Well said Robert. Perhaps Republicans can create that same sort of "circular firing squad" that Democrats have been so good at. But I don't think we can rely on the GOP (GQP) to self-destruct. Their hate and vitriol is attractive to millions of Americans.
We need more positive messaging about this administrations achievements - to appeal to that huge Independent middle. I didn't vote for Joe in the primary, but I am wicked impressed with what he has done in year one. Compared to most presidents, it is epic in scale. We're not making enough noise about it! I am proud of President Biden!
Instead, too many progressives are whining because Biden doesn't have a magic wand to wave over the heads of Manchin, Sinema and a few Republicans. Joe is doing as well as anyone could. Do we think Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren (my hero and presidential preference) could have gotten those two "DINOs" to back the Democratic agenda of Voting Rights and BBB? Dream on.
If we lose this year in the mid-terms, it will be our fault for a lack of turnout. Too many in our own party still don't get how important they are to saving democracy itself. The danger is in our own apathy and unrealistic expectations. Unite for the good fight! Drag your neighbors to the voting booth!
I continue to be astonished at how bad the Democrats are at "messaging." They don't stick to a single message, there's no discipline, each Democratic senator and representative seems to be doing his or her own messaging, the public is confused and unclear about what Biden and the Dems have accomplished. This has been the case since the Clinton administration.
It's a failure of leadership in the Democratic party at a variety of levels. We are way too cautious of stepping on each others toes to take a hard stance. So we continue to manage our individual messaging without a real overarching agreed upon positioning that we can all adopt. It'll take someone significant to step up and decide on what we should all be saying in a way that we can all agree on. Which will likely take years. In my lifetime, only President Obama even came close with his book, The Audacity of Hope. It was vision but fell apart under pressure. If we treated this like a corp entity, we would conduct qualitative research to understand what to say to people to get them out to vote and then conduct a quantitative study to determine the impact of statements to be made to determine the winning positioning to each target segment of interest. As opposed to another poll. But it would take someone in the right position or leading the DNC to step up and do the hard work first, and time is running out.
I think you need professionals to teach those kids. Don't ask a really bright first year med student to perform open heart surgery. Find someone with a lot of experience and let the kids who want to learn in the room.
@ Paula B. I agree that our young people around the world will get there! IF, and it is a big if, this generation of "middle class" and "working age adults" doesn't let it all slide away, or even to a degree we can't come back from .
Yes, most of the establishment Dems seem pretty useless. I was always uncertain about term limits, but after a point, the focus seems more about preserving one's cushy position by creating just enough *appearance* of progress to get reelected, but without actually rocking the status quo boat.
True, but in the world of sound bites and oversimplification, the many responses we must make to all the different attacks it is difficult to be succinct.
Hi Laurie. I doubt that people find a shouting match with Republicans to be motivating. I would guess that they want us to say things that will give them some faith that the time and effort they put into voting will be worthwhile. That the priorities are right.
If they can't see what has been happening for the last several years, I don't know what will make them understand that the Democrats are doing more for most people (humans) than the Republican party.
It's not that there isn't a Frank Luntz, it's that no one with any authority has hired them. I do this for Corp America and there are plenty of marketing researchers available to Democrats. The DNC sees itself more as a fundraiser than as the leader, collaborator and policy maker that's most needed. The fundraising is important, but so is the direction and the team building.
Professor, gently said, and perhaps the Democrats are a herd of cats, but the leadership, direction, emphasis and messaging are the responsibility shared between the DNC and the Administration. Your gentle admonishment, more forcefully said, is that this Administration is losing the public battle for minds and morals...
Yes...this is true. There is a failure of the Dems to keep the public focused on actual accomplishments and how BIden has addressed and improved the situation for millions and also on what needs to be done. Trump's Big Lie is allowed to garner a lot of attention because there is no counter to it, no focus on what needs doing and what the Dems have done. The Dems create an information void and Trump is only too happy to move on into that void with his Big Lies (and countless other lies). Citizens without critical thinking skills are only too happy to cling onto Trump's coattails and his constant whining as that is all there is. I am hopeful that the situation might change when hearings on 1/6 go forward but we can't rely on that. The advantage the Dems have lies in its agendas and policies but they need to get them out to voters of all persuasions, not tuck them away as though they are an intrusion. As it now stands, Trump sets the agenda (His Big-Lie Agenda) and those voters with no real understanding of democracy and the rule of law are more than likely to go with that.
Agreed. Trump has a remarkable way of taking over the daily news cycle, and there are apparently no Democrats who want to step out and go toe to toe with him. It's long beyond time for the Democrats to hit back, hard.
You are absolutely, totally right! We need someone who's not afraid of losing an election. Someone who is willing to go toe to toe, real time, with Trump.
Hi Lanae. I agree with you that dems do a terrible job of tooting our horns. Absolutely. But worse, we simply assume we know what's best for everyone and head directly to that point. With great focus and often anger and frustration that everyone doesn't see it the same as we do. What we never do is ask our community of prospective voters what it would take to get them to the polls. What can we say to convince them that going to the polls is worth the time and effort. We don't ask, so we don't know.
When we face attack after attack, a single message will not cover it. Unless we go with something like 'Make America a country with the rule of law again'. hmmmm
It seems that the Dems are under a blitzkrieg of attacks from the right. The Jan 6th attack, numerous voting laws being simultaneously placed in several key states, the fake electors scandal and current investigation of such, and the nonstop tRump rallies with his criminal incitements to attack and hints that not cooperating will get them off. I would not be surprised if Putin was doing his war theater saber rattling as a favor to the former guy. We have seen that if Biden acts, now he is putting our allies in Ukraine in peril. But, of course , if he did nothing they would have a field day with him. All the while, gleefully trumpeting that our votes are useless he will have his way no matter what. Anyone who can't see what is being done is clueless or deliberately obtuse.
By now, many of you have likely seen those photos of Manchin, Sinema, McConnell, and Thune in conference on the Senate floor. I'd like to see an investigation for possible collusion and bribery. Yes, senators make deals as part of their duties, but the deals are supposed to be for the benefit of the country, not personal promotion and enrichment.
If crime and impropriety are continually given a pass, such problems will only increase. Then we are lost.
I agree with you Bill. It'll all come down to lack of turnout and that the DNC didn't work hard enough to figure out the right messaging to encourage everyone to vote in a mid term election with such tremendous consequence. Image our world with Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the house and Mitch McConnell as the senate leader and a conservative supreme court. Very little will be done for anyone other than the rich and their favored industries. Get out the vote!
Well, getting out the vote is certainly a vital part of the process, but if certain leaders collude to enable or turn a blind eye to vote suppression, again, we are lost!
Prof. Reich, Amid a rapidly narrowing window to protect the key mechanisms of American democracy, I submit we would be remiss were our strategy for the 22 midterms to rest in any way on the public’s reactions to an admittedly increasingly “contemptible” Republican Party
To the contrary, I view our two most immediate challenges as 1) resuscitating momentum at the federal level both by reforming the Electoral Vote Count plus getting further federal voter safeguards passed and 2) mobilizing for democracy at the state and local levels principally by out-organizing Republicans, who ruthlessly are organizing to fill state and local positions with their own people—people who don’t believe in free and fair elections.
As a final point, I contend that the country needs a highly effective Explainer-in Chief, presumably though not necessarily the President, methodically to educate people, nationwide, about what they’re losing every time the President’s agenda is stalled.
Michelle Obama, of course! She knocked it out of the park in her address at the Democratic Convention. Where would she get the most visibility though? My thought would be as Vice-Chief of Staff to Ron Klain. Immediate access to all MSM.
