Don't Boo The Home Team!

Two talented teams locked in competition. Partisans watching closely to determine who has the stuff to lead us to victory this fall. Some folks carried away by the heat of battle deliver overly personal attacks. Decked out in my "Democrat 08" jersey, I join the fray, calling out: "Don't boo the home team!" As far as I'm concerned, that's what the other side is there for. Presidential primary rally? Nope. Spring training baseball game. Fortuitously for the SF Giants players being booed, our section was suddenly visited by a chanting mob of LA Dodger fans. Our hecklers immediately swiveled their attention to the LA interlopers, (mostly) playfully exchanging taunts as they marauded past. A few innings later, the Giants won the game.

Like every baseball club warming up the cactus and citrus leagues, my Democratic Party is scouting the talent, rebuilding the team, and looking ahead to the fall classic. While our passions may cause us to overstep and heckle each other, the fact is that we have a larger fight ahead. For Giants fans, it's Dodgers. For Democrats, it's John McCain. No matter our intramural passions for Senators Clinton and Obama, the larger issue is this: we want to bring our troops home from Iraq, promote universal health care, and strengthen economic security for Main Street, not just Wall Street. To do that, let's cheer, not boo, our home team to victory.

Comments

[ReasonIsMyReligion]

Don't be such an airhead, Pelosi-ette!

Demand your mother impeach the sumb*tches every time you... get up to the plate.

Fercrissakes.

[nippersdad]

This would not be as much of an issue now had your Mother and Reid followed through on their 2006 promises. Not investigating and impeaching the Bush Administration and not getting us out of Iraq has allowed doubts to enter the Democratic consciousness as to whether or not we "advocates" actually have the "leaders" we voted for. This extends to the Presidential candidates as well and it should come as no surprise that much of the sound and fury is coming from the very Progressive base that your Mother supposedly represents in San Francisco when we see her consistently support the DLC candidates over the progressive ones.

[kardwell]

If you insist on the sports analogy....

Please inform your mother that the American people are the "Home Team" and she is playing for us on our turf. Tell her to start doing her job and put impeachment back on the table, and then ensure us that the criminals who have hijacked our country will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Otherwise, we are going to cancel her sweet contract.

[donovong]

TOO LATE! The last straw has just dropped.

Hillary Clinton has just proven that she is no better than the Sean Hannity's and Pat Buchanan's of this world.

As quoted in her interview with the Pittsurgh tribune today:

"Clinton: Wright 'would not have been my pastor'"

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/breaking/s_558930.html

[SShaw490]

When the home team plays poorly, they're gonna get booed. And they're playing this so poorly that they're killing their own chances to win the Big One.

[MordechaiShiblikov]

Wow! That's deep. That's really deep.

[Guitarsandmore]

I have to agree with Christine Pelosi, it makes no sense for Democrats to become rabid dogs lashing out at each other when either Democratic candidate would be such an enormous improvement over the current administration.

[magen]

Sports analogy-

Its the last round of the playoffs, seconds to go, one team is hopelessly behind, there's no way for them to win without a miracle.

That's the situation Hillary's in.

Its time for her to concede so we can all root for the same team.

No gaming the system like the New England Patriots.

[mommadona]

BASEBALL: A game played by people for outrageous salaries. They play a game for their living.

POLITICS: ditto.

POLITICS is a game - it is NOT a way to govern.

Your mother has failed her test.

[dwmorris]

Christine: We have no home team without MI and FL. Sorry.

[DietrichMoody]

So maybe Hillary shouldn't have discouraged people from voting in the primary. "Michigan is not going to matter" she said.

[dwmorris]

Maybe Obama shouldn't have tries to game the result by having his name withdrawn from the ballot.

[fariqabdulaziz]

Voting for another Clinton would be exactly like voting for another Bush, in terms of the damage it will do this country. Do not reward failed Presidencies with more opportunities to destroy us, America!

[WilliePilgrim]

Let's stop booing the home team but for cryin' out loud, let's get the sports metaphores out of politics. It's really sickening and leaves us with the idea if our guy doesn't win we have lost. It opens the door to the kind of focus on the paraphenalia and power and paychecks rather than on genuine progress. So, please, why don't you stop it and then maybe others will too.

[springsm]

Well after all...Congress up to their knees in steroids and athletes. They aren't really up to doing much else. Athletics and politics are not even sitting in the same shoebox. The sentiment is kindly taken, but this is absord. I agree with williepilgrim

[vbond]

Christine,

I think you and your Mom are great, but I have no idea in the world what your post is about.

If this were a baseball championship, all the "teams" would still be on the field.

The others - Biden, Richardson, et. al. - are gone because they faced reality, and this is not baseball.

The Clinton's only perceived chance is for Obama to be taken out... but even that would not put Hillary in the White House.

It would install Al Gore and Kathleen Sibelius.

[scottarino]

But...the "home" team will not support single-payer health care, they will not stand up to the military industrial complex and end the war (mark my word) and they LOVE corporate influence over policy. That sounds like the enemy to me. They should be booed. Today's democrat is a complete sell out. They act like neocons and they are fascists, too.

[maca]

You'll note that unlike many bloggers, Ms. Pelosi did not hang around to answer any of these replies to her pep rally speech. Because she knows that many of them will be about her mother's refusal to even attempt to implement the will of her party.

