you vs the main opponent vs third parties vs not voting
There's been much talk about Trump gaining among non-white voters (especially among Latines), but I think the much bigger story is people in those communities who didn't vote because they weren't impressed with either side. They didn't want Trump but they felt the Democrats weren't much help either.
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Joe Biden was obviously past his prime, but the Democrats weren't honest with the public about his condition until his disastrous debate with Donald Trump.
You can't win being senile. Even if the other guy is a maniac. As Bill Clinton said "people prefer strong & wrong over weak & right"
As for Kamala Harris, being that she was Biden's VP, people took their frustrations with the Biden administration out on her.
When people aren't feeling the economy, they usually vote out the incumbent. That happened to Carter in 1980 and Bush Sr in 1992. In 2008, Bush Jr was done with his term, so people took their economic frustrations on fellow Republican John McCain.
Even though inflation peaked in 2022, people were still feeling the effects of it two years later. People wanted change.
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Also, Kamala Harris could've been a better communicator. She doesn't always come up with clear answers when questioned by journalists.
She could've just come up with a few bullet points to repeat throughout the campaign.
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And of course, Trump was quick to remind people that Harris pandered to the far-left in her failed 2020 primary campaign.
I think from this point forward, the Democrats need to stop focusing their rhetoric on the college faculty lounge and the "woke" college activists.
Instead, they should focus their rhetoric on the general population which includes the blue-collar folks who aren't familiar with the latest far-left campus jargon.
Democrats should continue to advocate for a stronger safety net & stronger workplace protections (I wish Harris spent more time on these issues) but also take a much stronger stance on crime.
When people hear news about increased shoplifting in California due to lenient penalties for theft, people associate that with Democrats (some of whom advocated for those lenient laws) and therefore not want to vote for Democrats.
(and for the record, the people of California just voted for increased penalties for theft this election).
Kamala Harris should've ran ads emphasizing her time as a prosecutor and mentioning horrible criminals she convicted! People aren't going to know about it unless they hear about this repeatedly.
It's this lack of focus that disappointed me the most about Harris's campaign.
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As for the border, I think the whole thing was blown out of proportion.
Border crossings peaked in 2022. I think much of the increase of people at the borders are due to rumors spread worldwide that "Biden will be more lenient on immigration than Trump" without those people realizing that Biden would need the approval of Congress to enact any policy.
I think the images of non-European people crossing the border was enough to scare the racists around the country into a massive panic.
Also, even though the overwhelming majority of all crime involves the victim and violator being the same race, Trump kept emphasizing isolated cases of Latino immigrants killing & raping Anglo women.
Nevermind that Anglo women are WAY MORE LIKELY to be drugged & gang-rapped by Anglo frat-boys! But the Anglo frat-boys are part of the MAGA base, so Trump (who himself have MULTIPLE sexual abuse allegations) isn't bothered!
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Trump ads kept blowing the issue of transgender in sports out of proportion. Those who are non-binary are only about 1% of the population. It's extremely unlikely that your daughter will even encounter even 1 in their youth sports career, much less be injured by one.
Trump ads kept saying that Harris is for "they/them".
Harris should've responded by saying that "Trump is all about he, himself & him"
And that's we got right now! A presidency that will be all about the "he, himself & him"
A maniac who now feels empowered to do whatevers!
It's time for the Democrats to be disciplined because they have to win over Congress in 2026!
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SUGGESTED READING
(note: this listing isn't an endorsement of everything written in those articles)
article basically saying Trump's victory was by a small margin
Perry Bacon Jr. . “The Election Was a Trump Splash — but Not a Red Wave.” Washington Post. November 11, 2024.
article on why neither Trump nor Harris impressed
Nick Gillespie. “Don’t Blame Me for Not Voting for Your Unbelievably Rotten Candidate.” Reason.com. November 4, 2024. https://reason.com/2024/11/04/dont-blame-me-for-not-voting-for-your-unbelievably-rotten-candidate/.
articles on why Democrats lost (even against a maniac like Trump)
George F. Will, “Republican Self-Degradation Continues. Democratic Self-Sabotage Helped.,” Washington Post, November 6, 2024 https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/11/06/trump-reelection-democrats-help/.
Ramesh Ponnuru. “The Democrats Weren’t Stupid or Crazy — Just Wrong! The Party’s Debacle of 2024 Shows How Easy It Is for Partisans to Misunderstand Their Own Victories.” Washington Post. November 17, 2024. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/11/17/democratic-party-election-loss-wrong/.
Adam Jentleson. “When Will Democrats Learn to Say No?” The New York Times. November 16, 2024. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/16/opinion/democrats-interest-groups-majority.html.
Washington Post Editorial Board. “Trying to Protect Biden, Democrats Sacrificed Their Credibility.” Washington Post. November 8, 2024. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/11/08/democrats-lost-credibility-harris-biden/.
Matt Bai. “What Biden’s Aides Did That Infuriated People.” Washington Post. November 8, 2024.
Abha Bhattarai and Jeff Stein. “Americans Deliver Message to Democratic Party: The Economy Isn’t Working.” Washington Post. November 9, 2024. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2024/11/09/democrats-election-economy-inflation-harris-biden/.
Maureen Dowd. “Democrats and the Case of Mistaken Identity Politics.” The New York Times. November 9, 2024.
Nathaniel Manderson. “The Last Temptation of Donald Trump: How He Lured Evangelicals to Follow Satan.” Salon. November 3, 2024. https://www.salon.com/2024/11/03/the-last-temptation-of-donald-trump-how-he-lured-evangelicals-to-follow-satan/.
R.H. “How Not to Persuade People to Your Cause.” Medium, November 14, 2024. https://medium.com/@russellhowell86/how-not-to-persuade-people-to-your-cause-33ff82f1a209.
