In President Obama's remarks last night, he (re)introduced a term that should serve as a message for this election and more important, as a defining idea for what the Democratic Party stands for.
Citizenship.
As he said:
As Americans, we believe we are endowed by our Creator with certain inalienable rights – rights that no man or government can take away. We insist on personal responsibility and we celebrate individual initiative. We’re not entitled to success. We have to earn it. We honor the strivers, the dreamers, the risk-takers who have always been the driving force behind our free enterprise system – the greatest engine of growth and prosperity the world has ever known.
But we also believe in something called citizenship – a word at the very heart of our founding, at the very essence of our democracy; the idea that this country only works when we accept certain obligations to one another, and to future generations.
...
We, the People, recognize that we have responsibilities as well as rights; that our destinies are bound together; that a freedom which only asks what’s in it for me, a freedom without a commitment to others, a freedom without love or charity or duty or patriotism, is unworthy of our founding ideals, and those who died in their defense.
As citizens, we understand that America is not about what can be done for us. It’s about what can be done by us, together, through the hard and frustrating but necessary work of self-government.
As often happens, an idea seemingly right in front of us all along suddenly takes on a new meaning when articulated clearly and powerfully, in this case by President Obama. We democrats should take a moment to consider why this word and concept is so powerful and should be the foundation block for the Democratic Party's identity.
More over the fold.
The key about why this term is potentially so important goes back to a long-belabored-over debate here about Democrats' identity and messaging.
In the dark days of 2004 and 2006 (and some since), there was a lot of talk around here about "framing" and how Democrats might come up with a few, powerful words to summarize the Democratic Party's values and vision. In comparison with the GOP's constant mantra about lowering taxes (which Obama also effectively ridiculed early on in his speech last night, thus weakening a core of the GOP's identity), smaller government, and individual freedoms/responsibility, we Democrats always lamented that we couldn't distill our ideas down to a few pithy words and phrases that any person could recall easily. We chalked this up, in part, to the complexity of the ideas we promote, but also because, we would joke (following Will Rogers), that Democrats by nature are not unified, since we value diversity in all its forms.
In his use of the word "Citizenship," President Obama has given us the first step towards fixing that issue. It is a powerful word (at least as powerful as "Freedom" co-opted by the GOP), deeply associated with both the United States and democracy in general (another reason that it is a good word for the Democratic Party). But what else does the word connote, and why is it such a good word for us to embrace and champion?
"Citizenship" conveys inclusiveness, participation, cooperation, and unity. These are all positive ideals that the United States has long represented. And they are all things that we Democrats stand for.
INCLUSIVENESS: In every part of life and policymaking, we seek to include as many people as can fit at the table. This of course has been part of our problem when making policy, but it is nevertheless a core part of our identity.
PARTICIPATION: We want to encourage the broadest possible participation in the life of our country and in reaping the rewards of our democracy. This is why we wish to broaden the middle class and opportunities for all. This is why we want a level playing field, and people to have more rights than (or at least as many as!) corporations. This is why we wish to increase voter registration and turnout, regardless of who people vote for. We want people to be full citizens, and be able to exercise all the same rights and privileges as others, which is why we support marriage equality, equal pay for equal work, and rights of individuals to make their own healthcare decisions.
COOPERATION: We seek to work together to solve problems. "We build it together" is a core democratic (small and big D) ideal, and this means cooperation among citizens as well as with the government to encourage cooperation and success. Individuals and private enterprises need each other and all of us as a nation (via the Government) to succeed. In return, we expect all of us to pay our fair share to acknowledge that help and in turn help others have the same opportunities. As Obama says in the end of that passage:
As citizens, we understand that America is not about what can be done for us. It’s about what can be done by us, together, through the hard and frustrating but necessary work of self-government.
UNITY: We realize that through our shared ideals and participation as citizens, we together build "a more perfect union." The framers used the word "union" on purpose. We are the "United" States. Being "united" doesn't mean "all the same" in some kind of communist conformity. It means being bound together by shared ideals and values, tolerance and respect. All things that the Democratic party champions, and were championed by the founders (with some sad limitations, which we have since tried to overcome--nevertheless, these were values at the core of the founding of our nation). In this way, "citizenship" is a deeply patriotic term.
Finally, the word "citizenship" has some additional connotations that make it even more ideal for representing what the Democratic party stands for:
It is often used in discussions about "global citizenship," international cooperation and encouraging the spread of (small d) democratic values worldwide. We seek to be good global citizens by respecting others and working collaboratively across the world to safeguard the earth and all its citizens.
Closer to home, it also serves to highlight Democrats' advocacy for humane immigration policy and paths to citizenship such as the DREAM Act. The Statue of Liberty is, after all, all about citizenship.
The potential importance of Obama's invoking of "citizenship" has been noted this morning.
James Fallows at The Atlantic:
The most interesting "new"-ish approach in the speech was the theme that ran through the final one-third of it, about the importance and implications of "citizenship." ... [It is an attempt] to change the terrain, or the game, with a new definition of terms.
He is indeed "changing the game" by invoking "citizenship." Let's follow his lead.