Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

Kilgore

(1,733 posts)
Wed Nov 16, 2016, 11:37 PM Nov 2016

Clinton Campaign Was Undone By Its Own Neglect

From the Huffpo

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/clinton-campaign-neglect_us_582cacb0e4b058ce7aa8b861

WASHINGTON ― In the closing weeks of the presidential campaign, Hillary Clinton’s staff in key Midwest states sent out alarms to their headquarters in Brooklyn. They were facing a problematic shortage of paid canvassers to help turn out the vote.

For months, the Clinton campaign had banked on a wide army of volunteer organizers to help corral independents and Democratic leaners and re-energize a base not particularly enthused about the election. But they were volunteers. And as anecdotal data came back to offices in key battlegrounds, concern mounted that leadership had skimped on a critical campaign function.

“It was arrogance, arrogance that they were going to win. That this was all wrapped up,” a senior battleground state operative told The Huffington Post.

In Michigan alone, a senior battleground state operative told HuffPost that the state party and local officials were running at roughly one-tenth the paid canvasser capacity that Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) had when he ran for president in 2004. Desperate for more human capital, the state party and local officials ended up raising $300,000 themselves to pay 500 people to help canvass in the election’s closing weeks. By that point, however, they were operating in the dark. One organizer said that in a precinct in Flint, they were sent to a burned down trailer park. No one had taken it off the list of places to visit because no one had been there until the final weekend. Clinton lost the state by 12,000 votes.

46 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Clinton Campaign Was Undone By Its Own Neglect (Original Post) Kilgore Nov 2016 OP
More Hillary bashing posts. Thank you so much. leftofcool Nov 2016 #1
A proper postmortem requires an examination of what went wrong so lessons may be learned Kilgore Nov 2016 #4
Indeed so Duckhunter935 Nov 2016 #6
Totally agree LeftInTX Nov 2016 #9
I agree we need to do proper understanding of what happened so we can strategize for 2018 and 2020 MyNameIsKhan Nov 2016 #12
Most of us know full well why she lost, so keep your lessons to yourself. leftofcool Nov 2016 #13
No. This is an open website for Democrats, and WE ALL HAVE A DOG IN THIS FIGHT... Raster Nov 2016 #16
Agreed. ErikJ Nov 2016 #21
most of us know what exactly? 0rganism Nov 2016 #40
Some people are still in the DU-Hillary General Election mode, BlueProgressive Nov 2016 #45
Well nobody is perfect ! TrekLuver Nov 2016 #2
Good point! Wilms Nov 2016 #10
Everyone thinks they're an expert in hindsight radical noodle Nov 2016 #3
There are stories like this after every election marylandblue Nov 2016 #5
Yes. Michigan's Congresswoman Debbie Dingell said the same things. elleng Nov 2016 #7
Thanks for the link Kilgore Nov 2016 #17
You're welcome. elleng Nov 2016 #18
And will continue to be. Kilgore Nov 2016 #19
and if that's the case, bye bye 2018 and 2020. elleng Nov 2016 #20
Unnamed sources and their cub reporter promoters can shove it. oasis Nov 2016 #8
Cub reporter? Kilgore Nov 2016 #15
Meaningless analysis. TexasTowelie Nov 2016 #11
Bullshit. The article, I mean. n/t duffyduff Nov 2016 #14
uh, someone pretty clearly fucked up vis a vis the rust belt. Warren DeMontague Nov 2016 #24
I thought our ground game was supposed to be the difference? I guess it was. DemocraticWing Nov 2016 #22
NA NA NA NA NA NA NA Warren DeMontague Nov 2016 #23
Clinton Campaign Was Undone by the Director of the FBI kebob Nov 2016 #25
This!!! DemonGoddess Nov 2016 #43
Maybe the Clinton campaign was undone when she had that private server installed. BlueProgressive Nov 2016 #46
It's good to see there are those who are willing to face reality, rather than ignore it. Behind the Aegis Nov 2016 #26
i think this was the biggest fault JI7 Nov 2016 #27
I'm sure all the Hillary bashing promoted by certain members of the left didn't help either. Lil Missy Nov 2016 #28
Thank you. Well said. Paladin Nov 2016 #29
Thanks for your concern. Yessiree, that diaper load was just waiting to drop. Raster Nov 2016 #31
Please stop... Mellomugwump Nov 2016 #35
My opinion remains the same and is not negotiable. n/t Lil Missy Nov 2016 #41
Yeah... kenfrequed Nov 2016 #44
Trump had a lot of people on the right bashing him and he won LeftInTX Nov 2016 #36
I HAVE seen a candidate get bashed worse than Trump. Lil Missy Nov 2016 #42
Huffington Post: Where fake journalists are given a platform NCTraveler Nov 2016 #30
It wasn't just those states. Lots of counties in upstate NY, Maine, geek tragedy Nov 2016 #32
Hillary wasn't undone by anything. Even with Russian voting, she won! kydo Nov 2016 #33
Yep that's why she conceded...so she could be the jmg257 Nov 2016 #37
you are on the wrong site. Demsrule86 Nov 2016 #34
Thank you for your opinion Kilgore Nov 2016 #38
You are welcome. Demsrule86 Nov 2016 #39

