Why, and how is it, after all that has transpired, Democrats are expected to lose in November?

[kentuck]

Are Democrats really that poor at messaging?

Or is it that they are very poor at prioritizing the issues that most of America is concerned about?

After all that has happened, including an attempted overthrow of our government, and including the possible banning of all abortions, why are Democrats in such precarious political position?

Why do so many Americans hate the Democratic Party? If they don't hate the Party, then why is it so difficult for Democrats to win elections? After watching the Republicans in action, one would think the Democrats should win by a huge landslide.

But most people think the Republicans will win in November.

Is it really the fault of the media?

Does anyone have any idea why?

(If this is too sensitive of a topic for some to read or discuss, I will delete it)

[Meadowoak]

1. It's the media.

[alwaysinasnit]

2. +1000

I think the media is looking to encourage a self-fulfilling prophecy.

[Jarqui]

10. +1,000,000,000,000,000

90% of media in the US is currently controlled by six entities:
AT&T, Comcast, Disney, News Corp (owner of FOX), Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS) and Sony.

Question for the class:

Which party's tax policies favor the big media corporations?
a) Republican
b) Democrat

[rainy]

4. Exactly right!!!

[spanone]

36. ⇧⇧⇧⇧⇧⇧⇧⇧⇧

The media has been saying we will lose the House and possibly the Senate for two years....non-stop.

Citing precedent in these unprecedented times.

[brooklynite]

41. "its the media" is a lazy excuse

First, most people today aren't as engulfed in "the media" and people here are.

Second, whether or not "the media" is mentioning it, people have historically held the party in power responsible for their economic angst. People ARE struggling with inflation, housing costs, gas, etc. and voting out the party responsible for dealing with the problems is a standard reaction.

[Meadowoak]

43. Yeah but, try and fit all that on a bumper sticker. We need simple, easy to

Understand messaging. That's half of our problem. We need messaging that your average Walmart shopper can understand.

[Ohio Joe]

3. I've been saying we'll be in good shape come November for months...

Nothing has changed my mind and I am fully expecting things to go even more in our favor as we get closer.

[kwolf68]

5. Well...

I have seen very little from the Dem establishment, the leaders are bunch of old hasbeens. Time for new blood.

Anyone see Senator Warren give her statement after the leak? Anyone? THATS what we fucking need. Someone who has the energy to fight.

Warren should be Senator Majority leader. That's who I want speaking for me as a Democrat.

[emulatorloo]

24. New Blood? Elizabeth Warren is 72 years old. Stop smearing good Democrats, and try paying

attention to the good work they are doing, rather than the anti-democratic hottakes by dishonest toxic no-nothings on Twitter.

[LLCARD]

28. I don't see much leadership from Jamie Harrison

It seems like Biden had some falling out with Harrison as well.

Sometimes good campaigners do make great DNC chairs.

Also the messaging seems to be driven by the gop and not much countering or leading on the messaging

[kelly1mm]

30. How would having Senator Warrern as Senate Majority leader be 'new blood'? Trick question:

Who is older, Senator Warren or Senator Schumer?

[Kingofalldems]

6. It's a RW talking point designed to depress turnout.

I have seen it ALL over the internet including DU sadly.

[emulatorloo]

25. Yes

See post #5 for a good example

[Marius25]

7. It's a messaging issue, and even the so called "liberal media"

spends most of the day bashing Biden and Democrats.

And then you see high inflation and high gas prices, and they always blame the person in the White House.

Meanwhile Republicans and Independents listen to 24/7 right-wing Russian propaganda that tells them Democrats are coming to eat their children and turn their pets gay, and that brings out the right-wing voters.

[moose65]

8. The media loves a horse race

If the Dems win in a blowout, that’s boring to the media. They thrive on controversy and innuendo. Trump’s outrageousness led to big ratings.

I too can’t stand the constant drumbeat of “the party in power ALWAYS loses seats.” In many ways, it IS a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Democrats actually WANT to govern and do it in a competent way. That’s boring to the media.

[uponit7771]

18. +1, "MAGA is going to get mud stomped ..." doesn't rate well

[Fiendish Thingy]

9. The overwhelming, long-standing trend is the president's party loses seats in the midterms

This year that’s especially true because it’s the first election after a census, meaning redistricting and gerrymandering (although the impact from gerrymandering will likely be less than originally anticipated).

Two things are different this time:

The creep of fascism, which the January 6 hearings will hopefully keep at the front of everyone’s minds, and

The overturning of Roe, which will hopefully increase turnout among Dems, especially young voters.

