2017 Democratic Thread

[GoSox05]

That's not broad enough and hurts with small business owners.

 

 

Wouldn't want to anger the small business owners.

[bmags]

Here would be my dem platform.

 

Higher Wages. Lower Costs.

 

Then I would forcefeed a bunch of market based housing policy down the lefts throats.

[StrangeSox]

Wouldn't want to anger the small business owners.

 

more flashbacks to Clinton's "let's court moderate suburban republicans!" strategy that worked out so well

[Reddy]

This whole idea that Democrats shouldn't try to talk to EVERYONE and expand the tent blows my mind. I don't get it. Honestly.

[StrangeSox]

This whole idea that Democrats shouldn't try to talk to EVERYONE and expand the tent blows my mind. I don't get it. Honestly.

 

They're going to vote Republican anyway. Trying that outreach failed spectuclarly for Clinton, and it's really dismaying to see that D leadership has apparently learned nothing from 2016. And when you make outreaches like that while doing absolutely nothing for your more left base, you're going to lose more votes than you could even hope to pick up.

 

Nobody gets excited or motivated by "tax credits for businesses to do job retraining!" and "Better Deal" is just more of the "we're not as bad as Republicans" with nothing inspirational at all behind it. Democrats need to be going after 1) their own base and 2) the ~50% of the population who doesn't vote. I really don't see anything in this platform that's going to get anyone engaged, and I can already see it's DOA with the more Bernie side of the base.

[Reddy]

They're going to vote Republican anyway. Trying that outreach failed spectuclarly for Clinton, and it's really dismaying to see that D leadership has apparently learned nothing from 2016. And when you make outreaches like that while doing absolutely nothing for your more left base, you're going to lose more votes than you could even hope to pick up.

 

Nobody gets excited or motivated by "tax credits for businesses to do job retraining!" and "Better Deal" is just more of the "we're not as bad as Republicans" with nothing inspirational at all behind it. Democrats need to be going after 1) their own base and 2) the ~50% of the population who doesn't vote. I really don't see anything in this platform that's going to get anyone engaged, and I can already see it's DOA with the more Bernie side of the base.

 

SO MANY OBAMA VOTERS VOTED FOR TRUMP!

 

It's a completely false narrative that they're "going to vote Republican anyway". I'm not going to listen to that trash anymore.

[StrangeSox]

I'm sure those Obama voters are going to come crawling back for business tax credits. Better to go after them than do anything to shore up your base and get non- or reluctant voters to be more engaged.

[bmags]

I remember every year of my life when the party platform and national party committees were overconsidered and pointless until bernie came along and told me that actually they are the most important thing in the world.

[Reddy]

I'm sure those Obama voters are going to come crawling back for business tax credits. Better to go after them than do anything to shore up your base and get non- or reluctant voters to be more engaged.

 

You literally have no idea how to win voters. It's the economy. It's always the economy. Why are you ignoring ending drug price gouging? Why are you ignoring the minimum wage increase? Why are you ignoring that the business tax credits help to TRAIN AND EMPLOY WORKERS who have been struggling ever since 2008?

 

These are the first of many new policies. It's a great start. It shows they know why they lost, and know what they have to do to win. But, because we're liberals, we just like whining and b****ing instead of doing the necessary work.

[StrangeSox]

You literally have no idea how to win voters. It's the economy. It's always the economy. Why are you ignoring ending drug price gouging? Why are you ignoring the minimum wage increase? Why are you ignoring that the business tax credits help to TRAIN AND EMPLOY WORKERS who have been struggling ever since 2008?

 

These are the first of many new policies. It's a great start. It shows they know why they lost, and know what they have to do to win. But, because we're liberals, we just like whining and b****ing instead of doing the necessary work.

 

Specifically on the bolded, because it's a policy that's been tried for decades and doesn't work.

 

Where's Medicare for All or some other similar UHC program? Where's anything major on college? Where's the headline on minimum wage? What have they actually committed to here? What's the exciting part?

[Reddy]

Specifically on the bolded, because it's a policy that's been tried for decades and doesn't work.

 

Where's Medicare for All or some other similar UHC program? Where's anything major on college? Where's the headline on minimum wage? What have they actually committed to here? What's the exciting part?

I'M A PROGRESSIVE BERNIE BRO AND I WANT EVERYTHING NOW AND AT ONCE AND WILL NOT TAKE ANYTHING LESS THAN EXACTLY WHAT I WANT f*** ANYONE ELSE WHO HAS A DIFFERENT VIEW.

 

Dude. They said they'll be unveiling many, many more policies over the coming months. Chill the f*** out.

[StrangeSox]

yep that's me, the Bernard Brother who demands immediate perfection.

