What's the Real Message to Progressives in the 2010 Congressional Elections?

by: philgoblue

Mon Mar 01, 2010 at 13:40:09 PM EST

What's the Real Message to Progressives in the 2010 Congressional Elections?
By Sean Egan

I, like many self proclaimed progressive liberals, have been disappointed, shocked, discouraged, and downright pissed off at the lack of progress on the liberal agenda we had hoped our Democratic Representatives would deliver.  At every turn in the history of the United States it has been the progressive thinkers, without regard to party labels, that have moved this country in a new direction toward liberty, equality, and justice for the masses over the few.

As we have been watching these first years of the Obama administration relying on those hopeful campaign speeches and promises to produce results, it seems many have vested too much stock in Obama himself and forgotten the legislative process necessary to accomplish any goals.  Historically the United States Senate has been the cog in the wheel of movement.  With Senate rules, filibusters, cloture motions, etc, it is often much too simple for a small minority to delay and stop the legislative process in spite of the enormous need and public support for regulation or programs to aid a hurting country.  We see this now with John McCain's stall of NLRB appointees, something rarely if ever done before.

In order to put this in perspective we must look to our past to plot our future.  As Harry S. Truman said, "There is nothing new in the world except the history you do not know."  When the nation was crumbling in the early stages of the Great Depression thanks to years of "Free Market" Republican logic, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected to rush in a new era of progress to aid the American people.  With his inauguration in 1933 came a 59 seat Democrat majority in the Senate.  Those remarkable first 100 Days that brought much legislation were accomplished with this majority and an economic climate that did not allow Republicans to object or stall progress for fear of retaliation at the polls.  However, for the much larger progressive movement the mid-term elections of 1935 increased this majority to 69, a ten seat gain, and again in 1937 an increase of seven to a 76 seat majority.  With these large majorities finally came Social Security, the Wagner Act which is the National Labor Relations Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act which created a minimum wage, the Works Progress Administration, and a great deal of Federal spending to support these programs.  We often hear of the first 100 Days, but the later progressive legislation remains the bedrock of a strong middle class in this country.

One of the next major pieces of middle class support from the Federal Government came with the passage of Medicare in 1965.  With his inauguration in 1965, Lyndon Johnson also had a 68 seat Democrat majority in the Senate.  In June of that year, progressives were able to pass the Medicare programs which continue to be arguably the most important piece of legislation in supporting a middle class America.  During the lead up and passage of this legislation the Republican Party, including Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, called this socialism and uttered the same chants as the Republican Party today.  In fact, the Republican Party has been overtly and covertly attempting to destroy all of the legislation referred to here and more since their passage.  It seems that any type of efforts supporting the middle class, working classes, and poor in this country are met with cries of Socialism by the Republican Party, which is why again the great quote maker Harry S. Truman said, "If you want to live like a Republican, vote for a Democrat."

So what's the point of all this history stuff?  Simple, for progressives like me that are currently frustrated with the lack of progress on President Obama's agenda including passage of health care reform, stronger banking regulations, strengthening the ability and right to collective bargaining, and many more the message is elect more.  As you read above and can find throughout the history of the United States, the way forward is with larger and stronger majorities of progressives in the United States Congress.  So as our friends, members, neighbors, and others are looking to these mid-term elections with great fatigue and discouraged fervor we must educate them that the way forward is not electing less Democrats, it is electing more Democrats.  We must tell them that without large majorities in both Houses of Congress, we don't have Social Security, banking regulation, Medicare, and other great programs that support the American middle class and the poor in this country.  And without strengthening the current majorities in Congress, we don't get the progressive agenda the majority of Americans supported when casting their votes for Barrack Obama.  

So stop blaming President Obama and the Democrats for the lack of progress, because, as our history shows, progress requires large majorities.