Quote of the Day: Ed Rendell

"I don't think we have a battle for our soul -- I think we have lost our soul," he said. "We have been cowed into [sic] stop talking about the things that made us Democrats in the first place; that we believe the government can and should make a difference in people's lives; that we can protect the most vulnerable in our society; that we can, in fact, give opportunities to people who haven't had it. And that government can be an important catalyst -- they can't do it by itself -- but they can be a catalyst for growth."

That's what we believe in. But [Republicans] have us cowering behind the shower curtains," he concluded.

The Huffington Post approached Rendell after the affair and asked him to elaborate on what, exactly, he meant by saying the Democratic Party is soulless.

"We have been out-spun and we are scared," he said. "And when you are scared, you can do one of two things: you can circle the wagons and hide inside or under the wagon, or you can get out and fight for what you believe in. I think we are starting -- President Obama started when he went to the Republican caucus -- to fight back and for what we believe in. If we do that, I think our losses will be much less [in 2010] than what anybody suspects." (Source)

If the Dems lose in the next couple of cycles, it won't be because of what they stand for but because they don't have the spine to stand and fight for it.  They will be perceived as the party of inept, bumbling, corporate sycophants.

Comments

[Matt Zemek]

The screaming irony, Jack, is that Ed Rendell - Hillary supporter and muscular big-city politician - is hardly the kind of public figure who has identified with the least among us in his bare-knuckle career. This isn't to say that Rendell hasn't had some measure of success, and I must say that I don't know him as thoroughly as other pols, but his identity and moral compass have left more than a little to be desired.

(Then again, Pennsylvania is a supremely tough state in which to get elected for a governorship or Senate seat.)

[Jack]

All I'm looking for at this point is a fighter, Matt. Rendell is an old school pol, but whether I agree with him on the specifics, but from everything I've seen about him, he's more in the corner of the blue collar guy than the typical corporate New Dem that has caused the party to lose its soul.