I am witnessing an insanely dangerous meme taking hold. It is as un-fact-based, illogical and panic-inducing as any piece of repub BS.
When did we start seriously believing that "if the democrats did not pass an ambitious progressive [health care/banking/deficit/younameit] reform agenda they are doomed in the midterms"? That is straight out of repub strategy. And a desperate, back-up-against-the-abyss one at that.
When did we accept that the repubs and the parasite beltway consultants (purportedly independent but mostly closet repubs) were going to define Obama's democratic agenda for us?
When did we convince ourselves that a rampaging repub agenda was the same as a stalled progressive one? When did we become convinced that stopping the repub agenda was the same as letting it go through? When did we stop wondering where we would be with mccain/palin, or any of their repub primary co-clowns? It wasn't by accident that we are doing that now.
Don't get me wrong: Congress should pass the single payer, or if not a public option, because it's great policy. And the sooner, the better. And the blue dogs and other fifth column conservatives should be made irrelevant immediately and booted out at the earliest opportunity. And they should turn back to find the door locked shut at least as long as the dems remain in power. And the banker parasites should be shown the door after they leave their wallets full of the proceeds of national fraud and blackmail.
Now, as to electoral politics: When did we forget that the voters in the mythical 'middle' did not give anybody an ambitious progressive mandate? They turned away from the repubs in disgust, that's what they did. Health care is fundamental policy, but it's hardly the top thing that matters most to the mythical young voters who are facing a black hole of joblessness.
Regardless of that, the repubs have been winning all their elections since 1900 or so on zero, if not negative, governing records. They know to sell what they have, even if it's nothing or crap. They've been running against Jimmy Carter to this day! Our product is infinitely better. We should learn to do that too, and pronto. Not doing that is what dooms us. I screamed about that in 2006 and 2008. I said, this time the tide's sweeping democrats in. It's covering their huge messaging and campaigning deficiencies. We should be winning by 30 points in 40+ states by now. But no one worried about that then. It wasn't needed, then. Well, it's needed now. And the sooner we begin to focus on that, the sooner we will relegate the repub so-called party to permanent irrelevancy.
UPDATE:
What would the meme be today if the dems had passed bold health care reform and castigated the banks? It would be that their socialist policies were responsible for the depression that started years earlier. It would make no difference. We would still have to fight to win the midterms, as much as some of would like not to.