Abandon Policing Cultural Behaviors
Hello, POLITICO reached out to me to offer a candid take on how the Democratic Party can regain the public’s trust and revitalize American democracy. Here’s what I wrote:
Abandon Policing Cultural Behaviors
First, the Democrats should apologize for sandbagging Bernie Sanders in the 2016 primary.
After, they should name Dean Phillips the new chair of the DNC, as the only Democrat with the character to sacrifice his own career for the good of the country.
Next, they should apologize for not having a competitive primary this year, which would have resulted in a vetted nominee and ticket with the buy-in of hundreds of thousands of voters. They will agree to always hold a primary no matter what, as it resulted in victories in 2008 and 2020, while not holding a competitive primary resulted in losses in 2016 and 2024. They should voluntarily adopt open primaries (and ranked choice voting) in all of their primaries, inviting independents to participate in their candidate selection process, as this group represents a plurality of Americans.
They should pledge never to back extremists in Republican primaries to boost a more beatable opponent in the general election, and they should agree never to keep minor parties or independent candidates off the ballot in states around the country. If you believe yourself to be the better option, you shouldn’t be scared of healthy competition.
They should back the Local Journalism Sustainability Act to provide a path for local journalism, increasing information going to the electorate. They should also back the Fair Representation Act as a way to fight gerrymandering and give voice to voters in the minority party of a district. Yes, they’ll lose some seats in Democratic gerrymandered states. What a message it would send to voters that they’d rather build a representative government than hold onto power at all costs.
Finally, they should adopt one central mission: improving Americans’ standard of living. They should abandon policing cultural behaviors, especially since many of their stances aren’t even popular with Democrats in real life. They should also create solutions for men and boys — who are struggling — instead of engaging in identity politics that excludes at least half of the country.
In many ways, these all boil down to one thing: The Democratic Party should act more democratically. But they will do none of these things. Instead, they will begin jockeying for position within the party to run in 2028. That is why more and more voters will look for options, like the Forward Party, or declare themselves independents as Trump returns to power. Institutions incapable of reform get replaced.
