Leader’s performance needs to be questioned
A wise man after a brutal loss takes stock of his shortcomings then acts for the greater good. Take, for example, Dick Gephardt the minority leader of Congress. After his Democratic Party was trounced during the midterm election, Gephardt realized that after eight years he had outlived his usefulness as the party’s leader. He is stepping aside for the greater good of his party to allow for new thoughts, new visions and new leadership.
What happened to Democrats on the national scale in losing four House seats was mirrored in Pennsylvania, with one exception. Pennsylvania elected a Democratic governor. The charismatic Ed Rendell was expected to carry other Democrats into office with him, but his coattails were nonexistent. This is partly due to a disconnect between Rendell and House Minority Leader H. William DeWeese. DeWeese during the primary supported Rendell’s opponent auditor general Bob Casey. Even though he announced that he would shift his support to Rendell, DeWeese wasn’t exactly visible on the campaign trail. Democrats failed to promote their candidates as a necessary package deal. And the loss of four House seats was a tremendous blow.
DeWeese’s leadership skills faltered two years ago when the House was evenly split between Republicans and Democrats. He had a chance then to turn the tide in his party’s favor. Republicans gained an upper hand.
Since then DeWeese allowed his party to lose even more ground during last year’s redistricting. Unlike the political shenanigans that are part of Congressional redistricting, drawing new boundaries for state House seats is a fairly impartial exercise with neither party handed a decisive advantage. Yet DeWeese allowed new boundaries that gave away three districts in Allegheny County where Democratic voters are prolific to Republican-controlled areas in the east.
Even so Democrats still blew a chance in regaining control of the House in November.
DeWeese should be asking himself if he has outlived his usefulness as a party leader. Instead he is readying himself for a vote by Nov. 26 that will reaffirm his position.
If DeWeese won’t step aside, fellow House Democrats, for the sake of the party’s future, should force him to do so.