Well, that didn't take long...

[tagryn]

Permanent Democratic Majority: New Study Says Yes!

Now, where have we heard this before? Ah, yes: from the GOP in 2006...

As I wrote here, I can easily see the Democratic party taking the opportunity to go down the path the CA Democrats took of purging the party of their moderates once they don't have any legitimate challengers for power. Indeed, the party loyalists are already setting up litmus tests for their candidates to jump through.

Comments

[erikred.livejournal.com]

Out of curiosity, where does Arlen Specter fit into this series of purges?

[tagryn]

See the link "setting up litmus tests" in the post. Specter probably serves as an useful example to the Blue Dog faction and others to stay loyal to the party's progressive line, or face the consequences come election time. Given that the party is thisclose to getting the 60-member supermajority in the Senate, keeping the moderates on a tight leash is the next challenge for the party leadership, now that the GOP has been disposed of as a threat for the forseeable future.

[erikred.livejournal.com]

Support for EFCA sounds like the sort of thing that's going to play in some states better than others, so setting that up as a yes/no question on which to base whether to have a Primary is just plain silly. National Health, however, is more mainstream and moderate these days than it's ever been. The details need working out, but once Bush pushed through his prescription-drug plan, that genie was already out of its bottle and no longer merely the domain of the left.

Also, I'd just like to note for the record that James Carville has always made my hackles raise. A tool's a tool, no matter what you build with it.