The Failure of “Electability”
By: David Gagne
Tags: Democrats, Republicans, Electability, Political Strategy, Election 2020

The evening of the last Democratic presidential candidate debate of 2019 Frank Luntz assembled a focus group. The group was comprised of self-declared Democrats. Some were undecided but most had one settled upon candidate. It seemed as though there was support for each candidate somewhere in that group. In an encouraging sign of “unity” not a single Democrat would consider voting for Trump. Unasked and unanswered — would any of the Democrats stay home or vote third party? That’s a big question for Sanders supporters and former supporters of Hillary. Would former Hillary supporters actually support a run by Sanders?

There was one issue that over-rode every other issue. One issue that, if you will, trumped any other concern by far. Healthcare? Climate Crisis? Financial inequality? Corruption? Money in politics? National Security? The Economy? All wrong.

The number one issue, the supreme commander, the big kahuna is… Electability.

Once again, the Democrats are going to try and predict the future.

In a lack of self-awareness the Democrats are intent on repeating the losing approach that has been repeated over and over and over and over again for decades. How did we get here?

On June 22, 1970, President Richard Nixon signed an extension of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that required the voting age to be 18 in all federal, state, and local elections. It was in response to the draft. Young men between 18 and 21 years of age were being sent to die in South Asia with no voice in the matter. A young man was old enough to give his life for his country but not old enough to vote. More and more young men were not happy to be dragged off to Asia to be killed or maimed against their wishes. What fringe right propaganda network existed was without an internet or cable system. So they got the vote.

Those young people are now senior citizens. Look at the top polling candidates. Three out of four are baby boomers. Many of them voted for the first time in 1972 convinced the promised “Revolution” had arrived. The Revolution that would not be televised. The Revolution prophesized in song, dance and the culture at large. The times “they were a’changing” went the song. Indeed they were.

In 1972 it was the hated Richard Nixon running against Clean Gene McGovern for the presidency. The voting booths opened and closed at end of day. When the votes were tallied the political Revolution was over. It was not only merely dead it was most sincerely dead.

Nixon, a figure reviled among youth, at least youth in the “youth culture”, won in a stunning landslide. Actually, it was more of a super nova. Forty-nine. Forty-nine states. Forty-nine states wound up in Nixon’s column and ONE wound up with McGovern. Two years later Nixon imploded in the Watergate fiasco. There were no fringe right propaganda mills to claim the break-in didn’t amount to an impeachable offense and thereby protect Nixon.

But the damage was done. The soul-crushing-supernova-Nixon-victory broke the back of “liberals” in America. Then, in 1979, along came the star of Bedtime For Bonzo to deliver the coup de grâce to the wobbly remnants of the once great Revolution. In 1972 and 1980 the Democrats didn’t just lose the elections they lost their soul.

So, for 44 years, the Democrats have cowered and played defense.

In every presidential election since 1972 the over-riding concern has been electability. Super electability. Over and over Democrats picked candidates that were not just electable but odds on favorites to win. John Kerry, Al Gore and Hillary. Each time they lost. The party moved further and further to the right in the naïve hope to catch the “middle”. There developed an agreed upon approach for Democrats. Often referred to as Republican Lite — it was the path forward that left behind so many things for which the Democrats once stood. In the scramble to take the most “electable” positions the Democrats cozied up to corporations, Wall Street and MONEY.

Even while in office the Democrats chose to triangulate in order to appeal to a phantom middle in hopes of syphoning Republican votes. NAFTA, repeal of Glass-Steagall, Welfare “reform”. In hopes for some kind of health care reform the Democrats proposed, of all things, a Republican health care plan. They self-imposed the ridiculous “Pay/Go”.

The economic collapse of 2008 resulted in a stimulus just large enough to save the banks leaving the middle class to fend for themselves. While the Republicans ran the con of being concerned about the deficit the Democrats bought the con. Even worse the total number of financial industry suits charged with crimes leading to the collapse was zero. The Democratic administration, wrapped in a Republican-lite security blanket, let them get away with it.

So, as predicted, the 2010 election was a disaster for the Democrats. A disaster still reaping rewards for Republicans and the wealthy. People recognized the Democrats had left them behind and yet, oddly, Democrats still expected the votes to pour in when the polls flew open.

By 2016 the Democratic Party almost disappeared. Decades of Republican-Lite, of abandoning workers, of embracing the mega-rich and the corporate C-class executives was destroying the Democratic Party AND the middle class.

Ever since 1972 the Democrats ran scared. They were afraid to embrace anything but the most tepid of positions. Remember these were Democrats traumatized by the 1972 Nixon Super Nova and Reagan coup de grâce. For many of the Democrats the memory of 1972 became lifelong guiding star of electability. Unfortunately that path usually didn’t pay off.

So 2016 found the Democratic Party almost wiped out. The Federal government and most of the State governments were in Republican hands. The Democratic leadership was still running scared. The incomprehensible triumph of Trump shook the Democratic world.

“Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose.” Kris Kristofferson

The old guard Democrats hadn’t learned a thing. But, bubbling under the surface had been a mindset quite different from the frightened leaders of the party. Finally, in 2016, many Democrats recognized they were free — they had nothing left to lose. Women especially decided not to leave it to the cowering Party elders and take things into their own hands.

Were they “electable”? They didn’t care.

Out of that freedom, out of that rejection of electability as a major consideration, arose the Blue Wave of 2018. The key take away for Democrats? The Blue Wave did not come from the frightened Democratic Party bosses. In some cases it deposed senior Democrats.

The old admonition that Democrats should run to the right in a purple district was being tossed aside and proved wrong.

Democrats could learn a thing or two about Electability. It should not be anything but a very minor consideration. Especially given Democrats dismal record of selecting “Electable” candidates. The winner of the 2016 presidential election was one of the most “unelectable” candidates ever. And yet the Republicans didn’t care. They lined up and voted their hearts. Like so many times before their “unelectable” candidate won. That’s happened in Federal and State elections over and over.

The Democrats have to stop caring about “Electability”. They need to recognize the losing pattern when basing their selection of a candidate based on “electability”. For instance, in this presidential election, don’t select a candidate based on who you think has the best chance of winning. Choose a candidate you think would be the best president. Never think, “I like candidate A the best, but I think candidate B is more electable so… I’m going to vote for the most electable candidate — candidate B.” That’s a losing way to vote. Do not try to predict the future. You can’t do it. Vote your heart.