Democrats and other liberals are beating the bushes for some counter to the conservative media that have been eating their lunches for years.

Sorry. Ain't gonna work. The key sentence:

"If you start from the premise that the message was right, which we do, then the problem was that it wasn't getting out to the people," said one official of the Democratic Party who spoke on condition that his name not be used.

(Insert loud, boat-horn noise here.)

"Check your premises," as Ayn Rand used to say.

The premise in this sentence is that the Left finds it inconceivable that their basic philosophies and ideas, which are largely watered-down socialism, can be wrong. This is why in every election they lose, they will cling to ANY reason* for their losses EXCEPT that the voters may have thought their opponent was right and they were wrong. The Left in this country is, at its root, pushing a political system that has obliterated every nation that has ever adopted it. While most people don't understand this explicitly, in some places and at some times it must be soaking in at some level.

And there's more.

Mr. Podesta is discussing with the Internet entrepreneur Steven T. Kirsch and others the creation of a liberal version of the Heritage Foundation, the conservative research group that, along with others of its kind, is credited with helping start the modern conservative movement.



The foundation is part of a circuit of influential conservative groups that are credited with helping to hone a singular message, bolstered each Wednesday at back-to-back meetings held by Grover Norquist, the head of Americans for Tax Reform, and the conservative activist Paul Weyrich. Those meetings are monitored and at times attended by some conservative commentators, columnists and Internet writers.



This premise is that they still think that someone Behind The Scenes is organizing the conservative media into a single, coherent force using "taliking points" and instructions passed from a central authority, and that all they have to do is somehow duplicate this. For someone like me who listens extensively to many conservative talk radio shows, this makes me laugh until I get the hiccups. If anyone thinks anyone can tell Rush, Sean, Drudge, or the countless local hosts what to say and when, I've got a bridge I'd love to sell you. Unfortunately the Democratic Party is incapable of conceiving ANYTHING being done without being run by a central authority.

"Most liberal talk shows are so, you know, milquetoast, who would want to listen to them?" said Harry Thomason, the Hollywood producer who is close to Bill Clinton. "Conservatives are all fire and brimstone."



Mr. Athens said his group would encourage its hosts to be more brazen and entertaining.

"Progressives have this problem: They sound too erudite, it's like eggheads talking at you," Mr. Athens said. "We believe that progressive talk radio can be every bit as successful as conservative talk radio if people present and format a show that people like."



This premise, often called the "Limbaugh is Only An Entertainer Theory," is that they think if they can find a "fire and brimstone" liberal personality to carry the banner, they'll make some progress. The catch to that is that a "fire and brimstone" liberal is basically a Marxist. Go ahead, just for fun, imagine what a "fire and brimstone" liberal would say on the radio, once the moderate smokescreen most leftists politicians lay down is blown away. What does it sound like? What positions will he advocate? There are PLENTY of "fire and brimstone" leftists on the radio on Pacifica and other places. What do you know...they're Marxists. That's where the American Left winds up when the mask is off. Soft-pedalling socialism is the only thing that keeps getting Democrats elected. They can't afford to make it blatant.

So as long as they cling to these premises, they'll hit the same brick walls. At least it will be amusing. Good God, have you actually WATCHED Donahue?

*"Our message didn't get out. The other guy spent more money. The conservatives have those think tanks. Our voter base stayed home. Planet X passed too close to the Earth. Etc. etc."