Democrats Need to Remember They LOST Tuesday's Election

Without question, the results of Tuesday's election were a firm rebuke of Donald Trump and his MAGA cult. People are sick of him and his mini-mes, like failed NorCo Exec candidate Steve Lynch. In addition, it was almost certainly a reaction to the Supreme Court's Dobbs opinion on abortion. But many people within my party are acting as though we just won some great victory. Here's a newsflash - we lost. We've almost certainly lost control of the House and might lose the Senate as well. We just lost less badly than we thought we would. That's hardly a reason to celebrate. It is rather a memento mori moment.  "We the People" do resent extreme Republicans who threaten to bring 20 strong men into a school board meeting and remove school directors. We resent the violent rhetoric. But we also resent the ridiculously absurd priorities of Democratic politicians, who promote issues like transgender inclusion over far more important matters like the economy.

When it comes to issues like the economy and inflation or reducing crime or border security, Republicans have done a better job than we have of articulating the problem. They have messaged better. They just have shitty messengers. 

We have failed to message at all, except on issues that mean very little to the typical voter. Frankly, it's a little nauseating to get an email from Allentown's Mayor Tuerk signed ("he, him, his"). Instead of focusing on that, how about doing something about the constant gun violence and the dirt bikes ripping along city streets with no regard for others? 

Democrats, not Republicans, have painted themselves as uncaring elitists. The reality is that the Democrats have a pretty good message about the shrinking middle class. They recognize that the reason for this is because wealth has been concentrated over the years into the hands of the few. These 1%ers refuse to pay fair wages for fair work, and would prefer to send jobs overseas than actually pay people. Joe Biden talks about standing up for democracy, The reality is that our supposed republic  is slowly but surely morphing onto an oligarchy . The business interests of the wealthiest 10% are reflected in 78% of Congressional decisions, while those of average Americans account for just 5%.

Money misers have conditioned you to think of unions, which have saved countless lives in the coal mines and steel mills, as evil. They even rip public school teachers, who more often than not, dig into their own pockets to help students in need.  They've made it impossible for families to afford the homes or apartments in which they live. 

We Democrats have some pretty good messages. We can and should communicate these messages in a way that resonates with the blue collars and younger voters.  And elect leaders who listen to us, not hedge fund managers.