The Argument: Inside the Battle to Remake Democratic Politics

by Matt Bai

Book Overview

Drawing on remarkable access to myriad factions of the Democratic Party, The New York Times Magazine writer Matt Bai distills the party's future prospects and current dilemmas in this raucous and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0143114174
• ISBN13: 9780143114178
• Release Date: July 2008
• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.5" x 8.3"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

smart, funny tale of why the democrats still could lose in 08

what separates bai's book from other prez politics books is that it's reported and reasoned whereas the rest tend to mistake heated opinion for insight. bai does us a favor by explaining why, despite bush's terrible run, the democrats are by no means ensured a bright future. he makes it plain that the democrats didn't so much win in the 06 midterms as the republicans lost. no matter how much you disagree w the republicans, the truth is that their ideas have been as strong as their ground game. bai shows the mainstream democrats denying or not getting that, and he shows the new progressives trying grapple w how to build a left-wing conspiracy. what becomes clear is it's not simply a matter of pouring water and stirring. highly recommended if you want to understand the forces shaping the 08 election.

The Gift

Starting with the collapse of the Kerry campaign and the Democrats losing "another election we should have won," Matt Bai takes the reader on a 2-year road trip to points unknown to repair and rejuvenate the Democratic Party. And like a lot of road trips, not every moment is a Kodak one. This is an interesting and thought-provoking book about the future of the Democratic Party and the progressive movement. But just as importantly, it's a fun read. It is full of grand ideas and visionaries (I,for one, was privileged to see Rob Stein's "killer slide show" before it became famous). And it is full of hilariously puffed up egos and barenaked in-fighting knife-throwers. For Democrats, like myself, it is both uplifting and a little disconcerting. This is a Party struggling for its identity and you can't help but wonder if the cast of characters that Bai follows is really up to the task. The final sequence, when Mario Cuomo, gives a talk without notes is the perfect destination to end this road show. The would-be, erstwhile, don't ask me again presidential candidate calls the Iraq War a "gift" to the Democratic Party. A gift! What a cynical, yet prescient view. He then goes on to talk about how and why ideas matter. That seems like a very simple and obvious statement, but it goes to the heart of the Democratic struggle. Are we to be built to win or to lead, or can we be both? The Bai book is a gift to the reader. Funny, provocative, and just the right amount of seriousness. Anyway, excuse me, I have to take a leak. Talk amongst yourselves.

Compelling and Discussion Worthy

Lush. Bai has a way of setting a scene, from a smoke filled dive bar in CT to the swanky pads of some of the country's billionaires. What's more he seems to never take himself too seriously as he aims to tell this tale. The first chapter is worth the price of admission alone. Bai's personal bias is clear, and at some points, perhaps unfair, but for the most part he paints a compelling picture of a burgeoning movement and the people who are helping to shape it. On the blogger side, he leaves out a lot - but a book could be, and has been, written on just that alone. He could have written much, much more, certainly if he had a different guide to the upstart side of things, but where he draws the line will satisfy most, with only the insider type saying things like, "but he should have added...could have said..."... Overall, I think some people will hate the book, but most should appreciate it, because even if it isn't a perfect assessment, even if Matt doesn't have the whole story here, he clearly spent years trying to find out how the new progressive movement wanted to work and puts up a mirror to show us all how it actually is working. What is clear is that we have work yet to do. And that is ok.

The Argument & Iraq - The "Gift" That Keeps on Bleeding

Shortly after the November 2006 election the Democracy Alliance, an exclusive group of about 100 Democratic Party millionaire activists, met in Miami, Florida. Members and their guests heard their keynote speaker and liberal legend Mario Cuomo, former New York governor, analyze the Democratic Party in the wake of its stunning electoral victories that had given Democrats control of the US Congress. Cuomo criticized the Democratic Party for lacking vision, big ideas and a winning political argument. His recipe for future Democratic victories was simple: "You seize the biggest idea you can, the biggest idea you can understand. And this is what moves elections." Cuomo then dared to voice an inconvenient truth: "Now it's 2006 and we're all rejoicing. Why? Because of Iraq. A GIFT. A gift to the Democrats. A lot of whom voted for the war anyway." The former New York governor challenged his partisan audience, "If Iraq is not an issue, then what issues do we have to talk about? ... Where does that leave you? It leaves you in the same position you were in in 2004 - without an issue. Because you have no big idea." The story of Cuomo's speech is from the concluding pages of Matt Bai's new book The Argument: Billionaires, Bloggers and the Battle to Remake Democratic Politics. Bai writes, "An uncomfortable silence hung over the ballroom. No one had yet expressed the situation quite that crassly, although everyone knew it was an accurate accounting." The Argument is an important book but Bai muffed the title. He should have titled it "The Gift," because as Cuomo points out it was primarily the political gift of voter anger and revulsion over a horrific, continuing war that caused them to oust Republicans. And how have the Democrats treated their gift now that they control Congress? The Democratic House and Senate have continued to fund the war while posturing against it. For example Hillary Clinton, who pollsters regard as the Democratic frontrunner for her party's presidential nomination, told the New York Times that when she is elected she would keep troops in Iraq but run a smarter operation. The public's opinion of Congress has plummeted with no end in sight to the bloody occupation. Bai's book is the first since the 2006 election to examine the new power alliance within the Democratic Party composed of the organizations referenced in his long subtitle. They include the "billionaires" such as George Soros and other members of the Democracy Alliance; the major liberal "bloggers" such as "Netroots Nation" guru Markos Moulitsas Zúniga with his Daily Kos blog and the Yearly Kos conventions; and the related "battlers" re-making the Democratic Party such as party chair Howard Dean. Bai devotes an entire chapter to MoveOn, the Netroots money and messaging machine controlling an email list of 3.3 million Americans built in large part on their opposition to the Iraq war.

Required reading for any Democratic activist

This is one of those rare books that really causes you to stop and think, and helps you to formulate new ideas. For the activist, blogger, or political junkie you should really consider this a textbook. It illustrates some of the battles over the future of the Democratic party that have raged over the past 5 years or so pitting party outsiders vs. party insiders. It also points out the mistakes that have been made and the opportunities that have been missed. But probably most importantly it sums up the critical task - define the argument for a Democratic governing majority. For the casual observer this book holds many things too. It is one of the few non-fictional books that paints a tail of political intrigue, presents you with vividly developed characters (flaws and all), and really tells a story about the recent past of our political history. The casual observer might not be aware of these undercurrents in modern politics, but it is important to understand them because this is the direction things are heading.