Democrats in the Obama era

In the last eight years Republicans have done extremely well.  As of January Republicans will hold 32 of 50 governorships, 10 more than they had in 2009.  816 Democratic state lawmakers have lost their jobs while Obama was president, and Republican-controlled legislatures have doubled since Obama took office.

Is it his fault?  I would say in part it is.  When Howard Dean was running the Democratic Party, Dean emphasized a 50-state strategy.  You concede nothing to the Republicans; you fight for every state.  In 2008 Obama benefited from this strategy, winning states that Democrats had written off in the past.

Unfortunately, President Obama organized something called Obama for America, which was not a party-oriented organization.  Later the group morphed into Organizing for America, but the emphasis was on helping administration policies, not the Democratic Party.

In Carbon County the club that grew out of the Obama campaign called itself “Carbon County Democrats for Change,” and it was affiliated with the County Democratic Party.  As a consequence, the Democratic Party in Carbon County is stronger than ever.  Unfortunately, Carbon County seems to be the exception, not the rule.