Could the Democratic National Committee become the voice of resistance? The Democrats have got to be ready to promote and ride a backlash against the Trump regime with a coordinated message and then get their spokespersons with the same message on all of those media outlets.. The coordination must come from one political source orchestrating the strategy, such as the DNC or a Democratic Party Chair. There are two basic problems: one. Coming up with a message that all special agendas making up the DNC can agree on and avoid getting hung up on details and cultural issues. The other concerns are the mechanics and methods.
The message: To keep being tied up in knots, there should be a simple statement of the basic principles on which all of the party stands that all its various voices can agree. Such principles should be invoked as slogans or keywords in all responses and then repeated again and again. Jargon and references to even laws and constitutional provisions requiring a level of education should be treated as subpoints. Trump and MAGA are not keen on laws and the Constitution. Simple Engish using common words is used instead of political science terms (exception: democracy). The main point should be what X policy does to real-life coping, not whether it violates this or that law or constitutional amendment, Democrats can put it in terms of what economic opportunity does for all of the people. . If the DNC cannot agree on simple, attractive words, Democrats are in real trouble. The response to Trump's specific policies would always refer to those principles using keywords to describe the principles on which Democrats stand and how Trump violates them. Hammering in those appropriate keywords in every response should be included in any message.
My nomination for DNC chair is Pete Buttigieg. He is by far the best communicator in the Biden administration...and as a former mayor, he gets many issues those wrapped up in the Beltway speak do not get.. He personifies simple speak vs elitist speak. He also is a talented and able large organization administrator as he proved by being Secretary of Transportation. What Mayor Pete brings to the job fills the need most lacking in the DNC,if that is to lead the resistance. is communication in a style that reaches the grassroots and ordinary people.
TIME magazine had an interesting take on the election. https://time.com/7175545/trump-election-authoritarian-democrats-loss/ It made the point that voters wanted an authoritarian leader and were well aware of all of Trump's negatives and Project 2025. It also made the point that Democrats need to sell their values. Democrats should not assume that their values are either known or even valued by half of Americans. That means translating those values to how Democrats help Americans have a better life. It means better messaging. Lord knows Harris did her best to do it. Freedom signs were everywhere. However, promises of a better future lost to a painful post-COVID recovery of the past four years of the Biden administration. The opportunity will arise for Democrats as Project 2025 puts its feet to the metal with policies that harm Americans and make it harder for them. If Trump carries through with his tariff policy or yanks grandmother or mom undocumented migrants out of their families, inflation or cruelty may be more than many can tolerate, and Trump's core appeal of mass deportation and lower grocery prices will backfire.
This reminds me of discussions I had a few years ago with former East Germans about the change from oppressive communism to being integrated into a unified western Germany. "Yes", said one I remember. "It's nice to have the freedom of speech of a democracy, but life is harder without the perks Communism provided, especially totally without copays, higher education and health care, and a guaranteed paycheck." That shocked my fellow American travelers who overheard that conversation. Never assume everyone treasures liberal values of personal freedom and less government control life choices unless those values also address the reality of day to day existence. In 2024, fascist-like political parties promoting authoritarianism and anti-immigrants are on the rise across western Europe. Trump's return is related.
Here are some examples of messaging that could work in anticipated MAGA public policy failures. These are traditional Democrat values, but at least it is a sharper and simpler focus of putting those failures in perspective to sell the advantage of Democratic values in contrast with the predicted overreach of Trump.2. Not everyone wants to "blowtorch" government as MAGA undertakes "destruction of the administrative state". https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2024/11/24/trump-vow-to-blowtorch-disrupt-government-finds-appeal-with-americans/
Values Democrats can agree on and how they relate to public policy should not be that hard to list. Here are some suggestions.
Freedom
Opportunity
The methods of coordinating and reaching voters are equally important. Obviously, when most voters get their messages via social media or a wide variety of talk shows, podcasts, and YouTube, it is no longer enough to rely on cable shows and print media.
The old saw: I do not belong to an organization. I am a Democrat...does not work in this era of so many different ways people get information that shapes their views. Coordinating needs to be centralized and on the same page when those basic principles are applied. It could be done by the DNC, but the leadership and orientation of that should be credible spokespersons who are also ready and able for TV and the various channels of communication. It may have had a great, well-funded, organized get-out-the-vote ground game, but in the long run it made no difference in Nov.2024. The focus of the DNC must shift to messaging and coordination of that message. Good luck with that. My late husband served as a Democratic National Committeeman for twelve years and I was a fly on the wall. This shift in mission would not be easy. Fundraisers and special interest advocates permeate that body. What other organization is out there?y
It has to start now, not on the last 4 months of a campaign when voters' attitudes were already firmed up months and even years before.. The British use shadow cabinets. Shadow cabinet members are credible heavyweights like standing committees with designated spokespeople and are ready to go at a moment's notice. Members of Congress are not the best for this since they represent the interests of their constituents with their own more specific agendas. Congresspeople can still become the bullhorn, blowing the same tune to amplify and repeat and repeat again and again. Update: Concept also put forth 12/16/2024 by historian Tymothy Snyder https://grabien.com/file?id=2729108
This messaging is not just for the federal level. Since most politics are local, on-record votes by Congress people for policies that harm their constituents should also make news in House members' hometown media, print, radio talk, or social contacts. Federal administrative action harm can also be brought down to the state, district, and local levels. Trump is going to force GOP Congressional representatives to take votes that are unpopular in their districts under the threat of primarying the disloyal. Democrats should not let them off the hook with silence the time the harm is done, and again at the next campaign cycle, too.
https://mufticforumblog.blogspot.com/2024/11/elitists-v-simple-speakeducation-is.html
Another interesting take if you have access to it. The "blowtorch" reference came from that.
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