What's Next For the Democrat Party?
We are a little over two weeks removed from the complete butt-whooping Democrats received at the hands of Donald Trump and the Republicans on election night. Trump not only winning with a whopping 312 electoral votes but also winning the popular vote by roughly five million, in addition to the Republicans' takeover of both the House and the Senate, has left Democrats in a state they have rarely found themselves in recent history: speechless and totally at a loss as to what to do next. For Republicans, the disarray is certainly fun to watch, but we have to wonder, what could they possibly pull out of the jaws of this bad of a defeat.
The first thing to understand is that Democrats still have no idea why they lost. Usually, the first thing on their list is “messaging.” Democrat operative after Democrat operative has rambled on about lack of messaging. The truth is that the lack of messaging came in the form of Democrats refusing to listen to the “message” the American people were trying to send them. When voters tried to tell them there was no way they could keep paying twice as much at the grocery store and the gas pump, Democrats told them they were too stupid to understand how great the economy was. When voters tried to tell them they were tired of millions of illegal aliens coming into the country, getting free stuff, and committing crimes, Democrats told them they really weren’t seeing what they were seeing. The border was secure and closed. When voters tried to say they were definitely not okay with transgender treatment for minors, especially without parental consent, and that it is not okay for biological boys to play in girls’ sports, Democrats just told them they were transphobic. Americans sent Democrats a very clear message: you can only ignore voters for so long.
Even Democrats, if they are truthful, can’t ignore the fact that the Party is without any clear leaders. Not that he is a leader, but Joe Biden will be shuffling off to Delaware for good soon. There is no clear up-and-coming leader in the Party, much less a possible viable candidate for 2028. However, a recent poll showed 41 percent of Democrat voters would support Kamala Harris again in 2028. But the election was just two weeks ago. Let’s see that poll again in four years. She nearly bankrupted the Democrat Party in just four short months to the point where they are now $20 million in debt. There is scuttlebutt that she may get drafted to run for governor in California when Gavin Newsom’s term ends. Other than maybe an ambassadorship in some future Democrat administration, it is really her only hope. It would be a no-brainer that she wouldn’t have to put in any work to get. Some might say that the 2028 presidential front-runner is Gavin Newsom. But given the state of California, does anyone believe that Americans would vote for that?
The problem for Newsom, or anyone else who could be promising for the Party, is that the dinosaurs refuse to pack it in. The prime example of this is 84-year-old Nancy Pelosi, who filed for reelection last week. On the quiet, several Democrat lawmakers are saying they are tired of Pelosi butting in and giving her opinion on why Kamala Harris lost, and think she and other aging Democrat lawmakers need to make room for a younger generation. Then there is 73-year-old Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. He does not appear to be going anywhere, either. But it’s not just aging leaders of the Party; it is also those who might have once had the magnetism to draw in and influence voters, but not anymore. Bill and Hillary Clinton are products of a bygone era. Even Barack and Michelle Obama do not have the mojo they once did. Obama’s lecturing of black men on why they should just shut up, stop asking questions, and just vote for Kamala Harris had the exact opposite effect it was supposed to. Neither did all the celebrity endorsements. Americans don’t like it when multimillionaires who don’t have to struggle to buy food and gas tell them who to vote for.
The dinosaurs not willing to exit are creating a good bit of infighting among establishment Democrats versus the progressive wing of the Party. As Democrats get ready to elect a new Democrat National Committee (DNC) Chair, the establishment Democrats are right in thinking that the progressive wing of the Party is leading them down a bad path. They know the rest of the country is not on board with things like the green and transgender agendas and mass amnesty for illegal aliens. The other thing that clearly did not resonate with average Americans is the Democrat Party’s obsession with identity politics. One of the most effective ads from the Trump campaign ended with the tagline, “Kamala is for they/them. President Trump is for you.” State DNC members have stated that it was that focus on identity politics and not the things that Americans care about, like the economy and immigration, that did them in.
If they want to rebuild the Party, centrist Democrats are going to have to do three things: wrest control of the Party away from the Progressives, and that is not going to be pretty. Then, they are going to have to come up with common-sense solutions to the issues Americans care about. Finally, they are going to have to listen.
Democrats who get it now are few and far between. One state DNC state committeeman said, “I don’t want to be the freakshow party like they have branded us.” As of right now, it’s too late; you already are the freakshow. It’s why you lost.