What political direction should the Democrats take next?

[ThePartyThatListens]

Move to the left, center, or full right?

Why/why not?

[marybourg]

1. As far away from tRump as they can get.

[EarthFirst]

2. Scorched Earth...

Leave no MAGA comfortable in the eye of public perception.

The era of “They go low; we go high…” is far behind us now.

[Elessar Zappa]

3. Doesn't really matter.

We gotta get in on the propaganda game first and foremost.

[BannonsLiver]

22. 100 percent

The dark arts. It’s ugly and not clean but that is one of the takeaways for me. You can’t have misinformation going on with no response, or expecting for profit MSM to referee on our behalf.

[Faux pas]

4. Loading us

all up on ships and take us to safety.

[Blue Owl]

5. Organize locally

That’s where it all starts

[WarGamer]

6. Go back a decade or so... be Democrats.

Democrats didn't lose first time voters or cede ground to minorities.

Recently some in the DNC have spent a little too much time courting groups that alienate a section of the historical DEM base.

[ThePartyThatListens]

7. Right, but

What does that look like today?

[WarGamer]

9. Start by telling Liz Cheney and Rick Wilson and Steve Schmidt to find their own political "home"

Then answer why more billionaires backed Harris over Trump in 24... then answer for why the current Party clashes with the ACLU...

[ThePartyThatListens]

10. Well, I don't see how a party that's allegedly on the left

Can have much in common w/people on the right.

Other than being human beings that is.

They're ostensibly heading in two different political directions.

[Raven123]

15. Darn strait. Enough of these ex-GOPers.

One thing that irritated me before and during the campaign was the catering to them. The media praised the effort as giving Republicans a “permission structure.” What the he-double-hockey-sticks does that mean? Good grief.

[Mistermike]

30. Venn Diagrams

Like it or not, the majority of Americans do NOT find the below quote controversial:

“The mother is a woman, the father is a man, and leave our kids alone. Full stop. End of discussion.”

So focus on issues that the majority DO care about.

I heard no speeches about making it easier to Unionize.

I heard no speeches about bolstering Social Security.

[Keepthesoulalive]

18. Why are they alienated ?

What message should we be hearing from democrats?

[JohnSJ]

8. Easy. Sit back and watch the rethugs implode.

[TheKentuckian]

36. It is not sustainable to wait for a short respite to have the honor

of half ass cleaning up the worst of their messes and then hand the keys back to drive us back into the ever deeper ditch and take the rap for it being dug in the first place.

In fact, there is a non zero chance that this positioning has already ratched us beyond any clean up or even being given the chance.

Even if so, how many more bites of the apple do you think are available before the whole system falls down on our heads.

The old guard is going to fucking kill us all. This is not working for anyone that isn't wealthy and powerful.

[JohnSJ]

40. I happen to be in California, and Newsom is meeting with 17 Governors from blue state for a plan to counter any

draconian measure they try to impose on us.

I will need to see what they try to do nationally, and depending what they do to infringe on my state's sovereignty, and what Newsom's strategy along with the other blue state governors.

For instance, if they try to impose a national abortion ban on states where abortion is legal, and the SC supports that, there will be mass resistance in those states. I don't think they have the resources to deal with it. Doctors and patients will go under ground. It will be like what happened during prohibition.

If they want to eliminate the Department of Education which enforces education law and regulations of the state's Board's of Education, try to force prayer and religion in public places, eliminate Civil RIghts laws, ban certain books, etc. then they are risking not only a Constitutional Crisis, but a real possibility of a Civil War, and that will be the end of the country if they are that foolish.

[TheKentuckian]

41. Grand. That has zero to do with my response to sit back and wait for them

to screw the pooch.

We have already been on that plan essentially since 90's and I don't think it takes magical vision to see the pattern.

The returns are ever diminishing and it cannot be sustained.
At best, winning just means cleaning up the nuclear waste, ending up taking the blame for the radioactivity, and an ever ratcheting down baseline they get to wreck then rinse and repeat.

[walkingman]

11. After the shock of our loss subsides, I think we will realize that after another Trump

term, if we still have a Democracy, whom ever is the Dem nominee will be our next POTUS. Much like the situation with "W" Bush.

