Kremer’s Corner: It’s now or never for the Democrats

Jerry Kremer

I have always admired the Republican Party when it comes to their policy issues.

They are trained to stick together on their priorities and there is no better example than the chokehold that President Trump has on them. They follow him like the Pied Piper and except for their current groaning about imposing more tariffs on Mexico, they are prepared to follow him, even if he jumps off a cliff.

The Democrats often brag that they have a “big tent” and everyone is welcome to come in. In addition, after criticizing Republicans for using litmus tests, Democrats have been quick to impose their own litmus tests on a variety of issues, especially now, as we await the upcoming presidential primaries.

There is no doubt that every potential Democratic candidate for this high office is determined to beat President Trump in 2020. But that’s all they can agree upon.

Later this month, there will be two days of debates that will showcase the talents of the candidates who have collected enough individual donations or have sufficient poll numbers to qualify. That event will be revealing as to whether the 2019 version of the Democratic Party really wants to win the next election or just wants to get national air time and go back into obscurity.

The early signs from some of the front-runners is that they have no patience for other people’s thinking and believe that they are the anointed ones. As an example, there is currently a resolution before both houses of Congress calling for a so-called Green New Deal.

It isn’t a proposed law, just a statement of how we should tackle the challenges of global warming. A number of the candidates have signed on to the resolution and others have said they have their own approach to solving this crisis. Regrettably, the Green New Deal proponents take the position that you are not pure enough on this subject unless you embrace their views.

You can be sure that a number of the debaters will single out former Vice President Joe Biden for most of their scorn on a variety of subjects. Their biggest complaint to date is that Biden is too establishment and only they can bring anything new to the table. The too old argument has faded, considering that Bernie Sanders is older than Biden.

But for many of the other candidates, they reject or resent the idea that Biden may be the most electable and are convinced that only they can make dramatic changes in the White House.

Does the Democratic Party really have a big tent where everybody is welcome? In a few short weeks, we will learn the answer to that question. There are at least six announced candidates who occupy the so-called middle lane of politics and there is no doubt that their ideas will be challenged by the progressive wings who have no patience for different thinking.

How they handle this clash of ideas will give the public a tip-off as to what the 2020 race will be like.

Another place to take the temperature of today’s Democratic Party is in the House of Representatives. Speaker Nancy Pelosi has proven in a short time that no one can run the House better than she does. On issue after issue she has kept the Democrats in lockstep, but in the weeks ahead she may face her first serious revolt over the issue of impeachment of Trump.

There are probably 50 current members who would like to start an impeachment process, but Pelosi maintains that the issue isn’t ready for action.

Having lived through past impeachment efforts, Pelosi knows that once you start that process, if it gets out of hand, it could embarrass the party and cause it to lose the effort to oust Donald Trump from office. She has tried hard to explain to the outside world to be careful what you wish for.

But over the next few weeks the cries for the president’s scalp will grow louder.

The Republican Party has proven that it has no soul and very much looks like a party from the 1900s.

The current version of the Democratic Party will have a chance to show the voting public whether it is capable of running the country and welcome different thinkers with open arms. Time will tell which party deserves the right to represent the voters of America.

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