I don't see him saying "shut up" or "be complacent" or "don't filibuster."

I see him saying in simple terms that Harry Reid's margin of error on Alito was slim to none, and that we should work to elect Democrats who WILL stand strong against judges like Alito, irrespective of what happens on Alito.

kos's current position seems to be "tolerating" Ford and Casey. That's hardly how he's being characterized.
Howard Dean, it should be pointed out, like alot of folks, came out for Casey. Kos was hardly alone.

I disagreed with that position, but, as a realist, do not see how Bob Casey is anything but inevitable at this point in Pennsylvania.

If you want to oppose Casey on principle, however, one can always support one of his two primary opponents. That's what primaries are for.

If that seems to the be the "lost cause" to you that it seems to me, support Amy Klobuchar in her race against Mark Kennedy. That's a way to oppose Minnesota's version of Rick Santorum.

It would be a real shame if Amy loses while we obsessed about PA if you ask me. Imo, Kennedy plus Casey would be a bitter bitter pill.

I think it's important to note that Markos gave us some tangible things to do with that post. He is talking about working on races that will help to win majorities.

but I am not telling you to shut up nor what to think. Far from it.

And I agree with you that Bob Casey Jr. seems like a deal with the devil at this point. I would count him as a Democrat who is running against our party for his own gain. We are a pro-choice party, or as I've tried to articulate, we have a big tent, but it's a pro-choice Big Tent.

I've fought hard against Alito, so it's difficult for me to read a comment that seems to imply that I support him when I do not, or that I support policies that I simply don't.

Your comment doesn't give me much room to seem anything other than a sell-out asshole. I'm not.

For what it's worth, caliberal, I think your voice should be heard and listened to.

I wrote this diary because in my honest assessment Markos showed some leadership in the things he said yesterday, he pointed out in a pragmatic way the best shot that all of us have of moving forward win or lose on Alito.

I have disagreed with Markos in the past; in this case, on the whole, I did not.

KO, this is in response to your comment about how you read Markos' post and in response to what you have said in this comment.

First, let me say I respect you and admire who you are in this party. I am not in any way implying that you are an asshole or a sell out. I'm simply stating what all of this says to the women who feel as I do.

That you got caught up with what Markos had to say, what this party has to say about winning the majority and my response to that whole premise is not meant to single you out. It's a response I give to the party and all of you who believe that winning back the majority is the end all and be all.

Also, when you say it's a 'pro-choice big tent party' well, that is just nonsense. It's a big tent that invites and supports pro-life candidates, senators and representatives, and organizations into the fold of that tent.

What that means is essentially, now that we have Roberts and Alito on the Supreme Court, this party and everyone in it has to make a choice, you either stop recruiting, endorsing, supporting and funding pro life candidates which leads to pro life members in leadership positions or you don't. One is a vote against women who care about choice and one is a vote for women who care about choice. It's our lives KO, call us 'single issue' voters who are destroying this party or understand we have nothing left to give and we're not going to sacrifice our lives.

I know Markos wasn't the only one endorsing and/or supporting Casey. After Casey came out yesterday and said he would vote for Alito's confirmation, Schumer got a letter from me. [my letter to Schumer was here.] Then I continue to KO.

To all the Democrats who have tried to cram pro life candidates down our throats from Pelosi's Tim Roemer to Clinton, Reid and Dean's support of Democrats for Life, this is beyond the pale and a slap in the face of women in this party.

Women held no illusions that someone like Alito was in the running for the Supreme Court. How supported do you think we feel when Pelosi, Schumer, Clinton, Reid and Dean say what they have said about abortions AND who they have endorsed from the candidates to Democrats for Life? The point is women shouldn't have to wonder where this party comes down on the choice issue, we should be able to rely on our leadership to do the right thing.

That's where it began KO and what it comes to is this, many, many leaders in this party told us they would do whatever it takes to deny the confirmation of any Supreme Court nominee if they opposed and would seek to overturn Roe v. Wade. Some men on Kos have said the same thing, that if a nominee was in place for the Supreme Court who would work to overturn Roe they would quit this party in protest.

Then what happens? Alito is going to be confirmed and we get the same old, same old. Just hush up until we are back in the majority. Just bite your tongue and put up with the Casey's and the fighting Dems even though some are anti choice. We are told to be patient, we are told our time will come, that this party will get to our frivilous little issues in due time.

What I'm saying is I've been waiting for over thirty fucking years KO and it has not come to pass, this respect for who and what women truly are to and in this party.

It isn't you, it's all of you who tell us to wait once more. If you can't understand or see that being asked to work our asses off one more time, that we are needed to phonebank and fundraise and walk precincts, and have little coffees in our living rooms when we have lost our rights then you are are as deluded as the rest of this party.

You've, the bigger 'you've', needed us to work for this party to win elections for years. That you don't get that telling us to wait is akin to telling us to shut the fuck up is simply staggeringly ignorant to me.

That's what I'm talking about here. That Kos wasn't alone in coming out for Casey doesn't make it right or better KO, it makes it sickeningly worse.

By the way, when the voters of Pennsylvania are told where Casey stands on the issues, choice and stem cell research, Pennocchio beats him by 4.4 points against Santorum.