Playing to Win

Do Democrats know how to counterpunch?

Congressional Republicans are hell-bent on ignoring the gravity of the January 6th MAGA insurrection. It is clear that they do not want an independent commission to look into the causes of the attack on the Capitol. It is just as obvious their motivation is to avoid any issue that would jeopardize their opportunity to regain the majority in both houses of Congress in the 2022 elections. This week, the House passed a bill creating an independent commission to investigate the cause of the insurrection (the 252-to-175 vote included 35 Republicans), but Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell came out against the bill the same day. Filibustering the bill effectively relegates the investigation of January 6 to Congressional committees and grandstanding politicians, giving the Republicans an outlet for their various alternative narratives. 

This cold-blooded approach to the politics of governing is fueled by a rapacious appetite for political power. Rick Wilson, a former Republican strategist and a founder of the Never Trump Lincoln Project, used Twitter to urge the Democrats to take a tougher approach:

IF the argument is that a filibuster distracts the Senate from more important business, ask this question: What business is more important than holding to account the people behind the Trump mob? What magical fairyland bill is going to move suburban voters next year? I'll tell you what, though you won't like it...not a goddamn thing. Zip. Zero. Nada.

We're post-policy. This is raw, radioactive political waste that the GOP is desperate to bury. They'd love to jerk you off promising "We can work together on the infrastructure bill" or other lies. Democrats get one shot. McConnell is SO much better at this game because he doesn't give two fucks about policy.

And. it. is. a. game.

Stop dreaming of climate bills or gun bills or daycare bills and fucking do your jobs to protect the country by shoveling 50000 tons of political shit on the head of every GOP member and candidate.

Seriously. Do we have to do EVERYTHING for you?

In my younger years, when I was a part-time football coach at a local college, a topic frequently discussed in bull sessions among staff members was identifying the factors that made for a winning approach. These discussions were surprisingly philosophical in nature, often extending beyond the details of the sport itself. What has stayed with me all these years is the dichotomy we drew between “playing to win” and “playing not to lose”. Said another way, you worked either to achieve a positive outcome or to avoid a negative one. The risk-averse were more inclined towards the latter approach; the aggressive personalities were definitely on board with the former. Ruling out taking foolish risks, the consensus was that playing to win might not guarantee victory, but the odds were better than if the approach were based on not failing. In short, in a competition, you need to take an aggressive approach.

The Democrats must recognize that they must play to win. The nation is at an inflection point. Perhaps the pandemic is serving to put issues in relief. Public faith in government institutions is at a perilously low level. While President Biden pursues a restoration of the public’s faith and trust in those institutions, that effort ultimately depends on passing legislation through Congress. The Republicans, laser-focused on 2022, intend to prevent the Democrats from success in governing.

It. is. a. game.

The loss of control of the national government has sent the GOP careening down a path towards anti-democratic authoritarianism. Besides thwarting the slim Democratic majorities in Washington, Republicans are using their control of state governments to enact legislation to suppress voting and limit protests. As journalist/ historian David Rothkopf points out:

The next effort to overturn the will of the people will happen in 2022. You won't have to wait until 2024. Key Senate and House races will be at the mercy of everything from voter suppression to court challenges and more. The GOP are developing a playbook. It's who they are.

What Is To Be Done?

I have some ideas which I’ll explore in the future but will briefly present now. 

• Eliminate the filibuster. Get things done now. Don’t fret about what the Republicans will do if they regain a majority in the Senate and there is no filibuster. If significant structural reform isn’t undertaken now, there may not be another opportunity for decades. 

• Double-down on the Get Out the Vote and similar efforts that were successful in 2020. Whatever obstacles Republicans place in the way, do what it takes to overcome them. If these efforts are underway now, they should be.

• Whittle away at the GOP’s corporate donors. Woo them. Make deals with them on policy without compromising progressive goals. Show them how, with public polling which shows diminishing support for Trumpist policies and candidates, they could move to the right side of history.

• Three words: Messaging, messaging, messaging. Videos of January 6 should be fed to the media every day. Democrats and their supports should be shoveling 50000 tons of political shit on the head of every GOP member and candidate, making certain the lies and inane statements are not permitted to slip from the public’s consciousness.

• Dirty politics: Imagine the havoc that could be raised in Republican primary elections if a large number of independents registered as Republicans and voted for non-MAGA candidates. The sense of repudiation would act as a vaccine against the Trump virus.

  If you have any other ideas, please share them in the Comments. The one thing we can all do is contribute to the discourse and raise awareness of what lies ahead for a nation founded on ideas.

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