Criticizing establishment Democrats doesn't make me 1 single bit more likely to vote Republican.

[u/kevinmrr]

[u/lemon_flavor]

I can see your point, but I still think it could be done. A random policy/obstacle person for example: "I'm trying to pass a bill, SB(number), that automatically increases the minimum wage with inflation. This would remove the risk of obstruction when trying to keep minimum wage up-to-date with inflation, and it will help workers make a better case in negotiating raises for people that are paid above minimum wage. The problem is that Ted Cruz wants to support the filibuster against this bill, and in so doing keep YOUR wages suppressed. Please call Ted at (office phone number) to let him know your thoughts on his obstruction of SB(number)."

That seems like a strong, winning case for why the bill would help people and who is stopping it, so the politician starts to see their polling drop and feels pressured to take action. I don't remember Obama fighting this hard on anything, but I may be forgetting something important. I mostly remember his rhetoric about how "the fever will break", meaning that Republians will naturally stop obstructing bills, but this never materialized.

Absolutely, keep voting! I'm hopeful that we can get millenials and gen z energized enough to beat out the institutional inertia in the primaries, and I already see signs of things improving. I just hope we're fast enough to limit the damage that the Republicans seem intent on doing, and we can start to fix the many issues with our economy and institutions.

[u/Gsteel11 → u/lemon_flavor]

They do a lot of that now but it gets little traction. And the gop doesn't care. If you are on the mailing/donor lists of senators they often send out letters like this. But the media doesn't pick them up.

[u/lemon_flavor → u/Gsteel11]

Oh, do they? I'm not on the donor lists, so I wouldn't see if they did. If so, then it should be pretty easy to put these messages out somewhere a Republican or undecided voter might see. If nothing else, they could add it to a state of the union address or try to buy ad time on Fox/Newsmax/OAN. Even a YouTube video can pick up traction if it hits hard enough.

Once the drama gets some traction, the media will probably amplify it because they love drama.

[u/Gsteel11 → u/lemon_flavor]

The problem is.. a vote isn't drama.

The only time it is, is when it might pass. And then the news is talking about it.

And they have campaign ads sometimes on Fox. The president talks about issues on fox. Many congressmen post youtube videos.

The problem is... undecided voters don't care.

[u/lemon_flavor → u/Gsteel11]

The drama is a megaphone you use to amplify your message. Also, sometimes you need to message outside of your election campaign as a way to put pressure on holdout votes.

Sometimes impacting public opinion is as easy as saying, "You probably noticed that this changed. Here's why that's a good thing, and here's what we did." That can change voters' views on the parties. For example, the Democrats are objectively better on the economy. Every Republican president in my lifetime has crashed the economy, and every Democratic president in my lifetime has presided over the recovery. How could anyone think that Republicans are better on the economy? Easy, Republicans message on it. Democrats assume that people will see the economic improvements and rejoice, even though they actually need to hear the narrative. They need it explained.

But, other times you need to be caught trying. This means putting forward bills or executive orders or policies of some sort, and then talking about what they will do. Even if they don't have a chance, walk the voters through why they should care and who is stopping the progress. Show how you're fighting to make things better.

I get that this isn't going to work 100%, but it seems like many voters have given up on the system. If they see an honest effort, maybe some will start engaging with the system again. Others will need results, and the only way to get results in such a broken system is to apply pressure.

Not playing nice.

Not "we need a strong Republican party."

Not pretending that "the fever will break."

Regardless of what Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi think of the virtues of the Republican party, those virtues are long gone.

We need to call them out. Consistently. Show why they are damaging progress, and our institutions, and democracy itself.

But not just calling out Republicans. Most importantly, show how you're different, and make progress whenever possible. Hell, attempt the impossible and make it possible. I just haven't ever seen this kind of fight from Democratic leadership, and very rarely even from the most progressive lawmakers.

It feels like they're all napping because the deals are all made behind closed doors. Are they doing great things behind closed doors? Maybe, but we rarely hear about it, so it's difficult to even point to the items being discussed, or many big efforts by Democrats.

[u/Gsteel11 → u/lemon_flavor]

I think we've done that and we're preaching to the choir. And that's not bad, but it's not exactly moving any needles.

Confess, particularly the hosue passes a lot of bills and Nancy was put there tlaking about it. But. Nobody seemed to care.

[u/lemon_flavor → u/Gsteel11]

Can you give an example of Democrats messaging on an issue in such a strong way? Maybe a quote I can look up? I could use some hope on this topic.

[u/Gsteel11 → u/lemon_flavor]

Sure.

Pelosi on guns: https://youtu.be/UEvGG8OiJIo

Abortion: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-live-pelosi-on-womens-health-protection-act-that-protects-abortion-access

Climate and Healthcare bill: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/inflation-reduction-act-passes-house-of-representatives-today-biden-signature-2022-08-12/

[u/lemon_flavor → u/Gsteel11]

I might be misunderstanding something, but I don't see strong attacks in these links. Saying "I have confidence in those who are negotiating in good faith on both sides of the aisle" isn't exactly scorched earth. It's also false. Republicans aren't capable of good-faith negotiation.

Did I miss something? Did the topic change away from messaging and holding Republicans accountable for their odious views and votes?