Kilgore

(1,733 posts)
4. A proper postmortem requires an examination of what went wrong so lessons may be learned
Wed Nov 16, 2016, 11:47 PM
Nov 2016

Seems like actual statements from leaders within the campaign would provide a bit of useful insight.

Raster

(20,998 posts)
16. No. This is an open website for Democrats, and WE ALL HAVE A DOG IN THIS FIGHT...
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 12:15 AM
Nov 2016

...and unless your name is David Allen, you can shitcan the authoritative bullshit.

 

ErikJ

(6,335 posts)
21. Agreed.
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 02:27 AM
Nov 2016

Trying to avoid future debacles requires hard to take facts and criticism sometimes. Is Hillary going to be running or something again in 2020?

0rganism

(23,937 posts)
40. most of us know what exactly?
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 02:32 PM
Nov 2016

why should we silence ourselves in a forum allocated to discussion of the results?

 

BlueProgressive

(229 posts)
45. Some people are still in the DU-Hillary General Election mode,
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 05:20 PM
Nov 2016

where bringing up any possible problems with Hillary's campaign is just NOT ALLOWED here.
They'd be screaming "CONCERN TROLL!" if the vote hadn't already taken place.

Like some other narratives, it seems that Clinton's "ground game" wasn't all it was vaunted to be in some places. Here in Michigan her campaign must have spent a fortune in the last week of the campaign, running almost exclusively negative-Trump ads on television and radio, which didn't seem to have that much effect in the end. They don't tend to get people out to vote-- negative ads have been shown to do the opposite, depress turnout.

Making mistakes in a campaign doesn't mean you're a bad person, but some people seem to lack objectivity when it comes to Hillary's campaign....



elleng

(130,855 posts)
7. Yes. Michigan's Congresswoman Debbie Dingell said the same things.
Wed Nov 16, 2016, 11:50 PM
Nov 2016

"That's Debbie, it's hyperbole, she is nuts." That's the vibe Debbie Dingell, a Michigan Democrat who represents her state's 12th Congressional District, says she received throughout Election 2016, when she tried to warn her fellow Democrats that no, Hillary Clinton was not on an assured path to victory. In the Washington Post, Dingell mentions her district's diversity, from the "Downrivers"—a group of communities south of Detroit rife with auto factories, manufacturing plants, and unions—to the college town of Ann Arbor. She points out how much of her district leans Democratic (many were Bernie Sanders supporters in the primary), with the working class among them comprised of "all races, creeds, and colors."

But they also believe "the system is rigged" and "economic and national security fears" reigned supreme for them on Election Day. Per Dingell, the "ordinary working man or woman ... isn't asking for a lot" (affordable health care, safe homes), but "many don't understand ... how these things are in danger of becoming unattainable for too many Americans." Dingell is confounded how those in her own party, including Hillary Clinton and her camp, could have neglected to appeal to this demographic. "It did infuriate me that Clinton and her team didn't show up until the weekend before the primary, when it suddenly became clear they had a problem," she writes. "How would any sane person not predict how this one would go? It was fixable for the general election."

http://www.newser.com/story/233933/mich-rep-i-warned-dems-people-were-being-ignored.html

elleng

(130,855 posts)
18. You're welcome.
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 12:17 AM
Nov 2016

Saw this story numerous times recently, but somehow seems to have been missed by too many.

