'19 Special & '20 Congressional Election Thread

[Strickland33]

Her biggest mistake was not doing groundwork to get involved with Kentucky Democrats.

That seems like a pretty big mistake, no? Otherwise, I agree with your analysis. I think my response is probably that in politics that has turned into a zero sum game, you play to win and Schumer isn't playing to win. But let's see what McGrath and Kentucky Dems can get done in terms of getting voters to the polls in November. I have no doubt in my mind that this COVID/economic situation is going to get much, much worse over the next 4 months.

 

[PhDeac]

Meanwhile, Booker is going to be the top candidate vs. Paul in two years.

 

[Strickland33]

Meanwhile, Booker is going to be the top candidate vs. Paul in two years.

by his (Booker's) own efforts rather than as a result of any sort of party strategy by Schumer et al.

by supporting McGrath Schumer basically benched any other Democrat from running. I'm happy that Booker didn't take the hint.

 

[RJKarl]

make them money and force the RNC to spend more in KY than they normally would, diverting it from actual closer races

This may be a place where Bloomberg or other outside groups throw some money just to make Mitch spend some of his.

I wonder if Mitch's ties to Deripaska can be made into a big issue. Deripaska is really close to Putin. Tie Moscow Mitch to putting bounties on US GIs.

 

[PhDeac]

'19 Special & '20 Congressional Election Thread

by his (Booker's) own efforts rather than as a result of any sort of party strategy by Schumer et al.

by supporting McGrath Schumer basically benched any other Democrat from running. I'm happy that Booker didn't take the hint.

Booker and the other 8 candidates.

McGrath became the choice in 2020 as a result of her own efforts in 2018. Her announcement ad went viral. The DCCC backed her primary opponent, the openly gay former mayor of Lexington who lost to Rand Paul in 2016. A “known loser.”

There isn’t some grand conspiracy. They’re just backing whoever breaks through the name recognition barrier.

 

[Strickland33]

It's not a grand conspiracy, but it's also not strategy either. Rather, it reflects pretty poor talent scouting and strategy from the party's lead scout. In this case, Schumer basically sold out Kentucky Democrats in 2020 to raise funds for the party and to hurt McConnell. Booker's rise is very much an unanticipated consequence of Schumer's decision to back McGrath. You're acting like it's 4D chess or something, but it's just not.

 

[Strickland33]

It sounds like the general takeaway from our discussion of the ongoing Dem Debacle is that the Democratic Party establishment just needs a complete overhaul from top to bottom, so that it better resembles the institutional apparatus of Justice Democrats and other progressive boosters that have done a good job of identifying district-appropriate talent with potential while providing campaign support. The DNC/DCCC/whatever is doing such a miserable job of anything besides enriching itself and creating an old boy's network of known losers.

 

[PhDeac]

It's not a grand conspiracy, but it's also not strategy either. Rather, it reflects pretty poor talent scouting and strategy from the party's lead scout. In this case, Schumer basically sold out Kentucky Democrats in 2020 to raise funds for the party and to hurt McConnell. Booker's rise is very much an unanticipated consequence of Schumer's decision to back McGrath. You're acting like it's 4D chess or something, but it's just not.

I literally just said, "There isn’t some grand conspiracy" while explaining that this is a simple name recognition story. It's the opposite of 4D chess. Comments like this makes it look like you're not actually reading what I say.

It sounds like the general takeaway from our discussion of the ongoing Dem Debacle is that the Democratic Party establishment just needs a complete overhaul from top to bottom, so that it better resembles the institutional apparatus of Justice Democrats and other progressive boosters that have done a good job of identifying district-appropriate talent with potential while providing campaign support. The DNC/DCCC/whatever is doing such a miserable job of anything besides enriching itself and creating an old boy's network of known losers.

I agree with this to a point. I think there needs to be an apparatus to recruit candidates and help them learn how to run a campaign. But the party should not put their foot on the scale at all. That approach puts the choice in the hands of party voters. It also acknowledges that losing in a well-fought primary is preparation to run again or for a different office. It helps build a bench.

 

[Strickland33]

I literally just said, "There isn’t some grand conspiracy" while explaining that this is a simple name recognition story. It's the opposite of 4D chess. Comments like this makes it look like you're not actually reading what I say.

I think you added the name recognition barrier piece after I had already started to write my post. Unlike your deliberate misreading of my posts the other day, this misunderstanding is an artifact of a ninja edit.

So, not 4D chess, just extreme laziness. It's going to be increasingly harder for Democrats to claim that give a shit about people in the rust belt when this is how the party handles its politics.