[NickfromCali]

As a 30+ year Giants fan, I'm optimistic that the Giants will win about 65 games this year. Too bad they are scheduled to play 162

[McSurgent]

Unless Obama and Hillary share the Dem ticket I think the anomosity between the two historic Dem candidates has caused great damage. It is the 1st woman versus the 1st African American - two important groups that are constantly spewing hateful and hurtful epithets at each other. I even have seen longtime regular liberal posters at HuffPost not at each others throats verbally. Of course supporting John McCain as I do, I welcome the continued mudslinging. I expect after the Penn primary for another Rev. Wright type story to emerge from right wing talk shows. Where Sean Hannity got the Rev. Wright info from is open to speculation. Nobody doubts it benefited Hillary. Hannity emphatically a couple of days ago said there is more revelations on Obama forthcoming. I myself think an in depth independent or OK Republican investigation on what exactly Obama accomplished as a State Senator in Illinois woul be revealing. I am from Chicago and I can't name one accomplishment. It appears alot of what Obama was involved in were issues focusing mostly on the black community in the 13th district. What was that community like before Obama was State Senator and did he accomplish like what Giuliani did for NYC or is the 13th district still languishing with the same problems. Anyway keep slugging away Democrats. There is more curve balls ahead.

[DietrichMoody]

You just prove how little team seems to matter in team sports nowadays, for many Democrats. Because you still seem to think that the "star" of the team is part of the team. However, there is no "I" in team. The problem with Hillary, is that she is a poor example for building teams, coalitions, maintaining cohesion and rounding the troops together. And as time goes by, her distinguished individual career, apart from Bill Clinton, seems less and less impressive. There is no "I" in team.

[rojo7449]

You just prove how little team seems to matter in team sports nowadays, for many Democrats. Because you still seem to think that the "star" of the team is part of the team. However, there is no "I" in team. The problem with Barack, is that he is a poor example for building teams, coalitions, maintaining cohesion and rounding the troops together. And as time goes by, his distinguished individual career, apart from Rev Wright, seems less and less impressive. There is no "I" in team.

[SlinkyTWF]

There may not be an "I" in "team," but there is a "me." Oddly enough, there is also "meat" to "eat" and "tea" to go with it. It "Boggle(tm)s" the mind. "Am" "I" mistaken, "Ma?"

(sorry, I'm just sick to death of hearing that cliche`)

[DietrichMoody]

You just prove silliness.

[DietrichMoody]

You just prove more and more each day, how much PROJECTION (a defense mechanism in which one attributes one"s own unacceptable or unwanted thoughts or/and emotions to other) is going on on the Clinton side, and then some.. YOU ARE PLAGIARIZING my thoughts and words. Wasn't that what Clinton accused Obama of with the Gov. of Mass. The more Clinton stays in the race, the more PROJECTION you are going to see from her supporters and maybe from some McCain supporters too. Interesting.

[nolabels]

Tell this to Hillary and Bill.

[Megaflow]

Great post, Christine! We need a LOT more of this type of thinking over the next few months to overcome the crazy inter-party partisanship that's infected the Democrats lately. I wish the trolls around here (and other boards) would just give it a break for a while. They're not convincing anyone by being obnoxious, just getting everyone fed up with the process.

[starboymikey]

Sorry, but this is a rather lame analogy, since it appears to say that loyalty to the "home team" is more important than its performance. I suppose this has some sentimental validity, but we are dealing the country and the world here, not the New York Knicks, who are routinely booed at Madison Square Garden because they are ineptly managed and, well ... they stink.

[repearwo]

Gee, it getting harder and harder to tell who the home team is. 4000 reasons harder.

[gtt]

Senator Clinton has Mark Penn running her campaign, reason enough not to cheer for her. Penn = Rove. Check out him and the bench full of DLC "democrats" that she has on her team. Clinton represents the old school of politics that we should strive to reform. I will support her if she is the nominee, I just hope that I don't have to. Senator Clinton is the choice of the DLC, Rush and McCain. Why do you suppose that is ?

[TomR]

Personally I support Obama. I have one thing to say to all the Hillary-haters and Obama-haters who refuse to vote for the opposing Democratic candidate. There's one overriding issue that trumps your hate: getting another right-wing justice on the Supreme Court if McCain is elected. Because this issue is not only about the next 4-8 years, it affects the next 30-40 years. At his advanced age, we'll be lucky to have Justice Stephens hanging on until the end of Bush's term.

[Fabienne]

There are more issues here than the Supreme Court. Allowing the Democratic Party to remain in the grip of the DLC for 4 or 8 more years will essentially destroy whatever-was-left of the alternative to the Republicans. Why enable them with a vote for Clinton? Also, McCain is no more corporate-leaning than is Senator Clinton, so the main issues regarding the Supreme Court appointment will be social ones. Considering Clinton's ties to the Fellowship, I would not be absolutely confident that she would support a justice who would support Roe v. Wade. Besides, voting simply on the issue of abortion rights seems somewhat morally-bereft to me, despite the fact that I am pro-choice.

[surfcitysteven]

Thank you! Why vote for war mongerers? She does not belong in OUR party. The progressives need to take it back from the neocon war voters like Hillary. We absolutley need to punish the DLC for taking this party to the right.

[hrayovac]

I'm with the analogy almost all the way but for the one minor point but one worth mentioning. Giants fans threw 9 volt batteries at the Dodger outfielders during a game. In all the years I went to Chavez Ravine..and it's slightly more than Windlestick, I never saw an LA fan disrupt a game while any team was on the field let alone the Giants. You don't see the kind of hatred for the Bay Area evident in LA fans. All agree SF' s a jewel of a city..well, a bit polluted now and the traffic's as bad as South but hey..beautiful.