Did I miss any front page diaries acknowledging this problem and how we are going to solve it?
58% think Donald Trump is out of touch with Americans concerns . How can it be that after the last 100 days the American people believe the Democratic Party is more out of touch with their concerns than Donald Trump. The answer is Donald Trump. Trump in his election campaign promised change. The American people wanted change. Working class Americans were tired of being stiffed with empty promises about better wages and more jobs by both the Democratic and Republican Parties.
Rightly or wrongly Sanders and Trump were seen as candidates for change. Hillary was seen as more of the same the “Establishment”. In February 2016 AFL-CIO polled their membership Sanders and Trump were neck and neck and Hillary lagged considerably. Trump took 43% (Clinton 51%) of Union vote 3% more than Romney 4% more than McCain. Obama beat Romney by 33% in union households. How could union member teachers vote for Trump? Yet 20% of AFT members and 33% of NEA members voted for Trump.
Black voters who voted for Obama 95% 2008, 2012 93%, Hillary got 88% and lower turnout. Latinos & Hispanics overall, 46% cited the economy as the most important issue facing the country. Obama 71% to Romney 26%, Trump 29% Clinton 65%. Turnout was higher support was lower. A majority of women backed Clinton over Donald Trump, 54 percent to 42 percent. Exit-poll data indicates that 94 percent of black women and 68 percent of Hispanic women voted for Clinton. Clinton still managed to win 51 percent of college-educated white women to Trump’s 45 percent—a partisan reversal from the 2012 election when then-Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney won 52 percent of college-educated white women while Barack Obama won 46 percent. Clinton lost non-college-educated white women, winning only 34 percent to Trump’s 62 percent. Trump's win relied heavily on his base of white voters, with 63% of white men pulling for Trump, 31% for Clinton and 6% for a different option or declining to answer .Among nonwhite populations, the results, as expected, were much more in Clinton's favor — 74% of nonwhites overall voted for Clinton, while 80% of black men and 62% of Latino men voted in her favor. Just 13% of black men and 33% of Hispanic men, by contrast, went for Trump.
2016 should have been a watershed year for Democrats especially with an opposition candidate such as Trump. Democrats in all groups were not inspired to vote. Working class Americans saw the Democratic party as more of the same — empty promises. They felt nothing was going to change for them economically by voting for Clinton. Trump on the other hand promised change and job, jobs, jobs. The working class was willing to take a chance on him because of his promises of more and better paying jobs and most of all he was not part of the “Establishment” he was an “Outsider.
Trump also played on peoples fears and prejudices. Crime and Mexican illegal immigrants elicited both fear and prejudice and pointing to sanctuary cities he made Hillary look soft on crime and illegal immigration. Railing against Muslims and refugees he brought out religious intolerance and the fear of terrorism. His support for law and order while it eased the fear of crime for some was also a dog whistle for racists that he would protect them against blacks and would not tolerate welfare cheats. Even though far more whites receive welfare, Republicans have used welfare to incite racist feelings by every presidential candidate since Nixon. He played the abortion card to the hilt making Planned Parenthood the evil faceless organization that promoted abortions and it was using tax dollars to do it. Instead of looking like the friend of the working class she is Hillary was made to look like the enemy of the working class.
Even with all of this Hillary Clinton came so close to winning. But why didn’t she win. It was because people did not trust her, they did not believe she would help them economically or carry out her promises. These people had heard it all before and got nothing in return. Hillary Clinton was the establishment and Trump did everything he could to tie her to government failures and Big Banks America with her speeches and the transcripts she would not release. Trump at every turn played on the issue of trust. How can you trust her on jobs and the economy that was the issue that tied all the prejudices and fears together. The working class always feel like they get the short end of the stick. They work for low wages while others get welfare. They are promised tax breaks and when tax bills are passed they are left holding the bag. They worry about their kids and how they will pay for college. The high cost of healthcare and children without employer health insurance is out of their reach. Broken promise unfortunately were laid at the feet of the Obama administration and Hillary was a played a big role in that administration. Working class America felt like they were short changed again,. The poor got healthcare, the rich the stock market and they got a pat on the back and told again to hang in there. It comes down to a simple declaration by the working class, you (Democrats) care more about helping people on welfare, illegal immigrants, minorities, Muslims, big banks, and corporate America than you do about us. How else could Trump get 43% of the Union, 33% of the union teacher vote, 11% of the black vote, and 29% of the Hispanic vote. Trump in his campaign had said and done enough to make every member of these groups a life long enemy.
A Solution To Our Problem
Yes prejudice and fear played a part in Trump’s election but the economy, jobs and trust were the real culprits. She was seen as out of touch with mainstream America and as part of the “Establishment” .The working class had heard the promises without results and were willing to take a chance on the election of an outsider who was not a real Democrat or a Republican. The working class of America no longer want the status quo or will vote for the status quo. We must begin to unite people with our issues and not divide them. Whether we like it or not we must lead with economic issues.
Who among the working class is not for an increase in the minimum wage to $15/hr. College tuition, books and fees paid for by our government and healthcare for all? Damned few if any are in opposition to these three issue. It is not to say that we do not talk about women’s issues, welfare immigration, Muslims, or minority rights. We simply do not always lead with them in convincing people to vote for Democrats. Whether we like it or not these issues are divisive that is why we cannot lead with them we just find a better way to talk about them. We cannot continue to make these issues the centerpiece of our campaign. It doesn’t mean we don’t talk about them, defend them or support any of these groups. We must find a way to tie these issues into our economic issues that shows voters that these issues will benefit everybody.
Tie the $15 living wage to welfare and women’s rights. Why should we as taxpayers subsidize big box stores with our tax dollars because they do not pay their workers enough to lift them above the poverty level. Women and minorities would benefit the most. The white working class would look on this favorably because it helps everybody especially them. Healthcare working class people of all stripes and colors cannot afford healthcare and view it as a major problem again it helps everybody. How many working class families can afford to pay for college or their children pay for it. And if they can get to college with student loans the are saddled with an enormous debt and are our modern day indentured servants because it is not forgivable in bankruptcy. We must led with the issues that unite us not the ones that can divide us.
Just because we lead with economic issues does not mean we do not support the social issues and fight for BLM, LGBTQ, Muslims Dreamers, welfare recipients, a path to citizenship for illegals, minorities. I have found over the years that their is some prejudice in all of us. Some have no problems with race but consider welfare recipients as leeches, some have a problem with blacks and not Hispanics. Some are are ok with Muslims but not LGBT and the same goes for abortion.
I do not have all the answers about how to shape the overall conversation with voters but I know this site does and the front pagers should be leading the way. I have found that when people start by finding things they agree on they can sometimes change peoples views and increase the level of tolerance. Our party is seen as being out of step with the concerns of Americans. We need to change that, let work on that instead of fighting among ourselves.
