When several dozen Democratic political operatives and elected officials gathered at a tony resort off the Potomac River last month, frustration boiled over at the left wing of their party.
Democrats had become too obsessed with “ideological purity tests” and should push back “against far-left staffers and groups that exert a disproportionate influence on policy and messaging,” according to a
document of takeaways from the gathering produced by the center-left group Third Way and obtained by POLITICO.
The group of moderate Democratic consultants, campaign staffers, elected officials and party leaders who gathered in Loudoun County, Virginia for a day-and-a-half retreat, where they plotted their partyÂ’s comeback,
searched for why the party lost in November — and what to do about it.
Much of what they focused their ire on centered on the kind of identity politics that they believed lost them races up and down the ballot.
One of the key ways to win back the trust of the working class, some
gathered there argued, was to “reduce far-left influence and infrastructure” on the party, according to the takeaways document. That included building a more moderate campaign infrastructure and talent pipeline, pushing “back against far-left staffers and groups that exert a disproportionate influence on policy and messaging,” and refusing to participate in “far-left candidate questionnaires” and “forums that create ideological purity tests.”
The gathering resulted in five pages of takeaways, a document POLITICO obtained from one of the participants. (Not all attendees endorsed each point, and the document — and Third Way — kept the identities of participants private.)
“In the wake of this election, where it became so evident that the things that the left was doing and saying deeply hurt [Kamala] Harris and down- ballot Democrats, a lot of people are looking to us, not just Third Way,
but the moderates in the party, and saying, ‘We got to do it your way, because the other way ain’t working,’” said Third Way’s Matt Bennett, who helped organize the February retreat.
The document itself is perhaps one of the most comprehensive and sweeping
of its kind following the election — both in its analysis of what went
wrong and how to fix it.
The retreatÂ’s conversation centered on the partyÂ’s disconnect with the working class. Among the causes of that detachment: weak messaging and communication, failure to prioritize economic concerns, overemphasis on identity politics, allowing the far left to define the party, and
attachment to unpopular institutions such as academia, media and
government bureaucracy.
If TrumpÂ’s first term energized the partyÂ’s progressives, there are early signs his second term is doing the same for Democratic moderates.
The party chose the battleground-state moderate Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan to deliver its response to TrumpÂ’s address to Congress and the nation on Tuesday. Slotkin outperformed Harris by more than a full
percentage point in all but 28 of the stateÂ’s 83 counties, according to a Detroit News analysis.
Those gathered then laid out 20 solutions for how Democrats can regain working-class trust and reconnect with them culturally.
Among their takeaways:
The party should “embrace patriotism, community, and traditional American imagery.”
Candidates should “get out of elite circles and into real communities
(e.g., tailgates, gun shows, local restaurants, churches).”
The party needs to “own the failures of Democratic governance in large cities and commit to improving local government.”
The party, many of those gathered also argued, needs to “develop a
stronger, more relatable Democratic media presence (podcasts, social
media, sports broadcasting).”
Bennett said that, with the meeting coming just three months after the election, “we didn’t expect to have a lot of answers about exactly what
the Democratic offer to the working class on the economy ought to be going forward. We were still kind of picking through the rubble here.”
Bennett added, “I think what we discussed there on economic issues was the profound disconnect that we saw between the way that leading Democrats
were talking about the economy and the way that people were actually experiencing it.”
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/03/02/third-way-patriotism-democrats- campaign-00206890
On 2025-03-03, P. Coonan <nospam@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
When several dozen Democratic political operatives and elected
officials gathered at a tony resort off the Potomac River last month,
frustration boiled over at the left wing of their party.
Democrats had become too obsessed with “ideological purity tests”
and should push back “against far-left staffers and groups that
exert a disproportionate influence on policy and messaging,”
according to a document of takeaways from the gathering produced by
the center-left group Third Way and obtained by POLITICO.
Among their takeaways:
The party should “embrace patriotism, community, and traditional
American imagery.”
