Decius wrote:
] This talk is about who actually has the power. This talk is
] about who the political constituency is.
]
] That is what this is about. and the reality of this is
] important regardless of what side of the isle you identify
] with. (In fact, I would go further to say that identifying
] with a side is also part of the problem, but then I'll loose
] most of you.)

In listening to this talk, it seems to me that the "grass roots" movement of which Trippi speaks was ahead of its time in pushing Howard Dean into the Democratic presidential primaries.

This is really, deeply, ultimately about changing the nature of American politics. Shifting the battleground and changing the conversation. Trying to do this directly within either of the two major parties will be quite difficult, and immediately pushing to elect a President is just going for broke.

Better to start at the local level, finding and electing people who "get it" at the city, county, and state levels. A movement can mobilize and achieve real results on this scale without confronting as many of the roadblocks that Dean faced. The local news media in most markets is considerably less savvy, and less powerful, than the national media.

RE: Joe Trippi (Dean's Campaign Manager) at Etech