I worry about disinformation operations, election shenanigans, and all the rest, but the thing we really have to worry about is making an excellent case to American voters, including some Trump voters, in enough numbers to beat the Electoral College and win the Senate
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I don't think the situation where a third of the country inhabits an alternative propaganda reality centered around Fox, Hannity and the like is tenable. I also have no idea how to move people out of it. But that has to be the central political project of the left long term
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The short-term reality is that we have to win elections in an environment where there is a built in structural 3% handicap against us, and an incredibly effective propaganda machine that makes many people unreachable. It is incredibly frustrating and unfair, but that's the truth
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I understand the temptation to say "screw it" and run left. Why must *we* always be the ones to compromise? Doesn't that reward the bullying? If anyone running on democratic socialism wins a Republican CD, in any state, I promise to hoist the red flag. But I don't think it works
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In return, I ask people to look at evidence, not their feelings, and if bold, unapologetic progressivism doesn't win us power, grit their teeth and make common cause with the candidates who can actually win.
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Also, I can't overstress the importance of volunteering on any campaign, anywhere in the US, that talks to a variety of voters on both sides of the ideological chasm. I promise you it will be fascinating and unsettling, because you'll come out understanding less than you started
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And take
@mattblaze's advice and volunteer to be an election monitor! You'll unlearn a lot about elections, too! Democracy is way weirder than it seemsShow this thread
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Imagine if the Republicans had taken that approach during the Obama presidency. In fact they did, briefly reorientating their internal discourse around bringing immigrant voters on board. Then a populist whose personal charisma overrode the narrative emerged. Sound familiar?
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The situation is not symmetrical
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Elections are a turnout game. You don't change swing voters minds, you get your supporters excited to go to the polls and hope that your opponent does that worse
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I tend to agree. For my efforts, I think I could get 10 apathetic progressives to go vote and 5 fence sitters to vote left in half the time it would take me to convince one Trumper to switch sides.
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