Mike's Response to "Mission Statement"

Another way that one could approach Jazz's question is what the Democrats' "elevator pitch" is, a topic recently discussed both at the American Prospect and on Kos' website.

I've followed those threads with particular interest because of my aforementioned interest in framing. (An example of framing would be Reid framing our massive deficit as a "birth tax" of $35,000.) For comparison, the Republican elevator pitch, according to the Prospect is:

We believe in freedom and liberty, and we're for low taxes, less government, traditional values, and a strong national defense.

Obviously, they've betrayed that pitch in any one of a half-dozen ways -- but that's the way they're marketing themselves, and obviously, Ma & Pa America fell for it, hook, line and sinker.

The reason I made this reply a blog entry and not a comment is that there's just been so many good entries between the two entries. My favorites, however, come from the Spectator's webpage:

We believe in balancing competition with cooperation, balancing strength with wisdom, balancing personal responsibility with responsibility towards others, balancing individuality with community, and that we are stronger united than divided. — C.U.

We stand for a moral society, a sound government, cost-effective national defense, compassionate taxes for the poor and the middle class and liberty unfettered by government intrusions. — Anonymous

Liberals believe that every American deserves a fighting chance, and a fair chance. We passionately believe that America's strength flows from excellent education, strong businesses, quality healthcare, and justice. — K.W., Bellevue, WA

I think the best, though, was:

Liberals believe our common humanity endows each of us, individually, with the right to freedom, self-government, and opportunity; and binds all of us, together, in responsibility for securing those rights. — T.W., Brookline, MA

That last one is definitely what I think the Democratic Party's "mission statement" should be.