Jonathan Tasini's thoughts.
So, now what? Yesterday was indeed devastating. My niece texted me, "what do we do now?" Her desperate question broke my heart. I grew up in a feminist household: My mother was one of a handful of women to break a glass ceiling, going to medical school after she already had her three kids.
I know many young women are mourning the blow of a President Trump partly because of the rejection of a woman as the first president -- which is yet another reason I argue we must remake the Democratic Party.
First, the Clinton machine must be rooted out of the party. A quarter of a century is enough time to understand that its ideology has failed the American people.
Second, the Democratic National Committee has to be turned inside out. The disgraced and deposed chair, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, is only the worst symptom of this wider truth. The party has lost hundreds of state legislative seats, Republicans now control two-thirds of state chambers and have a comfortable majority of governorships (who will determine redistricting in 2020). They have a historic margin in the House of Representatives, will continue to run the Senate and, thus, likely put a Trump-stamp on the Supreme Court.
Third, we need to run targeted primary contests broadly and across the board to replace elected officials who don't want to see a more open, vibrant and inclusive party. The Sanders movement has shown we can raise the money to fund challengers — and they are ready, by the thousands, to compete.
With these changes, and drawing from the energy of many great activists, a new Democratic Party can be revitalized. The progressive movement, in all its elements — advocates for labor, environmentalists, and civil rights of all stripes — can shape that future.
http://www.cnn.com/2016/11/09/opinions/democratic-party-burn-tasini/index.html
