Democratic tactics

I'd encourage those active in Democratic politics to (re)consider some of their tactics in local races. When Kochs want a legislator to "follow orders," they threaten them with a well-funded primary opponent. That keeps the troops in line.

But when I attended a local Democratic club's meeting where Ami Bera's opponent, Brad Westmoreland, appeared, the some Democrats present were nonplussed, to say the least. In effect, they told Westmoreland "We've had a heck of a time getting rid of Republicans in this district, and now you're injecting some uncertainty into the race! How dare you! Get on board with Team Blue, and stop dissenting!"

But, despite voting the Sierra Club way 85% of the time (says Barbara Leary), Bera votes with the Republicans roughly twice as much as the average Democrat, so he's not exactly "following orders" from Democrats. The way to remind him that he can't take his constituents for granted is to primary him too. Westmoreland, and for that matter Bernie Sanders, are doing the Democrats a favor. Otherwise, they'd just be Republicans who misidentified themselves.

Just sayin...