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Democrats Learn a Big Lesson for 2020 Vote About Taking on Trump
Democrats Learn a Big Lesson for 2020 Vote About Taking on Trump
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-11-26/democrats-learn-a-big-lesson-for-2020-vote-about-taking-on-trump
“The lesson for 2020 is that when he does and says outrageous things, assume that it’s on purpose and remember that you don’t need to fight every battle that he chooses,” said former Clinton campaign spokesman Brian Fallon. “In 2016, we thought a lot of the fights he selected for himself were so obviously disqualifying that we were happy to lean into them and indulge some of the controversies he stoked.”
“We underestimated how much turnout he was able to generate in white rural areas by having extended fights on the issues he wanted,” Fallon said. In the midterms, though, “people didn’t give in to the conversation about the caravan. Democrats successfully sidestepped Trump’s attempts to make that the all-consuming issue.”
The uncomfortable lesson for Democratic strategists is that large areas of the country embrace Trump’s bluster and nationalist message centered on fears of illegal immigration, crime and globalization.
Engaging with him on those terms, they say, merely helps that message break through to rural and working-class white voters -- and prevents Democrats from reaching the more diverse and less-frequent voters they rely on.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-11-26/democrats-learn-a-big-lesson-for-2020-vote-about-taking-on-trump
“The lesson for 2020 is that when he does and says outrageous things, assume that it’s on purpose and remember that you don’t need to fight every battle that he chooses,” said former Clinton campaign spokesman Brian Fallon. “In 2016, we thought a lot of the fights he selected for himself were so obviously disqualifying that we were happy to lean into them and indulge some of the controversies he stoked.”
“We underestimated how much turnout he was able to generate in white rural areas by having extended fights on the issues he wanted,” Fallon said. In the midterms, though, “people didn’t give in to the conversation about the caravan. Democrats successfully sidestepped Trump’s attempts to make that the all-consuming issue.”
The uncomfortable lesson for Democratic strategists is that large areas of the country embrace Trump’s bluster and nationalist message centered on fears of illegal immigration, crime and globalization.
Engaging with him on those terms, they say, merely helps that message break through to rural and working-class white voters -- and prevents Democrats from reaching the more diverse and less-frequent voters they rely on.
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