It's important to remember that the "Contract With America" was not dumped on the population until quite near the election. It sounded good (to the politically retarded, of which there are many) and left the Dems without a viable reply to it.

Not that I think that Democrats have something similar lurking out there.

With regret, I agree entirely. And it's worse. Not only do the Democrats lack a message, they are projecting a bad one.

The old saw that Democrats LOVE to spend tax dollars is nowhere more frighteningly illustrated than with our own Mayor's infatuation with the bottomless financial pit of The Tunnel.

Hey Catalina -you're exactly right - the Contract on America didn't launch until 3 weeks before election day, and left the Dems flat-footed. All of the whispers and whatnot I've heard from my party sources tell me that we've got one, and we're planning an October rollout for it. After all, Karl Rove himself said "you don't launch a new product before the end of August."

Of course - just cause we have one doesn't mean the R's dont have something to counter it with...

In fact - if I was a betting man (which I kinda am) - I'd bet that the thing we roll out is something like what Barry Welsh from the Indiana 6 is doing:

http://www.barrywelsh.org/

that Pledge to the 6th District is kinda cool. ALmost like a pledge of ...you know....some kinda of loyalty or something....allegiance, almost...

"Investment in the future" concisely sums up the ultimate goal of lefty causes.

Clinton's "bridge to the 21st century" sctick was corny, but it also had a good nugget of truth to it. If there is any real overarching theme of the past six years it has been the shortsighted stupidity of the administration and congress.

Liberals aren't counting on the rapture to solve all of our problems. "Let's assume we won't all be in hell in 10 years" might not be a terrible message to govern by.

1. Spending on science, reseach and development that support future economic growth and future american dominance of world culture.

2. Responsible budgeting to be sure that future generations will not be broke.

3. Intelligent use of force abroad in conjunction with careful diplomacy to preserve future american defense.

4. Enviromental conservation to preserve resources for future generations.

and so on..

Right now, no one who hasn't made up their mind already is paying attention.

The Democratic party is about providing opportunity to everyone. No matter how much you already have, where you came from, or who you love, everyone should have opportunity to succeed.

Practically speaking, this means:

taxing people who can afford to be taxed
education for everyone
action against discrimination and corruption
affordable housing
efficient communication and transportation

Look, Democrats are always talking about "what we need to do." As if Republicans are such fucking geniuses. Look at the advantages they have:

1) cutting taxes without cutting spending [free ponies!]
2) rallying their macho base with pointless wars
3) pandering to bigots

And with that, they get 51% of the Presidential vote, and less than half the total votes for the House. When they don't use their strengths, they get clobbered (think Bush 1 and Bob Dole).

As long as Democrats maintain human decency, they're always going to be at a disadvantage. Stop trying to nuance your way to the top. Stop trying to come up with the perfect bullet points. We need to think of a way to neutralize the three Republicans strengths. Then we'll get 51% and win.

Let's build America's future rather than screw it up.

Thanks for noticing this, Josh. I've been beating this point like a dead horse with Eli and Dan for a month or two and they just don't realize that just because people hate the Republicans doesn't mean they like the Democrats.

BTW, the difference between the Republican party of 1994 and the Democratic party of 2006 is that the Republicans had been attacking government spending (really, coded attacks on welfare for nonwhite people) for decades by that point. The Contract was just a stunt to make sure voters (most of whom really don't follow these things as closely as we do) knew what was going on.

The Democrats haven't had a coherent message since the the 60s. Even if they managed to take back Congress, it would take a miracle to hold it together and win the next election, because the Democratic party is just as divided right now as it was in 94.

Christopher,
You are right: The Gingrich Conract w America was the culmination of a backlash that had brewing for years. The pieces were in place.

That's exactly why I don't expect the Democrats to magically unveil anything convincing in September. Like I said in my post: I don't think the coherent message is there. Your pass at it ("providing opportunity to everyone") & Golob's hit ("investing in the future") are starting points, but they're both also pretty general.

