10 Comments

I’m noting that the graphic used came from the RNC. And, using the example above, had a Dem said something as egregious as Braun said, it would have been the RNC that generated the statement and the position that all GOPers would have fallen in line behind.

Elected Dems have enough on their plates without having to craft the party message. This should fall to the party PR team, in this case, it *should* be the DNC.

I know that the primary role for the DNC is fundraising. And I know they’re far behind the GOP in this. So now is when they should work smarter not harder (please reference Ukraine for a handy primer)

The DNC is making their fundraising job harder by not crafting a compelling, cohesive message (and response) that donors can feel good about supporting.

Imagine if either of the Clinton women were in charge of Dem messaging (since Stacey Abrams is currently otherwise engaged)? They would be concise, witty, pointed and prompt. They’d never take the job but wow would I like to see it if they did.

PS - Abrams is doing a great job of naming what Kemp is doing as he’s doing it. Continuing to describe what we’re seeing can (fingers crossed) only be helpful in the long run.

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So much here it’s hard to know where to start… First, has anyone checked for a pulse on Jaime Harrison (DNC Chair)? It would be nice to have a DNC Chair actually interested enough to move away from his hometown and be a strong voice for the Dems. How about Kamala Harris? If she got involved in some of these scraps, she might gain some experience in running for public office, just in case she thinks it might come in handy.

Dan, do none of the endless number of political consultants run a workshop on how to be a politician? Please, just watch youtube videos of JFK campaigning for Medicare. At one rally he’s does a 15 minute riff on the mindless GOP, so well represented by elephants, mindlessly circling a ring, each one’s trunk grasping the tail of the one in front, with no thoughts or ideas able to penetrate their thick skulls. Then he’s giving a high-minded speech to doctors about why “our senior citizens” have earned this protection. Go high and go low. Whatever works at the time.

Do we not have a politician with a sense of humor that can mercilessly eviscerate Hawley, Cruz, Blackburn, Graham for their ridiculous ideas and bizarre attacks? Or one with rhetorical skills to reveal how stupid these ideas are in such fireside chat language that everyone gets it? Again, on youtube, watch Clinton destroy Hermann Cain’s idiotic attack on health care.

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Cory Booker pounced in a heart-felt fabulous 6 minute speech in the hearing. ! But I came here to note that I've been seeing headlines about "crime wave" and have been ignoring it assuming more bad faith Republican racism. When I read one I realized it's about mass shootings! We need to use mass shooting and not "crime" to be clear what's being talked about.

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"Unfortunately, few Democrats pounced. There were no statements from leadership calling on Republicans to disavow Braun. No floor speeches or ads. Braun’s colleagues were not hounded by rabid reporters demanding a comment. It all came and went."

Which is just one more example for why I've pretty much thrown in the towel for 2022 and beyond. The Democratic Party is a clueless, spineless joke that could not be more out of touch with its constituents if it tried.

I'll continue writing letters to editors, giving monthly to a couple of groups like Indivisible, writing postcards, and some texting. But only when I have nothing more likely to be productive to do, which is most of the time now. I refuse to commit emotionally again.

If the Democratic Party won't, why should I?

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Michelle Obama said "when they go low, we go high" - she did not say "we go soft".

As odious as Republicans are, they keep throwing us slow fat pitches over the middle of the plate that could be hit out of the park with high-minded and pointed responses. They keep giving us the opportunity to show contrast with the substance of their backwards-looking, anti-Americanism, and to show contrast with their cheap, juvenile, and fear-based tactics.

Sadly, we know the DNC doesn't have a rapid-response group who does this (or if they do, they must not be very good at it or we wouldn't be having this conversation). So who does, how do we support them, and how do we amplify their content?

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We are in a situation in which our own are nearly as infuriating as the other side. So it's up to us to fill in for them as much as possible.

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