Dems set to target middle class in 2016
It’s time to get our house in order
By now we’re all aware that the race for 2016 started before the ink was dry on the race for 2014. Even before President Obama delivered his already-partially-failed State of the Union slate of promises, we knew that he was going to attempt to pivot away from his party’s disastrous performance in the midterms with a renewed commitment to populist platitudes; what we didn’t know is whether or not his oft-divided party would follow his lead.
Follow his lead they have, according to statements from high-ranking Democrats gathered this week in Philadelphia to talk strategy.
From AP’s Big Story:
Their newly appointed chief of messaging, Rep. Steve Israel of New York, said House Democrats are “absolutely unified on three essential messages going forward. And it’s middle class, middle class and middle class.”
Israel acknowledged that Democrats talked a lot about the middle class in last fall’s elections. But world calamities distracted voters, he said, and Democrats failed to show that their economic policies would directly benefit working class families.
Riffing on a campaign line of President Bill Clinton in 1992, Israel said the Democrats’ new theme will be, “It’s MY economy, stupid.”
Many Republicans scoff at Democrats’ talk of better messaging. “Updating the packaging doesn’t help if the product is still lousy,” said Michael Steel, spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio.
Fortunately for Representative Israel, most of voting America isn’t yet paying attention to the fact that he’s mistaken global calamities for the ones Democrats caused at home. If they were, they’d be calling him on it, because even people who don’t live in our political bubble know that the rebel siege on Ukraine isn’t responsible for skyrocketing health care costs and larger grocery bills.
Still, the focus on the middle class is a smart one for Democrats; they may be terrible at writing effective policy, but they’re the as-yet undisputed masters of messaging when it comes to presidential politics, and middle class voters are obviously a must-get demographic. They’re also the voters whose wallets have been ravaged by Harry Reid’s obstructionist Senate and Obama’s power-hungry administration, which means that Democrats will have to both sell a product and regain the trust of its consumer before they can even entertain a hope of maintaining control of the White House.
Of course, none of that matters if Republicans drop the ball when it comes to their own messaging to the middle class. Right now, all Democrats have to market is, in fact, a lousy product. During Obama’s first campaign, national Democrats served up a dream candidate on a silver platter; because Obama had no real record to run on, strategists were free to construct a fever dream of “hope” and “change we can believe in.” Now, a term and a half later, Democrats find themselves left defending the ruin of potential against a deep bench of Republican challengers.
Republicans are on offense, and we should take advantage of that position before Democrats truly begin to organize around a Clinton or Warren, or someone else with both a record and a talent for emotional appeal. The primary is far enough away that we don’t even have to pick one or two candidates to rally around (although I wouldn’t necessarily fault someone who did)—we just need to start emphasizing the fact that our bench has a history of solid policymaking, effective governing, and—bonus!—showing up for votes on important bills.
Democrats are going to use every angle available to them to not only reach the middle class, but connect with them on a deeper level than they managed in 2014; but they’ll be digging themselves out of a hole. Republicans have the opportunity to do the exact same thing, only we’ll be capitalizing on the work we started in 2014 by expanding local grassroots initiatives, microtargeting communities with tailored messaging, and focusing not on voters as demographics, but as people who stand to win or lose based on who we send to the Oval Office.
Outreach for 2016 starts now; and if we do it right, it won’t have anything whatsoever to do with whichever Republican contender has managed to wrangle the spotlight from the rest of the bunch.
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Comments
“…our bench has a history of solid policymaking, effective governing, and—bonus!—showing up for votes on important bills.”
Yes, yes, yes!
The Republican Party has worked hard to find good candidates for us. They have done the work of a real, national party to develop and test their policies in the states, and they know how to implement them. This party can govern the way Americans want them to — reasonably, effectively, and with due respect for the individual.
Naturally, people will have their favorites, but it’s thrilling to see so many people of such good quality to pick from.
Valerie: First, I apologize for the down vote. I hit the wrong button (which I seem to do not infrequently. Hint to moderator: Any way to separate the buttons?)
