Politics The Donkey in the room...the Democrats today

One of the big issues with the primary process is how much attention the media gives to the candidates who win in Iowa or New Hampshire. Yes, the bigger states are harder to campaign in, an it requires more money, but the process should represent the Democratic base better. Too many people are fleeing the typical early voting states for California, Chicago, and New York.

We Re-Ordered The Entire Democratic Primary Calendar To Better Represent The Party’s Voters

 

I'd say the young (or younger) progressives have stopped being willing to play nice and are playing hardball.
AOC goes head on with them and takes no prisoners.
I think that more of the new generation are taking a cue from her and doing the same.

They aren't willing to play the game and behave.

 

The Devil's Dictionary - Ambrose Bierce
Politics
n. A strife of interests masquerading as a contest of principles. The conduct of public affairs for private advantage.

 

Listened to this podcast today, and very much agree with what's been said from 1:00:00 until 1:16:00 (and also most stuff until 1:45;00 or so):



I sincerely hope the Democrats pick up on the changes they need to make in a truly representative candidate selection and the narrative they establish, especially with how the connection of Obama's team in the Jussie Smollett case is making the rounds in Conservative circles in similar ways as the Debbie Wasserman Schultz fiasco did within Bernie supporters; this one completely delegitimizing the political LGBT movement.

But having witnessed the party's arrogance during as well as after the 2016 election, I heavily doubt the necessary shift will happen in time. I fear they'll successfully manage to self-combust again, and am fully expecting Trump to win a 2nd term.

 

I know that most people don't ever come in contact with trans people but I work with them often.
They come to DVR most often because they suffer from things like PTSD from being attacked and beaten up over the years of their transition.

To say that their lives are no worth attention, not something that the Democrats should consider important because there are so few of them, just hurts my heart.

 

No, the point isn't that those issues are not important or legitimate (the contrary actually) - but they were talking about how gender & identity politics being the center of gravity of the Democrat agenda will only serve to work against it, and I agree.

 

All politics are identity politics.
It's just up until now, the identity has been white cis christian and mostly male.

It only seems like trans rights are the 'center' of the Democrat agenda because they are willing to mention it at all.
As soon as that happens the shit it the fan, every nut job in the world jumps in with both feet.
It might work against them but at one time 'common knowledge' said that marriage equality was a loser too.

 

I'm sorry, but your two most recent responses are exactly indicative of the the echo chamber mentality being mentioned that is crippling the Democrat political base.

Identity politics is not what is meant with "I identify with e.g. environmental policies" (if that's what you're getting at), but rather the social and gender identity items.

And certainly if anyone's primary agenda would revolve around marriage equality first and foremost over items such as environment, economy, security, and foreign policy - then I'd call them a silly motherfucker too.

This equating of lower prioritization of social/gender issues as complete dismissal of them (and the reactionary nature of how you reason your view) is a mentality that I personally find cancerous within the Democrat mindset, which is why virtue signalling and outrage culture is so prevalent there. You see it in this board prominently as well but everyone seems willfully ignorant of this, which to me then just further indicates that US Democrats still have this mental disconnect and haven't learned a damn thing from the previous election.

It will be very interesting to see how things go next year.

 

What I am saying is that by not saying anything you are establishing an identity as well - the cis white male identity that has been the standard for so long.
Just by speaking up in the slightest, making it one plank in your platform, somehow people decide it is all you care about.

I contain multitudes. I can care about a lot of things.
The Green New Deal just got shot down by the centrists who only care about their campaign donations.
I would consider that to be more of a problem then trans rights.

 

What drove the Democratic base in last year's mid-term elections was health care (#1 issue according to exit polls), fair immigration reform and economic issues. That, along with a strong anti-Trump sentiment resulted in flipping 40 seats in the House, with 8+ million more votes nationwide in House elections than for Republicans.

And those are the issues the Democrats in the House have made priorities this year.

A bill to fix and improve the ACA was introduced last week, after Trump joined a legal challenge to the constitutionality of the law. After eight years, Republicans have no alternative and keep gutting the ACA more and more despite the fact that the ACA is more popular now than ever and will be a top issue in 2020.

On economic issues, a bill for "pay equity" for women passed the House last week and will be one of those issues that particularly appeals to suburban working women as more voters are finding out first hand that the Trump/Republican tax reform primarily benefited the top one percent far more than working families.

Like most elections, 2020 will be about these core issues and the policies, programs and actions of the incumbent (Trump).

 

The House passed the net neutrality bill, Save the Internet Act, this morning.
http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2019/roll167.xml

The bill would restore the net neutrality regulations implemented by Obama in 2015 that were later rolled back by Trump. The three core issues and protections for consumers — no blocked content, no throttled access speeds and no prioritization for customers willing to pay more.

Passage in the Senate is highly unlikely (McConnell already said it is dead on arrival) despite the fact that it passed in the Senate last year (but failed in the Republican House).

There is widespread support for net neutrality legislation....

4 in 5 Americans say they support net neutrality: poll

This will be an issue in 2020 Congressional elections; maybe not a top issue, but particularly of interest to younger voters (18-29 yr olds).

 

Net neutrality means nothing if the Democrats just surrender to the conservative trolls...

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez left Facebook. Good for her (Opinion) - CNN

 

She is still on Twitter.
I think this is more a shot at Facebook than anything else.

 

But it is still the conservative tactic of taking out anyone who dares to become the leader of the left.

President Trump's 2020 Campaign Gets a Head Start on Facebook

When Trump's reelection campaign has already spent more money on Facebook to try and persuade people than ALL of the Democratic candidates combined it is a problem.

I mean, we know that it will get nasty on-line in the next few months, but I want to know that the DNC and the campaigns have learned how to use trolls, bots, and activists to flood the zone and change the conversation on-line.