Candidates should “get out of elite circles and into real
communities (e.g., tailgates, gun shows, local restaurants,
churches).” The party needs to “own the failures of Democratic
governance in large cities and commit to improving local
government.” The party, many of those gathered also argued, needs to
“develop a stronger, more relatable Democratic media presence
(podcasts, social media, sports broadcasting).”
Bennett said that, with the meeting coming just three months after
the election, “we didn’t expect to have a lot of answers about
exactly what the Democratic offer to the working class on the economy
ought to be going forward. We were still kind of picking through the
rubble here.”
Bennett added, “I think what we discussed there on economic issues
was the profound disconnect that we saw between the way that leading
Democrats were talking about the economy and the way that people were
actually experiencing it.”
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/03/02/third-way-patriotism-democrat
s- campaign-00206890
Maybe there is hope for the democrats after all because the above is
pretty much what they need to do.
The extreme left of their party has become a pariah and is going to
lose elections for them.
The biggest problem is regaining the trust of the voters. Biden
campaigned as his usual, middle of the road, do nothing politician and
people assumed he was a safe bet. For whatever reason Biden, or more accurately, his handlers went radical left and pissed off the more
moderate democrats even though on the surface they remained in
lockstep as democrats usually do.
I believe that both parties need to move towards the center of the
aisle however sometimes extremes are needed to right a sinking ship
and currently a maverick like Trump is just what the doctor ordered.
The last thing we need is a typical career politician who does
nothing.
Once things begin to return to 'normal' the country would do best with
a moderate POTUS from either party.
On 03 Mar 2025, pothead <pothead@snakebite.com> posted some news:vq4bh8$1all3$1@dont-email.me:
On 2025-03-03, P. Coonan <nospam@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
When several dozen Democratic political operatives and elected
officials gathered at a tony resort off the Potomac River last month,
frustration boiled over at the left wing of their party.
Democrats had become too obsessed with “ideological purity tests”
and should push back “against far-left staffers and groups that
exert a disproportionate influence on policy and messaging,”
according to a document of takeaways from the gathering produced by
the center-left group Third Way and obtained by POLITICO.
Among their takeaways:
The party should “embrace patriotism, community, and traditional
American imagery.”
Candidates should “get out of elite circles and into real
communities (e.g., tailgates, gun shows, local restaurants,
churches).” The party needs to “own the failures of Democratic
governance in large cities and commit to improving local
government.” The party, many of those gathered also argued, needs to
“develop a stronger, more relatable Democratic media presence
(podcasts, social media, sports broadcasting).”
Bennett said that, with the meeting coming just three months after
the election, “we didn’t expect to have a lot of answers about
exactly what the Democratic offer to the working class on the economy
ought to be going forward. We were still kind of picking through the
rubble here.”
Bennett added, “I think what we discussed there on economic issues
was the profound disconnect that we saw between the way that leading
Democrats were talking about the economy and the way that people were
actually experiencing it.”
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/03/02/third-way-patriotism-democrat
s- campaign-00206890
Maybe there is hope for the democrats after all because the above is
pretty much what they need to do.
The extreme left of their party has become a pariah and is going to
lose elections for them.
Need and will are two different things. Will they? Some have been
crossing the aisle for Trump, indicating they are willing to work on the
same goals.
The biggest problem is regaining the trust of the voters. Biden
campaigned as his usual, middle of the road, do nothing politician and
people assumed he was a safe bet. For whatever reason Biden, or more
accurately, his handlers went radical left and pissed off the more
moderate democrats even though on the surface they remained in
lockstep as democrats usually do.
Poor personnel decisions. Becerra, Brinton, Buttigieg, Levine, Mayorkas, Julie Su, Harris among others.
If you'll recall, Su is responsible for refusing to renew $2 million licensing for fraud detection software resulting in a $30-$40 billion
COVID fraud.
I believe that both parties need to move towards the center of the
aisle however sometimes extremes are needed to right a sinking ship
and currently a maverick like Trump is just what the doctor ordered.
The last thing we need is a typical career politician who does
nothing.
Once things begin to return to 'normal' the country would do best with
a moderate POTUS from either party.
Trump is polarizing and the "mean dad" who is elevating common sense over fantasy.
Working across the aisle is the only way anything will be
accomplished.
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