I love the idea of enlisting the Obamas' to encourage voting and to get the message out about the importance of voting, even in a mid-term election. It is something they are currently doing a lot of work around anyway. It's not really Jen Psaki's job as press sec to get out the vote or to campaign for that. Jen Psaki is really fantastic at her job. At least I think so.
Prof. Reich, Agreed. Hence, I wrote, “presumably though not necessarily the President.” Further, I would note, because the issue of who is irrelevant unless the idea were enacted, I largely was seeking your thoughts regarding my proposals overall.
How about (as i mentioned above) a professionally designed campaign that could be delivered by several people? Michael Steele comes to mind (if he would set aside his republican cloak), there is a wide selection of talking heads on our side that could work, several of the writers for the American Prospect would do well (if so inclined). Work to develop a dems version of Fox that deals only in the truth. Then put it out everywhere. If a candidate wants to run an ad, let them use it. It doesn't have to be reserved for the big guys - any dem battling a republican could chime in.
Lee, I appreciate the clarification largely because it presents an opportunity for me to elaborate. I presume we would agree that building an organization is a major undertaking that would involve time we can’t afford in an election year. Hence, my call for designating a highly effective Explainer, who not only could clarify what we’re losing every time the President’s agenda is stalled but who also could present the stories of the Administration’s accomplishments. Take, for example, the $20 billion investment in Ohio for semi-conductor manufacturing. Because story telling typically is more impactful than merely hearing about abstract legislation and numbers and data, the Explainer could tell the story of what this investment means to Ohioans and to their kids, let alone to the U.S. becoming less dependent on South Korea and Taiwan for semi-conductors, thus easing supply chains.
I love what our President has accomplished. But you are so right. We need an Explainer in Chief - clear, passionate, accurate and articulate. And his name is Barack Obama. Not to take over, not to be in any office - but to speak to the nation - promoting common sense and democracy. It has always been presidential tradition to step back and be in the background. Guess who broke that tradition. Time to fight fire with a fire hose of truth with the best explainer we have had in decades. Unless there is a chance we can bring back JFK...
My opinion on employing Mr Obama is that his failure to prosecute big banks for causing the financial crisis is why millions of swing voters switched to vote against Biden. Also, after Mr Obama was employed to rally for Dem candidate in Viginia, the Repub canidate won. I admire Mr Obama but think he is hurting rather than helping.
This is a good point. We are repeating this by letting Trump and all the traitors continue on. There have been 6 month sentences for some of the attackers at the Capital. Big deal. This is turning off voters, not mobilizing them.
Racism; nothing mobilizes the rural/right/"Christian"/ lesser educated, Confederate supporting, Trump supporting people more than seeing a successful Black man on national TV. Infuriates them!
Bill, I’m delighted you appreciate the need for an Explainer-in Chief. Presently, I’m not nearly as concerned with who as with selling the idea before the window closes.
Without media control, I think we’re past having time to correct this. We do nothing to address dangerous rhetoric by criminals. We’re becoming a danger to ourselves.
SeekingReason, In my view, until voters start casting votes, there’s still time for a highly effective “ Explainer” with sufficient enough clout to be broadly heard and understood to convey to the public at large what it’s losing every time the President’s agenda is stalled.
I would love nothing more than to see this. But how do they reach the broad audiences that need to hear it without the largest conglomerates? An inkling of hope is that, as the investigation tightens, some people and companies are realizing they need to distance. Money always talks, so we need to effectively hit them in the wallet. But, again we need the far reaching mouthpieces…FOX,NBC,ABC,CBS, + to say this AND to stop putting Trump and the Republican politicians on for comments! They always put the traitor party on the news & that makes me crazy. But they are their mouthpieces.
Those are excellent suggestions. Along with them democrats should offer up a new "New Deal" like 1) a 50% discount/rebate policy at the point of retail sale which would immediately double the purchasing power of everyone's earned income. In other words if you make $30k/yr. you could immediately purchase $60k worth of goods and services. When was the last time such a policy had such a huge and immediate effect? Never is the answer. This policy is basically accounting that is equal debits and credits, which perfectly mimics the way the private banks create over 90% of our money presently. The exception being that the banks create that money ONLY AS DEBT while the 50% discount/rebate policy creates it as a gift of money...thus breaking up the banks' MONOPOLISTIC paradigm of Debt ONLY as the sole form and vehicle for the creation and distribution of money. How deadly and dominating is it to grant the already incredibly powerful financial sector a monopoly paradigm for money? Human civilization long deadly and dominating is the answer.
End inflation forever, create universal economic abundance like we've never experienced it before, benefit both consumer and businesses thus integrating the economic and political interests of traditionally opposed constituencies so as to create a new political coalition, be able to actually cut taxes and yet increase BENEFICIAL fiscal deficits to fund the kind of mega-projects necessary to fight climate change...by adopting the new monetary paradigm and its policies...and change the world.
Steve, Given the nearing midterm elections, I would urge our focus not exceed legislation that already has passed in the House that has received broad but not sufficiently enough support from Democratic Senators to become law.
I understand that the time is short so far as the midterms are concerned. What I hope for is that someone like Prof. Reich would recognize the pungent efficacy of such policies in that they address the most basic problem (the monetary and financial paradigm) and are implemented at strategically significant places in the economic process (retail sale and the point of loan signing) and hence have such powerful economic and political effect. I can't even get a newspaper out here in Arizona to interview me for chrissake. Actually I'm not that interested in trying to convince politicians as they almost never lead. What is needed is a mass movement that communicates the benefits of such policies to individuals and commercial agents and that consequently herds the political apparatus toward such economic, political and ecological sanity. If I could get just one person with a significant platform to understand that could begin to make a difference. So I soldier on.
Steve, I, too, soldier on. We have that in common. The difference between us is that I focus largely on policy that has relatively broad but not sufficiently large enough federal/state/local Democratic support.
Sick and tired of Trump's lies and threats - the same old corrupt song and dance - I've filled out the contact form on the Department of Justice website and respectfully asked for them to investigate his ongoing threats and lies as a national security issue. He is advocating violence and the overthrow of democracy - yet again!
Exactly, Dee Long! Shouting fire! in a crowded theater is not free speech. They are openly advocating for the continued attack on our country. From the Jan 6th committee to our election officials and virtually anyone who disagrees with them. Our children in school will be deputized against their own teachers and parents, like back in Germany when similar energy was raging through the oppressors and haters. They must be stopped.
Excellent words to be spread, especially to those who react viscerally. "Shouting 'Fire!' In a crowded theater is not free speech". And even more, we need strong positive words and illustrations of them. There have been some excellent political cartoons in the last few years. Let's get those out there. Robert, your recent Supreme Court drawing really hit me hard.
It has come to the point where the Select Committee on January 6th is itself under threats to their safety and security. At some point, the government (Dept of Justice) needs to take action against these individuals who are seeking to destroy the government of the United States and replace it with the rule (reign) of Donald J Trump. They need to feel the force of justice and the rule of law. Dee, how do I retrieve the contact form you mentioned? It's something I am unaware of but willing to try. If more of this try this approach, it might have some sort of an impact.
I just sent a message to the justice department describing my concern about the messaging of our former guy in the media and his threats against the rule of law.
