Perhaps someone can help me, because I really don't understand why Kos regularly attacks Rep. Dennis Kucinich as being "loony" or something similar. Here's the latest:

Here's what too many people still don't understand -- there's nothing loony about the netroots. This isn't fertile territory for the McKinneys and Kuciniches of our party. This is fertile territory for the Howard Deans of our party -- sensible, pragmatic progressives who aren't afraid to be Democrats. Why? Because we're the nation. We're not clustered in DC and NYC, we're spread out over all 50 states, and we know better than anyone what it takes to win in our own backyards.

We didn't rally around Webb, Tester, Schweitzer, Trauner, Brown, Massa, Burner and so many other moderate Democrats because they were little Kucinich clones, but because they were perfectly suited for the states and districts they seek to represent. It's that simple. Howard Dean wasn't an anomaly. He was our ideal.

We are not the elites, we are America, and we're situated squarely in its ideological center. We proved it in 2006, and we'll prove it again next week.

Don't get me wrong - I'm a huge fan of Kos on 98% of the issues. (I've mainly differed with him on impeachment, which he consistently opposed to prove Democrats could "govern", ignoring the substantive issues that could only be addressed through impeachment.)

But Kos is making a huge mistake in attacking Kucinich - in terms of raw politics, progressive policy, and even media strategy. 

Kos's political mistake is that Kucinich is one of the few Democrats who is able to reach out to voters who stand to the left of the Democratic Party. If we had a parliamentary system like most of the world, these voters would readily join the Green Party because they believe deeply in saving the planet, ending war, and promoting economic and social justice. But because third parties are not viable in the U.S. under current rules, these voters reluctantly support Democrats.

As a sophisticated strategist, Kos understands the Democratic Party needs to be a "big tent" that covers a wide spectrum from Greens to Blue(Dog)s. So why does he want to throw Green-leaning Democrats out of the tent by attacking Kucinich?

Kucinich also appeals anti-corporate supporters of Ralph Nader, to non-fascist libertarians who otherwise support Ron Paul, to supporters of the Marijuana Party, to the numerous followers of popular spiritualists like Marianne Williamson who have no political champions, and even to believers in UFO's. Obviously none of these are large groups, and they don't get much TV time (except on Larry King and the offbeat channels), but in close elections these voters can make a difference, especially in The Great American Heartland.

There is also a practical consequence of throwing Green-leaning Democrats out of our "big tent" - they can produce third-party challenges that can swing close elections to the Republicans. There are at least three such challenges now: against Nancy Pelosi in CA08 (by heroic peace mom Cindy Sheehan), Kathy Dahlkemper in PA03 (by BlueAmerica candidate Steven Porter), and Christine Jennings in FL13 (by 2004 netroots favorite Jan Schneider). Pelosi is unlikely to lose her seat becasue of Sheehan's challenge, but Dahlkemper and Jennings may well lose their challenges because of lost third-party votes.

Beyond raw politics, the case against attacking Kucinich is infinitely stronger in terms of progressives policies.

It's impossible to compile a list of progressives issues on which Kucinich has been the leader - often the only Democrat willing to speak up and say on TV or the House Floor exactly the kinds of things the best progressive bloggers are writing.

• Bush's invasion of Iraq - an epic historic disaster
• Bush's threatened invasion of Iran - a mega-disaster that would dwarf Iraq
• Bush's assault on our Constitutional rights, including warrantless wiretapping
• Bush's assault on our election system
• Paulson's Plunder - Bush's planned giveaway of $700 billion to banks and the wealthiest Americans
• The need for single-payer health care
• The need to impeach George Bush and Dick Cheney for their historic crimes

Obviously Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid never address these issues, nor do their lieutenants. But even the most "progressive" Democrats are silent, or at best mumble so quietly they are never heard: Russ Feingold, Ted Kennedy, Barbara Boxer, John Lewis, to name just a few. 

When Kucinich fights for these causes, he does so with full command of the facts and with a calm and polished delivery that works in the most hostile forums - including Meet the Press (where Tim Russert attacked Kucinich for saying our invasion was primarily about oil, as of course it was) and FOX News.

Which brings me to the Overton Window - the concept that the only policy options that get taken "seriously" are limited to the center of our political debate. Since Barry Goldwater, conservative Republicans have staked out policy positions as far to the right as possible, and forced the "center" to move their way. We can see the success of that strategy now when a small 3% increase of the marginal tax rate on people making over $250,000 is called "socialism" - and Joe Biden gets attacked for laughing at the absurdity of the claim.

Dennis Kucinich is the only Democrat who stakes out policy positions to the left of the Overton Window. If we want to move the window to the left, we need dozens of Kuciniches all pulling the window in the same direction.

Kos himself points out the need to move our issues from the "loony" fringe to the mainstream:

Ah yes, us loony bloggers, fighting for universal health care, to protect social security, to keep our government from unconstitutionally spying on us, and to promote a sane foreign policy that doesn't unnecessarily cost us blood and treasure. You know, loony things supported by a majority of the (apparently also loony) American people. 

By attacking Kucinich, Kos not only undercuts Kucinich's own efforts, but also discourages other Democrats from helping him in what of necessity needs to be a collective effort.

Surely Kos understands this. Like I said at the top, I just don't understand why he keeps doing it.

Update 1: Here are some responses to Kos from Kossacks, all of which are plus rated:

As someone way to the left of Obama, (8+ / 0-) by JSC ltd

I am tired of being stigmatized by having Obama shoved over into my pigeonhole.

Alas, nobody outside Ohio (besides me) seems to appreciate Kucinich.

...

Kos is wrong (9+ / 0-) by Chammy Nooks

I would wager that the majority of people that read this website agree with Kucinich's policies far more than those of the "moderate" Democrats that Kos mentions.

Single-payer healthcare. Clean energy such as solar and wind power, rather than the oxymorons of "clean coal" and "safe nuclear". Withdrawal of U.S. troops from the 100+ countries that they currently occupy. Economic policies that actually aim to eradicate poverty.

The ideological center is not a good place to be. The language makes it sound reasonable, but if there is a spectrum where one extreme wants to kill 100 babies and the other extreme wants to kill zero babies then the reasonable "center" would advocate killing 50 babies. I want no part of the "center".

...

but why? I love kucinich, I don't get it, I (4+ / 0-) by erin r

agree with everything he ever says!

I feel like if he's going to insult Kucinich so indiscriminately then he owes us an explanation.  Is it personal?

McCain does not support the troops

by erin r

Update 2: Atrios implicitly addresses Overton:

I think Beltway people on both sides are surprisingly bad at, well, politics. They tend to view things through the concept of the political spectrum as dictated by the Villagers, unaware that people in the rest of the country, aside perhaps from political junkies, don't really see things that way. It isn't actually Cokie Roberts' world.

Even if Obama wins the biggest Presidential landslide since 1964, it won't be Obama's world either because the Overton Window is so far to the right that Obama's place in the spectrum is indistinguishable from "Socialist." The only way to make it Obama's world is to create space on the left through clear and serious people like Kucinich.