it is only about those like Lieberman. They dont realize that this article concerns also those people who would support a firm timetable for withdrawal for example.

I have to say I disagree. The question seems too important to be silent if you support a solution that is not the same than most Democratic Senators. Certainly, they should not diss other Dems or attack them, but it is fine to be in disagreement on different aspects of this subject.

I clearly prefer Pelosi's position, where she said she was supporting Murtha, but that she was not looking for a caucus position.

This is not directly Kerry related, but I have noticed that sometimes, Kerry is not totally coherent in what he presents during interviews because he is dancing between what he thinks and what the Senate Democrats thinks (see the Warner vote, for example). He is good enough for this not too be too important for him and he understands the game well enough, I think, but this may become a problem if those Senators who want to propose a real solution have to wait for Hillary Clinton and others like her to be ready.

http://www.dailykos.com/

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid is urging Democrats to limit their comments on the future of the Iraq war to areas where there is broad agreement within the party in an effort to quell increasing concerns both within the Democratic Caucus and the minds of the public that the ongoing conflict has caused deep intra-party divisions. The Nevada Democrat's move came in the wake of recent message miscues by Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean and Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-Conn.).

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TayTay

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Thu Dec-08-05 08:20 PM
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1. Harrey Reid sent out this 'Dear Supporters' letter

Edited on Thu Dec-08-05 08:21 PM by TayTay

Dear Friend,

The media likes to repeat the Republican talking point that Democrats have no agenda--you and I know that is simply not true. Across the country Democrats are participating in dozens of events and with one voice saying it's time to reform: together, America can do better.

In Washington, DC, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi unveiled a new piece of legislation to eliminate tax giveaways for energy companies. Frank Lautenberg spoke in New Jersey about how America can do better than a Medicare prescription drug bill that confuses and shortchanges seniors by providing giveaways to drug companies.

In Wisconsin, Herb Kohl addressed the need for America to do better than an economy that kicks families out of the middle class and how we can help everyone achieve the American dream. While in New York, John Kerry discussed a plan to do a better job protecting Americans from terrorist attack. Patty Murray held four events across Washington State focusing on issues ranging from affordable housing to full funding of veterans' programs. And Chuck Schumer and Robert Byrd both addressed energy independence with members of their local communities.

Today Barbara Mikulski, Paul Sarbanes and I held a town hall meeting in Baltimore with nursing students to highlight the Democratic Party's commitment to reform. While we are working to increase opportunities for higher education, Congressional Republicans are slashing financial aid and curbing opportunities for students to get ahead. Christopher Reed, Patrice Pantin, and Julie Story, students at the John Hopkins School of Nursing, told us about their own struggles to get the training they need.

Each of these events focuses on an important part of the Democratic agenda that will guide us towards taking back both the Senate and House in 2006. We can have a government with open, honest elected officials--it's a matter of priorities. Democrats believe the government works for people, that issues such as student loans, high energy prices, safety and security, should be our top priority not handouts for the well connected.

Thank you,

Harry Reid

Thisis pretty good stuff for middle December. I think this goes to the larger point of getting the Democrats on the same page on the big issues and trying to come up with a coherent policy that the Dems can stand behind.

And to the matter of dKos and his 'Harry Reid is miffed at John Kerry' falsehood, bite me, you bastard.

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_dynamicdems

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Thu Dec-08-05 08:25 PM
Response to Reply #1

2. LOL! You might need a rabies shot if he does...because that

K-zero-S person is one rabid puppy.

It was really nice to see Harry Reid acknowledge John Kerry's contribution. About time!

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Mass

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Thu Dec-08-05 08:56 PM
Response to Reply #1

3. I knew that this would come as controversial but I am bothered by

Edited on Thu Dec-08-05 08:56 PM by Mass

the fact that the Senate Democrats are way too much in line for my taste on Iraq and that I feel that this is because of Reid trying to keep the Senate in line. I know his job is not that easy and that, as the Senate Democratic Leader, he has to keep the line. But I see nothing wrong that some Senators disagree with the majority of the party and say so on an issue as important as Iraq, as long as they dont disparage other Democrats by doing that (this is what is bothering me with Lieberman, not the fact that he agrees with Bush).

