Dissing the base doesn’t win primaries? Who knew?

by digby

This analysis of Artur Davis’ loss in Alabama should serve as a wake up call to Democrats everywhere. People are paying attention. They know what the issues are. And they aren’t being fooled by superficial symbolism. The base didn’t vote for Davis, not because he’s black but because he’s been acting like a right wing conservative:

While the straw that probably broke the camel’s back was Davis’ vote against health-care reform in Congress, the fact is he had already begun to alienate Alabama Democrats as long ago as the waning days of the administration of President George W. Bush. On issues like reform of the Foreign Intelligence Services Intelligence Act Davis became a dependable vote for the GOP.

As a member of the House Judiciary Committee, Davis championed the cause of former Democratic Gov. Don Siegelman, who was convicted and incarcerated on federal charges many ‘Yellow Dog’ Alabama Democrats saw as trumped up by the Bush Department of Justice and Karl Rove. That is, until Davis began running for governor and became much less outspoken in the former governor’s defense.

Davis also shunned the major black political organizations, like the Alabama Democratic Conference and the Alabama New South Coalition, not deigning to even appear before their committees screening candidates before issuing endorsements.

The result was the endorsement of the white Sparks over the black Davis by all the major black political organizations, an extraordinary development in a race for the state’s highest office.

Davis is a very smart guy, but he clearly doesn’t have good political instincts — and he obviously doesn’t have a lot of integrity. And anyway, this isn’t brain surgery. Why the Democratic leadership continues to think Democrats will turn out to for a Republican is beyond me.

Davis says he’s through with politics. Here’s hoping some of the people who advised him and others to use this strategy come to the same conclusion.

.