Rahm’s profile covers the DCCC’s resurgence and the growing of a backbone by the Party.
The key to the article is right here:
This year, Emanuel’s fund-raising for congressional candidates has been no less impressive. Through September, the DCCC had raised a record-breaking $32 million, much of it slated to support the most vulnerable Democrats — those elected in Republican-leaning districts or looking to challenge Republican incumbents. Unlike past DCCC chairmen, who simply dispersed money without demanding anything in return, Emanuel approaches the job with the sensibility of a Mob bookie. He forces candidates in the most competitive races who receive money to sign what he calls a “Memo of Understanding,” delineating exactly how many fund-raising phone calls and appearances they will make in exchange for the committee’s support. To seal the pact, Emanuel then signs the memo himself. “I want to make sure everybody is doing everything they’re supposed to be doing,” he says.
IOW, when you are sick of calling for dollars, you haven’t even really started.
There’s a second part that made me laugh and realize something else
When I mention that he sounds like Gingrich in ’94, however, Emanuel glowers. He doesn’t grab the steak knife sitting next to him, but he looks like he wants to. “I admire Gingrich’s energy, his ideas,” he allows. “When you’re in the opposition, your ability to shape and define is very limited. You have to take advantage of your opponent’s mistakes. He got lucky — we made our mistakes in the Clinton White House, and he was there to take advantage of it. That’s exactly what we’re trying to do in 2006.”
He’s taking this as a chance to redeem the Clinton White House for losing the House in 1994. It never hit me before, but it sticks out like a sore thumb, but it’s there. And that’s a good thing. He’s personally invested in not just doing well, but in getting redemption.
And as a teaser:
Yet Emanuel has received generally positive reviews from the increasingly noisy — and powerful — grass roots of the Democratic Party. As leader of the DCCC, he has struck a fragile truce with the heavily liberal blogosphere and organizations such as MoveOn.org. Emanuel has hosted four “blog calls” with the pre-eminent liberal bloggers, going over congressional races and sharing DCCC strategy in an effort to bring the activist community into the fold.
Another one is due soon, I’ll of course update any info. I’ve said before I thought the DCCC web team last cycle got the problem with the Party abdicating setting the debate, this year, the DCCC as a whole is doing a good job of setting the agenda–and, you know, those pesky indictments.
ArchPundit