Dick Durbin, originally uploaded by roulo.

Matt Stoller and Chris Bowers have some great ideas for their Open Left website. Designed to serve as the destination for left-wing ideology, it already seems to be off to a good start just a few weeks after launching. The fact that a U.S. senator decided to use the site as a way to solicit feedback about legislation is significant.

Over at the Open House Project blog, Paul Blumenthal hails Sen. Dick Durbin’s foray into the blogosphere as a “very interesting experiment” that could redefine the way legislation is written. “In building support for the legislation you, as a legislator or executive, would be creating more stakeholders in the process that can help push the legislation and push back against opposition,” Blumenthal writes.

Pardon me if I’m not jumping for joy. While I think it’s admirable that Durbin wants to involve the netroots, I think it’s incredibly short-sighted to have a one-sided conversation with just liberals. It’s the exact opposite approach we used with the Open House Project; in that case, both Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D.-Calif.) and Minority Leader John Boehner (R.-Ohio) endorsed the proposal.

If Durbin is serious about enacting a national broadband strategy, I would hope that he seeks input from all Americans, not just liberals. I wonder if he will be posting on RedState? Or if he plans to reach out to a non-ideological website? I certainly hope he does. Because while his experiment may be breaking new ground, his bill will go nowhere fast without a more comprehensive approach.