On the Cutting Room Floor: America’s Democracy

@ASoulAFire @JaniceOCG @Dorothy410berry As @TheDemocrats fight among themselves, @ezraklein a @nytopinion writer, picks apart a debate sparked by @davidshor, and democracy hangs in the balance.  Join Thursdays, 8 pm ET, from 1/13/22, “If America Fails?:  The Coming Tyranny.”

Arguments advanced by David Shor, a data analyst sparking debate around the way forward for the Democratic Party, are picked apart in the attached article by Ezra Klein. 

“Shor has built an increasingly influential theory of what the Democrats must do to avoid congressional calamity. The chain of logic is this: Democrats are on the edge of an electoral abyss. To avoid it, they need to win states that lean Republican. To do that, they need to internalize that they are not like and do not understand the voters they need to win over. Swing voters in these states are not liberals, are not woke and do not see the world in the way that the people who staff and donate to Democratic campaigns do.”

Klein’s conclusion:

“In a way, this is where Shor and his critics converge: They are both deeply pessimistic about the near-term chances for Democrats and thus for democracy.”

As Democrats fight among themselves (think infrastructure), our march to Gilead continues with deliberate speed and clarity.  The simplicity of the fascist message – just kill everybody we don’t like – gives them a distinct political advantage.  It’s easy, if horrifying, to follow.

The diversity of the Democratic Party, indeed, of America itself, may prove too complex for us mere humans to handle.  Rather than being “too big to fail,” the U.S. may be too diverse to succeed.  That thought fills me with sadness, but it is one I believe we should consider – for on the cutting room floor is America’s democracy.  Will we leave it behind in an effort to simplify and craft a winning political message?  — LMO

READ | David Shor Is Telling Democrats What They Don’t Want to Hear | by Ezra Klein, Opinion Columnist | The New York Times | 10/8/2021