 

I've argued for years that people need to vote in the most efficient way possible, even if it's for the best of bad options, and I'll continue to do that. That doesn't mean I can't find this latest messaging attempt to be absolutely pathetic and uninspiring. This was their big, new unveiling. This was their chance to lay some bold policies out. They didn't do that. They've chosen a bunch of meh around the margins. There's nothing big and aspirational there. Putting out a bunch of policy papers over the coming months won't matter, either.

 

e.g.:

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/for...8db8_story.html

 

“A Better Deal” is not the worst slogan I’ve ever heard, but it’s far from the best. The Democratic Party has overwhelming support from the “creatives” on Madison Avenue and the marketing geniuses in Hollywood. Why are Republicans so much better at coming up with pithy phrases that pack a punch?

 

It was not always thus. John F. Kennedy’s “New Frontier” and Lyndon Johnson’s “Great Society” were aspirational in a reach-for-the-stars kind of way; Barack Obama’s “Yes We Can” invited Americans to feel good about themselves and their collective potential. “A Better Deal” leans in the right direction, but betterness is relative. Why cede rhetorical absolutism — “Make America Great Again” — to Donald Trump, on his way toward being remembered as the least great president in our history?

 

I’m still waiting to hear the “bold solutions” that Democrats promise. I can think of one possibility: Why not propose some version of truly universal single-payer health care?

 

Yes, that would be risky. But it might generate real excitement among the Democratic base — and also grab the attention of some of the GOP’s working-class supporters. Incrementalism is not the answer. Democrats need to go big or go home.

 

 

Edited July 25, 2017 by StrangeSox

[Balta1701]

yep that's me, the Bernard Brother who demands immediate perfection.

 

I've argued for years that people need to vote in the most efficient way possible, even if it's for the best of bad options, and I'll continue to do that. That doesn't mean I can't find this latest messaging attempt to be absolutely pathetic and uninspiring. This was their big, new unveiling. This was their chance to lay some bold policies out. They didn't do that. They've chosen a bunch of meh around the margins. There's nothing big and aspirational there. Putting out a bunch of policy papers over the coming months won't matter, either.

If this was a big unveiling it wasn't even well thought out. Remember the Iraq war marketing setup - "You never introduce a new product until after Labor Day".

[Reddy]

If this was a big unveiling it wasn't even well thought out. Remember the Iraq war marketing setup - "You never introduce a new product until after Labor Day".

Unfortunately, in the era of Trump, planning a presser is tough. There's always some new shocking shiny object for the media to focus on instead of the thing you want them to cover. Kushner was that thing yesterday. Can't predict crap like that.

[Balta1701]

Unfortunately, in the era of Trump, planning a presser is tough. There's always some new shocking shiny object for the media to focus on instead of the thing you want them to cover. Kushner was that thing yesterday. Can't predict crap like that.

I bet we can still plan for when Labor day happens.

[bmags]

If this was a big unveiling it wasn't even well thought out. Remember the Iraq war marketing setup - "You never introduce a new product until after Labor Day".

 

It's because it doesn't matter.

[StrangeSox]

To be fair I will say that personality matters more than anything else.

[bmags]

The candidates matter more than anything else. You think a potential candidate is ever going to refer back to this platform?

 

If any candidate uses the party slogan as a reason to vote they should be primaried to s***.

 

 

[bmags]

"And that's why this is..."

*squints*

"A better deal"

 

You can replace that last line with anything and it's still terrible.

[Reddy]

Platform and slogans don't usually matter. That's true.

 

This time, it matters. You can say whatever you want, but I'll be happy to see how this post matures over the next 16 months. Because the branding the Dems do to counter Trump's will matter tremendously, since the biggest criticism of the Dems IS that no one knows what they stand for.

[Reddy]

"And that's why this is..."

*squints*

"A better deal"

 

You can replace that last line with anything and it's still terrible.

It's terrible if you deliver it terribly, and fantastic if you deliver it well. Chuck delivered it damn well yesterday.

[bmags]

Platform and slogans don't usually matter. That's true.

 

This time, it matters. You can say whatever you want, but I'll be happy to see how this post matures over the next 16 months. Because the branding the Dems do to counter Trump's will matter tremendously, since the biggest criticism of the Dems IS that no one knows what they stand for.

 

It really won't matter unless they want to run a suicide mission.

 

If dems want to show what they believe in and counteract news cycles from trump, they better stop believing in platforms and ground game, and also start to get familiar with this new medium called television.

[bmags]

It's terrible if you deliver it terribly, and fantastic if you deliver it well. Chuck delivered it damn well yesterday.

 

I know that he didn't because I didn't see it and nobody saw it except 4 jacobin writers that wanted to get upset.

[Reddy]

I know that he didn't because I didn't see it and nobody saw it except 4 jacobin writers that wanted to get upset.

If you didn't see it that's on you.

 

You didn't see it because the press covered Kushner, as I mentioned above. Every single person I've shown it to had the same reaction. It's good. Really good.

[StrangeSox]

Few people ever see those sorts of things. Really, not very many people watch cable news.