Thank you. I intend to sign this too. Twitter is very active with people screaming for justice, they have to be aware of this. This definitely is a continued coup attempt. Trump doesn’t even hide it or put it in code. His lunacy has gone unchecked for way too long! He stepped into office and committed a crime. Totally unchecked.
thanks for spreading the word - the Department of Justice must answer to the American people and we must all let them know we expect them to investigate and indict Donald J. Trump and all of the parties who conspired to overturn the election as well as planned and executed the 1/6/21 insurrection
Never before have we been witness to the words, actions, incitements, illegal activities, & encouragement by Trump of deadly violence in broad daylight, on video, on audio….but we’re told they want to lock down the investigation…when? 2027? The longer the DOJ takes the more Dem voters they’ll lose if this gets too close to election time! Media needs to shut down this crap of perpetually putting Trump et al in front of the cameras. That’s what keeps these criminals going! They are deluded and dangerous.
Sell cigarettes on the street= death penalty, incite deadly coup attempt & endanger national security= hold rallies! 🤬🤬
I see the biggest failure in allowing Trump to run around, hold rallies, incite violence. That is what he is doing. He’s a twice impeached president, spewing very dangerous rhetoric. Why aren’t the Democrats’ lives being protected. Why can MTG & Boebert make terroristic threats and still sit in Congress. It’s time to pour on the pressure to media supporting and covering these rallies. I start to lose hope when these monsters continually promote deluded ideas to their psycho followers (who are well armed).
No consequences for a direct attack will NOT pull in voters!
Very, very true. Every time I see or hear their names and faces in the news my heart sinks because I know that's what they want. Exposure is all they need. It doesn't need to be positive . In fact negative exposure is better for rallying haters.
Independent voters and young Democrats are not likely to vote on the basis of big bad Trump or relic Gingrich. They are concerned with what elected officials have done for them, economically.
Loyal Democrats like yourself and registered Dems who identify and contribute to the Democratic Party will find your strategy reaffirming and can be motivated to vote based upon it.
Gingrich and Trump are out to motive the base of the Republican Party. They misapprehension that base. It isn’t the misinformed Trumpers. The base of the Republican Party is all of those people who believe through their own efforts they have achieved some wealth and security which the Democrats they believe will tax away. This group wears masks and gets vaccinated and only tolerates Trump because he gave them another tax break. They are as loyal to the Republican Party as you are and others here are to the Democratic Party. But I believe they are disenchanted with Trump and the 1/6 crowd of extremists and would prefer a replacement, a mini Trump who is not so wildly bombastic but offers them the same tax breaks amid wealth protections.
It is already clear that what Trump is out to do is take away the working class base of the Democratic Party. Without that voter base and with the indifference of younger Democrats the Republicans win.
The press is already convinced that your strategy will not work and expects a disaster for the Democrats in the Fall.
What worked for Democrats in other mid-term elections was promises on basics like healthcare. If Biden doesn’t start to develop a strategy based around I presented Congress with childcare, I gave you childcare during Covid, give me a Congress that will allow me to sign a bill giving you childcare, then he and the Democratic Party will miss the boat.
The most I can say as a progressive is we told you so and you didn’t listen.
Yes, such potential swing voters are what democrats need to appeal to. Read my response to Barbara Jo Kreiger above. The democrats need to find a way to appeal to everyone's most basic needs with a universally beneficial set of policies. Reform is not enough. We need a sea change, a paradigm change, and we need it NOW lest we lose our democracy.
You understand. For most Trump supporters who voted for him holding their nose, it was always about the money. Always.
I think you have touched the lodestone when mentioning childcare. Many millions of families are feeling hopeless. Give them some well deserved assistance so they can work.
A policy of a $1000/mo. universal dividend for everyone 18 years of age and older paired with a 50% discount/rebate policy at retail sale would give every American adult a guarantee of $2000/mo. worth of purchasing power. That would pay for child care and a lot more. It would also bring alot of other benefits like I outlined in my response to Barabara Jo Krieger above. We need a socio-economic and political mass movement that benefits everyone in order to create a new coalition of traditionally opposed constituencies. that's what a paradigm change does and the policies of the new monetary paradigm deliver them.
To paraphrase Victor Hugo: "If there is one thing all of the armies (and demagogues) cannot overcome it is a (universally beneficial) idea whose time has come."
Of course Trump, Gingrich, etal will continue. They are the great grifters: Make American Grift Again! And McCarthy juvenilely and pathologically craves power than cannot handle and responsibility he cannot fathom.
I agree with Robert that T & G are great assets for Dems. I go a step further; the Rep Party is the Dem Party's greatest asset.
But this is damning the Dems. If Reps are their great advantage, they are their own worst asset. Nationally silent in most states as Rep legis run roughshod over Constitution, individuals and groups, established rights of all kinds. In the suits slowly winning in state after state against illegal redistricting and gerrymandering, to take one example, the Dems are never a party to the suits by LWV, ACLU, CommonCause, NAACP-NAACP LDF, in particular with guidance from Marc Elias and the Brennan Center. Same on other major issues
If the Dems had sense and a voice, "defund the police," "socialism," BLM, Antifa, critical race theory, fake "parental rights" and removal of children's rights that we won over more than a century would not be the issues they are.
In Ohio where I live, the Dem Party with no public discussion backs Rep. Tim Ryan and privately agrees to fund raise with him, and slights the younger, more intelligent, more articulate, more personable, and more knowledgeable black woman Morgan Harper! Why? Tim has served his time. Morgan, who is more articulate and dynamic, and stronger on issues, should wait her time. Tim has no platform. But he has raised $5M to Morgan's $400K! He wont' debate Morgan or the Reps.
That's a hell of a way to win elections. They also refuse to respond to my own and others' challenges in print: Where is the Ohio Democratic Party?
Where is the Democratic Party as a whole? The DNC is not it. Local and state parties aren't it. Organized labor isn't it. Sometimes I feel as though we're staring into a void. The problem is there's no clear and coherent message. Biden and the Dems have plenty to be proud of, but relatively few Americans know.
Why can’t we on this list come up with some messages and present them to the powers that be? Everyone on this list is bright and knowledgeable. We can do it!
That's the point: the Dems do not tell the American people that, and they do not honesty admit--and therefore learn from--the errors of the Obama, Clinton, Carter, even LBJ administrations.
From where I stand, the Democratic Party lost its credibility a long time ago. There's always talk, but never the walk. Until people actually see meaningful change, along the lines being proposed by Sanders, Warren and others, most people I know don't really see much difference between the more traditional Republican Party and the Democratic Party. For them, Trump, Gingrich and others like them are outliers. Until the DNC gets it head out of the sand, I will no longer support it. I will continue supporting Bernie, Justice Democrats and the ACLU who are actually walking the walk, and not talking the talk.
So let me get this straight. The 2020 election was rigged but the Republicans in the House, Senate, and elsewhere who were victorious were rightfully and legitimately elected? How does that work?
Up is down, black is white and they can change reality any way they want to. I just used the link provided by Dee Long earlier in this thread to communicate with our justice department about my concerns with our former guy's media messages to his violent followers. It's just like before Jan 6th, 2021. He is openly telling them to go protest whenever and wherever he loses in court; Georgia, NYC, or Washington D.C. This is a National Security issue. He promises to pardon them when he gets back into the presidential office, which will embolden them to not cooperate with the Jan 6th committee. We have seen this with his partners in crime who are still at it. Right in plain sight he is doing it again! And some worry that it will be 'difficult to prove his intent'? Incredible!
If Trump were really anxious to pardon the January 6 Capitol rioters, he could have done so during the period January 6 - 20, 2021. The arrests and prosecutions began while he was still president. Promising to pardon the rioters if he becomes president in the future seems designed to induce them not to cooperate to implicate Trump and his buddies for their role in the riots, as the investigations heat up. If the rioters' attorneys are doing their job, however, they would point out that there is no guarantee Trump will be elected president in 2024, and there is no guarantee he would follow through and pardon them even if he is. After all, Trump is the Stiffer-in-Chief.
