The mainstream media loves to point out the divide between the GOP establishment and the Tea Party, but the Democratic Party is facing its own civil war over coming elections.
Even the liberal National Journal is admitting that Democrats are in disarray as the 2014 battle for their campaign message is being fought.
As the Democrats envision a possible debacle in the upcoming November elections, Daily Kos founder Markos Moulitsas has been crowing that the hard-line left within the party has prevented the moderates from having any influence. He has been countered by the Democratic think tank Third Way, which has vocalized its displeasure with the hard-line leftist leaders such Sen. Elizabeth Warren and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.
And that’s only what is apparent to the public; in private, if the Democrats plunge in 2014, the moderates are planning to blame the leftists because the left eschewed free-trade deals and entitlement reform, while progressives will vilify the centrists for their abandonment of protection of benefits.
One anonymous strategist said, “This is a coming divide for the Democratic Party. Not only about explaining 2014, but laying the groundwork for 2016.”
Third Way cofounder Matt Bennett argues that the dwindling popularity of Democrats is due to the harsh class-war rhetoric flowing from the mouths of leftists. He said, “Democrats lost touch with the middle class. We engaged in arguments that have intellectual but not emotional resonance. Income inequality is a problem, but that doesn’t make it something that will land in public.”
Alex Lawson, executive director of Social Security Works, shot back that Barack Obama’s consideration of a reduction in the growth of future Social Security benefits meant that the Democrats could not attack the GOP for their support of entitlement cuts. Lawson complained, “Now the water is muddy. Nobody knows which side is actually fighting to protect Social Security.”
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