How do we rebuild the Democratic Party?

[JDPriestly]

23. Yes. And focus on bringing people who haven't been voting because they don't believe

our candidates care about them back into the voting booth. The reason we lose elections is because we do not reach the voters I am talking about. Those who work and don't see themselves making a lot of money, succeeding or being cared about. Those who are going to barely have enough Social Security to survive when they retire, those who borrow money to go to school and don't make enough to pay it back.

We need to tailor our message to their needs and to reach out to them.

The Third Way corporate crowd is already represented by the Republican Party.

We have lost voters to the Republicans, all those voters who voted for liberal propositions but who then voted for the Republican candidates -- those are Democratic voters that our Democratic campaigning has not reached. We need to reach them. We need to find them and talk like we discuss on DU about the issue.

"Hi. How are you? (You have a table in front of you with some Democratic Party materials.) The election is ________. Are you planning to vote? (Hand the person a brochure. Smile big.) Are you registered to vote? The voter may just take the brochure and go on or may say something. If the something is negative, smile and ask, "What are your issues?" And then gently, kindly respond. NEVER ARGUE. If someone is a diehard conservative on the issues, let them vote Republican. Everybody votes their conscience.

But I and you presumably have the consciences of liberals. Read a lot of books and DU about what the issues are. Talk with your friends about eh Issues. Why should we raise the minimum wage? What would it mean for prices? What would it mean for demand on the supply and demand curve? What would it mean to the person you are talking to? What would it mean to you?

So when you talk to voters you must be prepared to engage them on issues. I have campaigned with people who were dumbfounded and silenced simply because a voter asked questions about basic issues like what does candidate X think about???

This is how the union movement was built. People talked to each other. This is how the Progressive movement that brought the country out of the Gilded Age was built. People talked to each other. And this is how we have to awaken America today. Talking to each other. (But first we have to inform ourselves well enough to be able to represent our side.)(

Give the 3rd wayers back to the Republicans. That's where they belong. One party that represents Walmart, Adelson's casinos, the Koch brothers, etc. is enough. No one is speaking up for the people I talk about in the OP. That's our job.

It's righteous work. Let's do it.