I think Democrats could offer a simple campaign message, repeated relentlessly: Trump/McConnell Republicans are soft on crime. They are promoting violence in the streets, making this country unsafe for law-abiding citizens.
My reasoning: Pardoning violent criminals, enacting legislation that allows such vigilantes as George Zimmerman and Kyle Rittenhouse to freely gun down people they dislike, and giving convicted violent felons easy access to guns is soft on crime, as is pardoning Paul Manafort and his ilk.
You know, the other side has guns and wants to use them. We don't. If the GOP wins the midterms their rank and file will increase the domestic violence. If the GOP loses the midterms their rank and file will increase the domestic violence. As 2024 approaches, their rank and file will increase the violence. Please understand this. They are armed and eager. We aren't. We want to win the midterms and we have to know that more violence is ensuing. That said, we need to win the governorships and Senate seats of 8 states - Wisconsin, Michigan, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia, Nevada, and Arizona. To win those states we need to understand the electorate. In Michigan, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, people of color are a minority, and non-college whites are a majority. Therefore, in those states, the GOP will be talking about the stolen election, critical race theory, mask mandates - and it's all a freebie for them. Look at what just happened in Virginia. Not only did Youngkin win Virginia on those ideas, scaring people, critical race theory wasn't even taught in Virginia. As soon as he trashed mask mandates and parents started to rebel, some suburban white woman got up in a public meeting and announced to the world that she would bring her guns locked and loaded to school if her kids were required to wear masks. She had to walk it back because she was recorded and drowned by a million critics on Twitter. So that's where we have to fight. People in mainstream America don't give a damn about the attempted coup anymore. They also don't realize that we are headed into a shooting a day world. They aren't progressives - maybe 6% of the US public thinks they're progressives - and they aren't aware of what's coming. I repeat, passports.
@Martha Ture. I ain't leaving my country on account of some assholes waving guns around. They should remember Ruby Ridge, David Koresh and other wanna be secessionist idiots.
And then there’s this as reported by The NY Times:
“Mike Pence did have the right to change the outcome, and they now want to take that right away,” Mr. Trump said. “Unfortunately, he didn’t exercise that power, he could have overturned the election!”
“The statement was the first time Mr. Trump described his goal as overturning an election. But Mr. Trump’s statement also included his usual false assertions about election fraud, suggesting he does not believe the election was legitimate.”
Everything Trump does is to benefit Trump himself. EVERYTHING!
Hoping that the opponent will shoot himself in the foot, is a very risky posture. The Reps. are much better than the Dems at spinning stories, unhinged from the facts, that work for them as propaganda. And they are so busy legislating in the States to steal the next election. Why can't the Dems. use the numerous opportunities the Reps hand them? Publicize the consequences of the laws passed by the States to steal the election, the killing of the social programs in the BBB while giving more to the military than they asked for, $8 TRILLION over 10 years, Vs. $2 trillion over 10 years, McConnell saying essentially: "We have no program." They do: regain ALL power at all cost, cost to the 99% and the final death of our democracy on life-support. The list of points on which to fight is long. Why the silence from the Dems?
We need a media bullhorn, like Fox has. Biden and the Democrats need a Speaker who can get in people's faces with the facts. It's hard to believe that the average citizen, even if not very educated, could miss the value of free elections, of voting. tRump wants to take it away completely! The Republican party does not even think we, the people rate a description of their platform! 'Just shut up and let us take over, stupid people!' is their message. 'And if you 'make nice' and not oppose me, we won't shoot you all or put you in jail.
I am afraid most people are moved by emotions. Some people change their mind when exposed and understanding facts, the scientific community, and many businesses who make decisions based on their analyses of "Big Data." If you have been trampled upon by our unjust regime and someone comes along and convinces you that he is on your side, the "feel-good" emotions will sweep you with him. Trump is a con-man of genius convincing 74 million to vote for him, while stabbing them in the back repeatedly. That is why the Reps need him. and their cheating, and their current legalizing of the cheating. The Reps posture is: "Vote for me, so that I can screw you utterly for the enrichment of the ruling class." The Dems are nor fighting them very hard, because many of them are almost in the same posture, the "corporate democrats." I call them "Demoblicans." The US is no longer "The country of hope for Humanity" as I believed in 1964 when I came to study at UofC, Ignorant then of the horrendous history of the empire. We need a movement based on facts, and emotions, and mutual trust, more time away from work. Ralph Nader says it takes only 1% of the population to create a movement. To the barricades camarades!
Lagardere ; I agree with you that most people are moved by emotions. I am a little skeptical about tRump 'winning' with 74 million votes. If he was caught in the hour long phone call to the election official in GA, imagine how many officials actually caved and went with his scheme to 'find more votes'. Unfortunately, the electoral college is in the mix here, too, and the purging of voter lists, as well as the limited polling places in states like Texas. Your point that Democrats are also 'on the take' to corporate interests is sadly, true too. I tell everyone about this forum, and hope that more people find it. Yes, to the barricades!
I read some of the prior comments and agree with a lot of what they stated , however no matter how important these other issues are, the most important one is saving our democracy. A coup cannot happen without the backing of the law and the military.
You are absolutely correct. Nothing matters if democracy is disassembled. So scary.
But as Cecelia Jernegan just explained, that is a motivator for those of us who have a sense of it...who live on substack, etc. Millions really just care about their own financial well being ... and what Tom Brady will do next. It is sad, very, very sad. But it's the real truth.
We have to appeal to their pocketbooks: child care costs, health care costs (prescription drugs!), retirement benefits - the price of everything.
Take a page out of the GQP playbook and blame Trump for inflation! It's easy. A stupid trade war, no investment in infrastructure (overwhelmed ports) and a complete failure with Covid. Put the blame right where it belongs! This is not hard.
John Schumacher ; We have a stacked Supreme Court, and partisan judges on some federal benches. I don't know about our military. I would hope that when they saw how uniformed officers were being treated in the Seditious attack on our Capitol. it may influence them against that mob. Our Justice department is making moves too, towards justice.
You write a great article as always. Best hope for Democrats. Bring gas prices down. Stop inflation. Don't get involved with Ukraine. Lower cost of groceries and medicine. Do something about the homeless on the streets, medical insurance and mental help for many American struggling from the pandemic. Get control over the southern border. Most people could care less about Trump and Gingrich. They care about feeding their families. Going to football games and who is playing in the Super Bowl and will Tom Brady really retire. That is why Washington DC is so out of touch with Americans. Career politicians need to get out of their bubble.
Well said Robert. Perhaps Republicans can create that same sort of "circular firing squad" that Democrats have been so good at. But I don't think we can rely on the GOP (GQP) to self-destruct. Their hate and vitriol is attractive to millions of Americans.
We need more positive messaging about this administrations achievements - to appeal to that huge Independent middle. I didn't vote for Joe in the primary, but I am wicked impressed with what he has done in year one. Compared to most presidents, it is epic in scale. We're not making enough noise about it! I am proud of President Biden!
Instead, too many progressives are whining because Biden doesn't have a magic wand to wave over the heads of Manchin, Sinema and a few Republicans. Joe is doing as well as anyone could. Do we think Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren (my hero and presidential preference) could have gotten those two "DINOs" to back the Democratic agenda of Voting Rights and BBB? Dream on.
If we lose this year in the mid-terms, it will be our fault for a lack of turnout. Too many in our own party still don't get how important they are to saving democracy itself. The danger is in our own apathy and unrealistic expectations. Unite for the good fight! Drag your neighbors to the voting booth!
