If Democrats want to prevail in 2012, and over the following term, they need a narrative that people can get excited about.

In 2008, the narrative was strong and clear: a credible black candidate promising "Change You Can Believe In." And the timing was perfect, following upon the heels of the quintessential redneck trashing of U.S. economy and standing in the world.

That was 2008. 2012 is very different. Change you can believe in was an amorphous concept, but good enough for 2008. Today, we can clearly see the outlines of change that is needed.

Robert Kuttner does a great job outlining a winning narrative in HuffPo today. Here it is:

My friend Chuck Collins of Wealth for the Common Good calculates that you can get about $4 trillion over a decade by five tax reforms:

End the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy. Restore the estate tax. Add two new top brackets for millionaires taxing capital gains and dividend income as the same rate as salary income. Close loopholes that allow U.S. corporations to avoid taxation by booking income overseas. Add a financial transactions tax.

Presto, $4 trillion over 10 years, without increasing taxes on the bottom 99 percent. That's about the sum that austerity-mongers in both parties want for deficit-reduction. But imagine instead what that $400 billion a year might buy.

Instead of using the money for deficit reduction, let's invest some of it in a 10-year program to make U.S. infrastructure second to none and to put millions of Americans back to work. Let's make the country energy-independent using renewables. Let's declare a holiday on student debt until decent jobs materialize. Let's have high quality preschool for every young child in America. Let's refinance mortgages so that people can keep their homes. Doesn't that beat deficit reduction, politically and economically?

More people working will produce more revenue. If we want additional budget savings, let's end two wars and cut other unnecessary military spending.

If the election is fought over Democratic austerity versus Republican austerity, President Obama might limp to victory over a weak and fragmented GOP field, but the economy he inherits will be no prize. But if Democrats run as the party of the 99 percent versus the 1 percent, and the party of possibility versus penury, then they just might win a mandate worth having.