This is the first in a series of ideas I want to put forth on how Democrats can blunt the midterm doldrums - which really means that they get the Democrats and like-minded independents to turn out enough to blunt the enthusiasm of the 18% - 20% of registered voters that could be enough to give the Republicans the Congress in November.
It requires nationalizing our side of the story. It requires speaking truth in the face of corporate power.
It requires this message: We all know that BP owns the Republicans. We need to make the Republicans own BP.
The GOP is already calculating a strategy to use the BP catastrophe as leverage in the only way it can help them: To position BP as a victim of an overreaching government that motivates tea partiers and the like minded to the polls.
Step two - clearly - is to motivate "regular" citizens to sue the government to prevent drilling from coming to a halt. That way we have working Americans look like victims too - victims of the horrible Obama - socialist - non-American administration that doesn't want people to go back to work after all.
Of course, we all know that this oil spill is crushing people's jobs, businesses and hopes in the Gulf left and right. And, if BP had played by the rules, then there wouldn't be a moratorium on drilling - which makes that their fault, as well. Everybody understands that BP is to blame, and the vast majority of people already tie the Republicans to the oil industry.
That's what the apologies, and the term "slush fund," etc., are all designed to do - to excite the anti-government folks to come out and support the GOP by making the corporation the victim. Of course, Congressman Joe Barton (R) - Land of Oil Wells, overreached himself. Bonehead move of the week, and a great differentiator for the starting point of a strategy that looks like this:
Remember President Bush and the Republicans who drove the economy off the cliff? Well, they love big oil. In fact, they loved it so much that they were the ones that allowed the rig that blew up in the Gulf to get there in the first place.
And now the Republicans would rather apologize to BP for making them accountable so they can keep collecting their money from their friends in the oil industry.
Thankfully, President Obama and the Democratic Congress have held BP's feet to the fire. They have forced BP to put money where their mouth is and pay - not just to clean up the mess, but to help people whose livelihoods have been ruined get through this tough time.
And, as long as the Democrats have anything to say about it, our government will make sure future offshore drilling is safe and secure - and that a catastrophe like this will never, ever happen again.
Meanwhile, the Republicans - well, they just keep saying "no" to protecting the American people, while they keep on apologizing to BP, and the oil industry keeps righting them checks. How stupid do they think we are?
Let me know what you think, and we'll hit another strategic message soon.