What will the Democratic Party learn from their loss?

Was talking with my son tonight. He's a young liberal at heart, so I always enjoy listening to his views. Anyway, he thinks the party needs it's own tea party movement, and the removal of the deadwood that has poisoned the well. He seems to think that the Party is not progressive enough. My thought is they have been too progressive, which further alienates them from the average American. I'm not sure that this last election will germinate any major changes in the Party, but I would think it should be a wake up call.

 

Log in or Sign up to hide all adverts.

We've seen this before. We woke up long ago. This has already happened, with W.

That is exactly how the wingnuts were talking in that glorious celebration of victory in 2000, when their hero W was elected. Go on back and review - it seems you have forgotten.

Do you remember how that worked out for y'all? Well, this could be even worse. And we're going to reserve our sympathy for the collateral damage, this time. You fools own this one completely.

You didn't learn from Reagan, you didn't even learn from W, but I think this guy can get through. I have confidence in him. You're going to get the government you voted for, the one you deserve, good and hard.

Unless you join us in checking out the polling irregularities this time. He probably stole it, you know, like 2000 and 2004 - it's your last chance to rethink.

 

Log in or Sign up to hide all adverts.

I suspect all parties will do some soul-searching.

If Trump accomplished nothing else, I'd say he tossed a stick of dynamite into Washington, and the effects will ripple down through decades, as the parties re-align and try new strategies. I think that's not entirely bad.

I'd say almost 50% of Americans agree. IMO, this election was a vote to end entrenchment and status quo in Washington.

But it would be nice if Trump didn't turn some portion of the world (including America) into a smoking radioactive crater in the meantime.

 

Log in or Sign up to hide all adverts.

Establishment politics doesn't work any more. This wasn't a backlash against progressivism, Bernie proved that.

 

by Bernie Sanders

Millions of Americans registered a protest vote on Tuesday, expressing their fierce opposition to an economic and political system that puts wealthy and corporate interests over their own. I strongly supported Hillary Clinton, campaigned hard on her behalf, and believed she was the right choice on Election Day. But Donald J. Trump won the White House because his campaign rhetoric successfully tapped into a very real and justified anger, an anger that many traditional Democrats feel.

I am saddened, but not surprised, by the outcome. It is no shock to me that millions of people who voted for Mr. Trump did so because they are sick and tired of the economic, political and media status quo.

Working families watch as politicians get campaign financial support from billionaires and corporate interests — and then ignore the needs of ordinary Americans. Over the last 30 years, too many Americans were sold out by their corporate bosses. They work longer hours for lower wages as they see decent paying jobs go to China, Mexico or some other low-wage country. They are tired of having chief executives make 300 times what they do, while 52 percent of all new income goes to the top 1 percent. Many of their once beautiful rural towns have depopulated, their downtown stores are shuttered, and their kids are leaving home because there are no jobs — all while corporations suck the wealth out of their communities and stuff them into offshore accounts.

Working Americans can’t afford decent, quality child care for their children. They can’t send their kids to college, and they have nothing in the bank as they head into retirement. In many parts of the country they can’t find affordable housing, and they find the cost of health insurance much too high. Too many families exist in despair as drugs, alcohol and suicide cut life short for a growing number of people.

President-elect Trump is right: The American people want change. But what kind of change will he be offering them? Will he have the courage to stand up to the most powerful people in this country who are responsible for the economic pain that so many working families feel, or will he turn the anger of the majority against minorities, immigrants, the poor and the helpless?

Will he have the courage to stand up to Wall Street, work to break up the “too big to fail” financial institutions and demand that big banks invest in small businesses and create jobs in rural America and inner cities? Or, will he appoint another Wall Street banker to run the Treasury Department and continue business as usual? Will he, as he promised during the campaign, really take on the pharmaceutical industry and lower the price of prescription drugs?

I am deeply distressed to hear stories of Americans being intimidated and harassed in the wake of Mr. Trump’s victory, and I hear the cries of families who are living in fear of being torn apart. We have come too far as a country in combating discrimination. We are not going back. Rest assured, there is no compromise on racism, bigotry, xenophobia and sexism. We will fight it in all its forms, whenever and wherever it re-emerges.

I will keep an open mind to see what ideas Mr. Trump offers and when and how we can work together. Having lost the nationwide popular vote, however, he would do well to heed the views of progressives. If the president-elect is serious about pursuing policies that improve the lives of working families, I’m going to present some very real opportunities for him to earn my support.

Let’s rebuild our crumbling infrastructure and create millions of well-paying jobs. Let’s raise the minimum wage to a living wage, help students afford to go to college, provide paid family and medical leave and expand Social Security. Let’s reform an economic system that enables billionaires like Mr. Trump not to pay a nickel in federal income taxes. And most important, let’s end the ability of wealthy campaign contributors to buy elections.

In the coming days, I will also provide a series of reforms to reinvigorate the Democratic Party. I believe strongly that the party must break loose from its corporate establishment ties and, once again, become a grass-roots party of working people, the elderly and the poor. We must open the doors of the party to welcome in the idealism and energy of young people and all Americans who are fighting for economic, social, racial and environmental justice. We must have the courage to take on the greed and power of Wall Street, the drug companies, the insurance companies and the fossil fuel industry.

When my presidential campaign came to an end, I pledged to my supporters that the political revolution would continue. And now, more than ever, that must happen. We are the wealthiest nation in the history of the world. When we stand together and don’t let demagogues divide us up by race, gender or national origin, there is nothing we cannot accomplish. We must go forward, not backward.

