We hear much talk about Democrats doing nothing. Saying, ‘What can we do we’re in the minority?’ and ‘Don’t waste your time on the Florida Special Elections, they’re ’unwinnable’
This is why I’m glad I’m no longer swimming in that self pitying pool of same old same old establishment Democratic politics. You know what? It’s time to put self preservation and fear to be bold aside. That approach cost 70% of eligible voters to lose control of the House, the Senate. The White House and the popular vote to sexual predator with 34 felony convictions.
Jesus, what does it take to wake people up from their rainbows and unicorn dreams to face the reality of this nightmare? What will it take to convince people paralysed by the thought of a woman or a gay man from being the next president of the United States of America?
Which part of ‘WE SCREWED UP’ are people struggling with? In 2008 we got behind a young black man, NOT because he was black and we wanted to make history, but because he was the best leadership talent of a generation. We believed in ‘Yes we can’. So why are we having trouble with the phrase ‘Now we will’?
Barack Obama faced an economic crisis the likes of which the world had not seen since the end of the Second World War. He didn’t have decades of economic experience or a long political history to call upon. He was a young lawyer and organiser before stepping into politics. The Democratic establishment wanted to see Hillary Clinton in the White House. HE was the outsider in almost every sense until his convention keynote in 2004. As a short film maker I have a keysearch library of every speech given by Obama. I’ve cut up his words so many times I know sections of his speeches by heart. He is unquestionably one of the great political orators of our time.
He lit a fire of hope under a nation that night. A fire that burned down the prejudice that said a black man will never sit in the Oval Office. He didn’t do it because he was part of a political dynasty, he did it through belief and the power of the spoken word. He was in that moment, the embodiment of the notion that the pen is mightier than the sword. Words do matter and never has it been more true than today.
Obama went on to do what nobody had done before him. He convinced everyday Americans black, white, Hispanic, Asian to invest their hard earned money in HIM and his vision for America it was a campaign almost totally funded with small dollar donations and the rest is history.
I spend a lot of time reading speeches, listening to remarks and debates, because I have a passion for it. I like to think I have an instinct for a great communicator and good ones are few and far between. There’s just something about a great speaker that makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. Democrats have some great options.
Never have I believed more, that in this moment of existential threat to the very foundations upon which the American dream was built, we need to relight that same fire of hope now extinguished by Project 2025. That won’t happen by building on the sands of political self preservation, it will happen by painting a bold new vision of an inclusive ‘Stronger together’ approach where we demonstrate Democrats are NOT Republican lite and we will fight the Oligarchs to rest back power to the people.
Trump can try and paint the false narrative that jam tomorrow will be the reward for reimagining America as a poorly educated, crueler, misogynistic, racist and homophobic society. That’s not what America voted for.
I believe that they sent a resounding message to Democrats to say “Stop taking us for granted, listen to us and it’s time to clean house. We’ve had enough of Republican lite”. With Few exceptions, the response seems to be, ‘We’d rather not rock the boat thanks’ and if that attitude prevails, there’s no way back.
This is about TRUST and trust is hard earned. There is little doubt, Trump has fractured America and the view from the cheap seats, is that we need a new type of politics to fix this. I believe that’s exactly why Bernie Sanders’ message is resonating. It’s NOT about party politics, it’s about fighting the ultra rich who have bought politicians to assist them to steal money from hard working everyday Americans.
AOC’s a smart woman, she knows change is coming and she’s staying ahead of the curve. Although it might sound an odd couple ticket, I’d love to pair her up with Pete Buttigeig. I actually think it could be an phenomenal ticket.
Each day this week, I’m going to piece together my vision. It’s unlikely to ever see the light of day, but it will represent a carefully considered proposition backed up with facts, figures and visual content to make the case for long overdue change. I’d just ask for an open mind and a willingness to listen. I’ll leave you to decide if I have the vision of what’s required for change. I’ll provide both the mock up Ads and the written proposition. The ads will be featured in my first podcast on Friday. After finding that ‘Truth Matters’ already exists as a Christian Nationalist podcast I’ve decided to go with ‘The Antidote’ which will be a Truth Matters production.
Let me make two points. First, let’s just learn from mistakes. No candidate gets anointed this time around. Run a fully competitive primary with no backroom deals. Best man/woman wins, just like Clinton and Obama. Second, AND MUCH MORE IMPORTANT. We do not have time to even wonder or worry about that election (let’s hope there is one). There are ~250 Democratic congressmen/women sitting in DC with nothing to do but wave paddles and skulk. How about taking the lead from BS and AOC and have all of them get on the road and take back the narrative. 250 buses crisscrossing the country talking to the working class and suburbanites about real policy implications of the Trump admin and how the Democrats have a better way - on the economy, on healthcare, etc. while admitted you blew it on immigration.
AOC and Pete woukd be a phenomenal ticket !!! We will need a phenomenal campaign strategy to back them up. Pete will have a couple years with family and his ways behind the scenes . Then Voila ‘ !!