But nevertheless, the odds are stacked against the Dems, at least in the house.

[Skittles]

11. Democrats are treated like women and POC

they have to be twice as good to be considered half as good as repukes, who are treated like white men

simply put, the bar is a LOT higher for Democrats while for repukes, the bar is practically underground

[NanceGreggs]

12. The people ...

... who talk about how we live in "unprecedented times" are the SAME PEOPLE who promote the idea that the "precedent" that the party that holds the WH will lose in the midterms.

What part of "unprecedented precedent" confuses the RW? All of it.

[BlueIdaho]

13. The M$M is not now nor ever has been liberal

It supports Corporatism, Wall Street, and the good old military/industrial complex. Always has - always will.

If you want to win elections join your local Democratic Party or club. Knock on doors, write letters to the editor, make phone calls, and give till it hurts. All elections really are local.

[FBaggins]

14. It's neither messaging nor the media muting our messaging

It’s reality

“It’s the economy, stupid” - along with the normal cycle

[Eko]

15. People here are blaming the media and saying that they love a horse race.

the media is an expression of what the people want. People love a horse race, they love strife and having an enemy. The media that does that gets lots of watchers, increased profits and expands. Why is fox the highest watched network? Because that is what they do more than anyone else. The media is a symptom not the cause.

[bottomofthehill]

16. In a word, Redistricting.

When you get to pick the voters by drawing the lines, things get ugly fast.

In Florida
Trump got 51.3 percent of the vote
Republicans won 16/27 house seats. Republicans drew the lines.

North Carolina
Trump won 50.1 percent of the vote
Republicans won 8/13 house seats
Republicans drew the lines

Georgia
Trump lost and got 49.3 percent of the vote
Republicans won 8/14 house seats
Republicans drew the lines

Wisconsin
Trump Lost and got 48.9% of the vote
Republicans won 5/8 seats
Republicans drew the lines

Texas
Trump won with 52.1% of of vote
Republicans won 23/36 house seats.
Republicans drew the lines.

[gab13by13]

23. You left out Pa.,

Tenn. and Texas gerrymandered 2 Democrats out of the race.

I am from Pa. and Democrats get more votes but Republicans pick up seats.

New York (D) and Ohio (R) gerrymandered their maps. The state Supreme Courts rejected both maps. NY had a non-partisan group redraw its map while Ohio basically submitted the same map.

[H2O Man]

17. Recommended.

I don't think we are going to lose. If we can't win now, under the situations that you accurately note, it will be our own fault for not working to win. In fact, I think we will kick their asses.

[KS Toronado]

33. I KNOW we will kick their asses.

Huge Blue Wave coming.

[maxsolomon]

19. Outside of Gerrymandering, there is the problem that many American Voters are gullible fools.

I should know; I am the son of one.

[TreasonousBastard]

20. I really wish people would stop blaming the media and....

just about everything else.

It's cyclical-- it's built into the system. We vote for a president every four years, but after two years he hasn't solved all the problems. Or maybe new problems have shown up.

So, we throw the bums out and hope things will change. They don't. Rinse, cycle, repeat.

[emulatorloo]

26. Yes definitely time to reward Republicans I guess. They'll fix all the problems.

Hopefully electorate will wake up before that happens.

[Beaverhausen]

21. Lots of laws passed to make voting harder as well as gerrymandering, removing...

…Voters from voter rolls…

Don’t kid yourselves. We can win but we have to fight very hard

[rownesheck]

22. The people of this country

are stupid. It doesn't matter if the media is controlled by right wing fuckwads. In this day and age, you can find information everywhere. People are too stupid to see the reality in front of them. They choose to believe horseshit, ignore everything except who the fuck was singing on the masked singer (or insert any other dumbass reality tv/competition show), or they choose to use their fucking brains and see who the evil fucks are who are actually ruining the fucking world.

Either that, or they fall into the category that actually likes what the fuck is going on.

We are an embarrassment as a nation.

[Cosmocat]

27. This is the winner - this country is stupid as fuck

We are LONG past the point that the completely immoral and craven republican party should be rejected as the relentlessly chrisofascist authoritarian shitshow it is, but the majority of this country continues to buy the bullshit that the party that wants to keep our democracy, have all human beings be treated with dignity and respect and treasure God's green earth are in fact the living embodiment of Satan himself.

