Republicans can cure Democrats' disarray
Published February 24, 2015
by Tomas Mills, Politics NC, February 23, 2015.
At the Democratic National Committee’s winter meeting, an internal report says the party is in disarray. It lacks a coherent message and the ability to motivate its base, the report says. To win, it says, Democrats must figure out how to connect with Southern whites while motivating key demographic groups, particularly African-Americans.
The report is correct on a number of measures. Democrats have become a party of diverse constituencies without an overarching economic message. They are the party of the LBGT community, the choice community, the African-American community, the Hispanic community, the labor community and probably a few I’ve left out. They don’t need lose that coalition, but they need to broaden their message to attract other voters, in particular working class and suburban whites.
That said, the situation is probably not as dire as the report implies. Parties are always on the brink of collapse in the aftermath of a bad election cycle. After George W. Bush’s 2004 victory, Karl Rove predicted a “permanent Republican majority.” And remember the Republican autopsy? After 2012, the GOP seemed to be in its death throws. Now, it looks ascendant.
And before the Republicans get too cocky about their success in 2014, they should remember that it’s a lot easier to be against everything than to be for anything. They spent six years opposing everything Obama and the Democrats proposed. The GOP helped make government dysfunctional and when voters got tired of the partisan rancor, they blamed the party in the White House, as they so often do.
However, voters want government to work. With Republicans controlling both houses of Congress and the president term-limited, they will own some of whatever happens over the next two years. The GOP will need to deliver if they want to hold onto the Senate with a difficult map.
Democrats need to take a hard look at themselves. They have a lot of work to do. The political landscape has changed and they need to adapt. They need a broader economic message and they need to figure out the role of the party, both nationally and in states, in post-Citizens United world.
However, they shouldn’t despair too deeply. Voters aren’t in love with Republicans, either. If Democrats can’t fix themselves now, a Republican victory in 2016 will almost certainly do the trick.
February 24, 2015 at 11:30 am
Frank Burns says:
The Democrats will need radical surgery to fix their problems. They have gone over to the left too far and therefore their positions are out of touch with the public.
February 24, 2015 at 2:12 pm
Vicki Boyer says:
The political landscape HAS changed. It changed in 2008 with the election of Barack Obama. Not just an African-American, but a younger generation, a more tech-savvy generation.
The NCDP needs to change, as well. For many years I felt that our most senior elected Democrats just took turns being governor. They were almost certain to win, and with few exceptions, were elected time after time. That won't happen any more. Whoever runs will have to work at it. And work hard. Candidates need to exude energy as much as competence and experience.
Those who were leaders before 2008 are not the candidates who will win the future. We need candidates who are energetic, and know how to talk to the camera. They have to make use of the alternative media offered by the internet. We need a new generation of leaders.
