- Joined
- Jul 19, 2012
- Messages
- 14,185
- Reaction score
- 8,768
- Location
- Houston
- Gender
- Male
- Political Leaning
- Libertarian
“I am a Democrat. I am a Democrat from rural Indiana.”
That Goodin, 51, who has held political office for more than 17 years, felt the need to say this out loud speaks to the divisions bedeviling the Democratic Party. A father of three and the superintendent of a 500-student school district, Goodin is the last Democrat in Indiana who represents an entirely rural area. A member of the Indiana Farm Bureau, the National Rifle Association and the Austin Church of God, he’s an anti-abortion, pro-gun, self-described “Bible-poundin’, aisle-runnin’” Pentecostal. This unusual profile for a Democrat makes him a species nearing extinction within the national party, but it’s also the very reason he keeps getting reelected here. This paradox is why he is prominently featured in a report set to be made public Thursday by the leadership PAC of third-term congresswoman Cheri Bustos.
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/01/11/terry-goodin-rural-democrats-indiana-216273
In order to win, these guys are saying, the national Democrats are going to have to tolerate white working class people who are Christian, like guns, don't like abortion, don't like Muslims, don't like gay marriage, etc. Can you imagine the current Democratic base accepting that, or even learning to be quiet about it? I don't think so.
I'm sure Goodin's advice will go unheeded by the national party, which regards people like him as anathema. I mean to say that people in the Democratic base get right down hateful and spiteful when it comes to people like Goodin, who they seem to regard has having no right to even be alive, much less having a voice in their party. The author of this piece was apparently unable to get a direct, on point comment on it from anyone representing the national party. The only response from one of Pelosi's deputies was to say that they were focusing more on pocketbook issues.
The only question for me is why someone like Goodin would ever be a Democrat these days. Other than supporting public school, Democrats don't uphold any of his values any more. I suppose it's just pure stubbornness. His grandfather and father were democrats, but it's time to wake up.