Representative Alan Grayson (D, FL) is getting some bad reviews from the mainstream press. But this is to be expected. The mainstream press hates anyone who disrupts their cozy narratives.
First it was his comment, “If you get sick, America, the Republicans’ health care plan is this: Die quickly.” Then, appearing on MSNBC, he said of former Vice President Dick Cheney: “I have trouble listening to what he says sometimes because of the blood that drips from his teeth while he’s talking.” Finally, a radio interview surfaced in which he had called a female adviser to the Federal Reserve chairman “a K Street whore” — a reference to her former job as a Washington lobbyist. That one forced him to make a formal apology.
But this is exactly the kind of rhetoric Democrats need.
The country is divided between two opposing ideologies with very little middle ground on which to construct bi-partisan compromise. The financial collapse, the plight of homeowners, the sluggish economy, and persistent high unemployment have everyone in the country in a foul mood and poised to throw-the-bums-out if things don’t turn around.
And the bums are Democrats since they are in power.
Being nice to the other side will produce few results and will make Democrats appear to lack commitment to their ideas.
The Republicans have their tired anti-government, anti-liberal rhetoric, which will appeal to many voters who are looking for easy answers and who quickly forget the role Republicans played in creating this mess.
Meanwhile, the Democrats have their heads buried in policy statements trying to devise solutions to problems that may not be solvable in the short run. The rhetoric that councils patience in the face of challenges and promises technical competence will not quell the anger seething in the electorate.
Grayson offers something different—a Democrat who plays the blame game and is unapologetic when he calls out Republicans for their feckless disregard for average Americans. And in using the language of blame he is using explicitly moral language that reminds voters of the moral bankruptcy of conservatism.
Grayson bluntly tells it like it is—our problems resulted from Republican policies and their twisted values. Unless Democrats hammer that home in the strongest possible terms they will lose in 2101.
We need more like Grayson. Obama’s cool competence helped him win the last election, but it may not be sufficient to win the next one.
