On Friday evening, TikTok livestreamer and former CNN anchor Don Lemon brought up an idea that a lot of us are discussing among ourselves: That Dems need to go hard, real hard. He was talking to the show’s head writer, Peter Rothpletz, whose article in The Guardian about Democrats suggests that to combat the stranglehold hold Republicans, particularly the MAGA movement, has on the federal government is to become mean - ruthlessly, bitterly mean.
They questioned the Dems approach and overall their collegial, “be the bigger person” approach to the gladiator arena that is American politics. Both men felt that the Obama era of virtuous political behavior is over and it’s time for an approach that matches GOP vitriol.
I tend to agree in principle, but my method might be different. I’ve been in a number of conflicts, both verbal and physical. I’ve learned that winning a fight begins before the first punch is thrown. Your opponent should know engaging you in battle will most certainly mean cuts, bruises and maybe sacrifice of blood if not worse.
Looking at how MAGA has attacked not only Democrats, but all liberals since Obama won the presidency — it’s been a seven-headed monster. They couldn’t scandalize Obama, so instead of a close range bullet, they chose to use a hollow point to do maximum damage.
They waited until Trump got in and all but ignored the COVID-19 pandemic. which killed 1 million Americans. When he lost the 2020 election, they denied it and attacked the U.S. Capitol. As President Joe Biden settled in, they tripled down on his son, Hunter. During the 2024 campaign they used social media and podcasts to spread every lie they could.
Should Democrats do exactly these things to get power back? Nope, because people would be able to read it. But they should become extremely aggressive. For right now, Trump is guarded by a steel cage of his sycophants. But Democrats can go after the MAGA movement itself by keeping politicians from town councils to Congress under constant scrutiny.
The amount of mainstream media they can use is limited, but they can use the steadily growing universe of non-profit news organizations to inform people about Trump’s supporters and even their slightest mistakes. Gone are the days of the celebrity national Democrat sitting on a multimillion dollar war chest. They must get state reps and aldermen into crevices where Republicans fear to tread. Barack won the first time with an effective ground game. That can work again.
In 2016, during the Democratic National Convention, former First Lady Michelle Obama encouraged people to take the “when they go low, we go high” perspective. But she wasn’t suggesting that Democrats just smile when muck is thrown at them by MAGA cultists. She was really saying not to pick up the debris and broken glass from the alley and try to fight with it. There is better, smarter strategy.