Clinton's Speech - Part 1
| By vilasrao - Jul 13th, 2005 at 3:37 pm EDT |
| Also listed in: Campus Progress Blog |
Clinton has an incredible way of breaking things down into something so unbelievably appetizing, and then, when reading over what he said later, his points are just as reasonable, as logical, as practical, and as smart as when in his presence.
This speech is no different.
Progressivism is new and undefined. This conference is largely about what it is and how we should shape it.
Clinton laid out his vision for progressivism, which happened to be exactly the topic I wanted him to address.
He asked then answered four questions every person should ask themselves to find out what they believe.
His questions:
1. What is the status of the world? What is its nature?
2. What do I want it to be like for my children or grandchildren?
3. What are the values that underlie this vision?
4. What strategies should we employ, including those of government, to get there?
His answers:
1. The nature of today's world is interdependence. But interdependence can be both positive and negative. (Didn't elaborate on this. I suppose he means people can rely on each other in a mutually beneficial relationship or in a way where one party is subservient.) Since it can be both positive and negative, it is unsustainable.
Instead, we should move towards integrated communities, the characteristics of which are shared responsibilities, shared benefits and opportunities, and shared community values.
3. A legitimate question: How do you have shared community values when there are so many different people and opinions? You can't if you think you have the absolute truth, because then there is no sharing. You must be open to new ideas, change, and progress.
4. Strategy for getting there: Government should establish the conditions and provide the tools to allow the people to achieve this vision.
The second part of Clinton's speech concerned "How do we win?" As the only democrat to win reelection since Roosevelt - I'm willing to listen to his advice on winning.
The 2004 presidential campaign and election generated a sort of self-loathing attitude among progressives which has been essential to reevaluating our vision and strategies, but also has generated serious hatred for the abilities of progressive leaders.
Clinton cautioned that we're in better shape than it appears, and compared the election statistics in the 1980s to those of the 90s, 2000, and 2004. Clinton pointed out that even after Watergate, with a southern governor candidate who was deeply religious, a Navy veteran, and a farmer, we won only by 2 points in 1976.
We only won one state and DC in 84. Today, instead, it's still a very close battle.
We stlil need to improve, of course, and we do, Clinton said, through one general thought and four more specific prescriptions:
Generally, to win we need to practice politics by rooting the political experience in reality, how politics appears to everyone around the country, not to the people caught inside the Beltway.
More specifically, Clinton listed 5 prescriptions:
1. Be credible on security
2. Have good ideas on economic policy and social policy.
3. Use better tactics - This means that complaining about the right using scare tactics, and partisanship, and personal attacks goes nowhere, because it works, and "you can't blame opponents for a strategy that beats your brains out with regularity." Take criticism seriously, Clinton advised, not personally, because "if you look like a deer in headlights and take criticism personally, you can't take it seriously." Again, he advised that we need to take these things from the perspective of "out there", since people sometimes like "seeing leaders being hit by a 2x4 just to see how they'll react"
4. Talk to Red America
Clinton described one of his best friends, a Pentecostal minister who confessed to him that he voted for Bush, despite having a number of progressive values and disagreeing with Bush on a number of issues. Why? He told Clinton "Because Bill, since you left, there hasn't been anyone who talked to us." What we do in Red America is gather up the votes that we can get, instead of struggling to blur the lines in those places we usually don't. Clinton brought up the telling example that while Kerry won the Cleveland, Ohio area far more powerfully than Clinton did, the red areas of Ohio voted 6-4 against Clinton while they voted 4-1 against Kerry, because he didn't talk to them.
Indeed, the most poignant moment of the Clinton's speech was the end, talking about Rwanda. He talked a bit about the progress that has been made reconciling the bitterness between Hutus and Tutsis, describing in particular one program where in order to get land, a Hutu or Tutsi must agree to live by one another as neighbors. One woman Clinton met, who woke up with her husband and six children killed all around her, was neighbors with a Hutu whose husband was wanted by the War Crimes Tribunal. Clinton said, "If they can do that, come on, we should be able to talk to red America."
5. I think Clinton generated this one on the spot, but continuing along the lines of his experience in Rwanda, he described a practice in Rwanda where in response to being greeted "Hello" by a stranger, instead of replying "Hi" or "How are you", they reply "I see you." "Think about all the strangers you've walked by that you don't see. In order to win, the fifth thing we need to do: there can be no one we do not see."
