Outlander of the Day ~ Chauncey Sparks

I'll continue speaking, or more accurately keyboarding, ill of the dead. I called out Uncle Milton Friedman recently and then I put a clip of The Gipper up talking to us from his just reward. Chauncey Sparks, who died in 1968, remarkably drops by Doc's to offer his thoughts on the Democratic Primary in Alabama. I head to the Political Parlor first thing on most days and yet I must take exception to Mr. Sparks on this occasion.

Since I lived in Barbour County for a brief period as a teen I know some of Governor Sparks yet I don't have Dr. Flynt's books handy enough to be certain of his politics. As the "Barbour County Bourbon", with some other information in the state archives being considered, I'm guessing Sparks was the "business progressive" type that we elect so often in Alabama. Maybe that explains his position? And much of what he offers might be true, at least as applies to this election.

However, I must scold the Governor for not considering the long view in the restoration of balance to not only Alabama but beyond. As Chauncey admits there's not much difference between Hillary and Obama. Hillary might be a bit more hawkish on Iraq and beyond. They are certainly centrists. Both are very sympathetic to Wall Street and others in the business community. Neither offers a Progressive or Liberal orientation for our nation. Governor Sparks is wanting us to play the game on the GOP's turf I fear. We fear how they'll be unified over Hillary Clinton yet I see an opportunity to teach Joe and Jill Sixpack how they've been used and abused by the GOP these last thirty or so years.

Governor Sparks mentions how the GOP was divided before electing Reagan. I'd argue that going back to Goldwater in 1964, and perhaps even earlier, certain powers on the right were always planning ahead of how to redeem the radical views of Barry and his backers that scared the hell out of many Americans. The Southern Strategy of Nixon, borrowing liberally (pardon the pun) from another Barbour County Governor's "Politics of Rage", plus the effective use of "White Backlash" and "Law and Order", set up the GOP for success for three decades. I become more and more certain that the right's ability to take a strategic view is one of their foundational strengths. "Movement Conservatism", if nothing else, is always looking beyond the immediate horizon.

I've blogged on the willingness of Alabama Democratic party "leaders" to default to Republican Lite and/or accept the right's framing before (here, here, here, and here for instance) yet I don't understand why Alabama Democrats need to seek "distance" from those on the national stage. I get frustrated with Harry Reid or Rham Emanuel or ... for acting like centrist weenies as they engage in Chaunceyesque calculations yet I digress. Quit letting the right define us! And if Chauncey thinks Hillary or Obama will lose the state then why not use this 2008 race as a way to define our party for a change? With things as bad as they are with Iraq and the economy and ..., especially if the GOP goes with a second tier candidate to true believer social and/or fiscal conservatives, I can't imagine getting a better opportunity to engage in some jujitsu politics. Let them come after us and then beat the BS out of them! P/W

UPDATE - Early (I literally had trouble sleeping last night due to a combination of Chauncey and Naomi Klein.) on January 23, 2008 - I've tweaked this post and now taken the opportunity to read some comments from Doc's. I was heartened to see some support for John Edwards as I think he could do very well in Alabama as populism works here. Absent some strong juju this fall, Alabama will vote for the GOP candidate of choice. Perhaps the bible thumpers and other variants of those "values voters" on the right would be more likely to participate if Hillary were on the ticket for the Democratic Party. Add in some sexism and others will turn out to vote against a woman. Then again, I expect some racists will turn out to vote against Obama. I could analyze the possibilities to death but will close. I know what Progressivism and Liberalism means to me. I can explain that better than try to fit my beliefs to the views of potential voters. I surely don't change many minds by trying to cobble my thinking into a variant of a right wing world view. My hope is that Alabama Democratic Party "leaders" will finally take the long view in rebuilding viability for the party and use this perfect opportunity to break from their usual Republican Lite model.