Ideas are not set in stone.  When exposed to thoughtful people, they morph and adapt into their most potent form.

~Charlie Todd, Improv Everywhere

As we get closer to the 2108 mid-term elections and Democrats choose congressional candidates during the ongoing primary season, political pundits are looking for sea walls which might turn back a potential blue tsunami.  Progressives despair that a pro-life candidate in rural America will cost them the “right to choose” base.  And moderate Democrats fear the selection of a 28 year old democratic socialist in Queens is giving the Republicans their next “be afraid” target.

Nothing could be further from the truth.  Congressional and, to a lesser extent, senatorial campaigns are local.  New Yorkers voting for an uber progressive does not mean Kansas Democrats will not turn out for a pro-life former female fighter pilot.  More importantly, to return to “the regular order,” diversity of positions within one of the two major political parties is exactly what the doctor recommended.  When you demand ideological purity, you do not get Republican or Democrat, conservative or liberal.  You get bad ideas such as zero tolerance, tax breaks for corporations and the wealthiest, tariffs. denial of science and moral ambiguity.

Even if the current Republican House and Senate leadership allowed hearings and votes on the pressing issues of the day there is evidence the ensuing debate would not result in compromise and accommodation of legitimate differences of opinions.  The primary reason?  Republican legislators have outright admitted they look to Donald Trump for their cues.  And for fear of alienating Trump’s hold on the GOP base, they dare not challenge their leader.  Regardless of personal points of view, they have chosen to fall in line.

This failure by Republicans to engage in substantive debate is a major opportunity for Democrats if only they have the wisdom and will to grab hold of it.  Consider the following.  Upon re-taking the leadership in either chamber of Congress, Democrats announce they will make committee assignments which ensure that the range of opinions within the party are represented.  And if the Republicans choose to use their time to attack witnesses and spew vitriol, so be it.  Democrats should ignore them and use their turns to address facts and options.

However, for those discussions to achieve their full potential the participants must bring diverse perspectives to the table.  Members who believe the second amendment is outdated and those who defend it as an inherent right.  Those who think free trade helps America prosper and those who presume it costs American jobs.  Colleagues on each point along the continuum of security versus privacy.  Democrats must accept the premise there is room in the party for candidates with all these views as long as they agree the outcomes must be consistent with the promise of America so well articulated in the Declaration of Independence and Constitution.

As Charlie Todd reminds us,  the “most potent form” of any concept comes not from ideologues or lemmings, but from thoughtful people who are not afraid to debate opponents on the merits of an issue and who all agree pursuit of better answers is the ultimate goal.

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP