As Democrats, what are our core values?

[Charlemagne]

On what principles will we remain steadfast? On what do we refuse to compromise? What do we demand from our elected Democratic Party politicians? How many (if any) of this principles are we willing to give up before we say enough is enough?

Is it only to beat the repugs in elections, because I think we stand for more than that?

Now, after you have honestly answered these questions to yourself, has Barack Obama met your benchmark for Democratic core values, or has he fallen short?

This is not an endorsement or condemnation of the job the president has done. The rhetoric lately leads me to believe that we should step back and examine what we are doing and where we want to go in 2012.

[FarLeftFist]

1. This is helpful:

http://www.democrats.org/issues

[freshwest]

10. Thanks for the page of links.

[xchrom]

2. Clinton put Dem core values up for negotiation.

That is the status quo for now.

[FreakinDJ]

3. Selling out the Working Class to the benefit of the Corporations

[JoePhilly]

4. Here is an idea ...

Create a bar chart ...

On the Y axis, the origin starts at 0%, and it ends at 100% (agreement)

On the X-axis, list YOUR key political issues (values) from most important, to least important.

Then for each of those issues / values, simply create a bar of "agreement" for each candidate you are considering. dem, GOP, other ... so on.

This will allow you to compare candidates on your KEY issues, relative to YOUR CORE VALUE ISSUES.

After you do this ... you can either vote for one of the candidates who most closly matches YOUR core values ... or stay home, or write in some other candidate.

Since you did not list the "values" ... my approach should work for you, and others too, regardless of part affiliation ... simply put in YOUR values into the model and then work forward from those.

[msongs]

5. which democrats? party plafrom dems? DNC? obama democrats? nt

[bluestate10]

6. Our goal should be to prevent republicans from pulling the country

back to the dark ages. The logic of taking fives steps forward and eleven steps back before we fight to get the five forward steps again is bullshit. Moderates have the right idea, keep pushing in one direction, watching where the fuck you are headed, a lot more is accomplished over infinitely less time.

Next time, try not to ask questions that you have already answered.

[brewens]

7. Mine or closer to what a real conservative should believe. Of course I believe

in helping people that really need it.

Not a dime for able bodied people that are truly worthless. That would include a lot more people at the top than right-wingers would ever admit to.

I believe in everything that helps the average working guy. What they called the "American Dream". We didn't all expect to get rich that way, just to own a home and be secure. When one person could support a family was when we were at our best. It should have been conservative to fight to preserve that for the majority of the people, not give it all away to the top.

[Telly Savalas]

8. That an activist government is key to addressing social and economic problems

At least that's the value shared by most folks who identify as Democrats and is generally shunned by those who identify with the GOP.

For things requiring a Congressional vote, I don't see too much room for improvement since he can't use psychic mind control bully pulpit rays to force a right wing legislature to pass bills. For things purely under his executive purview, it's more of a mixed bag.

Most of us here have our own ideas on where we want to go in 2012. However, the main lever we have to pull to this end are victory for progressives in House and Senate races. But since there's pretty much zero discussion of these outside the Massachusetts Senate race, I've pretty much resigned myself to the fact that the House and Congress will continue to be conservative institutions regardless of who wins the White House.

[CakeGrrl]

9. "Where we want to go in 2012"

Are you going to ramp up a viable alternative in time for the Dem primaries?

[getdown]

11. follow the money

[democratisphere]

12. I REMEMBER THE CORE REPUBLICAN VALUES THAT LANDED US IN THIS MESS. OBAMA IS A DRASTIC IMPROVEMENT!

REPUBLICAN CORE VALUES: GREED AKA 'GROWTH'; OF,BY AND FOR THE FILTHY RICH; OF, BY AND FOR THE ABSOLUTELY CORRUPT CORPORATIONS (MOST SPECIALLY THE MILITARY INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX). OBAMA HAS HAD TO STRUGGLE WITH A MOSTLY REPUBLICAN MESS THAT HAS ACCUMULATED SINCE 1981.

DEMOCRAT CORE VALUE: OF, BY AND FOR THE MASSES OF WE THE PEOPLE