Posted by
Always To The Right on Saturday, November 08, 2008 2:02:18 PM
Democratic moderates in the House have begun to assert themselves
in their caucus, two years after giving Nancy Pelosi the majority.
Blue Dogs issued a call to see moderates in key leadership positions
and have proposed candidates for these slots. They want recognition of
their role in maintaining the Democratic majority
I’m not sure that anyone would have described John Dingell as a Blue
Dog Democrat before now, but he’s certainly more moderate than Henry
Waxman. Waxman wants Dingell out of the Energy and Commerce Committee
so that Waxman can pursue more radical solutions on global warming.
Dingell wants to protect the auto industry from excessive regulation,
and has fought back against Waxman’s attempt to wrest control of the
committee away from him.
The Blue Dogs see this kind of leftward tilt as a threat to their
seats. If the 111th Congress runs hard to the left, voters in their
more conservative districts will punish them by replacing them with
Republican challengers in 2010 — and Democrats will lose their majority
just as they did in 1994. Their need for self-preservation pushes them
to get more of their members into leadership.
This leadership fight will give voters a clear indication of how
radical the upcoming single-party government will get. If the Blue
Dogs get their committee chairs and their leadership positions, they
may help keep the worst excesses of Pelosi and Barack Obama in check.
If not, we can expect major overreach, and Republicans can start
getting ready to take back these conservative districts in two years.