Very well-written, with a clear purpose (replacing McCarthy in order to reduce/remove the inordinate power of the far-right extremists) and a clear action plan (identify moderate Republicans and show how they will benefit from McCarthy's removal).
The task must seem monumental, but as you say, the stakes are incredibly high.
I am always haunted by Timothy Snyder's comment (in On Tyranny) that "any election can be the last."
Thanks Roger. You've very nicely summarized most of our plan.
There is one other piece of it that you didn't mention though. That is a vigorous outreach to print and broadcast media personalities, both liberal and (not crazy) conservative, for the purpose of getting the idea into the national narrative, get people talking about it.
As has often been pointed out, big media outlets frame public conversation. We need to persuade those with access to national platforms (e.g., Wall Street Journal, NY Times, CNN, etc.) that a cross-party alliance for the purpose of removing and replacing the Speaker is plausible. It can happen, for all the reasons mentioned in this post. Building public support through public media is an integral part of the strategy. After all, we're ultimately asking politicians to take a bold action, something they're reluctant to do on their own.
Surprisingly, the task at hand doesn't seem all that monumental. The more research we do, the more apparent it is that there's a clear anti-MAGA majority in the House. So we don't really have to change minds so much as to point the way. Hey, we can do that.
And it might help to recruit a Spokesperson, someone with name recognition and credibility to represent this movement. I'll go way out on a limb and say someone with integrity like Mitt Romney (or . . . ) who could find a seat on any national media platform and propose this plan of returning sanity to government.
The sports analogy would be a quarterback to carry the ball.
Finding and recruiting that person might be a crucial tactic in spreading the word, reinforcing and giving confidence to that "clear anti-MAGA majority in the House" that you see.
Romney's just an off-hand pick; a lot of deep thought will have to go into selecting and recruiting the right person - preferably someone with more positives than negatives in the general public.
In Canada there's a famous quote about the number-one-selling beer (from a beer executive) that it's a winner because it has the "least possibility of offending" the taste buds of the masses. So finding ta high-profile credible Spokesperson who is least-offensive, ie, least partisan, least polarizing, that could be part of your strategy. In other words, someone who would not be rejected immediately by those you want to win over.
In a nation of 350 million, surely there is someone who could carry that ball, make your argument to the masses, and strengthen the wobbly spines of the House members you need to succeed.
Your team may disagree, but I think of Lincoln, Churchill, Zelensky, who rallied their people to a cause their people already believed in, but needed that leader, or at least a Spokesperson, In this case, someone with no political agenda or ambition of their own; a retired statesman who could fight one more round for his country.
Sometimes momentous movements need that central character to focus the issue. The right person could get massive media coverage which, as you say, would play an integral part in your strategy.
And maybe it's a sign of the times that it's so hard to even think of a credible, non-polarizing Spokesperson for something that's existentially urgent for the nation.
Paul Simon wrote: “Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio? Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you.”
So who is America's Joe DiMaggio today? And can you recruit him or her to your cause?
Just another little chore for your To Do list, Jerry.
Very well-written, with a clear purpose (replacing McCarthy in order to reduce/remove the inordinate power of the far-right extremists) and a clear action plan (identify moderate Republicans and show how they will benefit from McCarthy's removal).
The task must seem monumental, but as you say, the stakes are incredibly high.
I am always haunted by Timothy Snyder's comment (in On Tyranny) that "any election can be the last."
Thanks Roger. You've very nicely summarized most of our plan.
There is one other piece of it that you didn't mention though. That is a vigorous outreach to print and broadcast media personalities, both liberal and (not crazy) conservative, for the purpose of getting the idea into the national narrative, get people talking about it.
As has often been pointed out, big media outlets frame public conversation. We need to persuade those with access to national platforms (e.g., Wall Street Journal, NY Times, CNN, etc.) that a cross-party alliance for the purpose of removing and replacing the Speaker is plausible. It can happen, for all the reasons mentioned in this post. Building public support through public media is an integral part of the strategy. After all, we're ultimately asking politicians to take a bold action, something they're reluctant to do on their own.
Surprisingly, the task at hand doesn't seem all that monumental. The more research we do, the more apparent it is that there's a clear anti-MAGA majority in the House. So we don't really have to change minds so much as to point the way. Hey, we can do that.
.
Good point about media. Essential really.
And it might help to recruit a Spokesperson, someone with name recognition and credibility to represent this movement. I'll go way out on a limb and say someone with integrity like Mitt Romney (or . . . ) who could find a seat on any national media platform and propose this plan of returning sanity to government.
The sports analogy would be a quarterback to carry the ball.
Finding and recruiting that person might be a crucial tactic in spreading the word, reinforcing and giving confidence to that "clear anti-MAGA majority in the House" that you see.
Romney's just an off-hand pick; a lot of deep thought will have to go into selecting and recruiting the right person - preferably someone with more positives than negatives in the general public.
In Canada there's a famous quote about the number-one-selling beer (from a beer executive) that it's a winner because it has the "least possibility of offending" the taste buds of the masses. So finding ta high-profile credible Spokesperson who is least-offensive, ie, least partisan, least polarizing, that could be part of your strategy. In other words, someone who would not be rejected immediately by those you want to win over.
In a nation of 350 million, surely there is someone who could carry that ball, make your argument to the masses, and strengthen the wobbly spines of the House members you need to succeed.
Your team may disagree, but I think of Lincoln, Churchill, Zelensky, who rallied their people to a cause their people already believed in, but needed that leader, or at least a Spokesperson, In this case, someone with no political agenda or ambition of their own; a retired statesman who could fight one more round for his country.
Sometimes momentous movements need that central character to focus the issue. The right person could get massive media coverage which, as you say, would play an integral part in your strategy.
And maybe it's a sign of the times that it's so hard to even think of a credible, non-polarizing Spokesperson for something that's existentially urgent for the nation.
Paul Simon wrote: “Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio? Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you.”
So who is America's Joe DiMaggio today? And can you recruit him or her to your cause?
Just another little chore for your To Do list, Jerry.