TL;DR: Democrats stopped making decisions pursuant to winning the electoral college.
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Perspective by GayJew
If you watch John King and his magic wall on CNN, he always notes a pattern. In every battleground state, blue cities and red rural areas cancel each other out, leaving suburban voters as kingmakers in the electoral college. Democrats used to get this. Now, they act like running up the popular vote matters more than winning the electoral college.
Obama won the presidency twice by mastering the electoral college. Obama built his strategy around suburban voters in battleground states.
To this end, Obama’s VP choice was Joe Biden. Biden had 36 years in the senate when Obama picked him. Harris had only four years in the senate (not even a full term) when Biden picked her. Biden’s selection strengthened Obama’s ticket, while the choice of Harris weakened Biden’s. Amy Klobuchar would have been a better choice, having more both more Senate experience than Harris and the benefit of not being from a deeply Democratic state. Gretchen Whitmer (who would have dramatically strengthened the ticket) took herself out of the running, saying Biden should pick a “Black woman” instead:
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/10/biden-veep-selection-black-woman-393147
For suburban voters, the economy, education and crime matter more than identity politics. Obama ran to win. Today’s Democrats run to check boxes. Obama rejected identity politics. Harris embraced them.
Obama won the electoral college with crossover appeal, not racial identity. Obama won suburban whites voters in battleground states like Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan, something Harris never came close to replicating. Even before Biden picked her, Harris polled worse than Biden in these states. Democrats traded Obama’s winning strategy for a losing obsession with race and gender.
Biden didn’t pick Harris because she was the most experienced, most popular, or most electable choice. She did not win the most primary votes or have the strongest support. Harris was chosen for her race and gender, not her electability. This is a fact Democratic leaders have openly acknowledged:
https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/21/politics/joe-biden-four-black-women-vice-president/index.html
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/03/15/biden-woman-vice-president-131309
Biden didn’t pick Harris to win. He picked her to appease the Democratic base, which prioritizes identity politics over electability.
Until Democrats refocus on winning battleground suburbs, they’ll keep losing the presidency.
Questions for Discussion:
- Democrats like to fancy themselves as the adults in the room compared to Trump. These ‘adults’ were supposed to ‘protect’ us from Trump, and they failed miserably. Democrats are willing to blame anyone and everyone for Trump’s victory, except for the people who were actually and explicitly tasked with preventing a Trump victory. Aside from Republicans, who does this behavior benefit?
- How has the Democratic Party’s shift towards identity politics been received in battleground states?
- Democrats need to replace their obsession with race and gender with an obsession with winning the electoral college. Is there any chance that actually happens?
Post Script:
Unlike Harris, Obama actually won his Democratic primary. In 2008, Obama took on the Clinton political machine and won. In contrast, Harris never won a primary. Harris’s campaign was such a failure that she quit three months before a single primary vote was cast.
GayJew
Article URL : https://disqus.com/by/TheGayJew/