# Now what should people on the left do? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [November 6, 2024, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-what-should-people-on-the-left-do/1009778 "2024-11-06T12:13:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Showing post:** 204
**Author:** ![Banquet\_Bear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banquet_bear/32/373_2.png) [@Banquet\_Bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banquet_Bear)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2024, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-what-should-people-on-the-left-do/1009778/204 "2024-11-08T01:26:51Z")
…I’m unsure if the OP is talking about the Democrats, or people on the “actual left.” Because I don’t see how the “big tent” can survive. There needs to be a reckoning. Decades of malaise at the heart of Democrat institutions with “focus grouped messaging” and kowtowing to the donor class have lead to this. What I argued back in July: > **Summary** > > > [@In which ways (if any) has Democratic strategy changed to prevent a repeat of 2016?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-ways-if-any-has-democratic-strategy-changed-to-prevent-a-repeat-of-2016/1003618/11): > > > > …listen to what the base want, making that policy, then providing a roadmap on how they will achieve that policy. Give people something to vote for. > > > [@In which ways (if any) has Democratic strategy changed to prevent a repeat of 2016?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-ways-if-any-has-democratic-strategy-changed-to-prevent-a-repeat-of-2016/1003618/13): > > > > …I’m not going to hijack this thread: but in many progressives eyes, Biden’s character isn’t worth jack-shit over the things he has done over the last nine months. And if its Biden vs Trump, they are just going to stay home. > > > [@In which ways (if any) has Democratic strategy changed to prevent a repeat of 2016?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-ways-if-any-has-democratic-strategy-changed-to-prevent-a-repeat-of-2016/1003618/15): > > > > …and that’s the kinda messaging that going to win them over. Good luck with that strategy. > > > [@In which ways (if any) has Democratic strategy changed to prevent a repeat of 2016?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-ways-if-any-has-democratic-strategy-changed-to-prevent-a-repeat-of-2016/1003618/19): > > > > My argument is that “Trump will be worse” is not going to be enough. You have to give them something to vote for. > > > > As I said on the other thread, a few days ago Biden tweeted (from memory) “If I’m relected, I’ll bring back Roe vs Wade.” That was it. No other context, no plan, no strategy on _how_ he will do that if re-elected. Why would anyone believe this? People _know_ that it’s just an empty promise. > > > > You’ve got to win the presidency. You’ve got to win the senate and the house with a large enough majority to be able to get things done. What’s the national game plan here apart from “Trump bad?” > > > [@In which ways (if any) has Democratic strategy changed to prevent a repeat of 2016?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-ways-if-any-has-democratic-strategy-changed-to-prevent-a-repeat-of-2016/1003618/21): > > > > …nobody is asking you too. We are talking Democratic strategy, not who _you_ should or you shouldn’t pander too. > > > > I think that “giving people something to vote for” is a rather obvious thing one should do in _any_ election cycle. And you can do that as well as basing much of your campaign on character. But you are really rolling the dice if you base the _campaign_ on character, when there are enough people in the states that matter have major issues with Biden’s character. > > > [@In which ways (if any) has Democratic strategy changed to prevent a repeat of 2016?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-ways-if-any-has-democratic-strategy-changed-to-prevent-a-repeat-of-2016/1003618/23): > > > > If you told me though that the Democrats had an actionable plan to be able to achieve various pillars of a policy platform I support, and if they could bring me on board, then maybe I could hold my nose and vote for the lesser of two evils. In fact, I’d probably vote for Biden for the sake of delaying the descent into darkness (and its only delaying, because you are already most of the way thee). But I wouldn’t be voting for him based on his character. > > > [@In which ways (if any) has Democratic strategy changed to prevent a repeat of 2016?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-ways-if-any-has-democratic-strategy-changed-to-prevent-a-repeat-of-2016/1003618/23): > > > > And I’m talking about people that want to stop the militarization of the police, support trans rights, support the right to abortion, affordable healthcare. Do the Democrats _not_ want to reach out to them? > > > [@In which ways (if any) has Democratic strategy changed to prevent a repeat of 2016?