Well, we could just leverage our ownership of the media and cultural elites to influence America, right? I mean, the whole media's on our side, right? Why don't we just get them to call the Republicans names like "conservative" or "warniks" or "big spenders" or something. I guess it's just not that easy trying to get everyone to eat their vegetables when the other side just offers ice cream all the time.

Making government work for the people again or just Making government work again

Steal some of the Republican talking points as your own and put a Democrat spin on it in the longer explanation. Take Social Security, for instance. Say, "We can address this problem, but not if we're running deficits." Ouch, it's a two-fer slam. Speak about fairness and responsibility in Congress. Mention that you won't wait to serve the people as the government did with Katrina.

Josh is somewhat correct. It needs to be simple/simplistic and direct. It also needs to be positive. The fact that Democrats have not seemed to analyze Bill Clinton's rhetorical style and use it to their advantage demonstrates the paucity of talent within the party. How difficult is it to maintain a 30 second attack on your opponent on an issue and then spend 1.5 minutes promoting your better ideas? Democrats are better than the alternative, but they've wasted years in the minority by not building a more positive image of themselves.

"Vote for a change."

One also has to keep in mind that while the Republicans have a simple of message of who they are, they also have one of who the rest of us are.

"Opportunity for everyone" and "investing in future" are OK, but we need something more.

Such as - "When Republicans say "smaller government, they mean 'You're on your own'". And that in turn should dovetail with a positive message for the Dems, such as - "The Democratic Party - where all of us matter."

Or somesuch.

Josh:

Most Democrats I know (which is plenty), and certainly *this* Democrat, don't really give a shit if you think we have a "guiding philosophy" or not. Nothing we might say or do would satisfy your smug little wonk ass anyway.

For me, this election is about "Basta Ya!" "Enough Already!" That goes for the GOP, and for you. Peace out.

Ivan,
Yep, you and the rest of the Daily Kos types are bringing joy to the Republicans' hearts every time you assume you have this election sewn up. Considering that the biggest thing in the Dems' favor right now is that the hardcore conservatives disgusted by Bush's moderate immigration stance might stay home, we actually do need a way to get the votes of people who aren't Democrats. Because, if you haven't noticed, Democrat-identified voters are much less than half of the country. You can't win an election on your base alone, as pissy as people like you get about not being the only audience played to.

PG:

It's just plain silly to assume that you know what someone else assumes. I do not regard this election as "sewn up" or anything close.

People who do not identify as Democrats are being screwed by not only the policies of this administration and this party, but by the application of conservative principles in general.

It hardly takes some "crafted" message to make people realize this, and to act accordingly. It will take neighbor talking to neighbor. That's a lot of hard work by a lot of people, and couldn't possibly be accomplished by anyone who thinks the election is "sewn up."

The Democrats are the Party of the Common Man.

They are deathly afraid to say so.

They will maintain their losing ways (with temporary opportunistic exceptions) until they remember who they are.

The Left: Government working for, not against, the people, who own it.

GOP who? Those deadenders?

Face it, Dems deliver and neocons quiver.

Whoever thought of a land war in the Middle East for a goal we can't achieve to build a US-financed Muslim theocracy that hates our guts was high on acid. Period.

Just smell the bleeedinggg in our billions shipped overseas and pay no attention to the Vietnam II quagmire we predicted would occur.

p.s. Lorenzo, STFU about our Promise For America - loose lips sink ships. It's on a need to know basis, and their might be anti-America deadenders listening.

You guys play right into the hands of the GOP with your chest-thumping complacency, and that's the point. So what if they suck and they're terrible? Why are Democrats better? You MUST be able to firmly answer that question and back it with hard supportive evidence to swya the undecideds, or the GOP's keeping Congress this November.

And this is coming from someone who DOESN'T want the GOP to retain control of Congress.

Not that I expect it to sink in for particularly dense section of the political cognoscenti that you seem to represent, Josh, but you might take a look at a thread of reactions to a New Yorker article by Jeffrey Goldberg in the same vein as your slog post instigated by your namesake at www.talkingpointsmemo.com.