Second: Are you being serious or snarky? (Genuine question.)
I took it for SNARK in overdrive.
Collectivists HATE the middle-class, and have historically.
And the middle-America they hope to fool again is getting it, since its being ground into our faces every day.
Loretta Lynch didn’t do the Collectivist cause any good yesterday when she calmly told the amazing lie that people have a right to work in America, regardless of how they got here.
It was a lie on several levels, and one that nobody who heard it did not recognize as such.
I was thrilled to hear that myself. All these years I was mistakenly under the impression that LAWS sometimes get in the way of certain people performing certain jobs. Like immigration laws, or laws against prostitution, for example.
Now that I know that working is a “right” and laws don’t matter, I’m going to pursue my passion of becoming a gigolo. Hopefully the fact that I’m now almost 50 years old, slightly overweight and balding (but only on top) won’t matter. If any of that hinders my success, I’ll consider a lawsuit of some sort against somebody for previously interfering with my “rights” by giving me the erroneous impression that laws matter.
Check out this other news scribbler Collectivist.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/erik-wemple/wp/2015/01/27/politico-reporter-posts-tweets-about-unionizing-employer/
Politico reporter posts tweets about unionizing employer
“… but it’s thrilling to see so many people of such good quality to pick from.”
Here is a scary thought: Back when I was a democrat I remember writing words that were very similar about the democrat bench in 2007. That looked true on the face but we never did have a choice.
There might have alway been such horrific lying and cheating and threatening to get a nomination but this was the first time I witnessed it.
“The Republican Party has worked hard to find good candidates for us.” Same thing in 2011, in my new party – we thought we had a choice then too and most of us were saying “anyone but Mitt”. That didn’t get us any further then it got those who opposed Obama’s nomination in 2008.
Establishment politicians know they can’t pull that off but maybe once more as the tea party grows stronger and stronger and American begin to wake up.
So now, the establishment politicians are attempting to take our country right out from under us.
They are planning on looking the other way as illegal alien vote. Or making it legal some how. You might have noticed that the AG candidate said when about illegal aliens being issued a picture id.
If they get that far, we need to make sure the id card is at least 3X7″ and red with green stripes or something equally as blatant so every American citizen who sees it knows they have no business voting.
http://theconservativetreehouse.com/2015/01/30/catherine-engelbrecht-testifies-in-the-loretta-lynch-confirmation-hearing/
Thank you for posting that link as it indicated fully what a Lynch AG will be like and we should keep this in mind when selecting a Republican standard bearer for 2016…
“Republicans are on offense…”
Are they? In the senate they’re about to confirm Loretta Lynch as Eric Holder’s replacement just as she said that Obama’s amnesty is legal. So basically, the law of the land is that anybody walks across the border and you can get one of those nice jobs that the middle class may want for them. How is that offense…?
Perhaps they meant Republicans were ‘an’ offense, or that Republicans are offensive?
http://twitchy.com/2015/01/30/megan-mcardle-slams-libs-who-mock-joni-ernst-and-her-bread-bags/
That gives a great little vignette concerning the loathing Collectivists feel for “common people”, AND the wonderful things that market economics have done for those same “common people”.
what they mean is they’re going to destroy the middle class middle class middle class.
“Of course, none of that matters if Republicans drop the ball when it comes to their own messaging to the middle class.”
The mother of all ifs.
I don’t believe the GOP establishment wants to win. Seriously. If they did, and had brains (that’s a biggie), they’d understand that many of us will NOT vote for a RINO again. Plenty will, plenty will not – I’m guessing more conservatives will sit out 2016 than did in 2008 or 2012. Jeb, Christie and Mitt need this pounded into their stubborn, clueless skulls with an anvil.
The Democrat Party gazes over the vast middle class like a wolf gazes at a large flock of sheep.
