At What Point Do Democrats Start Getting Angry With Heitkamp For Acting Like A Republican?

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Written By:
Rob Port

Oct 13, 2012
7:54am

Heidi Heitkamp’s campaign for the US Senate has been a marvel of personal re-invention. Heitkamp has turned herself from a loyal, long-time Democrat into someone who acts and sounds like a Republican.

I don’t mean that figuratively. Heitkamp is literally stealing lines from Republicans these days. And, not only that, she’s been trashing her own party pretty consistently. After skipping the Democrat National Convention, she told Chris Berg that the party platform passed at that convention “wasn’t anything I was proud of.” She said she “hasn’t read it” and really doesn’t care what’s in it.

Heitkamp has been campaigning against Barack Obama, saying he’s wrong on policy and calling for the resignation of at least two members of his cabinet. She’s ripped Obamacare (though she says more quietly that she’ll vote to keep it in place). She’s ripped her party on Cap and Trade legislation and the Keystone pipeline (though she’s happy to campaign with Democrats who support those policies).

We can debate and argue about whether or not Heitkamp really means any of this, but the fact is that she’s saying these things, and you have to wonder at what point it begins to have an impact on her liberal base of support in the state?

Maybe it will have no impact at all. Perhaps Democrats here are so cynical they’re willing to let their Senate candidate trash their platform and their principles as long as it means keeping the state’s Senate seat blue.

Maybe they know full well that Heitkamp doesn’t really mean any of it. That it’s all just an act, a calculated fraud on the North Dakota electorate, intended to help get her elected.