Kilgore

(1,733 posts)
15. Cub reporter?
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 12:15 AM
Nov 2016

Sam Stein, Senior Politics Editor, The Huffington Post
Sam Stein is the Senior Politics Editor at the Huffington Post, based in Washington, D.C. Previously he has worked for Newsweek magazine, the New York Daily News and the investigative journalism group Center for Public Integrity. He has a masters from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and is a graduate of Dartmouth College.

Sounds like a postmortem makes ye uncomfortable.

TexasTowelie

(112,070 posts)
11. Meaningless analysis.
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 12:01 AM
Nov 2016

How long does it take for people to realize that they were sent to a burned down trailer park? The volunteers pick up and go to a different neighborhood with inhabitants. What was lost? Maybe 5-10 man-hours at most. There is more wasted effort making cold calls to voters that haven't voted Democratic in years.

Warren DeMontague

(80,708 posts)
24. uh, someone pretty clearly fucked up vis a vis the rust belt.
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 05:13 AM
Nov 2016

I don't know how anyone can try to spin that fairly obvious piece of objective reality into a different narrative.

DemocraticWing

(1,290 posts)
22. I thought our ground game was supposed to be the difference? I guess it was.
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 05:05 AM
Nov 2016

But maybe it wasn't the kind of difference that we wanted it to be!

 

BlueProgressive

(229 posts)
46. Maybe the Clinton campaign was undone when she had that private server installed.
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 05:26 PM
Nov 2016

It was all so avoidable, but she did that to herself. Otherwise, she'd be President-Elect right now.

Behind the Aegis

(53,938 posts)
26. It's good to see there are those who are willing to face reality, rather than ignore it.
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 05:25 AM
Nov 2016

Too many are pointing fingers at this or that, but not back at themselves, no room for self-reflection. There isn't a singular factor to "blame" for the loss; I doubt there ever could be. There are some things of which we have no control, but there are certain areas where we do. The "Serenity Prayer" should be the mantra of the Democratic Party now.

Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can,
And wisdom to know the difference.


We cannot change bigotry as a whole. We can work to make it better, but we can't ignore it's going to be a factor. We cannot change the past, only learn from it, and not ignore it or pretend it is something which didn't happen. We cannot change the media without taking them to task.

We have to be courageous enough to know things will likely be very bad for many people, including those who voted for the president-elect and those who decided not to vote for moving forward (or in their view, standing still). We have to be strong enough to accept not all opposing opinions are automatically wrong or are "tearing down the party".

We need wisdom, but it won't come from those who open their mouths, but close their ears. "Bubbles" aren't just a phenomena of the right, we have them too. Time to burst out of some bubbles!

JI7

(89,244 posts)
27. i think this was the biggest fault
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 05:33 AM
Nov 2016

2004 blue states were seen as safe and secure.

The numbers were close enough that it would have made a difference in her favor to put some more effort into the states.

They also should have considered things like republican control and how this was after the court stuck down voting rights.


It's possible some dems sat out just because they thought it was safe blue.



Lil Missy

(17,865 posts)
28. I'm sure all the Hillary bashing promoted by certain members of the left didn't help either.
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 06:13 AM
Nov 2016

This article is bullshit, but thanks for your concern.

Paladin

(28,246 posts)
29. Thank you. Well said.
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 07:37 AM
Nov 2016

Hillary Clinton didn't fail us. We failed Hillary Clinton. End of discussion.

Raster

(20,998 posts)
31. Thanks for your concern. Yessiree, that diaper load was just waiting to drop.
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 08:42 AM
Nov 2016

Throughout the primaries and then the general, the usual, snippy, sarcastic "thanks for your concern," or "your concern is noted" nuggets of bullshit were used constantly to shut down anyone that tried to register their concern about the election, or THEIR CONCERN ABOUT THE FUTURE OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY.

Oh, and my other favorite: "we've got this." Obviously, NO WE DID NOT.

