Editorials & Other Articles

lees1975

(4,987 posts) Mon Jul 22, 2024, 10:33 AM Jul 22

What it's going to take for Democrats to win this election.

https://signalpress.blogspot.com/2024/07/what-its-going-to-take-for-democrats-to.html

There are a lot of unanswered questions. Will the party get behind Vice President Harris, who has been endorsed by the President, and who, along with him, have 90% of the delegate support at the convention? Does she have that kind of support among the party leadership, and the donor group who caused this controversy in the first place? These are not the kind of people who generally have to accept the consequences of their actions. So is the goal and the energy going to go to defeating Trump or are there other agendas at work that over-ride this concern and have the potential to split the party.

It's been amazing to observe, on Democratic Underground, the shift that took place in just one day, Sunday, after the President announced that he was stepping out of the race. Suddenly, as if by some miracle, support for Vice President Harris appeared from everywhere. Just the day before, a poll showed over 90 percent of those who responded wanting the President to remain in the race. By late Sunday evening, posts were "hurrah for Kamala" and declaring she was going to kick some Trump butt.

I certainly hope she does.

But, this is not "problem solved," not by a long shot. We are facing an election in which the other side is completely sold out to a convicted felon and insurrectionist, and is intending to pull every trick in the book to steal the election, regardless of how the votes turn out. They've been in the Viktor Orban school of "How to use Democratic Processes to Build a Dictatorship," and if one really believes history repeats itself, shades of the Weimar Republic come to mind. How prepared is Democratic party leadership to handle that, or will it be the normal response of raising our hands up and declaring "How can they do that and get away with it, tsk, tsk, tsk?"

And while there may be some folks at Democratic Underground who see this as a resolved problem, has the rest of the party arrived at this same place? Have the wealthy donors who upended Biden's candidacy by withholding their contributions approved of Kamala Harris as the nominee, or are they wanting to support someone else? Not only is this not settled, it has the potential to blow up into an even bigger disaster that winds up electing a felon and insurrectionist to the Presidency. And if preventing that is still the party's goal, then we need to see some real leadership and get a handle on a solid sense of direction over the next couple of weeks, or it is going to get out of control.

8 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

Highlight:

What it's going to take for Democrats to win this election. (Original Post) lees1975 Jul 22 OP

You dance with the one who brought you Dennis Donovan Jul 22 #1

It's actually quite simple. TwilightZone Jul 22 #2

Actually, there is a growing group of donors who are pushing for an open convention and for other candidates. lees1975 Jul 22 #4

Harris will be the nominee. Elessar Zappa Jul 23 #7

Things moved fast, didn't they? lees1975 Jul 23 #8

I agree Desert grandma Jul 22 #3

I feel the same way. Scruffy1 Jul 22 #5

I will find out Friday what things look like in the precinct where I volunteer across the state line in Wisconsin. lees1975 Jul 22 #6

Dennis Donovan

(21,153 posts)

1. You dance with the one who brought you

Reply to lees1975 (Original post)

Mon Jul 22, 2024, 10:40 AM

Jul 22

We stood with President Biden until he stepped down. He endorsed VP Harris so we're behind her now. It's DU - it's what we do.

TwilightZone

(26,868 posts)

2. It's actually quite simple.

Reply to lees1975 (Original post)

Mon Jul 22, 2024, 10:43 AM

Jul 22

Turnout is, as it always is, the key.

Much of what was said (and asked) in the article is already obsolete. It's obvious that the donors, Democratic leaders, and others, including state delegations, are lining up to support Kamala. She's already the de facto nominee, in my opinion, if not officially.

The shift in tone on DU isn't some miracle. It's common sense. Once President Biden heartily endorsed his Vice President and others began to follow, it only makes sense that we would support her as well. We're going to support the nominee, and that nominee is no longer going to be the president.

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/21/kamala-harris-fundraising-surge.html

https://deadline.com/2024/07/hollywood-donors-back-kamala-harris-biden-exit-1236017092/

https://www.voanews.com/a/democratic-officials-donors-back-harris-after-biden-exits-us-presidential-race/7707671.html

lees1975

(4,987 posts)

4. Actually, there is a growing group of donors who are pushing for an open convention and for other candidates.

Reply to TwilightZone (Reply #2)

Mon Jul 22, 2024, 10:55 AM

Jul 22

One of them said he didn't want this to be a coronation. Or did you miss that thread on here today?

