Dem summit basks in the glow of New West
By Charles Ashby 
| August 14, 2009 | 7:01 AM
Actor-director Robert Redford, center, and U.S. Sen. Tom Udall, of New Mexico, talk with attendees Thursday at the New West summit in Denver. (RMI Photo by Andy Piper)
How the West Was Won isn’t just an old movie to the Democratic Party, it’s a reality. Question is, though, how to keep that winning streak going and even expand on it.
That’s why more than 400 Democrats from 16 mostly Western states gathered at the Colorado History Museum in Denver for a two-day summit to highlight some success stories and learn how to develop strategies to expand the party in the once solid red-state West.
The event was sponsored by Project New West, a Denver-based research and strategy consulting firm that helps Democrats get elected. It featured big names such as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, actor-director Robert Redford and oil magnate T. Boone Pickens. It also attracted local Democrats such as Gov. Bill Ritter, U.S. Rep. John Salazar and Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper.
Summit speakers spent much of Thursday patting each other on the back, however, noting the strides Democrats have made in Colorado, New Mexico and Montana in recent elections. Earlier this decade, those states were solidly Republican. Colorado six years ago, for example, had Republicans controlling the legislature, the governor’s office, both U.S. Senate seats and four of the (then) six congressional posts. Today, that’s all been reversed.
“The new West is just the old West, understood,” said New Mexico Lt. Gov. Diane Denish, who’s running for governor there. “People know what you promise, they know what you deliver, and, by golly, you can’t hide in the crowd. People know whether you’re doing what you said you were going to do. These are the principles that our Democratic leaders across the West are bringing to bear.”
While the group did discuss topics such as renewable energy and how it has helped the party create new jobs — and win votes — the real substance of the discussions will take place Friday. What that will entail, however, is unknown. Today’s sessions are closed to the media, the public and, of course, Republicans.
Jill Hanauer, president of Project New West, said Democrats need to focus not only on statewide and national offices, but local ones as well. That’s how a party builds depth and recruits the next generation of office holders, she said.
“Our goal is, when you go back to your communities and your states, you leave with new tools, new strategies and, most importantly, new collaborations,” Hanauer told the summit participants. “You get energized, and you bring that energy as you start organizing, communicating, mobilizing as we move into the new decade, elevating the issues that we care so much about, and continuing to elevate our leaders in this region.”
The rest of Thursday’s sessions were more entertainment than educational.
They included a one-on-one interview with U.S. Sen. Tom Udall of New Mexico spending nearly an hour asking Redford questions about his work in furthering environmental issues in the West. The exchange offered few strategies for other Democrats to follow, leaving some audience members to say that it was entertaining but not helpful.
Pickens repeated his message that the nation needs to diversify its energy production and do whatever is necessary to get away from foreign oil. He said that while he’s tried to get his fellow Republicans to embrace that message, he’s had better success in working with Democrats. Still, he stopped short of saying the nation in general and the West specifically should elect more Dems to higher office.
Pickens did said that while he is in favor of drilling more for oil and natural gas, it isn’t enough to solve the problem. He said the Republican mantra of “Drill, baby, drill” just doesn’t work. The nation long ago peaked in its oil production, and still it was only a fraction of what’s available in other oil-rich nations.
“I’m for anything that will get us off of foreign oil,” Pickens said. “Republicans haven’t been as interested in renewables. If you look back over the 40 years of no plan, we really did have a plan. The plan was foreign oil. Foreign oil was cheap, so we were never tasked. We always drifted to oil because oil was cheap.
“The Republicans, they believe that you can drill your way out of it,” he added. “I don’t think you can. If you can drill your way out of it, fine, but you are still going to have to have something more than oil.”
He said that includes natural gas, but it is only a “bridge fuel” and not part of any long-range solution.
Democrats did get some strategy tips from Jim Messina, deputy chief of staff for President Barack Obama. Using a slideshow presentation, Messina offered his “rules” for what a successful candidate needs:
- Rule No. 9: This is not your parents’ West. Understand that sentiments are changing.
- Rule No. 8: Follow demographics. Know who the electorate is.
- Rule No. 7: The politics of place. Be familiar with local issues.
- Rule No. 6: Managing is cool. Push leadership skills.
- Rule No. 5: Language matters. Say things correctly.
- Rule No. 4: Ideas matter. Promote good programs.
- Rule No. 3: Values matter. Embrace local morals.
- Rule No. 2: Be authentic. Walk the walk.
- “Rule No. 1, hair matters,” he said, showing a closeup shot of Montana Sen. Jon Tester’s Marine buzz cut, which became somewhat of a campaign issue last year when he defeated long-time GOP Sen. Conrad Burns. “He had great hair. The hair showed he was one of them. People trusted him.”
RELATED: New West summit photo gallery
democratic party, harry reid, politics, project new west, robert redford, t. boone pickens