Mellomugwump

(93 posts)
35. Please stop...
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 10:11 AM
Nov 2016

With the "thanks for your concern". There were a lot of concern posts that were trashed before the election and I felt the same way that those posters did. I was terrified, and then to see them trashed, especially if they had a low post count, was really disheartening.

I'm never going to have a high post count. I work 9 hours a day, have dogs to walk, myself to walk, a house to clean, books to read and a lot of good Netflix shows to watch, so I only post when I feel strongly about something. Thats the reason I'm here - because it's an easy way to see what's going on and to feel comforted that not everybody I'm sharing this country with is a dumbass.

I think there are many reasons she lost. Honestly, as much as I felt that she deserved it and felt she'd be a good president, my heart sank when it became apparent she was going to run. I was worried that there was already too much Hillary hatred out there before the race even started. These elections are hard enough without starting with that kind of hate. This was reaffirmed when a female co-worker of mine, who is very smart, said she was so glad "that scheming, conniving, lying bitch didn't win", but then she sat down after hearing Trump won and thought I hope this works out!

Then of course, there's sexism, racism, Comey and everything else she was fighting. Given all this, there shouldn't have been any resources spent in Utah, Georgia or Arizona until this election was won, and then they should have focused on turning red states in the future.

I'm devastated to the point that I don't plan on having anything to do with anybody that put that monster in office, including my parents, so I'm not a concern troll and don't believe an honest evaluation of everything that went wrong is Hillary bashing. This is a total disaster.

kenfrequed

(7,865 posts)
44. Yeah...
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 03:13 PM
Nov 2016

Well when there are facts. I at least tend to reanalyze my opinion a little bit if things don't play out like I figured it would.

But feel free to stick to your own brand of purism.

LeftInTX

(25,216 posts)
36. Trump had a lot of people on the right bashing him and he won
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 10:36 AM
Nov 2016

I've never seen a candidate get bashed by his own party as much as Trump did and he won.

Lil Missy

(17,865 posts)
42. I HAVE seen a candidate get bashed worse than Trump.
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 03:05 PM
Nov 2016

One that has been repeatedly bashed by the right and the left over 25 to 30 years now. That person is Hillary. So much by people in her own Party that some ego-driven voters would rather see a Trump win or the election outright stolen from her than get out and vote or vote for her.

Your argument has no merit.

 

NCTraveler

(30,481 posts)
30. Huffington Post: Where fake journalists are given a platform
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 08:08 AM
Nov 2016

[URL=.html][IMG][/IMG][/URL]

It's not much better than all the fake Facebook news sites. News directed at specific fan clubs.

 

geek tragedy

(68,868 posts)
32. It wasn't just those states. Lots of counties in upstate NY, Maine,
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 08:55 AM
Nov 2016

and Minnesota all swung towards Trump.

We can't fix problems until we admit they exist.

kydo

(2,679 posts)
33. Hillary wasn't undone by anything. Even with Russian voting, she won!
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 09:29 AM
Nov 2016

These types of stories are why dems are always thought of as soft. The fascist know they rigged the election so they keep trying to push the narrative of "Clinton lost because fill in lame excuse here."

Look bulling your narrative is what works. Remember 2000? Gore won FL and had been predicted to be the winner. Then Bush people yelled screamed punched until FL backed down. FL should not have backed down.

Right now people know something was not normal with this election. orange man's people want to move fast so they are pushing the why Hillary lost crap and spineless media and dems are repeating orange man's lies.

Hillary won! Even with Russian's voting and the FBI illegal inserting it's self into the race and all the FAKE news. Hillary still won!

orange man rigged the EC with Russian help. The results of the election should be voided, orange man should be wearing an orange suit doing a frog walk with the rest of his treasonous campaign.

Hillary WON! She is the PEOPLE'S President! orange man was the Russian's pick.

Demsrule86

(68,539 posts)
39. You are welcome.
Thu Nov 17, 2016, 01:45 PM
Nov 2016

You have a nice day too...I am sure that you have no worries. How fortunate you are.

Latest Discussions»Retired Forums»2016 Postmortem»Clinton Campaign Was Undo...