I've been reading a lot about the withdrawal of Paul Hackett from the U.S. Senate primary in Ohio, and I'm getting angrier by the minute. According to the New York Times, Hackett - an Iraq war veteran and quintessential "fighting Democrat" - dropped out under pressure from Democratic Party "leaders" who apparently believe Democracy is bad for Democrats. A spokesman for Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY), head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), all but admitted that they forced Hackett out, saying "We've told both Sherrod Brown and Paul Hackett that avoiding a primary will make it easier to win the Ohio Senate seat." Oh, isn't that wonderful, the DSCC - all wise and all knowing. And let's not forget "all powerful," which they apparently think they are as well. Vomit.Let's be blunt here. This is complete and utter bullshit. Here's former Senator Gary Hart on the subject (bolding added for emphasis):
Based on news reports alone and knowing nothing (thank goodness) about behind-the-scenes politics, the pressure brought on Paul Hackett, the bold Iraqi veteran, to abandon his campaign for the U.S. Senate from Ohio is deplorable.This is simply old politics at its worst. There is a party which hand-picks its candidates, decides who can and cannot run, directs money to the favorite candidate, and dictate terms. Up till now, that party has been the Republican party.
Now, it seems, my Democratic party is once again imitating the Republican party in a desperate effort to regain power. With the McGovern democratic reforms in the early 1970s, political bosses were diminished and grassroots voters were elevated. The theme was, Let the people decide.
Telling Paul Hackett that he cannot run for the Senate, and purportedly calling contributers to dry up his funds, is the worst kind of old politics. It will drive voters away from the supposedly "open" party, the Democrats, and further add to public cynicism about how politics in America is played in the early 21st century.
Shame on us.
I couldn't agree more with Hart. What's going on here is everything I hate about politics.
#1 thing I hate about this: it's all about money money money. Did I mention money? Oh yeah, then there's money. $$$$$$$$$$$$$. As in drying up Hackett's fundraising ability to force him from the race. That's despicable.
#2 thing I hate about this: it's all about cynical calculation and not at all about passion. Sure, Sherrod Brown is a fine Progressive, but Paul Hackett is a freakin' ANIMAL! And I mean that in a good way. Seriously, this is the guy who said, point blank, that those who oppose gay rights are "absolutely un-American." This is the guy who correctly called George W. Bush a "chicken hawk." This is the guy who called a spade a spade when he said, "The Republican Party has been hijacked by the religious fanatics that, in my opinion, aren?t a whole lot different than Osama bin Laden and a lot of the other religious nuts around the world." And when the Republicans demanded that he apologize for his (truthful) remarks, Hackett didn't back down. Instead, he stood his ground: "I said it. I meant it. I stand behind it."
In other words, Paul Hackett is EXACTLY the kind of "fighting Democrat" we need in this party. But noooooo, not in the world of the life-long political "professionals," the party hacks, the "resume padding campaign monkeys," and the warped business model - you are rewarded for selling TV ads, not for actually helping your candidate WIN! - that currently infests Democratic Party politics.
#3 thing I hate about this: it was decided by party insiders - the "aristocracy," as Chris Bowers calls it - and not by the voters, the "netroots," the PEOPLE. Can we say, "the fix is in?" "Top down" and not "bottom up?" Meanwhile, the "brilliant" insiders (in quotes because obviously they're not - these are the same people who have presided over devestating losses in 1994, 2000, 2004, etc.) sit around scratching their...uh, heads, wondering why people are so cynical and why Democrats keep losing elections? Duhhhhhh....
#4 thing I hate about this: what does it say to all the other "fighting Dems" running for Congress this year. As Mike Lyon, director of the Democratic veterans' group "Band of Brothers" says:
Alienating Hackett is not just a bad idea for the party, but it also sends a chill through the rest of the 56 or so veterans that we've worked to run for Congress. Now is a time for Democrats to be courting, not blocking, veterans who want to run.
Anyway, enough of this rant. I don't want to attract too much attention. Next thing you know, those same "aristocrats" might turn their attention to Virginia's House and Senate races. God help us if they do, that's all I have to say.