I continue to be astonished at how bad the Democrats are at "messaging." They don't stick to a single message, there's no discipline, each Democratic senator and representative seems to be doing his or her own messaging, the public is confused and unclear about what Biden and the Dems have accomplished. This has been the case since the Clinton administration.
It's a failure of leadership in the Democratic party at a variety of levels. We are way too cautious of stepping on each others toes to take a hard stance. So we continue to manage our individual messaging without a real overarching agreed upon positioning that we can all adopt. It'll take someone significant to step up and decide on what we should all be saying in a way that we can all agree on. Which will likely take years. In my lifetime, only President Obama even came close with his book, The Audacity of Hope. It was vision but fell apart under pressure. If we treated this like a corp entity, we would conduct qualitative research to understand what to say to people to get them out to vote and then conduct a quantitative study to determine the impact of statements to be made to determine the winning positioning to each target segment of interest. As opposed to another poll. But it would take someone in the right position or leading the DNC to step up and do the hard work first, and time is running out.
How about Robert’s students? They’re bright, they’re motivated, and they’re perfect for the task.
I think you need professionals to teach those kids. Don't ask a really bright first year med student to perform open heart surgery. Find someone with a lot of experience and let the kids who want to learn in the room.
I have two words for you: Greta Thunberg. 😀
@ Paula B. I agree that our young people around the world will get there! IF, and it is a big if, this generation of "middle class" and "working age adults" doesn't let it all slide away, or even to a degree we can't come back from .
That's why the Democrats need to replace Schumer, among others.
Yes, most of the establishment Dems seem pretty useless. I was always uncertain about term limits, but after a point, the focus seems more about preserving one's cushy position by creating just enough *appearance* of progress to get reelected, but without actually rocking the status quo boat.
the media does not help, as well.
No, but in large part that's because we aren't telling them our message, consistently and succinctly in a compelling way.
True, but in the world of sound bites and oversimplification, the many responses we must make to all the different attacks it is difficult to be succinct.
Hi Laurie. I doubt that people find a shouting match with Republicans to be motivating. I would guess that they want us to say things that will give them some faith that the time and effort they put into voting will be worthwhile. That the priorities are right.
If they can't see what has been happening for the last several years, I don't know what will make them understand that the Democrats are doing more for most people (humans) than the Republican party.
Yes, where is our Frank Luntz, who trains every Republican to stay on the same simple message?
It's not that there isn't a Frank Luntz, it's that no one with any authority has hired them. I do this for Corp America and there are plenty of marketing researchers available to Democrats. The DNC sees itself more as a fundraiser than as the leader, collaborator and policy maker that's most needed. The fundraising is important, but so is the direction and the team building.
Maybe we need a letter-writing campaign to the DNC.
George Lakoff.
Professor, gently said, and perhaps the Democrats are a herd of cats, but the leadership, direction, emphasis and messaging are the responsibility shared between the DNC and the Administration. Your gentle admonishment, more forcefully said, is that this Administration is losing the public battle for minds and morals...
Yes...this is true. There is a failure of the Dems to keep the public focused on actual accomplishments and how BIden has addressed and improved the situation for millions and also on what needs to be done. Trump's Big Lie is allowed to garner a lot of attention because there is no counter to it, no focus on what needs doing and what the Dems have done. The Dems create an information void and Trump is only too happy to move on into that void with his Big Lies (and countless other lies). Citizens without critical thinking skills are only too happy to cling onto Trump's coattails and his constant whining as that is all there is. I am hopeful that the situation might change when hearings on 1/6 go forward but we can't rely on that. The advantage the Dems have lies in its agendas and policies but they need to get them out to voters of all persuasions, not tuck them away as though they are an intrusion. As it now stands, Trump sets the agenda (His Big-Lie Agenda) and those voters with no real understanding of democracy and the rule of law are more than likely to go with that.
Agreed. Trump has a remarkable way of taking over the daily news cycle, and there are apparently no Democrats who want to step out and go toe to toe with him. It's long beyond time for the Democrats to hit back, hard.
You are absolutely, totally right! We need someone who's not afraid of losing an election. Someone who is willing to go toe to toe, real time, with Trump.
Hi Lanae. I agree with you that dems do a terrible job of tooting our horns. Absolutely. But worse, we simply assume we know what's best for everyone and head directly to that point. With great focus and often anger and frustration that everyone doesn't see it the same as we do. What we never do is ask our community of prospective voters what it would take to get them to the polls. What can we say to convince them that going to the polls is worth the time and effort. We don't ask, so we don't know.
Great idea!
Couldn't be more true
Totally agree! How can we influence that?
When we face attack after attack, a single message will not cover it. Unless we go with something like 'Make America a country with the rule of law again'. hmmmm
It seems that the Dems are under a blitzkrieg of attacks from the right. The Jan 6th attack, numerous voting laws being simultaneously placed in several key states, the fake electors scandal and current investigation of such, and the nonstop tRump rallies with his criminal incitements to attack and hints that not cooperating will get them off. I would not be surprised if Putin was doing his war theater saber rattling as a favor to the former guy. We have seen that if Biden acts, now he is putting our allies in Ukraine in peril. But, of course , if he did nothing they would have a field day with him. All the while, gleefully trumpeting that our votes are useless he will have his way no matter what. Anyone who can't see what is being done is clueless or deliberately obtuse.
By now, many of you have likely seen those photos of Manchin, Sinema, McConnell, and Thune in conference on the Senate floor. I'd like to see an investigation for possible collusion and bribery. Yes, senators make deals as part of their duties, but the deals are supposed to be for the benefit of the country, not personal promotion and enrichment.
If crime and impropriety are continually given a pass, such problems will only increase. Then we are lost.
I agree with you Bill. It'll all come down to lack of turnout and that the DNC didn't work hard enough to figure out the right messaging to encourage everyone to vote in a mid term election with such tremendous consequence. Image our world with Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the house and Mitch McConnell as the senate leader and a conservative supreme court. Very little will be done for anyone other than the rich and their favored industries. Get out the vote!
Well, getting out the vote is certainly a vital part of the process, but if certain leaders collude to enable or turn a blind eye to vote suppression, again, we are lost!
Prof. Reich, Amid a rapidly narrowing window to protect the key mechanisms of American democracy, I submit we would be remiss were our strategy for the 22 midterms to rest in any way on the public’s reactions to an admittedly increasingly “contemptible” Republican Party
To the contrary, I view our two most immediate challenges as 1) resuscitating momentum at the federal level both by reforming the Electoral Vote Count plus getting further federal voter safeguards passed and 2) mobilizing for democracy at the state and local levels principally by out-organizing Republicans, who ruthlessly are organizing to fill state and local positions with their own people—people who don’t believe in free and fair elections.
As a final point, I contend that the country needs a highly effective Explainer-in Chief, presumably though not necessarily the President, methodically to educate people, nationwide, about what they’re losing every time the President’s agenda is stalled.
Joe Biden isn't an explainer-in-chief. Kamala Harris isn't one. Why not recruit Barack Obama back into the fold? Or Michelle Obama? Who else?
Michelle Obama, of course! She knocked it out of the park in her address at the Democratic Convention. Where would she get the most visibility though? My thought would be as Vice-Chief of Staff to Ron Klain. Immediate access to all MSM.
I love the idea of enlisting the Obamas' to encourage voting and to get the message out about the importance of voting, even in a mid-term election. It is something they are currently doing a lot of work around anyway. It's not really Jen Psaki's job as press sec to get out the vote or to campaign for that. Jen Psaki is really fantastic at her job. At least I think so.
Well duh: you!!!
Prof. Reich, Agreed. Hence, I wrote, “presumably though not necessarily the President.” Further, I would note, because the issue of who is irrelevant unless the idea were enacted, I largely was seeking your thoughts regarding my proposals overall.
