| About a week ago, Jay Rosen, no slouch on media analysis, wrote an article suggesting the only way to get rid of "horse race" politics might be to substitute a different race, an idea race:
In idea race coverage...you'd focus on what the candidates are doing, saying and suggesting about, say, poverty (rural and urban, domestic and global) regardless of whether they and their consultants plan to focus on it. Then you rank them 1-12 and explain how you did it in an FAQ. If the campaigns squawk there will be another ranking in a month.
Yesterday I watched as Chris Dodd announced a bold, practical public service initiative from the steps of Nashua's City Hall.
It was the second policy speech I've seen of Dodd's. And it was the second time I'd seen him break out of the pack in the idea race.
The first time was Earth Day, where in a no-nonsense speech he had the guts to say what every energy economist knows: if you want near-term conservation you need a corporate carbon tax.
Yesterday, talking about his public service initiative he proposed many ideas in his refreshing no-nonsense manner. But the one that stood out was mandatory community service for graduation from high school.
Neither of these positions are likely to endear him to voters. The public is not clamoring for a carbon tax or for mandatory public service.
But in both cases he's shown the essence of leadership, and focused on the core issues. The price of fuel should reflect the cost to our national security and our environment. And an American education should reflect our national values. Hard medicine for some, to be sure. But good policy.
In the media horse race, Dodd is losing, no doubt about it. But in the idea race, from Iraq withdrawal to public service, I haven't seen him stumble yet.
[video of event below the fold] |