[MichMan]

29. Other than it almost always happens in mid terms, inflation is probably the number one reason

People see it for themselves every single day; costs them $75 to fill their gas tank, ground beef is $6 per pound, rent is going up, heating costs higher etc.

A significant number of the voting public is just trying to get to work, take care of their kids and manage their own lives and isn't following the day-to-day minutia of government like people here. They don't care about excuses like the filibuster, or a 50/50 Senate, but they are going to blame the party in charge; that's just how it is. If Republicans held the presidency, the house and senate, we would absolutely be blaming them the same way.

The fact that there are tons of jobs created or that on average people are getting 6% wage increases is meaningless, if you already have a job, didn't get much of a wage bump personally, or it still isn't enough to pay the higher prices.

The messaging they do hear has been all over the map. First, they were told inflation was transitory and wouldn't last very long. Then it was supply chain disruptions caused by the backlog of container ships, then it was all due to Putin, then it was blamed on corporate greed. All of those are likely contributors, but people really don't care; they just want it fixed.

Why should anyone be surprised they aren't buying the messaging when it almost looks to many like slinging mud against a wall and seeing what sticks?

[moose65]

35. I understand the anger, but...

exactly what do people think Republicans will do to curb inflation? As far as I know, they don't have any plans to do anything about it, or any plans to do anything about ANY issue, really. What do Republicans stand for? No one seems to know these days.

And that in itself is scary. It's kinda like 2010 all over again, when the party that had been responsible for wrecking the economy just two years prior was given back control of the House and the ability to stop almost anything that Obama proposed. I don't understand people at all!

[Demovictory9]

31. party in power loses in midterms, Democrat base less likely to vote, Dems don't have a talk radio

equivalent that feeds lies to base and keeps them wipped into a frenzy

[KS Toronado]

32. I think it goes back to Rs owning most of MSM

They want Rs in charge for their tax breaks, loopholes, & favors they expect from R congress critters.
So naturally they are going to broadcast that Rs are winning, no need to vote Ds.
Midterms coming up are critical to save our Democracy.

[Willto]

34. Because

We Democrats just very often do not show up to vote in midterm elections. Say what ever negative thing you want about the right wing nuts (and believe me I do) but by god they get out and vote. Rain or shine, sleet or snow they show up even if it's just a vote for what color to paint the local courthouse.

I don't think media outlets either TV or radio really convert many people to one side or the other these days. Almost all the people listening to right wing radio for example are hardcore MAGA hat wearing nuts that wouldn't vote for a Democrat under any circumstance anyway. Right wing media is just basically preaching to the converted.

Now I don't discount the effect of something like gerrymandering but if Democrats are actually the majority in a state then you have to ask yourself how in the hell did the Republicans get in control of that state in the first place to have the opportunity to gerrymander the districts. Answer? Because at some point we Democrats sat on our ass and just did not show up to vote like we could have.

I wish this wasn't true. I wish our people could keep the same fire to vote lit under their ass that we seem to have when the office of president is on the line. This election will be a test of that. Because if our folks can't see what's at stake then I just don't know what it will take to open their eyes.

[moose65]

37. You speak the truth!

In 2010, Democrats were complacent in states like Wisconsin, Michigan, North Carolina.... here in NC the Republicans won control of both houses of the state legislature for the first time in 100 years, and we have reaped the "rewards" ever since. Ugh.

The other thing was that Democrats ran from Obama and the national agenda, and that has a tendency to alienate your OWN voters. Voters don't like it when the party seems hellbent on denying its own agenda.

[Mz Pip]

38. Historically, it's true

The President’s party loses ground in the midterms.

However, if this doesn’t motivate Democrats and like minded Independents to vote, nothing will.

Sadly, we are lazy about our democracy.

[Demsrule86]

39. I don't think that is true anymore.

[CrackityJones75]

40. Why do you blame us?

[betsuni]

42. +1

[SoonerPride]

44. We live in a very stupid country.

That should be plainly evident based upon the complete idiots and fascists that get elected and re-elected.

Never underestimate how stupid most Americans are.

[Meadowoak]

45. We need simple messaging that they can easily understand,

We over complicate our messaging and your average Walmart shopper (whom we can easily win over, with simple messaging) thinks we are talking down to them. They think we think that we are better than them, that's why we lose a lot of votes to the repubes. I live in the South, I understand these people.

[Initech]

46. Fox News

Fox News propaganda is spreading like wildfire. I know so many people who have been flipped because they watch that shit like it's a religion. Fox News is the reason why we can't have nice things.