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100219213307

So they are not all lining up behind Kamala. Yeah, there was a surge, because some of those who had made such a fuss had to cover themselves. That's a decent start, though Biden raised about that much following his debate performance, mostly from far more smaller donors.

And while there's been an appreciable, but far from unanimous cheer for Kamala, here on DU, the turnaround out there isn't going to be as quick.

It's not where you think it is.

Elessar Zappa

(15,095 posts)

7. Harris will be the nominee.

Reply to lees1975 (Reply #4)

Tue Jul 23, 2024, 11:38 AM

Jul 23

She already has the delegates. We will be united for her at the convention. Bookmark this thread and check back with me. And there’s tons of grassroots support for her. I see it on TikTok and X with young voters. And I see it with my mom’s friends among older voters.

lees1975

(4,987 posts)

8. Things moved fast, didn't they?

Reply to Elessar Zappa (Reply #7)

Tue Jul 23, 2024, 03:44 PM

Jul 23

Same author as the OP.

https://signalpress.blogspot.com/2024/07/we-have-winner-here.html

One of my favorite books recently is On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century by Timothy Snyder, Levin Professor of History at Yale University. Here's one of my favorite quotes:

Stand out. Someone has to. It is easy to follow along. It can feel strange to do or say something different. But without that unease, there is no freedom. Remember Rosa Parks. The moment you set an example, the spell of the status quo is broken, and others will follow.

Kamala Harris broke the spell of the status quo. Others are following. We have a winner here.

Let's make sure we turn out, bring our independent and third party neighbors with us to this table, and elect the first woman President of the United States. It is long past time.

Desert grandma

(1,027 posts)

3. I agree

Reply to lees1975 (Original post)

Mon Jul 22, 2024, 10:51 AM

Jul 22

The leadership of this party and the media have stirred the hornet's nest. They own the results. Many of the 14 million voters like me that voted in the primary have lost trust in the process and feel disenfranchised. I will vote for any Democrat before the Orange Felon, but this whole pressure campaign against an incumbent President stinks to high heaven. I hope all of these folks including those on DU who are enthused now that the President is not running are marching over to their nearest Democratic office and signing up to door knock and make calls. They need to take that enthusiasm and turn it into action.

Scruffy1

(3,397 posts)

5. I feel the same way.

Reply to Desert grandma (Reply #3)

Mon Jul 22, 2024, 02:28 PM

Jul 22

It's like the big money and the media called the shots. Joe beat the same candidate by a large margin. However, I am used to how the big money calls the shots. We are left with voting for who ever gets the green light from them. That's just the reality of our country. I campaigned for Bernie in 2016 but supported Hillary after she won. My take on that one is that Hillary didn't have the right skills to make a laughing stock of the thing. Some people are good at making up one liners and that kind of thing like her husband Bill was. Combatting a demagogue like Trump takes the same skill set as a stand up comic. I'm thinking increasing IRS funding, a FTC that actually enforced rules and not backing down on Russia were why Joe is gone. The debate didn't lose any voters but the media turned it into a crises. It was a small mistake amplified. You can't debate with a 2 year old or a shit throwing monkey. Or as they say in Iowa "Never wrestle with a pig. You just get dirty and they love it." Politics has always been that way. The reality is that this will be the most consequential election of my life. The courts are already stacked with R's and we are on the cusp of being a fully fascist country. We must campaign and vote like our lives depend on it, because they are. With all the faults of the Democratic Party it's still out only hope.
Whether we like it or not the Democratic party is the ship and all else is the ocean. It is not enough to just vote or put up a sign. We need to register new voters and get them t

lees1975

(4,987 posts)

6. I will find out Friday what things look like in the precinct where I volunteer across the state line in Wisconsin.

Reply to lees1975 (Original post)

Mon Jul 22, 2024, 03:53 PM

Jul 22

Our Illinois precinct is loaded with help, and it's fun working in a "battleground state." It was a group of strong Biden supporters. A lot of swing voters were planning to vote Biden, along with some Republicans so we'll see how this affected them.

Reply to this discussion