The Greatest Trick Republicans Played Is To Convince Democrats...

[TomCADem]

...They Do Not Exist.

Yes, this borrows from the line in Usual Suspects when Keyser Soze says, "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist," but it is particularly appropriate with respect to how progressives, moderates, etc., have repeatedly fallen for this trick of the right wing and corporate media of blaming all evils on Democrats.

On the Republican side, with the aid of right wing media outlets like Fox News, OANN and Newsmax maintaining messaging discipline, Republicans are always convinced that the ills of the U.S. are not so-called moderate Republicans or anti-Trumpers, but on immigrants, minorities, antifa, and Democrats, always Democrats. This is why regardless of how much things are screwed up, Republicans will always vote Republican. Even with Trump trying to get him kicked out of office, the Georgia Secretary of State still voted for Trump.

Yet, as always, Democrats get lulled into the idea that the problems they face are caused by Democrats. The latest example if the uproad over Joe Manchin. He is just one vote. Yet, There are 50 Republican senators who would be happy to go along with Trump regardless of how many Americans died, how corrupt Trump is, and are happily willing to undermine our Democracy.

But, instead of focusing on the criminal actions of Republicans, we give them a free pass. There is no outrage when Ted Cruz or Josh Hawley cheer on the rejection of election results. As though they were toddlers throwing a tantrum, we indulge them, and save our outrage for Democrats such as Joe Manchin.

This reminds me of how even with a Republican House and Senate, you had progressives blaming President Obama in his later years for not passing sufficiently liberal legislation.

The Greatest Trick Republicans Played Is To Convince Democrats They Do Not Exist. Once again, people on the left are falling for the same old trick.

[onecaliberal]

1. My rep is a puke. I wrote him expressing opinions all of the time.

In 30 years the piece of shit has not voted to do a single thing to help our district or our country. It’s a fucking joke to say we don’t hold them accountable. I’ve been voting against him for 30 years. In 30 years it’s gotten me nowhere.

[TomCADem]

2. Who Is Your Rep? Have You Run Against Him?

Have you run for local office? Have you supported Democrats in local offices who could eventually run against your rep?

Instead, your rep just remains an anonymous Republican who might as well not exist as far as DU is concerned.

The reason why Republicans have such a strangle hold on Congress and the Courts, is that before they gained success, they started grabbing control at the state and local level. In Texas, they redistricted in the middle of the cycle once they had control of the Governorship and Legislature.

With Democrats, we put all our eggs into winning the Presidency, and that's it. We ignore the midterm elections and state and local elections, but then get upset when simply winning the Presidency does not accomplish everything.

Why is this? Well, Republicans have money and media to keep their base racist and energized and focused on beating Democrats at all levels. Conversely, Democrats buy into the idea that their problems are attributable to Democratic leaders not being sufficiently convincing or liberal.

[onecaliberal]

3. Devin Nunes and NO, but the city district attorney did and lost.

There are multi millionaire farmers and developers here that collect republican subsidies and support the piece of shit. Both Janz and Arballo were great candidates.

[alwaysinasnit]

4. You have my sincere sympathies!

Nunes

[TomCADem]

6. How is the Democratic Bench in His District?

This is a mistake I see. Democrats ignore state and local seats, and instead, swing for the fences on Congressional seats.

I looked up at Andrew Janz. It looks like he has a bright future, but going from Deputy DA to a Member of Congress? Wow. Why not run for DA or City Council, etc.?

This illustrates my point of a person who seems like they have a great background ignoring the intermediate steps of trying to win at the local level as noted in this article:

https://gvwire.com/2019/03/22/will-andrew-janz-run-for-mayor-or-try-again-for-congress/

Once Janz can show that he can win at the local level, then perhaps State level, then he will present a much more credible alternative for local voters when takes on Nunes because he will have built the constituent relationships leading to that point.

[onecaliberal]

7. Unless you live here it's difficult to understand.

A democratic candidate is never going to win here. It’s gerrymandered to be an impossibility.

There were MORE Janz signs in my area than I had ever seen in the 38 years I’ve lived here. I was hopeful. He had repuke support and his campaign was organized. They knocked on doors, registered voters and made calls. No other dem candidate has ever done that either around here. Gerrymandered district didn’t care.

[andym]

11. Aren't California congressional districts set by a non-partisan commision?

Yet, Nunes district is still gerrymandered? So the commission doesn't work?

[onecaliberal]

15. I don't have the time to explain to you. Look at the map of districts.

They shouldn’t be contorted across several counties to get the number of
Votes you need.

[Hortensis]

5. AND the anti-Democratic left, together double-teaming the narrative that

America's problems are caused by (corrupt) Democrats. Not a coincidence but one of those enemy-of-my-enemy things, going on for many decades.