They have no where else to go. Attempts to wish into being a nonexistent War On Women™ failed miserably. Attempts to create demons against whom they’d defend America (Koch!) failed miserably. Their two term outgoing president leaves a legacy they cannot run on. Their ‘inevitable’ candidate Hillary Clinton could not list any achievements when asked repeatedly, nor could or can her supporters. So, it’s back to the well for Democrats. It’s the same well Republicans draw from when they need to as well.
Of course, we are learning well to ignore what candidates say and review what they have actually done, a process that will cost ‘Tea Partier’ Renee Ellmers her House seat in 2016. On that, here’s what Scott Walker had to say recently in a radio interview:
“Follow through on your principals. You don’t have to throw red meat all the time. Just say what you’re going to do and then do what you say and get it done.”
Imagine that. Telling us what you’ll do if elected, and once elected, getting it done. no flips, no flops, no lies, no bullshit. But Henry! Those are just words, too, going in! Except Scott Walker has done precisely this in Wisconsin. With Walker, it isn’t just a campaign promise – it’s his actual record.
What’s the best predictor of future behavior?
Damn, that Walker quote was pretty Coolidge-esque…like.
Dinner guest: “I made a bet today that I could get more than two words out of you.”
VP Coolidge: “You lose.”
Possibly apocryphal, but a line so good I’ll believe it true.
I hate to say it, but Barry Soetero has also followed through on his promise to “fundamentally transform” the greatest country in the history of mankind.
Too bad nobody in the sycophant media stopped to question what that meant. Too bad so many voters are so GD stupid they voted for him because they liked the crease in his pants, or something, without stopping to wonder what exactly he meant by “fundamentally transform.” People who voted for this clown disgust me.
Can it be over now? Are we there yet?
Dems can ring the door bell all day to pitch their next tupperware but the middle class isn’t going to answer. Not when the last ‘sales’ resulted in the cancellation of health insurance, higher premiums, fines and less healthcare choices.
On that’s based on the *current* amount of damage done by Obamacare, which is the tip of the eventual iceberg. This year begins the loss by millions of their group, employer-based health care plans. People are going to howl bloody murder when they start to suffer what individual plan holders have already suffered.
My son: His company dropped health insurance completely due to Obamacare. He couldn’t join wife’s plan due to sign-up window too far in distance. He buys an individual private catastrophic plan, $5000 deductible, 80/20 after that, for $315/month. Obamacare kills his plan – doesn’t offer child and gynecology coverage (he’s 36 and, um, male). He tries to sign up for Obamacare. He qualifies – somehow – for $119/month in subsidies. But… even with the subsidies, the best he can do is an Obamacare Bronze Plan that is $5500 deductible, pays only 40% after deductible met, and even including $119 subsidy, would cost $460/month. Thanks, Obama!
I say ‘would cost’ because he cannot get past the final step to enroll because the website keeps screwing up. The insurer hasn’t received his app, but the Obamacare help line staff insist it has, and the insurer says it hasn’t, and the Obamacare help line staff insist it has, and… he’s stuck and f**ked.
PS: I asked my son what the monthly premium was on a typical health insurance plan of, say, $1000 deductible, 80/20 after that, with low or no copays. For him alone, and including his $119/month subsidy, typical plans along those lines would cost him over $700/month.
Son: “I don’t why I get a $119 monthly subsidy. I don’t need it. I know it isn’t free, just someone else’s tax money. But I have no choice, it’s the damn law. That is not right somehow.” (He’s a totally a-political, a mech engineer, wife and three kids).
Targetting the middle class?
Want my vote?
They better start working on these issues:
1- Repeal obamacare. Now!
2- Get rid of common core
3- Get rid of the Fed Dept of Education
4- Cut gubmint spending
5- Reduce welfare spending
6- Stop gubmint attacks against free enterprise
7- Reasonable flat tax rate. I do not plan to stay in the middle class forever.
8- Put a leash on EPA and IRS
9- Stop using the Justice Dept as a political weapon.
10- Grow a pair. Stop helping the enemies of the US.
Then come ask me again. I will think about it.
Amazing. The GOP hacks are walking around in a stupor, trying to figure out what the left is going to do to them. Leading from behind. Or up their behind.