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A4   U.S. NEWS
                     Monday 17 July 2017
               Dems still strive to tell voters what their party stands for




            By STEVE PEOPLES and BILL                                                                                           ites,  Vermont  Sen.  Bernie
            BARROW                                                                                                              Sanders, is focusing almost
            Associated Press                                                                                                    exclusively on health care.
            NEW  YORK  (AP)  —  House                                                                                           Sanders,  an  independent
            Democratic Caucus Chair-                                                                                            who caucuses with Senate
            man  Joe  Crowley  hesitat-                                                                                         Democrats, said in an inter-
            ed  when  asked  about  his                                                                                         view that “there should not
            party’s  core  message  to                                                                                          be a rush to judgment” af-
            voters.                                                                                                             ter emails released by Don-
            “That  message  is  being                                                                                           ald  Trump’s  son  this  week
            worked on,” the New York                                                                                            revealed  that  Trump’s  top
            congressman  said  in  an                                                                                           advisers  held  a  meeting
            interview  this  past  week.                                                                                        with  a  lawyer  they  were
            “We’re  doing  everything                                                                                           told  represented  the  Rus-
            we  can  to  simplify  it,  but                                                                                     sian government.
            at  the  same  time  provide                                                                                        Sanders sidestepped ques-
            the meat behind it as well.                                                                                         tions   about    impeach-
            So that’s coming together                                                                                           ment, warning instead that
            now.”                                                                                                               “many, many thousands of
            The admission from the No.                                                                                          Americans”  will  die  every
            4 House Democrat — that                                                                                             year if the GOP health care
            his party lacks a clear, core                                                                                       plan  becomes  law.  Sand-
            message  even  amid  Re-                                                                                            ers has hosted swing state
            publican  disarray  —  high-  In this July 11, 2017, file photo, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. rides an escalator on Capitol Hill in Wash-  rallies  focused  on  health
            lights  the  Democrats’  di-  ington. Republicans are fending off questions about Russia and the Trump campaign, and dealing   care in West Virginia, Ken-
            lemma  eight  months  after   with an unpopular health care plan.                                  Associated Press  tucky,  Pennsylvania  and
            President  Donald  Trump                                                                                            Ohio in recent weeks and
            and  the  GOP  dominat-      lican  advantages  in  U.S.  gling  to  tell  voters  what   luctant  to  pursue  that  ap-  was in Iowa on Saturday.
            ed  last  fall’s  elections,  in   statehouses  in  the  2018  their party stands for.  proach as it only energizes   Democratic operative Zac
            part,  because  Democrats    midterm elections. Yet with  Some want to rally behind    the GOP base. Others want    Petkanas,  who  led  Hill-
            lacked  a  consistent  mes-  a  Russia  scandal  engulf-  calls  to  impeach  the  Re-  Democrats to focus on the   ary  Clinton’s  campaign
            sage.                        ing the White House, a his-  publican president as new    GOP’s plans to strip health   war  room,  agrees  that
            The  soul-searching  comes   torically  unpopular  health-  evidence  indicates  pos-  insurance  from  millions  of   this  week’s  developments
            as  Democrats  look  to  flip   care plan wrenching Capi-  sible  collusion  between   Americans.  And  still  others   in  the  Russia  investiga-
            at least 24 GOP-held seats   tol  Hill  and  no  major  GOP  Trump’s  campaign  and    say  those  arguments  can   tion  shouldn’t  change  the
            necessary for a House ma-    legislative   achievement,  the  Russian  government.     be fashioned into a simpli-  party’s focus heading into
            jority  and  cut  into  Repub-  Democrats  are  still  strug-  Democratic leaders are re-  fied brand.              2018.
                                                                                                   “The   Democratic    Party   “Candidates  need  to  be
                                                                                                   needs to up its game,” na-   saying  the  word  ‘health
                                                                                                   tional Party Chairman Tom    care’  five  times  for  every
                                                                                                   Perez said in a speech this   time  they  say  the  word
                                                                                                   week.  “What  I  hear  most   ‘Russia,’” Petkanas said. He
                                                                                                   from  people  is,  ‘Tom,  we   added, “I think it’s a funda-
                                                                                                   not only need to organize,   mental  mistake  to  make
                                                                                                   but we need to articulate    this election a referendum
                                                                                                   clearly what we stand for.’”  on impeachment.”
                                                                                                   For  now,  at  least,  Demo-  It’s not that easy for some
                                                                                                   crats are waging a tug-of-   elected  officials,  like  Rep.
                                                                                                   war  largely  between  the   Joe  Kennedy  III,  D-Mass.,
                                                                                                   Russia investigation and the   who  says  concerns  about
                                                                                                   GOP’s attempts to gut the    Russia  have  caught  up  to
                                                                                                   2010 Affordable Care Act.    health  care  as  a  priority
                                                                                                   Several  liberal  groups  that   among his constituents. He
                                                                                                   had been laser-focused on    described  the  Russian  de-
                                                                                                   health  care  have  intensi-  velopments as “a threat to
                                                                                                   fied calls for impeachment   our foundation of democ-
                                                                                                   in  recent  weeks,  including   racy”  that  demands  at-
                                                                                                   MoveOn.org,      Indivisible   tention.  “Congress  has  to
                                                                                                   and Ultraviolet.             be able to walk and chew
                                                                                                   “We  need  to  be  talking   gum. We have to be able
                                                                                                   about  impeachment  con-     to do both,” Kennedy said.
                                                                                                   stantly,”  said  Scott  Dwor-  Democrats  are  naturally
                                                                                                   kin,  co-founder  of  the    playing   defense    given
                                                                                                   recently  formed  Demo-      generations  of  victories
                                                                                                   cratic  Coalition  Against   that expanded the role of
                                                                                                   Trump. He warned on Twit-    government,  from  the  so-
                                                                                                   ter,  “If  you’re  an  elected   cial  safety  net  of  Franklin
                                                                                                   Dem  &  you’re  not  talk-   Roosevelt’s  New  Deal  to
                                                                                                   ing  impeachment  or  25th   Lyndon  Johnson’s  land-
                                                                                                   amendment  then  find  a     mark  civil  rights  legislation
                                                                                                   new party.”                  to  Obama’s  health  care
                                                                                                   Yet one of the left’s favor-  law.q
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