2022 midterm polls

[David Horn]

(10-20-2022, 07:08 PM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(10-20-2022, 06:11 PM)David Horn Wrote:

(10-20-2022, 02:07 AM)Eric the Green Wrote: I am so disappointed. I thought I would never see a House of Representatives as crazy and dedicated to destruction as the Tea Party congress after 2010. We are now likely to see a congress of cultist conspiracy freaks even more destructive, more crazy and more dedicated to taking away all real freedom and justice. The misnamed Freedom Caucus was bad enough. I wonder what the Boebert/Greene wing call themselves. Just the MAGA wing I guess has become the established name for them. It is just one reason I am feeling sad and lazy today.

We can blame the Dems for a lot of this.  Most voters are naive in the extreme.  If 'R' says he's a good guy, wants to lower your taxes and put the bad guys in jail, some stuffy academic response by 'D' will be ignored entirely.  The 'D's need to meet the voters on their level and talk their language.  That we've allowed the electorate to get this degraded in civics can be faulted on societal decisions made in the past, but it is what it is.

Assuming my explanation of the "defund the police" issue above is too academic, how would you suggest talking about it on "their" level? Can talking on their level really counter the slogan?

Look at what works for the Reps and what doesn't for the Dems.  Facts and data -- even photos -- don't cut it.  The Rs use emotion, 100%.  They have since Lee Atwater found the formula with Willie Horton.  That's all they do.  Trump put on steroids.  So how do you talk about somethiing like 'defund the police (who thought that was a good idea, btw).  Try taking the cop's side.  What cop wants to handle some domestic dispute.  It's dangerous, cops get shot all the time and they aren't trained to handle mental breakdoowns. Wouldn't it be better to send mental health techs -- people without guns -- and let them talk them down.  The same formula works for sheltering the homeless and dealing with drug addicts.

Then, there's the other side.  Ds must never allow the Rs to misrepresent them -- not ever.  The best examples of doing that are the debates where Val Demings in Florida and Stacy Abrams in Georgia, though Tim Ryan was pretty good too, took action immediately!  All three had opponenets who wished to paint them as something else, and they did exactly what they should have done; they took personal offense and corrected their opponents.  Note: the outrage came first.  Dems too often come across as too detached and, frankly calculating.  It doesn't work.

Too often the Ds dither when action -- even poorly thought-through action -- is needed.  Two examples and I'll shut up.  On 1/6/20, when the actions of Trump were blatant and obvious to all, Nancy Pelosi shoujd have concluded the evening by calling for an impeachment vote on the spot.  Example 2: The Saudis and UAE stabbed Biden in the back over oil.  He should have paused miltary coppoeration and arms sales immediatley.  Both would have gained the admiration of the voting public who think that politicains never do anything but CYA.  Both would have been seen as 'cover OUR ass.