Democrats, beware: We are leaning left too far

[Terraceth]

I'm not really sure what his complaints are based on. I mean, I don't exactly disagree with him on a number of things, but he doesn't seem to offer up evidence that what he's complaining about are actually hurting the election chances for Democrats, given that they seem extremely likely to win the House of Representatives. The Senate's unlikely, but the map is so bad for them this election that that doesn't mean much.

The argument could be made that the Democrats would win the House more decisively if they were to do what he suggests (and the House swapping parties isn't necessarily a reflection of the Democrats doing well so much as it's the fact the President's party almost always loses seats in the House during midterms), but his article doesn't actually do anything to give a basis for the idea these things aren't working in terms of getting voters out.

Sure, the best policies (as seen empirically by the most successful countries like the Scandinavian ones) are further left than what polls well in the US, but the policies that poll well are further left than where the Dem party is currently at, so it's pretty obvious that Dems need to move further left.

Fortunately the up-and-coming younger generation of voters is more aware of international realities as they have friends online from other countries, so they can learn what works elsewhere in the Western world. And a survey of US 18-29-year-olds out this week shows strong support for Democratic Socialist policies:

US 18-29 yr-olds:

Trump approval: 26% total
Democratic-led congress: +34% points
Federal jobs guarantee: +36% points
Eliminating tuition and fees at public four-year colleges and universities: +36% points
Single Payer Health Care (also referred Medicare for all): +34% points
Requiring U.S. corporations with more than $1 Billion in revenue to allow their workers to elect 40 percent of the membership of their board of directors: +24% points
Building a militant and powerful labor movement in the United States rooted in the multi-racial working class: +18% points

The "up-and-coming younger generation of voters" has always been the most liberal segment of the population, though, and become more conservative as they age. The members of the hippie generation are now reliable conservative voters.

[Starlight]

The "up-and-coming younger generation of voters" has always been the most liberal segment of the population, though

Well certainly in the last 80 years each generation has been significantly more liberal than the previous one.

and become more conservative as they age.

This is largely a myth. Older people are more conservative because the newer generations are more liberal as a whole, not because many individuals substantially change their views as they age.

The members of the hippie generation are now reliable conservative voters.

LOL, hardly. It's simply that the percentage of them who were hippies was never a vast majority, and even the more liberal among them weren't liberal by the standards of the newer generations.

[Mountain Man]

...policies that poll well with voters...

That depends entirely on which voters you ask, and more importantly, how you frame the question. It's easy to make any policy poll well if you package it as an attractive sound bite that downplays or ignores all the negatives.

[rogue06]

Aw, don't be so hard on yourself, rogue.

The "I-know-you-are-but-what-am-I" devastating retort. smiley snicker.gif

[Cow Poke]

The "I-know-you-are-but-what-am-I" devastating retort. [ATTACH=CONFIG]32773[/ATTACH]

He tries so hard.

[rogue06]

He tries so hard.

He is indeed trying.

[Cow Poke]

He is indeed trying.

Wait... we're no longer talking about JimL, are we?

[Sparko]

Starlight and Crew: Another example of liberals eating their own when someone doesn't toe the party line.

Liberal: Someone who cares enough to give you the shirt of of my back.

[JimL]

The "I-know-you-are-but-what-am-I" devastating retort. [ATTACH=CONFIG]32773[/ATTACH]

True, it's about as devastating as the disparaging nonsense that Trump supporting airheads like yourself regurgitate. Remember you're a Trump supporter, strike one, you live in an insular bubble of idiocy, strike two, so calling others out for not knowing anything is humorously ironic in the highest degree. Strike three, you're out loser!

[Cow Poke]

True, it's about as devastating as the disparaging nonsense that Trump supporting airheads like yourself regurgitate. Remember you're a Trump supporter, strike one, you live in an insular bubble of idiocy, strike two, so calling others out for not knowing anything is humorously ironic in the highest degree. Strike three, you're out loser!

The gift that keeps on giving.

[lilpixieofterror]

True, it's about as devastating as the disparaging nonsense that Trump supporting airheads like yourself regurgitate. Remember you're a Trump supporter, strike one, you live in an insular bubble of idiocy, strike two, so calling others out for not knowing anything is humorously ironic in the highest degree. Strike three, you're out loser!

Who could argue against such stellar, air tight, logic?

[rogue06]

The gift that keeps on giving.

There are times I have to seriously wonder if jimmy is in fact a Poe who's trolling the left determined to make them look like a bunch of clueless buffoons.

[Sparko]

There are times I have to seriously wonder if jimmy is in fact a Poe who's trolling the left determined to make them look like a bunch of clueless buffoons.

He's doing a great job.

[JimL]

There are times I have to seriously wonder if jimmy is in fact a Poe who's trolling the left determined to make them look like a bunch of clueless buffoons.