If you ask most Wisconsin Democrats why their party has lost election after election, you’ll get a bunch of reasons: gerrymandering, Citizens United, an inability to reach out to rural voters, gerrymandering, Milwaukee talk radio, anti-Obama midterm elections, gerrymandering.
But Rep. Gordon Hintz (D-Oshkosh) has identified what he believes is the real problem: progressives who dare to challenge incumbent Democrats.
In an interview with The Capital Times, Hintz laid into Jimmy Anderson and those who support his campaign to challenge Rep. Robb Kahl (D-Monona). Hintz believes that primaries distract the party from winning potentially competitive seats that are held by Republicans.
“When we pick up a seat or two fewer in the fall, I’m going to think about these so-called progressive hypocrites that went after this unnecessary seat to make themselves happy or to high-five their friends at the co-op,” Hintz said in the interview.
Now, putting aside Hintz’s AM talk radio-esque dig at the high-turnout progressive base that gives Democrats even a chance at being competitive statewide, I fully understand what he is doing. The Democratic and Republican caucuses are teams — you show support for your fellow team members. Plus, Hintz is correct when he says that a Democratic purity test is a bad idea. I don’t want a Democratic Party where the leadership Dale Schultz-es any moderates out of its ranks.
A lack of primaries is good for current Democratic officeholders. However, what’s good for incumbents isn’t always good for voters, or the Democratic Party as a whole.
This is a party that needs more leadership at a statewide level. If Democrats are ever going to retake the lower chamber of the Legislature, they need to convince voters they have a plan and an agenda that is more grandiose than “stop the onslaught of horrible, garbage legislation.”
Who is better poised to help craft the vision for the future of the party? Who is going to help elect a Democratic governor in 2018? The best way to decide that is to put the two candidates out there in the community and let the voters of Monona, McFarland and Fitchburg decide.
Both Kahl and Anderson can make strong cases for their campaigns. For Kahl, this is the time to show what he has learned from two terms in office. To show how he has grown and will continue to grow. For Anderson, this is an opportunity to show that he is much more than an inspiring life story. To show how he will serve all the residents of this district, not just those who share his progressive views.
Speaking of Anderson’s progressive views, both Kahl and Hintz have said that Anderson’s progressivism would be a drawback, which is ridiculous. But I don’t buy that being to the left of Kahl would limit Anderson’s ability to pursue his own bipartisan achievements. My state rep, Melissa Sargent (D-Madison), is about as progressive as they come. Sargent’s bill making it a felony to film up someone’s skirt passed the Senate on a unanimous bipartisan vote and was signed into law by Gov. Scott Walker. At a time when it is rare for a Democratic-authored bill to even get a committee hearing, a far-left progressive got a bill into law.
Your bipartisan skill isn’t measured by the times you voted for Scott Walker, as Kahl did in 2010.
Much like Rep. John Nygren (R-Marinette) has used his family’s experiences with heroin to drum up support for anti-heroin legislation, Anderson would be a powerful advocate for legislation related to alcohol abuse and insurance reform.
When it comes to getting things done in the Republican-dominated Assembly that will likely stay in place until January 2023, it is a choice between Kahl’s experience and Anderson’s potential. It’s not an easy choice. But, once again, it is a choice local voters should make.
Finally, Hintz somewhat crudely believes that Democratic activism is a finite pie and that primary elections subtract from that pie. I’d go along with Hintz’s point if Kahl and Anderson were facing off in November, but they are competing in September, months ahead of the general election. I believe primary elections can grow the base, increase the size of the pie.
This primary election also gives Dane County Democrats a chance to get engaged in a legislative election in their own district. With the exception of retirements and redistricting, there’s rarely a competitive race for the Wisconsin Legislature in the Madison metro area. That’s somewhat of a natural consequence — there’s a solid slate of people who represent the area in both the Assembly and Senate who draw few serious complaints.
However, the high rates of Dane County incumbency make it difficult to get local people engaged in legislative races. Local races are how you move voters from making social media posts to getting out in the community and talking to other voters. A high-stakes primary has the potential to raise energy for the party, regardless of who wins. Getting local residents mobilized for Kahl and Anderson in the primary — knocking on doors, making phone calls — builds up a Democratic base that can be used to knock on doors and make phone calls in other Assembly and Senate races in the general election.
I get why Kahl and Hintz would prefer elections free of primary challenges. But from my perspective, more primaries might be exactly what this party needs.
