He's one of the godfathers of the Democratic Party and he's just a little incensed.James Carville's voice is being raised at a crucial time for a party desperately in search of a leader that can prevail in the November elections.  H appears to be losing it when he actually makes a lot of sense.  In a recent tirade on MSNBC, Carville clamed: “Eighteen percent of the population controls 52 Senate seats.  We've got to be a majoritarian party. The urban core is not gonna get it done. What we need is power! Do you understand? That's what this is about.”Ah, yes, power – that commodity that the Democrats had for years but which they never used effectively.  But that's for later in this post.The term “morality” is used a lot in Democratic circles these days – mostly driven by the Left-leaning progressive wing.  For Carvel, though, it's a word that only has one purpose: “We have one moral imperative, and that's to beat Donald Trump.”  Millions agree with him, but are stuck on knowing quite how to go about it and who should lead that cause.For James Carville, politics is power – without it you have nothing, as when he said, ““The purpose of a political party is to acquire power. All right? Without power, nothing matters.”   And he thinks that the prospective leaders are promising things – Left-leaning things – that are actually turning the heartland away from the party.  For example, he reminds anyone who will listen that promising free college tuition is tantamount to offending that majority of those Americans who worked and paid their own way through college and who visualize such an effort as a requisite part of the American Dream and who just don't think it is given away.  This isn't to debate the merits of a free post-secondary education, but it does speak to a reality that characterizes much of the Democratic base.  In Carvel's mind, it doesn't matter whether it's right or wrong; the reality is that it won't get the Democrats into the White House or win the majority of Senate. (Never mind that most college tuitions are now unaffordable).The problem is that Carville believes that power is all that matters, whereas millions of Democrats believe that it's what power is used for that is essential.I mentioned earlier that under Clinton and Obama, the Democratic Party actually wielded power but did little with it.  They were “moderates”.  Whereas that term was synonymous with “progressive” decades ago, it has now become something separate.  Essentially, Clinton and Obama were pragmatists and they governed that way.  But along that path a number of things went askew.Consider that the Democratic Party, along with its key leaders, paved the way for the corporate takeover of America, just as Trump and the Republicans have done.  This isn't hyperbole, but a point of fact.  All those liberalized trade policies and the lowering of financial accountability left the country's population vulnerable, often without healthcare and increasingly out of work.  When the Democrats, in power, had the opportunity to do something about climate change, the eventually punted the problem to later generations.  When offered the political chance to secure term limits or provide effective campaign finance reform, they balked – they tinkered but they balked.The Democrats, along with Republicans, permitted the middle-class to shrink, refused to enshrine equal pay for equal work, and permitted corporate globalization to gut American productivity and employment.  Again, this isn't some wild statement, but a point of fact and blame that both parties must take responsibility for.The Democratic Party is managed by an elite cadre of wealthy people who have practiced restraint when they should have been seriously undertaking reform.  Their leaders, with few exceptions, are wealthy beyond anything the average person can attain, and they have continued to support that rare financial structure that enriches its supporters while marginalizing the common citizen.It is this reality, in its essence, that has created a new generation of Democrats that actually cringe when people like Carville talked about political realism.  “Real” to them is a meaningful job, a cleaner planet, a world of equal genders, of opportunity for all, a world without racism, and a politics that looks more like community sharing as opposed to White House or Congressional privilege.These are difficult words, I know, but it is the reason why both Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders carry such powerful appeal – they both rage against the abandonment of average citizens by the governing system.  Both Democratic and Republican administrations in the past did some good and equitable things, but these have become increasingly rare, replaced instead by a political and financial structure that looks little like the average American home.This goes a long way to explaining why the “progressive” wing of the Democratic Party has veered away from the “moderate” component.  Moderates are viewed as status quo people who defend a system that is increasingly unfair.  Progressives wish to change that and reform and revolution are their preferred means.  There is no guarantee at all that their methods will work; in fact, they might be destructive.  But how did the country fare under “moderate” governance?  There's the rub and it's dividing a party that desperately wants power but doesn't understand what that means anymore.It is having the political power to reform, not so much replace, that forms the essential motive of much of the party.  Carville thinks such a view reduces the chance for power, whereas the progressives think that power is meaningless without it.  This is a party that is now confronted with these two clear choices and the future of the country will depend on its ultimate decision.Glen Pearson was a career professional firefighter and is a former Member of Parliament from southwestern Ontario. He and his wife adopted three children from South Sudan and reside in London, Ontario. He has been the co-director of the London Food Bank for 32 years. He writes regularly for the London Free Press and also shares his views on a blog entitled “The Parallel Parliament“. Follow him on twitter @GlenPearson.