Let's Take Back the Democratic Party

by Glen Wallace

The recent election of Trump should be a clarion call and rallying cry not just to revive the Democratic Party but to bring it back to its original progressive values.  Too many progressive commentators act as apologists for the non progressive actions of Democratic Party members in and out of office.  A prime example is the time period soon after Obama took office when the Democrats had the brass ring of the Presidency and both houses of Congress but dropped the progressive ball of opportunity.  Instead of using that opportunity to enact a single payer program like Medicare for everyone, they enact a healthcare program, Obamacare, that, Thom Hartmann rightly pointed out, is nearly identical to the program proposed by President Nixon and enacted by then Governor Romney.  Let's call it like it is -- Obamacare is a Republican Party designed gift to health insurance companies and Big Pharma.  And don't try to tell me that during that 'brass ring' period any serious effort was made to institute a single payer program.  I remember that period when the Democrats could have 'run the tables' and I don't recall any speeches before congress or interviews on the Networks where members of congress and the President championed a single payer program.  That's because no effort was made -- no effort was made because the Democratic Party has been taken over by neoliberals  that value regressive laissez faire economic values over the progressive socialist values that the Democratic Party is supposed to be founded on.

Before the 2018 elections, coming up in two short years, we progressives need to make some decisions.  First, we need to boldly attempt to gain Democratic nominations for both local and national offices.  Second, we need to run for those nominations under a boldly socialist progressive platform that meets and even surpasses the progressive platform that nearly got Sanders the Democratic nominations for President.  Third, we need to decide, if, like in the 2016 Presidential Democratic nomination race, the neoliberal candidate still wins the nominations, will it be warranted for the progressive socialist candidate to turn around and run as a third party candidate.  The 2018 race will be coming before we know it and we shouldn't be delaying in at least thinking over what race will we be running for, what our platform will be and what to do if we don't get the nomination.

I'm already thinking about running for U.S. Congress in the District where I live and plan to be living in 2018.  I voted for the Democrat, Angie Craig, in the 2016 election, even though I consider her a neoliberal.  I think she has too close ties to the medical device industry being a former executive for a medical device manufacturer.  I'm not sure I'd have much better luck pitching my idea to her than the winner of the 2016 election, right wing regressive former talk radio host Jason Lewis, of the Government taking over the manufacture and distribution of drugs and medical devices in cases of price gouging such is the case with the Epipen.  Actually, I think the Government should take over the research, manufacture and distribution of medical devices and pharmaceuticals in any case where a need exists and the market is not meeting the need.  Such a plan is very socialist, some would say communist, but I say so be it, and I think the electorate would support the idea -- health is very important to the people.  Health is a value that transcends party politics and the electorate knows political labels are useless when facing a health crisis.  Even so, I don't see much hope for the government owning the means of production for medicine and medical devices so long as either Republicans or neoliberal Democrats are in charge of this country.