It's time for a more coordinated message from Democratic Congressional Candidates, House and Senate alike, to link themselves to passage of President Obama's programs supporting the middle class with economic development and jobs legislation; women's rights; civil and human rights for the LGBT community; protecting the environment; and equal opportunities for all minorities.
The message might take the form of a basic ad reminding people that decisions on legislation in Congress are made by the leadership and regardless of the issues Republican Congressional candidates campaign on their first vote will be for either Mitch McConnell in the Senate or John Boehner in the House of Representatives. Those will be votes for a continued assault on the middle class; an assault on women; for cutting taxes on the wealthy; against human and civil rights for the LGBT community; and against a jobs program that would put Americans back to work.
Democrats must tie those running for Congress on the Republican ticket to the words of Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan, Mitch McConnell and John Boehner and not let them squirm out of that with promises to oppose or support one or another piece of legislation. Republican's need to be held accountable and asked what their first vote will be if elected and if it is for the current Republican leadership, voters need to know it is a vote to oppose any movement toward a fairer and just America.
An ad for Elizabeth Warren in her Massachusetts Senate race against Scott Brown should be: Scott Brown may be a nice guy but a vote for him is a vote against a woman's right to choose; against civil and human rights for Gays and Lesbians; against the Dream Act to allow children whose parents brought them to our country at an early age to receive the best possible education; against President Obama's jobs program to rebuild our nation's infrastructure; and against protecting our environment. I say that because Scott Brown's first vote if you reelect him will be for the Republican Leadership in the Senate who are AGAINST all these things. Just ask him and you will find out that he supports the Romney/Ryan ticket and they are against all these programs. Don't be fooled by a nice guy persona. Ask him if he intends to vote for Mitch McConnell as his leader? McConnell who said, "Our top political priority over the next year is to deny President Obama a second term". I will stand with President Obama and will cast my vote for a Democratic Senate majority and we will fight FOR all these programs. I will fight alongside President Obama to give all Americans an equal chance to succeed.
Democrats must hold Republican Congressional candidates who run on the claim to be moderate responsible and tell them that they can't make that claim and then cast their first vote for an ultra-conservative leadership team who will demand their support when the rubber hits the road. We have seen time and time again politicians who claim to be more moderate, like Scott Brown (R-MA) in the Senate, or Nan Hayworth (R-NY) in the House, support and vote for leadership led by conservative ideologues like Eric Cantor (R-VA) or a ticket led by Romney and Ryan who are running on the most ultra-conservative platform ever endorsed by the Republican Party. It is time to say to these candidates you can't have it both ways. You can't claim one thing and then do another.
We need to educate the American public on how the system works but since that can't be done in a sound bite we need to put these so-called moderate candidates on the defensive and make them explain away their own party and the leadership they support.
When the Romney/Ryan ticket goes down to defeat, as it will, there will be an epic struggle for control of the Republican Party. The blame game will begin as it always does after losing campaigns and it will be interesting to watch if the ultra-conservative ideologues like Ryan, Bachmann and Santorum can convince the Party to go even further to the right or if moderate Republicans, who have in essence been drummed out of the Party, can reassert some influence.
But until that time we cannot continue to allow self-proclaimed Republican moderates to get away with saying they believe one thing and then voting for an ultra-conservative leadership team that is diametrically opposed to what they claim to believe. There is enough hypocrisy in government without the American people voting for more of the same.