I don't think we are "out of touch" with the American voter at all. I think there are a lot of people who live from paycheck to paycheck in America and are resentful, so they decided to go against the Dems who hold the current WH.

I personally think Democratic platform is an inclusive platform that celebrate diversity and inclusion. But the pandemic caused such a disruption and someone had to take the blame.

I totally reject the idea that we (DEMS) do not represent the best of America - the choice was easy.

We failed an "open book test" all the facts were obvious.

[ThePartyThatListens]

14. Oh the Establishment is definitely out of touch

Please don't take it lightly.

Some serious changes have to made.

That said, I get your point.

[TheKentuckian]

42. Shit, we are so stone cold out of touch that we had the brass

to tell people struggling to pay rent, can't buy a home, and putting shit back at the grocery that the stock market is soaring and that their increased wages they didn't get more than took care of increased costs.

Yes, our messaging and reach needs real work.
Want proof of that? We CONSISTENTLY lose the trust on the economy question (even when we win despite it) since 2008 to a party that ALWAYS causes a recession, only makes deficit busting tax cuts for fatcats, and has only created one million net jobs in like damn near forty years.

You have to be fucking up if you can't at least tread water in light of reality.

[leftstreet]

12. Maybe find out what nonvoters, no longer voters, new voters want?

Maybe both parties need to stop playing redVSblue ping pong with the shrinking voter base

[standingtall]

13. Moving to center is the same as moving to the right

And that has always been a long term loser for us. Even if we make short term gains it comes back to bites down the road. Running centrist/moderate candidates is part of the reason swing States shift to deep red States in the blink of an eye. Plus no one today can define where this mythical center even is.

[ThePartyThatListens]

21. I agree, and in my OP, when I say "right" I really mean "far right."

As to the mythical left, this clip from the Establishment media central pretty much says it all...

&t=155s

[LearnedHand]

16. FDR left

[tenderfoot]

20. All the GOP has proven in the past 40 years is that there was a good reason for the New Deal

[Fiendish Thingy]

17. Support the same progressive policies the majority of Americans want

Just connect with the effective venues to communicate them in ways uneducated, uninformed working class voters can understand.

[Nimble_Idea]

24. oh, you need to make it pellucidly clear.

that way I can understanz.

[TheKentuckian]

44. The thing that is missed is the platform is of little utility

if there is little to no confidence in making the shit happen.

Everytime we win we waste the first Congress bullshitting with bought partisanship, reaching across the aisle, and pretending to "teach the Republicans to govern" then cry obstruction when we really obstruct our fool selves.

It rings hollow to run on a child tax credit when we allowed the one we finally got in place to instantly sunset just one example.

We lost people FOREVER that we worked so fucking hard to get off the couch when the ACA came out of the grinder as nothing even resembling the first steps toward a public health system.
Was it an improvement? Sure.

Is it some patches on the existing boondoggle that massaged the pain just a bit but in actuality left us in essentially the same place in systems, outcomes, percentage of the economy, inflation, and total cost? Fuckin' A, Bubba.

Kamala's economic message fell flat.
Not because folks didn't cotton to the ideas but because they had no reason to take it seriously because we weren't passing any of that shit and everyone knew it not even if we had both houses of Congress because sixty isn't happening and we prove over and over that we aren't going to get shit done without permission from the Republicans so why bother with a middle man?

[OLDMDDEM]

19. Play the game using maggat rules.

[alarimer]

23. I don't know.

I mean, Democrats are always accused of being socialists, so why not try actually being socialists? Or Democratic Socialists or whatever.

Moving right will not work; it will turn off some, but it won't really attract enoough disaffected Republicans to win.

So, why not go full Trump? Let's find a Trump of our own. Maybe ex-WWE professional wrestler. Some shock jock or talk show host blowhard. Whatever, so long as they are vaguely liberal. Fighting fire with fire.

(For president at least. Everyone else can be normal).

[Greybnk48]

25. We need to lie, steal their accomplishments as ours, insult people,

mock people who can't fight back, pretend to be religious, make fake promises, lie, lie, lie.

