I’m not sure who’s behind it (the name “Werbach” suggests it might be Kevin or Adam), but these 19 Theses about the Democratic party’s massive failure in the past election sure make sense. Obvious sense, but sense nonetheless.
It’s been clear to me since before the election that progressives have lost control of the national dialog. Conservatives have spent the past four decades organizing think tanks, publishing journals, training politicians, and getting everyone on the same page–while liberals have chased after a long string of incoherent programs without a single defining or uniting vision. The result is that conservatives are well-organized, intellectually appealing, and compelling; we are just a bunch of nice people.
Undoing this intellectual and political deficit will take a long time. I wouldn’t be surprised if it took decades. So where are the progressive think tanks? The progressive journals? The work of building a coherent philosophy is far more important than the Democrats believe. The Republicans understand this, and that’s why they’re winning. It’s time for us to get started, now, too.