http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x9289191Oh my.
Ken Burch (1000+ posts) Sun Oct-10-10 04:19 AM
Original message
Another reason to make sure we DON'T lose the Senate...if we do, we CAN'T get it back in 2012
In 2012, there will be 21 Democratic Senate seats up for election, and only 10 'Pug seats(Bernie and HolyWarJoe have the other two seats). It's impossible to gain seats if you're already defending two-thirds of them.
If we can't take it back in 2012, we EQUALLY can't take it back in 2014(when we have 20 seats up, compared to 13 for the 'pugs).
That means, if we lose the Senate this year, nothing progressive can happen for the rest of the administration. We're doomed to post-1994 Clintonism again.
WE CAN'T LET THAT HAPPEN!
If we go in to the minority in the Senate this year, we're doomed to stay there(therefore)until 2016-I.E., until it's too late to matter anymore.
We can't let ourselves be reduced to that.
Defend the Majority. It's our ONLY chance.
Does THAT clear things up for everybody?
Well, maybe Jimmy Carter should be hitting the campaign trail, on behalf of Dem candidates.
He owes it to them; they helped him get elected, and helped him run for re-election, and now it's Jimmy Carter's turn--in fact, it's long past time--to help them.
opihimoimoi (1000+ posts) Sun Oct-10-10 04:39 AM
Response to Original message
1. The nasty GOPers know this and are going all out with bucko bucks to fool the Nation as they did in 2000
Tragic for the Nation looms...
BzaDem (1000+ posts) Sun Oct-10-10 04:49 AM
Response to Original message
2. And on top of that, of the 10 pug seats, only one of them will likely be remotely competitive.
That's Scott Brown's seat.
We, on the other hand, are defending the following seats that have the potential to be very competitive:
Bill Nelson of Florida
Claire McCaskill of Missouri
Jon Tester of Montana
Ben Nelson of Nebraska (almost certainly lost)
Sherrod Brown of Ohio
Jim Webb of Virginia
Joe Manchin of West Virginia (if he wins this year)
And on top of THAT, if the environment in 2012 looks anything like it does this year, there could be many more seats in play. Believe it or not, if the environment in 2012 looks like it does in 2010, Republicans could take the Whitehouse, the House by a large margin, and 60 Senate seats.
That's why this years' Senate elections are so important. They are important to keeping the Senate majority for the next Congress, having a remote chance of keeping the Senate majority in the following Congress, and preventing Republicans from getting 60 seats in the worst case in the following Congress. Every single seat matters immensely.
Yeah, franksolich thinks Ben Nelson's done.
The number one example of why it's better, if one's a conservative, to vote for a moderate or liberal Republican, than to vote for a "conservative" Democrat.
Ken Burch (1000+ posts) Sun Oct-10-10 05:02 AM
Response to Reply #2
3. This is why we CAN'T go along with the "It's no biggie if we lose Congress this year" thing
The reality is, if that happens, we'll be reduced, once again, to simply trying to keep the White House-simply preserving a deadlock. Can that even be worth a MINUTE of our time? Is there any chance this party can ever gain ground in the future if we reduce ourselves to that now?
It took twelve years to recover from 1994. Many of our core supporters CAN'T SURVIVE another twelve years of GOP domination of Congress.
FBaggins (1000+ posts) Sun Oct-10-10 06:54 AM
Response to Original message
4. It isn't necessarily that bad.
There's no question that the number of seats to defend makes things more difficult, but things can change a great deal in two years.
Just look at predictions from two years ago regarding what this year's senate race would look like. There were only a couple seats that were even expected to be marginally competitive on our side (with far more potential pickups for us).
Instead, there are as many as 13 potentially competitive democratic seats (counting the one we've already lost).
If the economy turns around, we can hold a tight senate in 2012. It's 2014 (and the "six year itch") that looks scary, but four years is a lifetime in the senate. Just think how hard it will be for republicans in 2016 if they have to defend six freshman tea party candidates and six years worth of THOSE votes.
Scuba (1000+ posts) Sun Oct-10-10 06:54 AM
Response to Original message
5. So get to work, everyone!!!
The ONLY thing that matters at this point is getting voters to the polls on November 2nd.
You can help do that.
Volunteer down at Democratic HQ. They need people to make phone calls, knock on doors, compile lists of local events, do data entry, etc.
Help others get their early ballots in case they can't get out on election day.
Get a yard sign.
Talk to your cousin/nephew/aunt etc.
We need to focus on this or the next two years of DU will be not about how to improve the country, but about limiting damage.
Get Jimmy out on the campaign trail, stumping for Dems.
He should've been doing that years and years ago anyway.