I love this man
This speech is no different.
Progressivism is new and undefined. This conference is largely about what it is and how we should shape it.
Clinton laid out his vision for progressivism, which happened to be exactly the topic I wanted him to address.
He asked then answered four questions every person should ask themselves to find out what they believe.
His questions:
1. What is the status of the world? What is its nature?
2. What do I want it to be like for my children or grandchildren?
3. What are the values that underlie this vision?
4. What strategies should we employ, including those of government, to get there?
His answers:
1. The nature of today's world is interdependence. But interdependence can be both positive and negative. (Didn't elaborate on this. I suppose he means people can rely on each other in a mutually beneficial relationship or in a way where one party is subservient.) Since it can be both positive and negative, it is unsustainable.
Instead, we should move towards integrated communities, the characteristics of which are shared responsibilities, shared benefits and opportunities, and shared community values.
3. A legitimate question: How do you have shared community values when there are so many different people and opinions? You can't if you think you have the absolute truth, because then there is no sharing. You must be open to new ideas, change, and progress.
4. Strategy for getting there: Government should establish the conditions and provide the tools to allow the people to achieve this vision.
The second part of Clinton's speech concerned "How do we win?" As the only democrat to win reelection since Roosevelt - I'm willing to listen to his advice on winning.
The 2004 presidential campaign and election generated a sort of self-loathing attitude among progressives which has been essential to reevaluating our vision and strategies, but also has generated serious hatred for the abilities of progressive leaders.
Clinton cautioned that we're in better shape than it appears, and compared the election statistics in the 1980s to those of the 90s, 2000, and 2004. Clinton pointed out that even after Watergate, with a southern governor candidate who was deeply religious, a Navy veteran, and a farmer, we won only by 2 points in 1976.
We only won one state and DC in 84. Today, instead, it's still a very close battle.
We stlil need to improve, of course, and we do, Clinton said, through one general thought and four more specific prescriptions:
Generally, to win we need to practice politics by rooting the political experience in reality, how politics appears to everyone around the country, not to the people caught inside the Beltway.
More specifically, Clinton listed 5 prescriptions:
1. Be credible on security
2. Have good ideas on economic policy and social policy.
3. Use better tactics - This means that complaining about the right using scare tactics, and partisanship, and personal attacks goes nowhere, because it works, and "you can't blame opponents for a strategy that beats your brains out with regularity." Take criticism seriously, Clinton advised, not personally, because "if you look like a deer in headlights and take criticism personally, you can't take it seriously." Again, he advised that we need to take these things from the perspective of "out there", since people sometimes like "seeing leaders being hit by a 2x4 just to see how they'll react"
4. Talk to Red America
Clinton described one of his best friends, a Pentecostal minister who confessed to him that he voted for Bush, despite having a number of progressive values and disagreeing with Bush on a number of issues. Why? He told Clinton "Because Bill, since you left, there hasn't been anyone who talked to us." What we do in Red America is gather up the votes that we can get, instead of struggling to blur the lines in those places we usually don't. Clinton brought up the telling example that while Kerry won the Cleveland, Ohio area far more powerfully than Clinton did, the red areas of Ohio voted 6-4 against Clinton while they voted 4-1 against Kerry, because he didn't talk to them.
Indeed, the most poignant moment of the Clinton's speech was the end, talking about Rwanda. He talked a bit about the progress that has been made reconciling the bitterness between Hutus and Tutsis, describing in particular one program where in order to get land, a Hutu or Tutsi must agree to live by one another as neighbors. One woman Clinton met, who woke up with her husband and six children killed all around her, was neighbors with a Hutu whose husband was wanted by the War Crimes Tribunal. Clinton said, "If they can do that, come on, we should be able to talk to red America."
5. I think Clinton generated this one on the spot, but continuing along the lines of his experience in Rwanda, he described a practice in Rwanda where in response to being greeted "Hello" by a stranger, instead of replying "Hi" or "How are you", they reply "I see you." "Think about all the strangers you've walked by that you don't see. In order to win, the fifth thing we need to do: there can be no one we do not see."
I love this man
!
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