Politics has always been a team sport. We root for those wearing our colors, red or blue, to the point where Democrats will celebrate the victory of a conservative Dem over a progressive Republican. The most lethal symptom of this zero-sum affliction is that vision and leadership have taken a backseat to the phantom of electability. Boldness is cast aside for bland mass appeal. This self-destructive delusion led us to nominate John Kerry in 2004, and similarly for the Republicans to select President Bush in 2000. Hillary Clinton would only be the latest presumptive recipient of this bandwagoneering.
But what if we cared about vision? What if we cared about actually making the country better?
In 1968 Robert F. Kennedy inspired millions to look outside ourselves and wonder what we could do serve America. How could we bring the most unfortunate among us inside the American Dream?
Obama and Clinton are sprinting for the middle with glittering generalities and banal pronouncements. Neither is acknowledging the vast gulf that separates privilege from poverty, or the damage that does to America.
John Edwards is. He's been talking for five years now about issues that affect hundreds of millions of working Americans, from universal health coverage to jobs and affordable college. Why would we care about that? We've got a team to root for.
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