The Argument: Inside the Battle to Remake Democratic Politics (Paperback)

~ (Author) "For a certain crowd of influential Democrats in the nation's capital, it was an unspoken rule: If you found yourself in Washington on election day,..." (more)
Key Phrases: ideological donors, progressive outsiders, new progressive movement, Democracy Alliance, Democratic Party, Rob Stein (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Scandals, the immigration debate, questions of competency and an approval-deficient President all point to a Democratic sweep in the 2008 elections; despite that, New York Times Magazine writer Bai contends, the Dems' perennial stumbling blocks-a lack of strong leaders, fractured beliefs, general disorganization and inferior skills of mass communication-are only getting worse. In this look behind the scenes at Democratic decision makers, Bai points to a new generation of troubles: has Howard Dean squandered money, good will and opportunities as the head of the party? Have blogs such as DailyKos.com steered the debate away from unifying issues in favor of divisive strategies? Can lefty billionaires like George Soros, or his pet activist Rob Stein, spearhead an effective organization? And how many of these people even know what they're talking about? To analyze these questions, Bai enjoys generous access to many key figures-including Tom Matzzie of MoveOn and Hollywood stalwart Rob Reiner-but few come across as interesting characters. In addition, the focus on 2004 and 2006 races gives much of the book a been-there, done-that feel. It doesn't provide much hope for the Dems-sympathizers are sure to come away from this title depressed, even if the 2008 elections do go their way.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From The Washington Post

Any doubt about the growing influence of the liberal blogosphere, aka the netroots, on the Democratic Party was laid to rest in August. At the Yearly Kos blogapalooza, the bloggers were flanked by a who's-who of the party's New Order (who have rallied behind the new kids on the block) and Old Order (who are now jumping on the bandwagon). Most tellingly, all the major presidential candidates showed up for a debate -- including Sen. Hillary Clinton, whose vote authorizing the war on Iraq has rendered her almost persona non grata to the netroots community. And moderating the debate was Matt Bai, a reporter for the New York Times magazine whose unsparing, incisive and altogether engaging book is a must read for anyone unaware of the seismic shift that's afoot among the Democrats.

In The Argument, Bai makes the case -- not entirely convincingly -- that the Democrats lack an argument, a big idea, about why they should govern. He poses questions to the Democrats that he doesn't get around to answering himself: "How do we, as a nation, move beyond the tired doctrines of a receding era? Who will explain the difficult truths of our new reality? What will the next version of American government look like?"

All fair queries that elicit an immediate, twofold response: What, exactly, does the Republican Party stand for? And with the GOP coming undone (the indictment of superlobbyist Jack Abramoff, the Hastert and Rove exits, the immigration bill debacle, the Iraq quagmire), has the stock narrative of "the Democrats don't stand for anything" -- touted even by Democratic insiders, to the delight of Republicans -- run its course? Is Bai looking for a bumper sticker slogan that cohesively articulates the Democratic agenda? Readers never find out.

What Bai does provide is a layered, colorful portrait of a party in transition. The story of the netroots is the story of everyday Americans armed with high speed Internet access -- Bai doesn't bring up the glaring digital divide, especially in poor areas of the country -- and a visceral disdain for Republicans in general and Bush in particular. It's a tale of fiery newcomers to politics, many of whom woke up to the aftershocks of Sept. 11 (domestic spying, Abu Ghraib), demanding to be seated at the table.

Bai introduces us to Rob Stein, an Albert Brooks look-a-like with a "PowerPoint business plan for the progressive movement," and to Tom Matzzie, the Washington director of MoveOn.org who is a phone call away from Capitol heavy hitters. Efforts of operatives such as Stein are bankrolled by deep-pocketed progressives, the billionaire George Soros among them, who seek to match the GOP's "$300 million 'message machine' "with think tanks of their own. Bai visits the homes of liberal Hollywood bigwigs Rob Reiner and Norman Lear, and he tracks the tumultuous beginnings -- and early reforms -- of Howard Dean's chairmanship of the Democratic National Committee. He even gets a sit-down with Bill Clinton, whose centrist third-way triangulation has been continually derided by the netroots.

And, most effectively, he uses an earlier visit to the first Yearly Kos convention in 2006 to examine the netroots culture. There are elite bloggers such as Jerome Armstrong of MyDD.com and Markos Moulitsas of DailyKos.com, the netroots' first political rock star; below them are the not-quite-elite bloggers; and below them is everyone else. Still, as Bai observes, meritocracy rules. DailyKos is where Gina Cooper, a high school teacher from Tennessee, finds her voice and sharpens it. Over a breakfast of pancakes, it's Cooper who provides, as Bai notes, the most acute summation behind the soul of the political blogosphere: "People need something to believe in. And if they can believe in you, then they can believe in themselves. No one's going to give me permission to just suddenly speak with authority. I just have to do it."