I could not care less about kos, this is not what it is about. I am happy that Reid had Kerry's speech in his letter, but it is striking for me nobody in his list was speaking about Iraq because Senate Democrats are still reticent to speak about a plan for Iraq (whatever this plan is).

I guess I have been ranting a lot about that, but it is because I have real problems by what transpires in the media from Reid's management style.

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TayTay

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Thu Dec-08-05 09:44 PM
Response to Reply #3

6. I think Reid is trying to put his best team on the field.

Edited on Thu Dec-08-05 09:52 PM by TayTay

All the first stringers. There is a Supreme Court Justice fight coming up and I think Reid is reserving some people for when that heats up after the Holiday break. (The Senate doesn't return to session after the Holiday break until Jan 17th. That leaves the beginning of Jan. for a big initiative on Alito and all his inconsistencies.)

This is a smart strategy. There will always be room for disagreement among individual Senators as to the specifics of an Iraq plan. (With Leiberman as the outlier.) But the Dems do need to put a floor under their position, including a general direction of purpose, which is what Sen. Kerry did today. (He answered the 'what is victory?' question much, much better than Bush did the other day.) We are not just in Iraq for the mundane purposes and cloudy reasons that Bush listed. We are there to fight a very dangerous global virus of religious extremism. That goal has been obscured by the debacle in Iraq. The global war on the actions of an extreme ideology isn't going away. In fact, under Bush, it's getting worse.

We, as Dems, need this. And combined with Sen. Kerry's Oct 26th list of what we need to do to get out and the voice of Cong. Murtha who adds military credentials and deep knowledge to the chorus, this is a quite effective beginning of a genuine Dem Agenda on the ME. This is what we need to do to get out of Iraq. This is what we have to keep in mind: Osama bin Laden and other committed violent religious extremists are still out there and still have a base of power and we have to come up with an effective strategy to fight that.

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LittleClarkie

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Thu Dec-08-05 09:03 PM
Response to Reply #1

4. Hmm. That would seem to indicate that there is a plan afoot

I may have to take back my disagreement with Reid on this issue. He seems to be trying to reel in both Lieberman and Dean, and prefer how Kerry is presenting things, in contrast.

But still, I don't think there was anything terribly wrong with Dean's words on Iraq.

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sandnsea

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Fri Dec-09-05 01:03 AM
Response to Reply #4

8. Dean's words were a distraction

Just like Lieberman's. Get behind a plan to end the war, and leave stability behind if at all possible. If Lieberman has something to say, he needs to say it within that context, as does Dean. That's all Reid is saying and I think that's the right tact to take. No more distractions from the core objective.

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ProSense

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Thu Dec-08-05 09:11 PM
Response to Reply #1

5. Interesting! Something's churning. n/t

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sandnsea

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Fri Dec-09-05 12:58 AM
Response to Reply #1

7. woohoo

That's the best thing I've read in a long long time. You damned right Democrats are out there with plans. This is so great on so many levels. Harry Reid is the best thing that has happened to this party since LBJ, I swear to god. He is really getting a strategy put together and actually creating little strike forces so that various people will be strong on their little piece of the puzzle. This is terrific.

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TayTay

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Fri Dec-09-05 08:34 AM
Response to Reply #7

9. So reid is a Master of the Senate?

Well, I got to taell you, I like it. I have some problems with Sen. Reid. (He is too conservative in his voting record for me, for one.) However, he does seem to be doing a pretty good job of marshalling the resources of the Dems in the Senate and using what power he has to try and get some notice. He is trying to dig out that idea tht is so embedded in the media that the Dems have no ideas and no plans for moving the nation forward.

I will give him high marks on structure and organization. I do feel like the Dems are fighting back and taking stands. This is, of course, going to have fits and starts and bumpy passages. I mean, we do have enemies who would run over their own grandmother's if they thought they were Dem supporters. Real friggin enemies who would do anything to win. I think Sne. Reid grasps this and is starting to give as good as he gets. (You have to. I also think that Sen. Durbin is playing hard and that is another thing he has to do.)

I liked Dean's comments, but it's common to state a position and then have to pull back a bit on it. (It's politics and that is nothing if not the art of figuring out just what to say, how far to take it and then moderate what you say so that the real idea buried within the words comes out.)

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