Where have we been?

When I was a teenager, my father and I used to have screaming matches about the Vietnam War.  I couldn’t imagine how he could not see the injustice in it and how he could not find every aspect of the war abhorrent.

Years later, I realized that he probably was ignoring the truth of it, because he couldn’t believe that leaders of the Democratic Party would lie to him.  I think it hurt him profoundly to think that I and everyone of my generation were questioning his generation and the president who represented his party.

And it’s only in recent years that I see that I failed to acknowledge the fundamental changes LBJ made domestically, because I was so fixated on that war.

So today, I’m relating to my father in a way I haven’t before.

I can’t help but take it personally that my Democratic Party is being so questioned and so maligned by people with whom I agree on almost every issue.

But I feel compelled to stand up for the party — and for the Clintons — and cop to the fact that it was my generation that led to this impasse.

In the 60s and 70s, we drove change.  When you read the opinion polls between 1965 and 1975, you see that the whole country’s opinions moved dramatically to the left —  about civil rights; about women’s rights; about sex; and pot; and about religion.

Then, the 80s saw a reaction to this, allowing Ronald Reagan to consolidate the religious right, sweep into office and, most importantly, take charge of the dialogue in this country about government, morality and economics.

(For some interesting statistics about this period  — and all sorts of other great insights, read American Grace, by  Robert Putnam and David Campbell.)

Since that time, the D’s have failed to take control of the dialogue.  Or maybe the party never controlled it — maybe it was just us loud baby boomers.  But in any event, it’s been the R’s, and more recently, the bloviators like Limbaugh and O’Reilly, who have chosen the topics and spun the perceptions.

So in 1992, it fell to Bill Clinton to present a package to the American people that was appealing enough; moderate and nonthreatening enough that he could actually get elected.  In that way, he was able to stop what seemed an unstoppable move toward the right and reverse some of the most damaging economic policies since the Great Depression.

The Clintons also pushed, if unsuccessfully, a number of issues that have only come to fruition in the last eight years. And Clinton has been called one of the best environmental presidents in recent history.

Still, the Clintons, as symbols of the Democratic Party, aren’t where we expected we’d be when we looked ahead from 1970.

I’m willing to take responsibility.  I wasn’t always paying attention. While I always voted, and voted for ethical, value-driven and caring people in Oregon, that probably wasn’t enough.  It was up to us first to come up with a way to fully connect with the bulk of the voters, and two, to make sure that our presidents always had a Congress that would at least work with them, if not support them.

In short, it was up to us to gain control of the dialogue.  “It’s the economy, stupid,” while effective, was hardly a rallying cry for peace and justice.

In the years since Clinton was elected, the Republicans have consolidated their hold on Congress, and the media have bifurcated into us and them. And sometimes it seems like the best the Democrats can do is to hold on to what we’ve achieved.

And maybe, the populist wake-up call represented by both Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump is enough to shake us all up.  But I don’t think boycotting the election if Sanders isn’t nominated is the right approach.

And I also don’t think that questioning the integrity of everyone who has been at the center of the governing process is useful. Nor is it either wise, practical or right to accuse anyone supporting Hillary Clinton of selling out.  (I mean, really, Al Franken is selling out?)

Instead, I think we have to refocus on what can eventually lead to Sanders’ vision for America — one that is, in fact, shared by a majority of the Democratic party, both serving in office and voting at home.

Some thoughts?

• Contribute to groups like Emily’s List or the Committee for a Livable Future, which single out Congressional candidates around the country who agree with your values and have a good chance of winning in a contested race;
• Pay attention to the voting rights infractions, redistricting debates and other issues that disenfranchise Americans and affect the future of Congress;
• Keep pushing the discussion on the issues that are meaningful; and
• Stick together.