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-ways-if-any-has-democratic-strategy-changed-to-prevent-a-repeat-of-2016/1003618/28): > > > > How about codifying reproductive healthcare? Why didn’t he do that when they had the house and the senate? > > > > What does “maintain the rule of law” mean? Under his watch we’ve just seen the Supreme Court declare that the President of the United States is _above_ the law. And as long as the balance of the supreme court remains as it is, then the rule of law will continue to be eroded. So does Biden have a plan to deal with the supremes? We know he doesn’t support packing the court. How would he keep this promise? > > > > When I said “give the people something to vote for”, I didn’t mean a random list of things that the president has never supported. I’ve already talked about reproductive healthcare in this thread. Biden promised to bring back Roe vs Wade. Just a few days ago. Do you believe him? How do you think he’s going to do it? Because there isn’t a plan or a strategy to do that. > > > [@In which ways (if any) has Democratic strategy changed to prevent a repeat of 2016?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-ways-if-any-has-democratic-strategy-changed-to-prevent-a-repeat-of-2016/1003618/30): > > > > …how is Biden going to legislate for these priorities? He doesn’t even support universal healthcare as far as I’m aware. Can you show me where he does? > > > > How is President Biden going to bring back Roe vs Wade? Lets pretend they do win the house and the senate: what then? > > > > How are they going to “maintain the rule of law” when the supreme court is busy smashing everything apart? > > > > What will the Democrats do about rogues like Manchin and Sinema? We _know_ they won’t be the only people that will battle the progressive agenda from within. I bet very shortly you will be adding Fetterman to that list. Is it just to get a bigger majority so they won’t have to worry about it? It isn’t to purge them all together? Then how much more of a majority do they need in the house and the senate? What are the numbers? What is the plan? > > > > The thing is…this isn’t far from what the Democrats are actually doing. Empty promises. No real plan or vision on how they will get any of this done. Because many of them don’t really want any of this done anyway. > > > > Which is fine. Its just that, if you do end up losing the next election, the blame _has_ to go on the Democrat leadership. Its a lacklustre, risky, low-effort hope-for-the-best plan that disrespects the base, and while it may have worked last time, I don’t think is going to work now. > > > [@In which ways (if any) has Democratic strategy changed to prevent a repeat of 2016?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-ways-if-any-has-democratic-strategy-changed-to-prevent-a-repeat-of-2016/1003618/32): > > > > When I said “give people something to vote for”, this is exactly the sort of thing I’m talking about. If expanding the court is on the agenda, then _let everybody know_. > > > > But is it actually on the agenda? If the people vote and give the Democrats everything they need, is this something they will actually do? Does Biden even support this? I’ve never heard a squeak out of him indicating this is on the cards. Outside of the progressive bloc, who supports this? More importantly, how many oppose it? > > > [@In which ways (if any) has Democratic strategy changed to prevent a repeat of 2016?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-ways-if-any-has-democratic-strategy-changed-to-prevent-a-repeat-of-2016/1003618/35): > > > > I’m not even _talking_ about the debate. To push this “aspirational” agenda through they need to capture the senate, the house and the presidency in big enough numbers to overcome internal dissent. And it needs unified leadership to push what is plainly a progressive agenda. > > > > But the progressives aren’t in charge. And the centrists will do what they always will do, which is to push back on any moves to the left. I honestly don’t think I was wrong back then. And even if the Democrats did everything I suggested I still think they would have lost. But they would have gone down fighting. It was simply the wrong strategy. And listening to some of the rumblings since then, and even reading some of the responses here, people think “Harris was too far to the left, and the Democrats need to move more to the right.” I don’t think the progressives can settle for that. They largely kept quiet during this campaign. But the divide between the progressives and institutional Democrats is getting too deep. In the interest of keeping the big tent together the progressives have made major concessions. And they will be looking at the result of the election and asking themselves: “what was it all for?” They lost the Senate, and the Presidency, and the Supreme Court, and probably the House. The social media infrastructure, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, all captured by the right, and the institutional Democrats have no idea on how to combat it. There will be a split. That…won’t be good for the next elections. However, I’m not so bold as to assume that there will be “next elections”: not fair and transparent ones anyway. I think the blue states will increasingly be in conflict with the federal government. And the fight between progressives and the institution will largely play out at the local level. --- _[View the full topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/now-what-should-people-on-the-left-do/1009778)._