Looking Ahead

The coming days have been hard for me to get a grip on, and I'm still obsessing over Missouri's EV's, and Alaska, Minnesota, and Georgia's Senate races, but I have begun to look ahead to the future, to decide what I need to be doing. Firstly, I plan on remaining organized, allying with local Democrats to start shifting the ground game here in Michigan for future elections. Also, I plan on utilizing my new Democratic Congressman (Gary Peters, whoo!) and my two Democratic Senators to keep the pressure on Congress as we go forward into the Obama administration. But, I'm also looking ahead to 2010, attempting to decide what I can do best to secure our hold on the Senate and the House.

There are so many issues that we need to get off the ground, so many causes set back by our 8 years of national nightmare. My immediate priorities going into 2009 are to help pressure Congress into introducing and passing legislation on universal healthcare, expanding social welfare, and introducing infrastructure projects. The Employee Free Choice Act needs to be passed, which would allow employees to organize unions with a simple card check stating their intent to unionize, rather than the current up or down vote that's subject to such anti-union pressure. Finally, I plan on advocating the causes of civil rights for homosexuals, and legalizing marijuana (not that I smoke it, or would if it were legal, it's just that pot is basically harmless, the laws against it do all the harm).

On top of that, I hope to help keep the Obama and Peters' campaigns massively successful ground game from being dismantled between now and 2010, and between now and 2012. We're built a wonderful organization for Democratic GOTV this year, and I refuse to let it die. Locally it'll be a lot easier than nationally, since Peters is up for re-election in 2010 and his ground game here in the 8th was just beyond amazing. Not all of the 2010 candidates will have that infrastructure in place already, especially in weak Dem or Republican held areas. Much like Dean did with his Dean for America team (transitioning it into Democracy for America, an organization of which I am proudly a member), we need to transition this GOTV operation from 2008 into a movement that will last for years to come. The people at the top of the party can only do so much for the 50 State Strategy: the rest is up to us on the ground, and the local organizers who step up and volunteer.

Which brings us into 2010. It is a year I look forward to and yet fear. We could increase our gains in the Senate, the map looks very favorably to us in that year. We could hold steady, winning some and losing some. Or, the Republicans could stage a comeback in the next 2 years and sweep us back out of power, or into a majorly reduced minority. But the map is beautiful: 19 Republican seats for them to defend; 7 of them in states that went for Obama, or narrowly went for McCain. Meanwhile, there are only 15 Democratic seats for us to defend, mostly popular Senators in safe states. There is also the case of John McCain, the man who only won his home state of Arizona by 9 points (versus Bush who won AZ by 11 points), and who may be facing popular Governor Janet Napolitano for his seat come 2010.

In neighboring Ohio, George Voinovich faces re-election in a state that has trended Democratic following the 2006 rout of the Republicans there in the Senate, Governor, and other top state races. Then there's Pennsylvania, where RINO Senator Arlen Specter will face re-election after two bouts with cancer, in a state under similar circumstances as Ohio. These are the two out of state Senate races that I will personally be watching and (hopefully) working on. At home, I plan on devoting myself to the Gubernatorial elections and to re-electing Gary Peters in the 9th District. 2010, in my mind, is a watershed year for Democrats: if we can hold onto Congress, expand our control in state legislatures nationwide, then after the 2010 Census, we can redraw the political map. Preferably via nonpartisan methods, since I'd rather we not become what the Republican Party was for the last 8 years.

So, I guess I have my plate full for the next 2 years. For a junkie like me, there is no end to campaigning, just lulls. My fears that perhaps I was only in this to win the Presidency back have been swept aside. I'm in this for the movement, for change, for my children, for my future grandchildren. If anything, now I'm more motivated than I ever was. Obama winning hasn't stripped me of my purpose, it's reaffirmed it. I have a plan, I have a goal, I have the will, and I have what it takes, god dammit. I will do this. This is a war to retake our country: we've won the battle, now let's not lose the war.