How about (as i mentioned above) a professionally designed campaign that could be delivered by several people? Michael Steele comes to mind (if he would set aside his republican cloak), there is a wide selection of talking heads on our side that could work, several of the writers for the American Prospect would do well (if so inclined). Work to develop a dems version of Fox that deals only in the truth. Then put it out everywhere. If a candidate wants to run an ad, let them use it. It doesn't have to be reserved for the big guys - any dem battling a republican could chime in.
Lee, Despite your inclusion of the word “truth,” I could not sanction any proposal that was fashioned as “a dem’s version of Fox.”
I don't mean that the dems version should behave like they do - I just mean an organization that emphasizes the truth just like they do lies.
Lee, I appreciate the clarification largely because it presents an opportunity for me to elaborate. I presume we would agree that building an organization is a major undertaking that would involve time we can’t afford in an election year. Hence, my call for designating a highly effective Explainer, who not only could clarify what we’re losing every time the President’s agenda is stalled but who also could present the stories of the Administration’s accomplishments. Take, for example, the $20 billion investment in Ohio for semi-conductor manufacturing. Because story telling typically is more impactful than merely hearing about abstract legislation and numbers and data, the Explainer could tell the story of what this investment means to Ohioans and to their kids, let alone to the U.S. becoming less dependent on South Korea and Taiwan for semi-conductors, thus easing supply chains.
I love what our President has accomplished. But you are so right. We need an Explainer in Chief - clear, passionate, accurate and articulate. And his name is Barack Obama. Not to take over, not to be in any office - but to speak to the nation - promoting common sense and democracy. It has always been presidential tradition to step back and be in the background. Guess who broke that tradition. Time to fight fire with a fire hose of truth with the best explainer we have had in decades. Unless there is a chance we can bring back JFK...
My opinion on employing Mr Obama is that his failure to prosecute big banks for causing the financial crisis is why millions of swing voters switched to vote against Biden. Also, after Mr Obama was employed to rally for Dem candidate in Viginia, the Repub canidate won. I admire Mr Obama but think he is hurting rather than helping.
This is a good point. We are repeating this by letting Trump and all the traitors continue on. There have been 6 month sentences for some of the attackers at the Capital. Big deal. This is turning off voters, not mobilizing them.
Racism; nothing mobilizes the rural/right/"Christian"/ lesser educated, Confederate supporting, Trump supporting people more than seeing a successful Black man on national TV. Infuriates them!
Bill, I’m delighted you appreciate the need for an Explainer-in Chief. Presently, I’m not nearly as concerned with who as with selling the idea before the window closes.
Without media control, I think we’re past having time to correct this. We do nothing to address dangerous rhetoric by criminals. We’re becoming a danger to ourselves.
SeekingReason, In my view, until voters start casting votes, there’s still time for a highly effective “ Explainer” with sufficient enough clout to be broadly heard and understood to convey to the public at large what it’s losing every time the President’s agenda is stalled.
I would love nothing more than to see this. But how do they reach the broad audiences that need to hear it without the largest conglomerates? An inkling of hope is that, as the investigation tightens, some people and companies are realizing they need to distance. Money always talks, so we need to effectively hit them in the wallet. But, again we need the far reaching mouthpieces…FOX,NBC,ABC,CBS, + to say this AND to stop putting Trump and the Republican politicians on for comments! They always put the traitor party on the news & that makes me crazy. But they are their mouthpieces.
Those are excellent suggestions. Along with them democrats should offer up a new "New Deal" like 1) a 50% discount/rebate policy at the point of retail sale which would immediately double the purchasing power of everyone's earned income. In other words if you make $30k/yr. you could immediately purchase $60k worth of goods and services. When was the last time such a policy had such a huge and immediate effect? Never is the answer. This policy is basically accounting that is equal debits and credits, which perfectly mimics the way the private banks create over 90% of our money presently. The exception being that the banks create that money ONLY AS DEBT while the 50% discount/rebate policy creates it as a gift of money...thus breaking up the banks' MONOPOLISTIC paradigm of Debt ONLY as the sole form and vehicle for the creation and distribution of money. How deadly and dominating is it to grant the already incredibly powerful financial sector a monopoly paradigm for money? Human civilization long deadly and dominating is the answer.
End inflation forever, create universal economic abundance like we've never experienced it before, benefit both consumer and businesses thus integrating the economic and political interests of traditionally opposed constituencies so as to create a new political coalition, be able to actually cut taxes and yet increase BENEFICIAL fiscal deficits to fund the kind of mega-projects necessary to fight climate change...by adopting the new monetary paradigm and its policies...and change the world.
Steve, Given the nearing midterm elections, I would urge our focus not exceed legislation that already has passed in the House that has received broad but not sufficiently enough support from Democratic Senators to become law.
I understand that the time is short so far as the midterms are concerned. What I hope for is that someone like Prof. Reich would recognize the pungent efficacy of such policies in that they address the most basic problem (the monetary and financial paradigm) and are implemented at strategically significant places in the economic process (retail sale and the point of loan signing) and hence have such powerful economic and political effect. I can't even get a newspaper out here in Arizona to interview me for chrissake. Actually I'm not that interested in trying to convince politicians as they almost never lead. What is needed is a mass movement that communicates the benefits of such policies to individuals and commercial agents and that consequently herds the political apparatus toward such economic, political and ecological sanity. If I could get just one person with a significant platform to understand that could begin to make a difference. So I soldier on.
Steve, I, too, soldier on. We have that in common. The difference between us is that I focus largely on policy that has relatively broad but not sufficiently large enough federal/state/local Democratic support.
Sick and tired of Trump's lies and threats - the same old corrupt song and dance - I've filled out the contact form on the Department of Justice website and respectfully asked for them to investigate his ongoing threats and lies as a national security issue. He is advocating violence and the overthrow of democracy - yet again!
Exactly, Dee Long! Shouting fire! in a crowded theater is not free speech. They are openly advocating for the continued attack on our country. From the Jan 6th committee to our election officials and virtually anyone who disagrees with them. Our children in school will be deputized against their own teachers and parents, like back in Germany when similar energy was raging through the oppressors and haters. They must be stopped.
Excellent words to be spread, especially to those who react viscerally. "Shouting 'Fire!' In a crowded theater is not free speech". And even more, we need strong positive words and illustrations of them. There have been some excellent political cartoons in the last few years. Let's get those out there. Robert, your recent Supreme Court drawing really hit me hard.
It has come to the point where the Select Committee on January 6th is itself under threats to their safety and security. At some point, the government (Dept of Justice) needs to take action against these individuals who are seeking to destroy the government of the United States and replace it with the rule (reign) of Donald J Trump. They need to feel the force of justice and the rule of law. Dee, how do I retrieve the contact form you mentioned? It's something I am unaware of but willing to try. If more of this try this approach, it might have some sort of an impact.
https://www.justice.gov/contact-us
I did too, Laurie. Hope it helps. Thanks, Dee!
I just sent a message to the justice department describing my concern about the messaging of our former guy in the media and his threats against the rule of law.
Thank you. I intend to sign this too. Twitter is very active with people screaming for justice, they have to be aware of this. This definitely is a continued coup attempt. Trump doesn’t even hide it or put it in code. His lunacy has gone unchecked for way too long! He stepped into office and committed a crime. Totally unchecked.
thanks for spreading the word - the Department of Justice must answer to the American people and we must all let them know we expect them to investigate and indict Donald J. Trump and all of the parties who conspired to overturn the election as well as planned and executed the 1/6/21 insurrection
Never before have we been witness to the words, actions, incitements, illegal activities, & encouragement by Trump of deadly violence in broad daylight, on video, on audio….but we’re told they want to lock down the investigation…when? 2027? The longer the DOJ takes the more Dem voters they’ll lose if this gets too close to election time! Media needs to shut down this crap of perpetually putting Trump et al in front of the cameras. That’s what keeps these criminals going! They are deluded and dangerous.