Edited to add: talk vulgar and swear a lot. Laugh about raping women.

[HelpImSurrounded]

26. If you have to ask that question then the party has no soul

Stop asking "right" or "left"
Start asking "What policies do we want?" That will decide which direction we go
Ideas first, then victory otherwise the tail is wagging the dog

Don't pretend to trojan horse a progressive agenda inside a conservative campaign. We've seen that before. This is where we ended up.

[cachukis]

32. Well said.

[Dem4life1234]

27. Stay left

Focus more on bread and butter issues like the old school Dems.

Get nasty with these Rethugs and keep calling them fascists.

[ColinC]

28. Pure unadulterated moral courage

Doing the right thing regardless of the political consequences. Perhaps that might help.


Enough with the "we can't do it or we will lose an election" BS. Well you didn't do it and you still lost the election.

[Emile]

29. Move to the center people will just join the republican party.

[Greybnk48]

31. True. n/t

[EarlG]

33. Maybe we don't need to move anywhere. Just hit him with BUYER'S REMORSE.

Seems to me that the electorate right now is mostly driven by backlash, at least that's what the last three presidential elections have been about. So note the following items as they were on election day 2024:

Inflation
Unemployment
Gas prices
Food prices
Interest rates
DJIA
Illegal border crossings
etc.

When any of them move in the wrong direction, ask why Trump hasn't fixed it yet. Complain that he promised everything and is delivering nothing. Point out that this is what happens when you elect a convicted fraudster. Ask whether all the money is going into Elon Musk's pocket.

And don't worry about being asked, well, what's YOUR plan to fix this? -- it's just been proven that plans don't matter. All you have to do is keep saying over and over again that Trump can't fix it and Democrats will. Just keep hammering that home, relentlessly. Promises made, promises broken. Were things really so bad, when you had a job, and health care, and the price of a new car wasn't $90,000?

If you want to add a twist, go with DEMENTIA PRESIDENT. Of course Trump can't fix America's problems -- the guy is clearly losing it. He's incompetent and bumbling, physically unwell, mentally unravelling. It's clear for everyone to see. We never should have elected someone who is almost 80 years old.

Trump promised to make America great again, but it turned out that THEY were keeping his condition from us. And now he's ruined everything. Better vote for Democrats so we can fix things again...

[Rstrstx]

38. Tend to agree

Let buyer’s remorse set in, and it will pretty fast if he plans to do a tenth of what he proposed.

Also create as much hostile space as possible between Trump and the really dangerous people like JD or Stephen Miller. It would not hurt us to start planting stories about how JD and the tech bros are just waiting for Trump to get a head cold so they can 25th him. He is old and paranoid, let’s play on that.

[Nanjeanne]

34. Stop thinking left right center. Start thinking about what kind of country we should be.

When Walz was selected there was so much excitement. His responses when questioned about his "socialist" or "progressive" policies were wonderful. Then he was smoothed out, relegated to the back seat while Liz Cheney became the standard bearer for the Democratic Party. Stop listening to the same old beltway bubble consultants who keep beating the same tired playbook.

My 2 cents for what it's worth.

Stop chasing the illusive R/I voter and start by concentrating on the non-voters who feel nothing changes in their lives. Rs aren't going to vote for Ds in any big enough number that justifies a watering down of policies to convince them otherwise.

Swing voters are not moving R to D. Swings are non-voter to voter. And that can be done with a bold platform akin to FDRs that ignites a feeling of excitement and inclusion in the outcome.

Engage in transformative politics and stop with the transaction politics. Excite, Innovate, Big - not incremental and small thinking.

Try to build a media landscape that can compete with right wing propaganda

Don't just organize every 4 or 2 years. Build a year round organizing effort and build coalitions in rural areas recruiting local people to run locally and build a big bench.

