The Democrats say they are the defenders of the middle class and the working class. Beware of these evil Republicans; they will fool you. For years, that was the case. And for the most part, it worked. Obama ran with it and won two elections. Mitt Romney was the perfect foil for that attack on the news, because many looked at Mitt and thought he was the kind of person who would fire you, not hire you. Obama’s ads that were cutting miniature his time at Bain Capital resonated with working-class neighborhoods in Ohio.
Donald Trump flipped the script. He won states the GOP hadn’t won in years. He dominated Ohio. And it helped that Hillary Clinton was a terrible candidate. He talked about jobs, wealth creation, better trade deals, and freedom. Hillary was a word salad of more taxes, Trump is bad and he’s a bad, bad person. She’s a bad campaigner, which is fitting for her two-time presidential losing record.
But as the Democratic field in 2020 competes to see who can be the craziest nutcase in the nutcase, a professional, snobbish, and over-intellectualized elite is beginning to infect the party. It’s pretty basic. To liberals, if you don’t have a college degree, you’re trash who shouldn’t be acknowledged or listened to, because what could you possibly know, right? That’s permeated this cycle. Only comfortable, privileged liberal elites would think that “Medicare For All” is a good idea. Providing healthcare to illegal immigrants is a popular proposition, and decriminalizing border crossing is a principle of inclusiveness. Mandatory “Medicare For All” means the end of private insurance. Nobody likes providing welfare to illegal immigrants, and open borders are unsustainable. The left’s intense hatred of fracking, which has created jobs, boosted local economies, and made the country more energy independent, is also seen as another middle finger to the working class. Talk clever about jobs and the economy—they’ll listen. These people aren’t die-hard Republicans. They voted Democrat before and can win with either party, but the left is pushing them to join the GOP. One General Motors employee expressed his concerns in September, noting that Democrats don’t really know any working-class people and that their agenda, especially on health care, puts union plans on the line. Despite all the fear tactics about the GOP taking away people’s health care, we have Democrats who want to do just that (via Detroit Times):
Matt Moorhead, a General Motors Co. worker who recently moved to the Lansing Grand River Assembly Plant from the idled Lordstown, Ohio, plant, said health care under the current UAW contract “provides freedoms that many people in society don’t have.”
“It scares me that (some Democratic candidates) don’t know working-class people,” said the 47-year-old self-identified liberal who voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016. “It scares me that Democrats are turning people off with some of the things they’re saying… I’m afraid they’re going to lose votes from working-class families who are unionized.
Government-run health care is not the way to do it,” Moorhead continued. “There are systems that work better. You need government involvement, but you also need the free market.”
As health insurance affects workers’ families and comes into question during times of crisis, it has become a point of contention between auto workers and their employers, said Kristin Dziczek, vice president of industry, labor and economics at the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor.
On a lesser-known issue, Democrats’ bowing to the unstable leanings of the environmental left is another problem that could cost them union voters. This radical sect is intent on pushing socialism through the back door. It’s an agenda that gives government unprecedented control over the way we live, under the pretense that this increased power will save the Earth; “think of the children” is a rallying cry. One of the large pushes that’s the slog of the day for these clowns is banning fracking, and some Democrats warn that pushing too stiff on that front could jeopardize Democrats’ hopes of winning must-win states like Pennsylvania in 2020. (via Associated Press Press Agency):
Just a few years ago, President Barack Obama celebrated the benefits of fracking—hailing energy independence and lower costs from increased domestic production. To address environmental concerns, his administration focused on tighter regulation of fracking on federal lands but largely avoided state-level arguments about whether the practice was perilous, grubby, or accelerated climate change by encouraging dependence on fossil fuels. Even most environmental groups favored regulation, not an outright ban.
[…]
“Saying you would ban fracking is a very difficult position to take in some key states,” said Rick Ridder, a Democratic strategist who served as Howard Dean’s 2004 presidential campaign manager and fought fracking in Colorado. “There’s an incredibly important distinction between local control and banning something.”
[…]
…the jobs created by fracking have given a boost to some unions. The activity helps the economy and lowers energy costs. A 2015 study by the nonpartisan Brookings Institution found that households gained $200 from fracking alone, thanks to lower gas prices.
[…]
The state’s fracking boom has led to the construction of a massive power plant northwest of the city that has created thousands of construction jobs and was the site of a rally for President Donald Trump last month. The president has touted the economic benefits of fracking, which have spread not only to Pennsylvania but also to neighboring states of West Virginia and Ohio.
Mikus said it’s stiff to predict the outcome of the Pennsylvania election, in which a Democrat wants to end fracking, because no Democratic candidate has ever run in the state on such an agenda. Democrats who called for a fracking ban have lost state primaries.
“I can’t say it eliminates anyone’s chance of winning, but it makes it harder,” Mikus said.
Labor is skeptical. “The problem is the economy. People vote with their wallets,” said Rick Bloomingdale, president of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO. “People need to have a solid financial footing before they can think about other issues.”
Yes, in such a bad field, making things challenging is clearly a bad decision. You have an aging socialist who just had a heart attack, a woman who culturally hijacked the Cherokee Nation who can’t answer a basic question about whether her health care plan will raise taxes on the middle class (spoiler: it will), and Joe Biden can barely speak. You already have a basic program that is unpopular. This will just add icing to the left’s 2020 voter turnout cake, which they can consume when Trump easily wins a second term. The left’s backyard — working-class workers, unions — could vote for Trump in significant numbers if they continue to push policies like “Medicare for All” that will burn through their health care plans. Democrats are conceding an issue they have dominated for years because of Trump’s derangement syndrome.
