After the Democrats suffered a great deal of defeats in November, a common post-election analysis theme was that the Democrats failed to have ideas to run with. Instead, Democrats were left on the defensive for issues on Obamacare. In response, the Progressive Change Campaign Committee’s education arm, the Progressive Change Institute, has created a website where users can propose and vote on ideas to improve the country. Thirty members of Congress, some incoming, some incumbent, have agreed to review and consider the top 20 ideas as voted on. The members include current Senate Majority Leader (and soon-to-be Minority Leader) Harry Reid (D-NV) and PCCC darling, Sen. Elizabeth Warren. The members also range in ideology, from Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) and Rep. Alan Grayson (D-FL) to the more moderate Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT). Sen. Tester is also noted as the incoming chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which recruits candidates for Senate elections.
In anticipation for the website’s launch, the PCI got several ideas from various groups and distinguished progressives. Ideas came from former Senator Ted Kaufman (D-DE) and groups, such as the Working Families Party. These ideas have been shown as “Featured Ideas” on the website’s homepage, but they are not the most popular. The two most popular, with over 3,000 votes each, both deal with electoral reform, rather than the economy. The top idea proposes a number of reforms, including a national day-off for Election Day and banning corporate political donations. The second most popular seeks to overturn the Supreme Court case, Citizens United. Ever since the case was decided, overturning it has been the dream and email subject of many Democrats. The fourth most popular idea takes the notion of corporate personhood to an extreme and says that if a corporation is not headquartered in the United States officially, they cannot donate to American political causes. This both tackles corporate donations and corporate tax inversions. Voting will last throughout December.
The 30 Members of Congress:
Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)
Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) — future DSCC Chair
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) — former DSCC Chair
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)
Sen. Al Franken (D-MN)
Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR)
Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI)
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CO)
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT)
Rep. Raul Grijalva (AZ-3)
Rep. Keith Ellison (MN-5)
Rep. Mark Pocan (WI-2)
Rep. Barbara Lee (CA-13)
Rep. Alan Grayson (FL-9)
Rep. Jared Polis (CO-2)
Rep. Beto O’Rourke (TX-16)
Rep. Rick Nolan (MN-8)
Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick (AZ-1)
Rep. Mark Takano (CA-41)
Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (TX-18)
Rep. Ed Perlmutter (CO-7)
Rep. Jared Huffman (CA-2)
Rep. Donna Edwards (MD-4)
Representative-Elect Ruben Gallego (AZ-7)
Representative-Elect Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12)
Representative-Elect Ted Lieu (CA-33)
Representative-Elect Mark Takai (HI-1)
Representative-Elect Brenda Lawrence (MI-7)
Representative-Elect Mark DeSaulnier (CA-14)