Sell cigarettes on the street= death penalty, incite deadly coup attempt & endanger national security= hold rallies! 🤬🤬
I see the biggest failure in allowing Trump to run around, hold rallies, incite violence. That is what he is doing. He’s a twice impeached president, spewing very dangerous rhetoric. Why aren’t the Democrats’ lives being protected. Why can MTG & Boebert make terroristic threats and still sit in Congress. It’s time to pour on the pressure to media supporting and covering these rallies. I start to lose hope when these monsters continually promote deluded ideas to their psycho followers (who are well armed).
No consequences for a direct attack will NOT pull in voters!
Very, very true. Every time I see or hear their names and faces in the news my heart sinks because I know that's what they want. Exposure is all they need. It doesn't need to be positive . In fact negative exposure is better for rallying haters.
Independent voters and young Democrats are not likely to vote on the basis of big bad Trump or relic Gingrich. They are concerned with what elected officials have done for them, economically.
Loyal Democrats like yourself and registered Dems who identify and contribute to the Democratic Party will find your strategy reaffirming and can be motivated to vote based upon it.
Gingrich and Trump are out to motive the base of the Republican Party. They misapprehension that base. It isn’t the misinformed Trumpers. The base of the Republican Party is all of those people who believe through their own efforts they have achieved some wealth and security which the Democrats they believe will tax away. This group wears masks and gets vaccinated and only tolerates Trump because he gave them another tax break. They are as loyal to the Republican Party as you are and others here are to the Democratic Party. But I believe they are disenchanted with Trump and the 1/6 crowd of extremists and would prefer a replacement, a mini Trump who is not so wildly bombastic but offers them the same tax breaks amid wealth protections.
It is already clear that what Trump is out to do is take away the working class base of the Democratic Party. Without that voter base and with the indifference of younger Democrats the Republicans win.
The press is already convinced that your strategy will not work and expects a disaster for the Democrats in the Fall.
What worked for Democrats in other mid-term elections was promises on basics like healthcare. If Biden doesn’t start to develop a strategy based around I presented Congress with childcare, I gave you childcare during Covid, give me a Congress that will allow me to sign a bill giving you childcare, then he and the Democratic Party will miss the boat.
The most I can say as a progressive is we told you so and you didn’t listen.
Yes, such potential swing voters are what democrats need to appeal to. Read my response to Barbara Jo Kreiger above. The democrats need to find a way to appeal to everyone's most basic needs with a universally beneficial set of policies. Reform is not enough. We need a sea change, a paradigm change, and we need it NOW lest we lose our democracy.
You understand. For most Trump supporters who voted for him holding their nose, it was always about the money. Always.
I think you have touched the lodestone when mentioning childcare. Many millions of families are feeling hopeless. Give them some well deserved assistance so they can work.
A policy of a $1000/mo. universal dividend for everyone 18 years of age and older paired with a 50% discount/rebate policy at retail sale would give every American adult a guarantee of $2000/mo. worth of purchasing power. That would pay for child care and a lot more. It would also bring alot of other benefits like I outlined in my response to Barabara Jo Krieger above. We need a socio-economic and political mass movement that benefits everyone in order to create a new coalition of traditionally opposed constituencies. that's what a paradigm change does and the policies of the new monetary paradigm deliver them.
To paraphrase Victor Hugo: "If there is one thing all of the armies (and demagogues) cannot overcome it is a (universally beneficial) idea whose time has come."
Agreed, especially regarding highlighting improving healthcare from my perspective as a physician and citizen.
Of course Trump, Gingrich, etal will continue. They are the great grifters: Make American Grift Again! And McCarthy juvenilely and pathologically craves power than cannot handle and responsibility he cannot fathom.
I agree with Robert that T & G are great assets for Dems. I go a step further; the Rep Party is the Dem Party's greatest asset.
But this is damning the Dems. If Reps are their great advantage, they are their own worst asset. Nationally silent in most states as Rep legis run roughshod over Constitution, individuals and groups, established rights of all kinds. In the suits slowly winning in state after state against illegal redistricting and gerrymandering, to take one example, the Dems are never a party to the suits by LWV, ACLU, CommonCause, NAACP-NAACP LDF, in particular with guidance from Marc Elias and the Brennan Center. Same on other major issues
If the Dems had sense and a voice, "defund the police," "socialism," BLM, Antifa, critical race theory, fake "parental rights" and removal of children's rights that we won over more than a century would not be the issues they are.
In Ohio where I live, the Dem Party with no public discussion backs Rep. Tim Ryan and privately agrees to fund raise with him, and slights the younger, more intelligent, more articulate, more personable, and more knowledgeable black woman Morgan Harper! Why? Tim has served his time. Morgan, who is more articulate and dynamic, and stronger on issues, should wait her time. Tim has no platform. But he has raised $5M to Morgan's $400K! He wont' debate Morgan or the Reps.
That's a hell of a way to win elections. They also refuse to respond to my own and others' challenges in print: Where is the Ohio Democratic Party?
Where is the Democratic Party as a whole? The DNC is not it. Local and state parties aren't it. Organized labor isn't it. Sometimes I feel as though we're staring into a void. The problem is there's no clear and coherent message. Biden and the Dems have plenty to be proud of, but relatively few Americans know.
Why can’t we on this list come up with some messages and present them to the powers that be? Everyone on this list is bright and knowledgeable. We can do it!
I don't expect the national party to listen, and I know the Ohio party can't but here's some places to begin:
https://columbusfreepress.com/article/busting-myths-can-we-resurrect-our-%E2%80%9Cfounding%E2%80%9D-faith-american-%E2%80%9Cpeople%E2%80%9D
https://columbusfreepress.com/article/busting-myths-texas-and-florida-secede-reality-ohio-imitates
https://columbusfreepress.com/article/busting-myths-my-new-year%E2%80%99s-wish-list
https://columbusfreepress.com/article/busting-myths-my-new-year%E2%80%99s-wish-list
That's the point: the Dems do not tell the American people that, and they do not honesty admit--and therefore learn from--the errors of the Obama, Clinton, Carter, even LBJ administrations.
From where I stand, the Democratic Party lost its credibility a long time ago. There's always talk, but never the walk. Until people actually see meaningful change, along the lines being proposed by Sanders, Warren and others, most people I know don't really see much difference between the more traditional Republican Party and the Democratic Party. For them, Trump, Gingrich and others like them are outliers. Until the DNC gets it head out of the sand, I will no longer support it. I will continue supporting Bernie, Justice Democrats and the ACLU who are actually walking the walk, and not talking the talk.
Why does it strike me that so many of the "giants" on the right are just attention-starved little boys?
So let me get this straight. The 2020 election was rigged but the Republicans in the House, Senate, and elsewhere who were victorious were rightfully and legitimately elected? How does that work?
Up is down, black is white and they can change reality any way they want to. I just used the link provided by Dee Long earlier in this thread to communicate with our justice department about my concerns with our former guy's media messages to his violent followers. It's just like before Jan 6th, 2021. He is openly telling them to go protest whenever and wherever he loses in court; Georgia, NYC, or Washington D.C. This is a National Security issue. He promises to pardon them when he gets back into the presidential office, which will embolden them to not cooperate with the Jan 6th committee. We have seen this with his partners in crime who are still at it. Right in plain sight he is doing it again! And some worry that it will be 'difficult to prove his intent'? Incredible!