But in fixating on a big idea that updates the Democratic bastions of the New Deal and Great Society, Bai, despite writing an energetic and timely narrative, misses a big idea himself. Every day in the blogosphere -- often in crude, crass language, many times in careful, detailed analysis -- an argument is being laid out: against the war in Iraq, in support of minority groups and immigrants, for a government of the people. In other words, a government that works, not an empty, catchy slogan.

Copyright 2007, The Washington Post. All Rights Reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics); Reprint edition (July 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0143114174
• ISBN-13: 978-0143114178
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #883,813 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Required reading for any Democratic activist, August 18, 2007

By	R. Brooks - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Argument: Billionaires, Bloggers, and the Battle to Remake Democratic Politics (Hardcover)

This is one of those rare books that really causes you to stop and think, and helps you to formulate new ideas.

For the activist, blogger, or political junkie you should really consider this a textbook. It illustrates some of the battles over the future of the Democratic party that have raged over the past 5 years or so pitting party outsiders vs. party insiders. It also points out the mistakes that have been made and the opportunities that have been missed. But probably most importantly it sums up the critical task - define the argument for a Democratic governing majority.

For the casual observer this book holds many things too. It is one of the few non-fictional books that paints a tail of political intrigue, presents you with vividly developed characters (flaws and all), and really tells a story about the recent past of our political history. The casual observer might not be aware of these undercurrents in modern politics, but it is important to understand them because this is the direction things are heading.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Compelling and Discussion Worthy, August 22, 2007

By	TJR (Boca Raton, FL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Argument: Billionaires, Bloggers, and the Battle to Remake Democratic Politics (Hardcover)

Lush. Bai has a way of setting a scene, from a smoke filled dive bar in CT to the swanky pads of some of the country's billionaires. What's more he seems to never take himself too seriously as he aims to tell this tale. The first chapter is worth the price of admission alone.

Bai's personal bias is clear, and at some points, perhaps unfair, but for the most part he paints a compelling picture of a burgeoning movement and the people who are helping to shape it. On the blogger side, he leaves out a lot - but a book could be, and has been, written on just that alone. He could have written much, much more, certainly if he had a different guide to the upstart side of things, but where he draws the line will satisfy most, with only the insider type saying things like, "but he should have added...could have said..."...

Overall, I think some people will hate the book, but most should appreciate it, because even if it isn't a perfect assessment, even if Matt doesn't have the whole story here, he clearly spent years trying to find out how the new progressive movement wanted to work and puts up a mirror to show us all how it actually is working. What is clear is that we have work yet to do. And that is ok.

19 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Argument & Iraq - The "Gift" That Keeps on Bleeding, August 21, 2007

By	John Stauber (Madison, WI USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Argument: Billionaires, Bloggers, and the Battle to Remake Democratic Politics (Hardcover)

Shortly after the November 2006 election the Democracy Alliance, an exclusive group of about 100 Democratic Party millionaire activists, met in Miami, Florida. Members and their guests heard their keynote speaker and liberal legend Mario Cuomo, former New York governor, analyze the Democratic Party in the wake of its stunning electoral victories that had given Democrats control of the US Congress. Cuomo criticized the Democratic Party for lacking vision, big ideas and a winning political argument. His recipe for future Democratic victories was simple: "You seize the biggest idea you can, the biggest idea you can understand. And this is what moves elections."

Cuomo then dared to voice an inconvenient truth: "Now it's 2006 and we're all rejoicing. Why? Because of Iraq. A GIFT. A gift to the Democrats. A lot of whom voted for the war anyway." The former New York governor challenged his partisan audience, "If Iraq is not an issue, then what issues do we have to talk about? ... Where does that leave you? It leaves you in the same position you were in in 2004 - without an issue. Because you have no big idea."

The story of Cuomo's speech is from the concluding pages of Matt Bai's new book The Argument: Billionaires, Bloggers and the Battle to Remake Democratic Politics. Bai writes, "An uncomfortable silence hung over the ballroom. No one had yet expressed the situation quite that crassly, although everyone knew it was an accurate accounting."

The Argument is an important book but Bai muffed the title. He should have titled it "The Gift," because as Cuomo points out it was primarily the political gift of voter anger and revulsion over a horrific, continuing war that caused them to oust Republicans.

And how have the Democrats treated their gift now that they control Congress? The Democratic House and Senate have continued to fund the war while posturing against it. For example Hillary Clinton, who pollsters regard as the Democratic frontrunner for her party's presidential nomination, told the New York Times that when she is elected she would keep troops in Iraq but run a smarter operation. The public's opinion of Congress has plummeted with no end in sight to the bloody occupation.

Bai's book is the first since the 2006 election to examine the new power alliance within the Democratic Party composed of the organizations referenced in his long subtitle. They include the "billionaires" such as George Soros and other members of the Democracy Alliance; the major liberal "bloggers" such as "Netroots Nation" guru Markos Moulitsas Zúniga with his Daily Kos blog and the Yearly Kos conventions; and the related "battlers" re-making the Democratic Party such as party chair Howard Dean. Bai devotes an entire chapter to MoveOn, the Netroots money and messaging machine controlling an email list of 3.3 million Americans built in large part on their opposition to the Iraq war.