[onecaliberal]

8. When 2 dem senators are holding up our agenda I'm not sure who you would have is blame.

[TomCADem]

10. What about 50 Republicans? What Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski...

... who get praised on this Board for merely voting to support an independent commission to look into the insurrection.

This is what I mean about the great trick that Republicans have played. On this Board, you see folks praising Romney, Murkowski and Collins, yet heap hate on Sinema and Manchin who come from purple/red States.

Finally, compare Manchin to Rob Johnson. Biden won Wisconsin, yet you have Rob Johnson doubling down on the right wing crazy. Trump handily won WV, and Manchin supported the 2 trillion ARPA, which Republicans are now trying to claim credit for even though they voted against it.

It is a waste of time to attack Manchin, because he is the absolute best you are going to get out WV. It is not like there is a progressive Democrat waiting in the wings in WV. However, Rob Johnson can and should be targeted in 2022.

[onecaliberal]

14. You really want me to blame 50 people who have long ago

Vowed to be diametrically opposed to everything we are for. People who said there is nothing Biden can propose they would support instead of the two people who are in our party and ran on the policy they are now refusing to support? Nope!

[TomCADem]

20. The Fact That You Are Defending 50 Republicans Underscores How Even Dems

Buy into Right Wing narratives. Do you see Republicans wringing their hands over Susan Collins or Romney because every once in the while they drag their feet in not supporting the crazier right wing claims? At the end of the day, they understand that they are not going to win Maine with a Ted Cruz or Hawley wannabe.

Yet, when you sound surprised at the thought that we should hold Republicans accountable, this underscores why Republicans can get away with their criminal acts. Giving Ted Cruz and Hawley a free pass and instead focusing hate on two Democrats who voted for ARPA?

I would think that the answer is obvious that we should hold Republicans accountable. It makes no sense just to write them off, yet many on the left easily buy into this narrative and give Republicans a free pass, even Republicans from States that went blue in 2020.

[TomCADem]

9. The Nina Turner Effect. Attack Democrats and Ignore Republicans...

...or push the narrative that there is no difference, and you will miraculously get momentum on social media. It is sort of like when former progressive talk show host Ed Schultz getting a private plane and show on Russia Today when he started to support Trump and attack Hillary Clinton.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10141568978

Liberal TV host and former MSNBC star Ed Schultz put out a video Friday in which he lit into the Clinton campaign and the media for raising questions over Donald Trump‘s Thursday night appearance on his current network.

Trump spoke with Larry King on his Russia Today show, which was intriguing to some because it meant that Trump was following his most recent Vladimir Putin sweet-talk by appearing on the Kremlin’s own network. That interest was compounded by the fact that discussion focused on whether Russian agents were responsible for the DNC hack right before their convention months ago.

These factors have caused both Hillary Clinton and numerous media figures to alternatively question and highlight Trump’s cozy relationship with the Russian president. Schultz is also an anchor for RT America, and he lashed out at Clinton, the media, and CNN in particular for insinuating that Trump’s interview was “unpatriotic.”

Schultz lambasted Clinton for never having granted interviews to the network, and said the idea that Putin hacked the DNC was manufactured by her campaign. Schultz invited her campaign to come on his show, but said they will not because connecting Trump to Putin is Clinton’s top strategy to win the White House.

[betsuni]

12. Both Sides, but Republicans always somehow innocent bystanders so everything must

be Democrats' fault, blamed for "letting" "allowing" "not stopping" things Republicans do when they're in power, for being bad at massaging, if only they had the right leadership ("fighting for" "standing up to" ) everything would be fine.

Something that bugs me about the messaging thing. The politicians who consider themselves more progressive than regular Democrats are always the ones saying things they or their followers have to explain. What they really meant was ... . Asked about Defund the Police: "Defunding the police means defunding the police." Then comes, What they really meant was ... .

The idiots who keep calling Democrats corrupt "corporate Dems" because of Wall Street and billionaires and whatever: why zero Democratic votes for Republican tax cuts during the Trump administration, then? That seemed like the ideal opportunity to be "corporate Dems." Didn't the corporations notice how mean Democrats were for not voting for that and refuse to stuff the usual envelope full of cash money in their pockets in the parking lot at midnight?

[onecaliberal]

16. There are zero good republicans. We already know that.

Why are our own people voting with them, protecting them when they country is near disaster? Give me a fucking break.

[Blue_true]

13. We help them by coming up with poorly thought out phrases like "Defund the Police".

After that, all they have to do is hammer us with the sledgehammer that we handed them.

[Elessar Zappa]

17. It wasn't Democrats who came up with that,

it was anti-racism protesters. We have no right to tell them what slogans to use.

[Blue_true]

18. It was a fucking dumb phrase that played right into Republicans' hands. nt

[Elessar Zappa]

19. Maybe, maybe not,

but it’s not our phrase. Activists can do what they want. BLM has affiliation with the Democratic Party.