 

[PhDeac]

I agree. I'll add something to my previous post. The DCCC or whoever should only step in to recruit people if nobody steps up to run or an absolute shitbag is the only candidate. Otherwise, leave it to Justice Democrats, Emily's List, or Milquetoast Centrist Dems or whoever.

 

[Strickland33]

I agree. I'll add something to my previous post. The DCCC or whoever should only step in to recruit people if nobody steps up to run or an absolute shitbag is the only candidate. Otherwise, leave it to Justice Democrats, Emily's List, or Milquetoast Centrist Dems or whoever.

I like that proposal. Even if I disagree with some of the choices these groups make, they are making informed decisions. I had a student recently intern at Emily's List and their apparatus is pretty cool.

 

[myDeaconmyhand]

I would honestly like to learn how and why some of these advocacy groups like HRC, Emily's List, and Planned Parenthood have become so adjacent to the Dem party establishment. Perhaps that's naivete on my part from ignorance of the lobbying process, but those groups in particular seem to adhere rigidly to Dem party leadership

 

[Strickland33]

I would honestly like to learn how and why some of these advocacy groups like HRC, Emily's List, and Planned Parenthood have become so adjacent to the Dem party establishment. Perhaps that's naivete on my part from ignorance of the lobbying process, but those groups in particular seem to adhere rigidly to Dem party leadership

They do. It makes sense, though, because they're largely staffed by former staffers from the Clinton and Obama administrations, as well as folks who were already working for the establishment in some way or another. Look at Neera Tandem from the Center for American Progress, for example. CAP was hardly a radical organization, but it maintained a decent amount of autonomy as a somewhat progressive thinktank in DC. Tanden takes over, however, and it becomes a mouthpiece for the DNC/Democratic Party. I wonder why?

There are similar examples throughout the thinktank/NGO world.

Having finally spent some significant time in DC, it makes a lot of sense why there is so much overlap now.

 

[Kory]

I would honestly like to learn how and why some of these advocacy groups like HRC, Emily's List, and Planned Parenthood have become so adjacent to the Dem party establishment. Perhaps that's naivete on my part from ignorance of the lobbying process, but those groups in particular seem to adhere rigidly to Dem party leadership

just from the campaign side:
we got an endorsement from the first two in 2018 - big name recognition for them (esp Emily's for a female candidate) - they let their base know with email/social and we hit our lists with it and overall it nets an p significant fundraising haul for a local campaign
we didn't seek an endorsement from PP even though the candidate wanted to - just ammo for the GOP opp

 

[PhDeac]

QAnon supporter defeats incumbent in Colorado.
https://www.businessinsider.com/lau...do-third-district-primary-live-results-2020-6

Tipton was defeated in the Republican primary by first-time political candidate Lauren Boebert.
Boebert is a business owner and staunch gun rights advocate who manages a gun-themed restaurant called Shooters Grill aptly located in the Western Colorado city of Rifle where the servers are known for openly carrying weapons, Colorado Public Radio reported.

Boebert is also sympathetic to the QAnon conspiracy theory, which spreads the baseless belief that a cabal of "deep state" actors in the federal government are working to undermine Trump, with CPR reporting that she said she hopes the basis of the QAnon movement "is real" on a "Q-friendly web show."
Tipton is the fifth sitting member of the House of Representatives to lose re-nomination in the 2020 cycle, following Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-Illinois), Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa), Rep. Eliot Engel (D-New York), and Rep. Denver Riggleman (R-VA), who was ousted by his party in a convention.

 

[avalon]

Checked the numbers thinking it might reflect low turnout, and nope, turnout was pretty robust.

Trump's gonna have to update his endorsement graphic.

 

[DeacHead]

The guy in NC along with this one in CO seems like the start of a trend where a moment of schadenfreud seeing Trump's endorsement go to a loser is offset by the realization the victor is even worse.

 

[myDeaconmyhand]

The guy in NC along with this one in CO seems like the start of a trend where a moment of schadenfreud seeing Trump's endorsement go to a loser is offset by the realization the victor is even worse.

Yeah they're all bad just in different ways

 

[myDeaconmyhand]

As long as Republicans are going to vote flagrant neo-fascists into office, I would prefer they be as old and uncharismatic as possible.

 

[RJKarl]

I would honestly like to learn how and why some of these advocacy groups like HRC, Emily's List, and Planned Parenthood have become so adjacent to the Dem party establishment. Perhaps that's naivete on my part from ignorance of the lobbying process, but those groups in particular seem to adhere rigidly to Dem party leadership

At this point, we have a two party system. Republicans have made PP their #1 target. Why would they support anyone but the Dems? Republicans dismiss women and their contributions to our society. Why would Emily's List support them?

If another party starts winning elections and gets strength, maybe they will get support from those groups. At this point, it's a binary choice.