At Netroots Nation, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) had a simple message for Republicans and their corporate backers that Democrats and the left will fight and they will win.
Sen. Warren began by discussing her fight five years ago to begin the CFPB. She talked about how the big banks would hate the financial reforms she proposed. She said that the experts thought they would fail, and they won. She said, “We won, because you got in the fight…You called out sleazy lobbyists and powerful politicians.” Sen. Warren said that the CFPB is proof of how democracy can work in the 21st Century, “If we push back hard, we can win.” She added, “When we united our voices, we can win.”
Sen. Warren said, “We don’t win every time, but we are learning to win.” She added that we can’t win what we don’t fight for. Warren said that many corporations use their money and resources to capture Washington. She said that they want to tilt the rules in their favor and leave everyone else behind. She said a kid gets caught with pot and goes to jail while big banks launder drug money. She said, “The game is rigged, and it isn’t right.”
Warren talked about how corporations rig the game with lobbyist and Republican friends in Congress. She talked about the special gifts that corporations get through trade deals that they can’t get in Congress. Warren said that trade deals are done in secret because if people knew about them, they would be opposed.
She said when conservatives talk about opportunity they mean the opportunity for the rich to get richer and the powerful to get more powerful. Warren said, “We can whine about it. We can whimper about it, or we can fight back. I’m ready to fight back. Sen. Warren said that this is a fight over values. Sen. Warren described the values fight using the same language as President Obama. The difference is the Republican value of I’ve got mine versus the American value of working together for all.
Sen. Warren said, We believe in science, and that means that we have a responsibility to protect the Earth and we will fight for it…We believe that no one should work full time and live in poverty. That means raising the minimum wage, and we will fight for it.” She mentioned fighting for student loan reform, protecting Social Security, Medicare, and pensions. Warren said, “We believe in equal pay for equal work, and we will fight for it.” She added, “We believe that corporations are not people, and women have a right to their bodies. We will overturn Hobby Lobby and we will fight for it.”
For some reason, Sen. Warren couldn’t muster the fire that we have seen in some of her other speeches, but she was solid in expressing the values of the Democratic Party. Warren seemed to be in a hurry. She repeatedly stopped the audience from delaying her remarked with prolonged cheers. That was what was so striking about her speech. Many of the attendees at Netroots, who dislike Obama and love Warren didn’t seem to notice that she uses much of the same language as the president. There isn’t much difference positionally between Warren and Hillary, with the exception that Clinton has a moderate brand, and Warren is known for being more to the left.
Sen. Warren isn’t going to run for president, but she has become the soul of the Democratic effort to keep the Senate in 2014. She represents the rise of women in the Democratic Party. She isn’t afraid to take on Mitch McConnell and the Republican. Her speech at Netroots demonstrated the refinement of her strategy and voice as she is becoming a national force for Democratic and liberal values.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
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