Be FDR like - Attack corporate greed head on and understand the pain working people are experiencing. It’s Populism that works. Having a billionaire like Pritzker stand on the DNC stage and declare his billions are more real than Trumps isn't exactly a working man's dream. Beyonce, Jennifer Lopez, Taylor Swift are great advocates. They bring excitement to a rally. But declaring their endorsements as if it's going to swing a needle isn't the answer. We always talk about the middle class. What about the working poor? What about the people Rev. Barber is always working for. Those people have a hard enough time working their two or more jobs. Give them a reason to vote.

Call out "hate for profit" scheme of the rightwing. Don't be afraid. Don't be defensive. Stop apologizing. Biden didn't misspeak when he said Trump supporters were terrible. They are. Apologizing isn't going to make Trump supporters vote for Harris. Racists, hate mongers, anti-immigrant people are terrible. Stop apologizing for insulting them while shitting on core Dem constituents like young people, anti-war people, progressives.

It's time to leave behind the Clinton/Obama/Biden way of doing things. Embrace a new way forward. Please understand this isn't an attack on them. It's been done. It's not helping. World has changed. Our politics have to also. Honestly if I never hear we need a strong two party system or Republicans are our friends and we admire Reagan and Kissinger again, I’ll be a happy Democrat. Rs never say that.

Stop dumping on your base - young people, progressives, lefties . . . Rs play to their base. Ds run from them and continually expect they'll show up anyway. Well they aren’t. And their values are closer to ours than Dick and Liz Cheney. Stop chastising them and start listening.

Work with community activists.

Stop using the strategies that lost the last elections. Focus on new strategies (it can't be worse than what we have now). Stick to the hopeful vision we want to achieve. Develop a platform that is forward thinking - visionary - right for people - and then just stick with it.

Speak like a normal person. Engage in dialogue. Don't be a poll-tested robot.

Frankly, if one more Republican pundit gets on TV and says the problem is the left or the progressives or the young or the anti war crowd or whatever I think I'll scream. I never have cared what a freaking Rethuglican has said and I certainly am not interested in their tired same old same old plan for Democrats future.

Yeah. My two cents and hopefully this won't be construed as "anti" Democrat or "anti" Biden or "anti" Harris. I have been a Democrat my entire life. I've never voted any other way. I would like to see a Democrat in the White House again. I'd like to be proud of my country. I'm tired of trying to win over some white soccer mom who is too stupid to realize that her daughter is going to suffer from her vote or some ridiculous white businessman who hates Trump but sure likes his tax cuts and the chance to pollute the country. How about we win back the people tired of never getting ahead, never seeing a change in their pocketbook, their child's ability to get an education, the chance to take a two week vacation and rent an apartment and earn a decent wage? Paid Leave. Paid Sick Days. Tuition Free College. Medicare For All. Fair tax burdens. Living Wage. Negotiated Drug Prices for Everyone. Taxes that go to making our lives better - not wars. That's the Democratic Party I'm fighting for.

[Mistermike]

35. Time for some obstructionism

Dems should do multiple Motions to Vacate the Speaker in the House, and filibusters in the Senate.

More effective than blocking traffic.

[Fullduplexxx]

37. Let's die on the hill of 'circumcision yes or no!'

[TheKentuckian]

39. Figure out how to communicate with the non college majority.

It doesn't matter what the policies are if you cannot sell them.

I suggest the sociology degree and various insert demographic "studies" majors set report to the backburner and get some sales people and comedians on the case and let them fucking cook without the lame scolding and trying to talk down and over "the rabble".

Like if somebody says the b word, get the fuck over it because NO ONE outside that particular choir is hearing it including women under about 60.

Loose the pedantic hyper focus on precise terminology that ends up losing the underlying point.

If you can't stop dumping on men like it is a sport even the ones on your side and preaching about the patriarchy at every turn then damn well be open eyed that you are making sure you are further from your goals.

Swallow the academic achievement pride and be fucking digestible at about a middle school level.

Anyone think Bill Clinton is some crude dummy or Barack Obama? No, of course not.
You don't have to pretend to be an idiot to use simple and common language.

When we wrap around that then focus on the economy and broad and practical policies rather than trying to appeal to demographics because they are not destiny and are actually causing each group to evaporate in our hands.

[RoeVWade]

43. May have been the right campaign against too many headwinds

Sure if we could see the future that would help. But we can't.