If Trump were really anxious to pardon the January 6 Capitol rioters, he could have done so during the period January 6 - 20, 2021. The arrests and prosecutions began while he was still president. Promising to pardon the rioters if he becomes president in the future seems designed to induce them not to cooperate to implicate Trump and his buddies for their role in the riots, as the investigations heat up. If the rioters' attorneys are doing their job, however, they would point out that there is no guarantee Trump will be elected president in 2024, and there is no guarantee he would follow through and pardon them even if he is. After all, Trump is the Stiffer-in-Chief.
I think Democrats could offer a simple campaign message, repeated relentlessly: Trump/McConnell Republicans are soft on crime. They are promoting violence in the streets, making this country unsafe for law-abiding citizens.
My reasoning: Pardoning violent criminals, enacting legislation that allows such vigilantes as George Zimmerman and Kyle Rittenhouse to freely gun down people they dislike, and giving convicted violent felons easy access to guns is soft on crime, as is pardoning Paul Manafort and his ilk.
Republican politicians are soft on crime! Great campaign motto.
Good grief, George Orwell was right. It’s as if the poles have flipped.
You know, the other side has guns and wants to use them. We don't. If the GOP wins the midterms their rank and file will increase the domestic violence. If the GOP loses the midterms their rank and file will increase the domestic violence. As 2024 approaches, their rank and file will increase the violence. Please understand this. They are armed and eager. We aren't. We want to win the midterms and we have to know that more violence is ensuing. That said, we need to win the governorships and Senate seats of 8 states - Wisconsin, Michigan, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia, Nevada, and Arizona. To win those states we need to understand the electorate. In Michigan, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, people of color are a minority, and non-college whites are a majority. Therefore, in those states, the GOP will be talking about the stolen election, critical race theory, mask mandates - and it's all a freebie for them. Look at what just happened in Virginia. Not only did Youngkin win Virginia on those ideas, scaring people, critical race theory wasn't even taught in Virginia. As soon as he trashed mask mandates and parents started to rebel, some suburban white woman got up in a public meeting and announced to the world that she would bring her guns locked and loaded to school if her kids were required to wear masks. She had to walk it back because she was recorded and drowned by a million critics on Twitter. So that's where we have to fight. People in mainstream America don't give a damn about the attempted coup anymore. They also don't realize that we are headed into a shooting a day world. They aren't progressives - maybe 6% of the US public thinks they're progressives - and they aren't aware of what's coming. I repeat, passports.
I give a BIG DAMN about the deadly coup attempt!
@Martha Ture. I ain't leaving my country on account of some assholes waving guns around. They should remember Ruby Ridge, David Koresh and other wanna be secessionist idiots.
And then there’s this as reported by The NY Times:
“Mike Pence did have the right to change the outcome, and they now want to take that right away,” Mr. Trump said. “Unfortunately, he didn’t exercise that power, he could have overturned the election!”
“The statement was the first time Mr. Trump described his goal as overturning an election. But Mr. Trump’s statement also included his usual false assertions about election fraud, suggesting he does not believe the election was legitimate.”
Everything Trump does is to benefit Trump himself. EVERYTHING!
Hoping that the opponent will shoot himself in the foot, is a very risky posture. The Reps. are much better than the Dems at spinning stories, unhinged from the facts, that work for them as propaganda. And they are so busy legislating in the States to steal the next election. Why can't the Dems. use the numerous opportunities the Reps hand them? Publicize the consequences of the laws passed by the States to steal the election, the killing of the social programs in the BBB while giving more to the military than they asked for, $8 TRILLION over 10 years, Vs. $2 trillion over 10 years, McConnell saying essentially: "We have no program." They do: regain ALL power at all cost, cost to the 99% and the final death of our democracy on life-support. The list of points on which to fight is long. Why the silence from the Dems?
We need a media bullhorn, like Fox has. Biden and the Democrats need a Speaker who can get in people's faces with the facts. It's hard to believe that the average citizen, even if not very educated, could miss the value of free elections, of voting. tRump wants to take it away completely! The Republican party does not even think we, the people rate a description of their platform! 'Just shut up and let us take over, stupid people!' is their message. 'And if you 'make nice' and not oppose me, we won't shoot you all or put you in jail.
I am afraid most people are moved by emotions. Some people change their mind when exposed and understanding facts, the scientific community, and many businesses who make decisions based on their analyses of "Big Data." If you have been trampled upon by our unjust regime and someone comes along and convinces you that he is on your side, the "feel-good" emotions will sweep you with him. Trump is a con-man of genius convincing 74 million to vote for him, while stabbing them in the back repeatedly. That is why the Reps need him. and their cheating, and their current legalizing of the cheating. The Reps posture is: "Vote for me, so that I can screw you utterly for the enrichment of the ruling class." The Dems are nor fighting them very hard, because many of them are almost in the same posture, the "corporate democrats." I call them "Demoblicans." The US is no longer "The country of hope for Humanity" as I believed in 1964 when I came to study at UofC, Ignorant then of the horrendous history of the empire. We need a movement based on facts, and emotions, and mutual trust, more time away from work. Ralph Nader says it takes only 1% of the population to create a movement. To the barricades camarades!
Lagardere ; I agree with you that most people are moved by emotions. I am a little skeptical about tRump 'winning' with 74 million votes. If he was caught in the hour long phone call to the election official in GA, imagine how many officials actually caved and went with his scheme to 'find more votes'. Unfortunately, the electoral college is in the mix here, too, and the purging of voter lists, as well as the limited polling places in states like Texas. Your point that Democrats are also 'on the take' to corporate interests is sadly, true too. I tell everyone about this forum, and hope that more people find it. Yes, to the barricades!
Thnak you for the reply. You must have nothing to do with Tony.
Well, there is our fearless leader. 😀
I read some of the prior comments and agree with a lot of what they stated , however no matter how important these other issues are, the most important one is saving our democracy. A coup cannot happen without the backing of the law and the military.
You are absolutely correct. Nothing matters if democracy is disassembled. So scary.
But as Cecelia Jernegan just explained, that is a motivator for those of us who have a sense of it...who live on substack, etc. Millions really just care about their own financial well being ... and what Tom Brady will do next. It is sad, very, very sad. But it's the real truth.
We have to appeal to their pocketbooks: child care costs, health care costs (prescription drugs!), retirement benefits - the price of everything.
Take a page out of the GQP playbook and blame Trump for inflation! It's easy. A stupid trade war, no investment in infrastructure (overwhelmed ports) and a complete failure with Covid. Put the blame right where it belongs! This is not hard.
John Schumacher ; We have a stacked Supreme Court, and partisan judges on some federal benches. I don't know about our military. I would hope that when they saw how uniformed officers were being treated in the Seditious attack on our Capitol. it may influence them against that mob. Our Justice department is making moves too, towards justice.
You write a great article as always. Best hope for Democrats. Bring gas prices down. Stop inflation. Don't get involved with Ukraine. Lower cost of groceries and medicine. Do something about the homeless on the streets, medical insurance and mental help for many American struggling from the pandemic. Get control over the southern border. Most people could care less about Trump and Gingrich. They care about feeding their families. Going to football games and who is playing in the Super Bowl and will Tom Brady really retire. That is why Washington DC is so out of touch with Americans. Career politicians need to get out of their bubble.
What exactly is our message,where is it going and to who,just to clarify.
Michele Obama committed to signing up 1 million people to vote,hope they really follow through!
I certainly hope no Democrats are intimidated by all this nasty bloviating.
As for Trump, he never saw a crime without wanting to try it himself.