It's the Economy, Stupid!

 A Radical Suggestion

I have a really radical suggestion. The Democrats should fight this election on domestic, economic issues. Appropriate issues are not hard to find.

• The cost of healthcare is killing our people
• The cost of housing is hurting millions of our people
• The cost of childcare is keeping women out of the work force and thus constraining the growth of our economy
• Trump’s tariffs are killing our exports and driving our farmers into bankruptcy
• Deporting a large part of our workforce is hurting our economy and costing jobs for Americans
• The national debt is unsustainable
• Social Security must be preserved

Candidates Will Pick Their Issues

Obviously no individual candidate could run on all of these issues. So, candidates will pick the ones that are most important to voters in their respective districts or states. Candidates should propose solution and support them on their merits.

Possible solutions may be found easily on the campaign websites of Alexandria Ocasio Cortez or James Talarico. They have been characterized as “far left,” but their proposals are really very moderate, and they can easily be framed as the moderate proposals that they really are. A candidate will need to go to the websites of “leftists” like Ocasio Cortez or Talarico for ideas because the so-called “centrists” in the Democratic party are almost completely devoid of ideas for the future.  

Framing is Key

Fortunately, it does not matter where the ideas come from. What matters is how they are framed. A useful example of framing may be found on the campaign website of James Talarico, but his is not the only possible approach. A different approach may be found in an earlier post on this blog. However, candidates will know best what framing will work in their districts.

Keep the Focus on the Issues

Democrats should not allow themselves to be baited into arguments about “socialism.” Democrats who are accused of being “socialists” or “communists” should reply that the Republicans are leveling those accusations because they are afraid to discuss the problems or the solutions on their merits. The Republicans know that in such a debate, they will lose.

Democrats can win if they maintain a razor-sharp focus on issues that matter to constituents and frame those issues in a way that appeals to voters.