Party Unity

The Pragmatic Left is made up of those who back Obama while disagreeing with some major policies, starting with his war in Afghanistan. Their opposite is the Idealistic Left who energetically attack Obama. This difference is sometimes thought of as a difference in party unity, with the Pragmatic Left putting the Democratic party above principle, but that's a misunderstanding.

It's the Idealistic Left that focuses on party unity. That is, they are disappointed that the Democrats are not unified in pursuit of progressive goals. The Pragmatic Left never believed that a big tent party could be unified. They aren't loyal to a party. They believe that they are working in a corporate system that makes every positive change as difficult as possible. They are loyal to specific goals and willing to take small steps in what they hope will be the right direction.

The Pragmatic Left ranges from Obama to the somewhat less pragmatic Kucinich and Michael Moore. The Idealistic Left, refusing big-tent compromises, is represented by Ralph Nader, who still believes that it made no difference if Bush or Gore got elected President.

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Chris O'Sullivan sent along the following recent quote from someone called Fishpeddler: "It's important to remember that Republican elites think they are raising revenues by cutting taxes to the rich. The technical term for this theory is The Fifth Stage of Tequila (after 1. I'm rich, 2. I'm good looking, 3. I'm bullet-proof, 4. I'm invisible)."

---Gary Goss