Is Debbie Wasserman Schultz Even Worse Than A Corporate-Leaning "New Democrat?"

Short answer: you have to fish pretty deep down into the barrel to find anyone as bad as Wasserman Schultz. Even though she mostly rubber stamps what the Democratic leadership wants-- unless it comes into direct conflict with her financial backers, like Florida's loathsome sugar interests-- DWS is a self-serving ruthlessly ambitious gut-fighter. Few people outside of Florida had ever even heard of her until she sabotaged three Democratic congressional nominees-- Joe Garcia, Raul Martinez and Annette Taddeo-- who were running against 3 of her far right Republican allies, the notorious Diaz-Balart brothers and Ileana Ros-Letinen. Although she was entrusted by the Democratic caucus with a chairmanship of the Red to Blue program-- the body that is charged with defeating Republicans and electing Democratic challengers-- she dealt fatal body blows to the 3 South Florida Democrats and gratuitously insulted another Florida challenger, Doug Tudor, who might have won his race against Adam Putnam if the DCCC had backed him instead of following her negative and vindictive decision to ignore his race. The three races DWS sabotaged:

FL-12
Adam Putnam- 178,808 (58%)- $1,747,288
Doug Tudor- 127,477 (42%)- $88,985

FL-18
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen- 137,817 (58%)- $2,186,243
Annette Taddeo- 100,929 (42%)- $960,807

FL-21
Lincoln Diaz-Balart- 134,134 (58%)- $2,000,553
Raul Martinez- 97,928 (42%)- $1,073,913

FL-25
Mario Diaz-Balart- 127,059 (53%)- $1,516,763
Joe Garcia- 113,495 (47%)- $1,248,126

Instead Wasserman-Schultz poured energy and resources into Blue Dog hack Christine Jennings who managed to eke out 38% of the vote in FL-13, spending over $2,000,000.

So what brings this harridan up again today? After all, she tried pushing herself to take over the entire DCCC and failed at that and then she grandly announced, as one of the recruitment committee, that incumbent protection was the key for 2010 and there wouldn't be much recruitment. What now from this unintentional Trojan horse?

I've been keeping my fingers crossed that she'd resign from Congress and run for Martinez' Senate seat against Jeb Bush, which would at least offer a wonderful silver lining to the inevitability of a Senator Bush. But that isn't today's DWS story. Today we have her trying to claw her way into the Democratic House leadership again. As it becomes likelier and likelier that Xavier Becerra will be leaving the House-- GO ERIC GARCETTI!!-- Wasserman Schultz is sniffing out an opportunity for self-promotion.

She's facing off against a right-of-center Democrat, Joseph Crowley, a leader of the reactionary New Dems, for Becerra's Democratic Caucus vice chair. (Others who might be interested are Marcy Kaptur, Kendrick Meek and Jan Schakowsky, each of whom would be infinitely preferable to the conservative Crowley or the treacherous Wasserman Schultz.) But this is one of those cases where just examining the voting records doesn't tell the whole story. Crowley, who represents NY-07 (the east Bronx and northern Queens) is far more conservative than his ethnically diverse district (D+28). His lifetime Progressive Punch score is a mediocre 88.52 (the 128th most progressive member of Congress), the most conservative Democrat representing NYC, although he will probably soon cede that distinction to freshman Michael McMahon.

Wasserman Schultz almost looks like a real progressive in comparison. Her lifetime score is 94.10, making her the 56th most progressive member. She represents a hugely progressive district (D+18) in southeast Broward County and the northern Biscayne Bay shoreline of Miami-Dade. Like her mentor, Rahm Emanuel, her acceptably liberal voting record, doesn't tell the story of a wheeler dealer with an unquenchable lust for power and a willingness to do whatever it takes to grasp it.

So here we're looking at two dismal options-- not unlike the putrid choice we saw for the Majority Leader race between Hoyer and Murtha. Let's hope Schakowski gets back in-- unless Governor Blagojevich amazes everyone and appoints her to Obama's Senate seat. Late breaking news on this is that close-Pelosi ally (and Blue America-endorsed) Hilda Solis may try for this slot. WOW! Would that be great!!