Suggestion on a Democratic win in '06: A series.

The New York Times has an article today about how Democrats may not be seizing the opportunity to campaign against Republicans leading up to this year's midterm elections. Notwithstanding that the elections are 10 months away, I have a few suggestions for any Democrats who are too busy wringing their hands to realize that there are a bevvy or organizations and ideas devoted to getting Republicans out of office while at the same time presenting a strong Democratic party platform with a few important themes. I will present my suggestions in a series of blog posts. Here is the first one:

• Unite the party: Lately there has been a lot of criticism leveled at the structure of the Democratic party establishment along the lines of its aloofness to the power of grassroots and "netroots" organizations. Markos Moulitsas Zuniga and Jerome Armstrong's new book Crashing the Gates is the most recent of these criticisms. Members of the party establishment in turn have often been reluctant to reach out to the grassroots/netroots. There must be communication within the party. How can this happen?
  
• Convene a conference which features the establishment players and those who represent the netroots and grasroots. It should include members of Congress, Governors, and State representatives who would like to be party leaders. Such a summitt should also have representation from party organizations in each state of the Union, as well as prominent progressive voices on policy, like the Center for American Progress, the Progressive Legislative Action Network (PLAN), on media, such as Air America Radio and Media Matters and prominent blogs like Daily Kos and MyDD. It should also include representation from key interest groups in the Democratic Party. It should be hosted by the Democratic National Committee.
• This conference would invite representatives of states to submit their concerns about their party's organization and the most pressing issues facing their state.
  
• It would give national party leaders an idea of what their constituents are invovled in and believe in at the netroots, grassroots, state, and local level (none of those being mutually exclusive). Too often lately, the party establishment is getting their impression of their own party's grassroots from unreliable and detached media sources and pundits who are well-insulated in the Beltway.
• Those in the grassroots/netroots would get a chance to understand our political leaders' perspectives and considerations in a respectful environment.