The Bayh Good-Bye: Why "centrism" is dead for Democrats
So Evan Bayh is quitting the Senate:
“After all these years, my passion for service to my fellow citizens is undiminished, but my desire to do so in Congress has waned,” Mr. Bayh said in prepared remarks. “My decision was not motivated by political concern. Even in the current challenging environment, I am confident in my prospects for re-election.”
Whatever his official statement lists as the reason, I believe that Bayh -- like his "centrist" contemporary in Hair Awesomeness, John Edwards -- suffers from a chronic need to be the center of attention. After eight full years of being a real star in Washington, it's become apparent that he's no longer anyone's darling. Ergo, quit.
The stretch from 2001 to 2009 was a beautiful time, after all, to be a conservative Democrat. You could spend half of your time expressing Democratic frustration with the agenda of the majority party, and the other half expressing your conservative conscience by voting along with your GOPals. This allowed Bayh to earn a wicked reputation as a guy willing to reach across the aisle, a bi-partisan hero from the heartland. Even Fox News says so.
Gag.
The problem with being an outlier in your own party is that if that party comes to power, you are suddenly extremely unpopular. The narrow victory of Barack Obama in Bayh's home state must have been bittersweet. That old part-time commitment to bitching about how Obstructionist and Removed from Reality the other party is must now be redirected -- and if you call your own party Removed from Reality too many times, well, they're gonna hit you back. If you decide to vote your conservative conscience, you're no longer a bi-partisan hero, you're a traitor. And here, in a nutshell, is the legacy of Evan Bayh.
Of course it didn't have to be this way. Bayh could have gone the Ben Nelson route and held the White House and Congress hostage with demands for his state in return for possibly voting on their agenda items. All-in-all, I think quitting may be the better part of valor, here, and I'd be happy to see Nelson and Blanche Lincoln go this same route. Barring that, though, I'd say this could at minimum be a valuable lesson to Olympia Snowe: Your fifteen minutes could be up as soon as 2012.
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Catherine Forsythe
Writer to the Stars
Emily Holleman
Iron Skillet
Leslie Harpole
old new lefty
Salon.com
Comments
Sounds like this means his seat will go Rep next time?
While the motivations for anyone's acts can never be fully known – even to them – I suspect the face Bayh puts on this is not quite so noble. Were I a cynic, I might wonder if his decision wasn’t at least influenced by the fact he profits handsomely from he and his wife’s connection with the health-insurance industry. But far be it from me to suggest anyone in Washington might be unduly influenced by that public-spirited industry.
What I can say with a reasonable degree of certainty that having been immersed in hard-core politics his entire life – including even as a child – Bayh certainly should have been aware of the ways and wiles of Washington. Further, his decision is a sign he lacks the ability to keep these trying days in proper historical perspective.
I see a post coming, in which I put these matters in perspective -- tho I doubt it will do Bayh -- or anyone else save for me -- any good. I know I'll feel better for ranting.
I love my Congressman but believe him to be virtually alone in his ability to both listen and talk, vote his conscience and work cooperatively with others in his party. It must be very lonely for him. R
Politicians were never supposed to be a full-time, lifetime position, thereby allowing corruption to rule the day. To the rest of the Senators in Washington today: Get a job.
If Evan had half the principle and conviction of his old man, he would have been less concerned with being at the center of things and more concerned with having principles--and then standing on them.
It is bad news for the Democrats because it encourages the socialists among them.
It is bad news for the Republic, because it encourages the fascists in the Republican Party, who, if it comes down to a contest between fascists and socialists, the fascists win, even though centrists ought to.
Obama narrowly took Indiana in the last election only because of Lake County, which is 1.) the second most populous county, 2.) almost entirely black, and 3.) literally next door to Chicago. All but a handful of Indiana counties went Republican.
Oh...and trust me. Indiana could elect a lot, lot worse. Mike Pence, anyone?
"The only thing that will kick you out of office is being found in bed with a dead woman or a live man."
We hope the domino effect works for Kent Conrad, Max Baucus, Blanche Lincoln, Ben Nelson, Joe Lieberman, and Mary Landrieu.
Discouraged politicians then can behave, on both sides of the aisle, like Twiddledum and Twiddledee, taking corporate money and kicking back.
Frustrated citizens, angry at corruption and gridlock, will then be sitting ducks for demagogues who yell a lot.
If we succumb to that demagoguery, we can kiss our what used-to-be more Democratic Republic goodbye.
Then we can our a**es goodbye.