I Dream Awake

One more former Democrat speaks truth to power:

I just got a phone call from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, asking for a donation. When I tried to calmly and politely explain that I’m no longer associating myself with the Democrats because they “don’t consider Joe Lieberman a Democrat anymore,” the caller interrupted me and said, “Well, that’s true. He’s not a Democrat. He’s been acting like a Republican.” I responded that “that’s a distortion of his record” and briefly elaborated on why Lieberman is by no means a Republican. The caller again disagreed with me, saying, “Well, if you look at the way he’s been acting for the last few months…” I replied, “See, that just isn’t true, and this is precisely the problem. If the Democrats can’t find room in their party for someone who agrees with them 90 percent of the time, but disagrees on an issue of conscience, then there’s no room for me in the party,” or words to that effect. I proceeded to explain that I feel the Democrats are no longer the “big-tent party” that they once were, but instead are “intolerant of dissenting views” like Lieberman’s. “I might still vote for the Democrat in my district if I think he’s the better candidate,” I said, “but I’m not interested in donating any money to the party.” And then, just as I was in the process of suggesting that he take my name off the DCCC’s list, so as to avoid wasting either of our time in the future, the caller — without saying a word — simply hung up on me.

How long will it take until a large majority of Americans decide the Democratic party has become the home of anti-democratic, illiberal, and intolerant people?