A textbook example this morning of why Democrats lose elections they should win. MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” played a clip of Barack Obama being asked what Democrats should do in the midterms. He can answer in one simple—and true—sentence: “We’ve got a story to tell, just gotta tell it.”
Host Joe Scarborough then asked DNC chair Jaime Harrison—and this is not to single him out, because he is far from alone—what that story is. Harrison’s answer was not a story. As usual for Democrats these days, it was a long list of bullet points.
First there was a wonky wind-up, indicating that there would be no answer to the simple question, “What is the story?”
“Well, you know, Joe, the contrast is an important one. Because Joe, you know, elections are about contrasts.”
Then came the bullet points.
- “We had a president who came into the office, where vaccines weren’t available.
- Schools were shut down.
- People were losing their jobs and getting kicked out of their homes.
- And guess what, he rolled up his sleeves and said, ‘I’m willing to work with Republicans, but I’m going to do what is necessary to deliver for the American people.’
- We got vaccines in arms.
- We got money in people’s pockets.
- We delivered for the American people.
- And this economy has, I mean, 3.6% unemployment.
- 8 million jobs in 14 months.
- We made sure that the schools were let [to] open…”
And there was more, taking us to nearly one full minute of failing to answer the question “What is the story?” More importantly, I believe it’s a failure to *understand* the question. Democrats have lost the ability to tell a simple, emotional story.
As Dems have become ever-more educated, they’ve become ever-more alienated, like brains in jars. Everything gets converted to data. A story becomes bullet points. Politicians sound like bureaucrats. And winning policies become losing politics, again and again.
To use another metaphor, Dems are trapped in Max Weber’s “iron cage” of rationalism, unable to imagine what might lie beyond the bars—in this case, the world of spontaneous emotional connection that gets actual human beings to like, trust, and vote for you.
It’s going to be very hard for Dems to escape the iron cage / re-connect their brains to their bodies. But they must. Democracy is at stake.
Democracy needs Democrats to get good at politics.
Democrats once were great at politics. Some, like Obama, still are. It’s not complicated. What’s hard is recognizing what you can no longer even see.
An example I often use in classes on this topic is Obama’s 2004 speech to the Democratic National Convention, built on the simple, emotional statement — based on inspiring values, not policy details — that “There is no Red America, there is no Blue America, there is a United States of America.” I translate a passage of that speech into the blandly rational, technical, alienated language all too typical of Democratic campaigns, and then I give the actual language Obama used, which is a series of powerful images that evoke emotional responses.
First, the bad translation — accurate but completely uninspiring:
In America, we believe people should have physical and economic security, freedom, confidence in the rule of law, and the ability to participate in the political process. These are values that are shared by people of all parties, along with people who do not belong to any party. However, these values have not yet been fully realized. In this election, we must work together to make sure that they will be.
Now what Obama actually said:
That is the true genius of America, a faith in the simple dreams, an insistence on small miracles. That we can tuck in our children at night and know that they are fed and clothed and safe from harm. That we can say what we think, write what we think, without hearing a sudden knock on the door. That we can have an idea and start our own business without paying a bribe. That we can participate in the political process without fear of retribution, and that our votes will be counted.
P.S. Many assume this is about left vs. center. That assumption is an example of the rationalistic impairment I’m describing.
Spencer
Spencer you absolutely right. Democrats cannot talk. They spend too much time trying to avoid sound bites that might cause them problems. So they talk like Lawyers, i.e. in circles, attempting to confuse the issue while acting like they answer the question. I know you think Obama did not do that, however, he gets long winded also. The best at getting to the point was Bill Clinton. He could make his points in one speech and in the next speech make the same points but in different words. A second good speaker was Malcolm X. When he spoke you knew what he meant and what he was going to do. Democrats, like Burnie, tend to think saying the same thing over and over the same way gets the point across. It does not. It only makes it sound like you think your audience is a bunch of first graders. The best we have now is Stacy Abrums. She can get her point across.