“If the Democrats deliver on their promise, get back to economics, and most importantly, craft policies that work for all Americans, I’m listening.”
Even as a tepid “Democrat”, or more accurately- an individual who doesn’t view the government as inherently evil, I have to admit that the current iteration Democratic Party doesn’t do much for me. In the 2016 Presidential elections, Hillary Clinton’s entire campaign seemed to be “I am not Donald Trump.” That didn’t get me, along with millions of other would-be Democratic voters, to the polls. Now, it appears Democrats are ready to change things up. Next Monday, Congressional Democrats will apparently unveil an economic-focused message that aims to generate support among main street Americans.
Apparently, the new policy platform will eschew the divisive identity politics and “box checking” that has driven so many voters away from the Democratic Party. Supposedly, the platform will seek to transcend the typical “left vs. right” partisan politics that has become typical of the Democratic Party and Washington D.C. in general. All too often, it seems as if politics has devolved into a hate-driven mud slinging contest, with both Democrats and Republicans at fault.
If the Democrats deliver on their promise, get back to economics, and most importantly, craft policies that work for all Americans, I’m listening. If they eschew “hate the other guy” politics and get back to crafting pragmatic policies that actually work, they can count on me to show up at the polls. And if they actually commit to fighting special interests and the elitist donor class that has increasingly seized control of our political system while pushing mainstream America out of politics, I’ll go to bat for the Democrats.
That’s a lot of ifs and there is still a question that burns in my mind. Can I trust the current Democrat leadership? Let’s assume that the DNC unveils an economic message myself and others agree with. Let’s assume that it’s founded on good economics, and embraces the ills that are challenging middle America, rather than the typical, sit-down and shut up condescension that so often comes from Democratic Party leaders. Even if they craft a great platform, what reassurances do we have that they’ll actually deliver, rather than simply making a bunch of empty promises to get votes?
The current platform is apparently the brainchild of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), among others. I don’t hate Pelosi in the way many others do, but she has always struck me as out-of-touch and has overseen the utter collapse of the Democratic Party. Meanwhile, Schumer has done nothing to excite me and his promotion to the Senate leadership struck me as the same-old machine bureaucracy that has allowed the Democratic Party and D.C. in general to devolve into an insular and unresponsive party.
With Schumer and Pelosi still pulling the strings, will the Democrats really be willing to go after corporate masters and the donor class that have seized control of the party at the expense of average voters? In the Presidential race Hillary Clinton talked an okay game, at times, but far too often showed her true colors by jet-setting off to private galas and donor dinners. I’m ready to move beyond Clinton, voters are ready to move beyond Clinton, but is the Democratic Party really prepared to abandon its establishment-machine politics?
That’s not going to be proven by a party platform and trust can no longer be bought with pretty words. Both Republican and Democrats will say anything to drum up votes. The GOP prattled for years about how they’d repeal and replace Obamacare with something better, if given the chance. They’ve been given that chance, and they’ve flailed about uselessly. Meanwhile, Democrats recently tested a 2018 campaign slogan “I mean, have you seen the other guys,” I kid you not. Even after trying a similar “we aren’t Trump” tactic in 2016 that failed miserably, some DNC leaders are still clinging to already proven fail tactics.