 

Trump's transition team is Republican Party central - status quo. Mike Pence is gaining control of a lot of it, and they're borrowing JP Morgan executives and well-known bigtime lobbyists and the Heritage Foundation "wingnut welfare" hiring bench - including such as Edwin Meese http://www.cnn.com/2016/11/10/politics/donald-trump-transition-drain-the-swamp/index.html

Christ, I didn't even know Edwin Meese was still alive.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edwin_Meese
Sample Meese thinking:

That was Reagan's idea of a chief of staff and legal advisor, the go-to guy for advice on handling riots and demonstrations. And transitions:

That ought to dovetail well with Trump's advocacy of torture for interrogation - keeping in mind that they plan to replace Scalia with another Scalia, and Scalia was well known for arguing that suspects in police custody have no Constitutional right to not be tortured (because the "cruel and unusual punishments" clause only applied to sentencing after conviction).

 

Not much other than , just be smarter .

Our conservatives were basicly wipeout 30yrs ago .

Then came back to lead our country for several yrs.

Until recently .

The only way to change things , is to elimate lobbiest and the way election funds are generated .

Fascism is rampant in your country .

 

Hmm well you never know. It's hard to tell what direction society will move in. It's like trying to predict the direction of the wind. However, there have been so many so-called "wake up" calls over the years that I feel pretty convinced the only wake up call that will really make a difference is the one where society will perceive a direct and imminent catastrophic threat to their way of life.

 

I would bet a dollar to a donut most of those responsible for this are conservatives. They are inclined to be cold, hard and insensitive which renders them stupid in their own way. Besides their dumb negligence in claiming constantly he was faking, they broke his neck using unnecessary force. He wasnt even really fighting them or dangerous, just some distraughtness and suicidal rantings etc. Conservatives are way more dangerous allowed too much power or allowed to make all the top decisions. Ive always noticed they tend to be cold to everyone unlike them almost universally. They think like a bull steer.

 

And just what is the average American? Let me remind you most of the Americans who voted, didn't vote for your man. They voted for your son's candidate. They voted for the Democratic candidate. If the folk who voted were average Americans, your candidate failed to garner a majority of their vote.

 

Yet they did lose, which should be an indicator that they were wrong.

My guess is that general term can be applied to a wide array of people. Again, a comprehensive survey would be a good start.

 

No, joe is correct.

When defining what an "average American" is in this context, the only salient factor is who they want as President. Their education, location, wealth or any other factors that you might learn from your survey are, by definition, red herrings; they are not as accurate in predicting who the people want as simply seeing who they vote for.

After-the-fact, we can know for certain. The average American said - explicitly, with their votes - what they wanted.

 

https://www.google.com/webhp?source...q=popular vote 2016&eob=enn/p//0/1///////////

I think there is a mix return on their votes. Not only do we have a clear divide, but also a clear rejection of the democratic platform. If the Democratic party wants to compete in the future, they need to adjust their approach to the average voter. Again, a survey of the population would do them a service.

 

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/04/19/cops-taunted-black-veteran-as-he-died.html

://www.readfrontier.com/elliott-williams-death-gets-attention-amid-twitter-feud/

Do you know what he was arrested for? Getting into an argument with his parents in a hotel lobby and then acting 'strange'. What a terrible person, right?

He repeatedly told police he couldnt move and begged them for water. He could only reach with his fingers for a few drops to put on his lips. They also dumped him in the shower paralyzed and then in his cell. Some stupid nurse came in once to massage his neck for a few minutes when he kept telling them he thought his neck is broken etc. Where is the logic in that? Why would he be faking so much?

This man was a war veteran who served his country but obviously then had mental and emotional issues.

Meanwhile i know specifically white draft dodgers of the vietnam war and sex offenders who get 100% service connected disability for injuries that are not military related!! Just their own mistake while in military like driving drunk or in my stepfathers case trying to reach for me at the roller rink and hit side of his back. That evil monster is just lucky he never got caught drinking and driving. He is also a child molestor and a draft dodger. Meanwhile, i cant get that even though not only did i serve but i was also further sexually harassed in service but they say i have no proof etc!! He lives very well. Your typical republican, religious bigot, extremely dishonest man.

Life is not fair and life is not moral and it is certainly not logical. So for those 'scientists' for logic to apply, you need cognitive dissonance at the wider world and the fuked up dynamics that actually happen! Can you prevent this shit? I dont think so, so your logic and formulas and equations isnt the be all. When it applies to every sphere of reality and how logical you believe it is, i will buy you know all of reality and how it works, otherwise its tantamount to religious adherence to what you little evidence you know for now and thats all. Geesh.

 

This is interesting...

Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

 

The Democratic Party is much better adjusted to the average voter than the Republican Party - which has lost the majority vote in every single Presidential election for a quarter of a century except the one in the middle of the Iraq War - 2004 - and received only a minority of the national vote for Congress likewise during most of that time.

 

No - the Democratic platform is favored and approved of by a large majority of Americans, as long as it is not described as the Democratic platform or associated with a specific Democrat.

What we have is a rejection of abstract or official Democrats as people, based on lies and slanders of them and everything about them

- not their actual ideas or platforms or anything to do with their political agenda.

And that is the "divide" you are talking about.

 

Yet we have a Republican House, Senate, and President. Can you understand how some might believe that the Democratic Party is out of touch with the average American voter?

 

Sure. They haven't bothered to look at the vote totals, they don't understand how con jobs work, and they are getting their analysis from wingnut propaganda sources.

They are out of touch with physical reality, in other words, or they don't know what the word "average" means, or they can't mentally separate "platform" from "person", or something of the kind.

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...jorities-hang-in-the-balance-on-election-day/