Yo Dems

Who will renew confidence in America’s presidency? What personal qualities do they need? Should they be a practical hard-working dynamo, a civic super-nerd, an inspirational orator, a venerable change-agent?

Heck yeah. The pronoun “they” fits well because it transcends gender and reinforces the truth that running our country is a team effort. This ain’t a contest over who’ll be crowned queen or king. The 2020 presidential primary should conclude with a stronger, more cohesive Democratic party comprised of leaders who combine many perspectives and skills. We need them all.

And yes, someone must spearhead that team. If any of the current front-runners receives the nomination (Sen. Elizabeth Warren is now my favorite among the top three), they’ll have my help. Then I’ll hold their feet to the fire after the election, cheering them on when they’re moving forward, protesting if they veer or backslide. That’s my job, the same as any active citizen. Progress requires our collective oversight to counter powerful interests who profit from the status quo. “They” are all of us, working together to balance the playing field.

So sure, I’ll support any of the top-tier contenders. Yet several other candidates also hold my attention.

My foremost concern is restoring trust in the oval office as nerve center for America’s commander-in-chief. We need a competent leader who firmly defends our values at home and abroad. Someone who knows how to listen to seasoned diplomats and experienced officers who understand the realities of armed conflict. Someone who can integrate diverse viewpoints and communicate well-vetted plans. A consensus-builder. No more half-cocked tweets drenched with megalomania and incivility. No more sudden announcements of shady deals brokered with buddy oligarchs and foreign nationalist strongmen.

Mayor Pete Buttigieg showed formidable strength on this front in the last debate. He came across as a clear-thinking combat veteran who fully grasps the dangers of Donald Trump’s dishonorable withdrawal of troops from Syria, a flagrant betrayal of our allies and a colossal fumble in the war against terrorism. Buttigieg is an outsider to Washington, yet he’s got plenty of civic chops compared to the spoiled draft-dodger who now does business out of the White House. Our men and women in uniform would be well-served with Mayor Pete on the ticket.

Buttigieg could be an awkward pick for running mate, however, depending on who’s nominated for president. Pete stridently criticized Medicare-for-all, the healthcare strategy endorsed most vigorously by Warren and Sen. Bernie Sanders. Republicans will weaponize that criticism during the general election. Specifically, they’ll broadcast Pete’s assertion that the cost of an immediate switch to Medicare-for-all would shock taxpayers and steamroll citizens who prefer the choice of private insurance. Those concerns sound reasonable, even if overall savings and benefits look promising based on data from single-payer systems in other countries.

Democrats need to unite on healthcare soon, because Americans have the advantage of hindsight on this issue. We watched what happened leading up to passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in 2010, when Democrats controlled the White House and held strong majorities in both the House and Senate. Medicare-for-all was deemed a non-starter in that process, even though Barack Obama praised that single-payer strategy prior to his election. Initial support for a public option seemed strong, as a competitive compliment to private insurance. But ultimately that provision was tossed too as Democrats tried to secure bipartisan support. In the end they passed a variation of the plan proposed by Republicans in the early 90s and spearheaded by Mitt Romney when he was governor of Massachusetts. Not a single Republican voted for that plan, nevertheless, which became known as “Obamacare.” And Republicans have warred against that variant Republican plan for nearly ten years, without offering any substantive alternative.

The first lesson from that fight is not to waste time trying to convert obstructionists. Democrats must pursue reforms to our failing system with little if any support from Republicans who do not believe access to affordable quality healthcare is a basic right for all Americans. That means so called “progressives” and “moderates” must forge a united plan that’s mutually supported by people who’ve adopted these labels. Affirm the goal of universal healthcare and agree on bold practical steps. Start with an overhaul of Obamacare that includes a robust public option.

Most Democratic candidates embrace this approach. I hope Sanders and Warren acknowledge that the goal of universal healthcare is immensely likely to unfold in a step-by-step process rather than one sweeping move. And I’m praying Buttigieg and other critics of Medicare-for-all will rally the troops to common ground rather than risk more collateral damage.

While I’m at it, here’s another prayer. I’d dearly love for budget policy to become part of the presidential debates. It’s past time for Democrats to expose Republicans who falsely package themselves as fiscal conservatives.  Sen. Amy Klobuchar is well positioned to lead that charge. She’s the only elected official running for president, from either party, who voted against the reckless budget deal pushed by Trump and congressional leaders. That agreement abandoned all semblance of balance. By voting against it Klobuchar set herself apart from the crowd.

As a side note I confess I’ve become a bit entranced with Klobuchar’s un-glamourous demeanor. She seems like someone I could comfortably chat with at a neighborhood pot-luck, a down-to-earth person who can say I have food stuck in my teeth without embarrassing me. Plus she kicked off her presidential campaign outdoors in the middle of a snow storm. Go Amy.

I’m also crushing on Sen. Cory Booker. He’s accurately compared to Fred Rogers, America’s role model for civility. That makes him unlike anything that remotely resembles Donald Trump. And like Rogers, Booker doesn’t back down on issues that matter. The content and tone of his statements offer a template for uniting the Democratic team. He may be the best person to lead a fresh administration forward to heal our country.

Part of that medicine means raising the bar. “We need to have somebody who can excite the full breadth of the electorate,” Booker said recently on The View. “Because I’m not just interested in beating Donald Trump. Beating Donald Trump is the floor, not the ceiling. It gets us out of a valley, but it doesn’t get us to the mountaintop.”

Truth is, America’s climb to peak performance requires bolder mountaineers than we witnessed last time Democrats took charge (and the time before that, too). New leaders can learn from Obama’s pragmatism and Clinton’s triangulations, but those tactics did not and will not spur the hefty reforms most citizens want. Donald Trump has exposed the fact that 30-40% of the populous simply don’t share the same priorities as the rest of us. There’s a big difference between being respectfully civil to that minority and pretending it is possible to please everyone.

Booker is right when he says “this is all about who can you trust to get the job done.” Democrats must energize the base by proving progress on core issues is not just election rhetoric, but a real promise. This applies to foreign affairs, healthcare, the budget, gun safety, environmental protection, and other important areas of public policy. Curbing climate change, for God’s sake. Republicans have rolled out the red carpet for regressive profiteers who block reform. Yet Democrats often have caved to similar interests behind closed doors, allowing themselves to be divided and co-opted by big donors.

This two-party pitfall in Washington, D.C. is mirrored at the state level here in Oregon. With Democratic control of the governorship and legislature, Oregon is now the national example of a backward Blue state in terms of forest policy and campaign finance laws. Timber companies continue to push large frequent clearcuts, sacrificing forest health and climate security. Those same private interests give gobs of money to politicians in both parties. Oregon has done little to regulate that cash flow, and the few state laws now on the books go unenforced.

That kind of weak performance breeds doubt about Democrats who talk big during campaigns, then recede into a do-little political culture once they’re elected. Warren and Sanders dispel such doubt and so they’ve secured ardent support, even in the face of the latter’s heart attack. These candidates have what others should court vigorously – the trust of enthusiastic voters who want and deserve genuine reform.

The ideal Dem team combines uncompromising vision, combat readiness, and focused planning smarts. That’s what America needs. I’m certain we’ll have a capable team-leader at the completion of this primary process. No doubt they could be someone other than the candidates I’ve mentioned. Onward, for the win, with whomover can achieve that crucial outcome.