A leaked strategy document prepared for conservative Democratic Rep. Dan Lipinski and newly obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times advised the congressman to employ a two-faced strategy to win over different groups of voters, most notably by touting his vote against the Affordable Care Act when messaging Republicans while simultaneously extolling his votes to oppose repealing Obamacare when talking to independents.
The memo also said Lipinski should emphasize his opposition to abortion rights to Republicans and Catholics while of course mentioning nothing of the sort to everyone else. Similarly, it advised that he highlight his “pro border patrol” views to conservatives while playing up his “pro-Dreamer” votes to Latinos.
Most significantly, the strategy guide urged that Lipinski's campaign encourage Republicans to vote in the Democratic primary in March by "reaching out to GOP officeholders" and "getting letters from 'GOP surrogates.'" This is very much possible under Illinois' system of "open" primaries, where voters do not register by party. Instead, they declare their affiliation at their polling place and receive whichever party's ballot they prefer.
In last year's primary for the Chicago-area 3rd District, when Lipinski narrowly edged progressive challenger Marie Newman by a 51-49 margin, he very likely survived thanks to Republican voters crossing over to support him. That left Newman's backers gnashing their teeth, and now they have much firmer evidence that Lipinski will pursue precisely this strategy in his rematch against Newman in 2020.
We don't need to tolerate this nonsense! Send $3 to Marie Newman ASAP!
Lipinski, naturally, has sought to downplay the memo: He claimed he hadn't seen the document until he spoke with the Sun-Times, saying that "this is not anything that I have approved" and adding that the proposals "are not necessarily my thoughts." But some, apparently, are: Speaking of "talking points" that described him with phrases like "vote conscience" and "doesn't check the wind," Lipinski said, "I think it's a good summary, probably, of how I see myself ..."
Yet Lipinski did not disavow the document, and there's reason to think his outreach to Republicans could be even more successful this time. That's because last year, the GOP waged a hard-fought battle in the race for governor at the top of the ticket. Next year, though, Republicans won't have much on their side of the ledger, since Donald Trump will easily be renominated. GOP voters will therefore have even more incentive to ask for Democratic ballots.
There's a countervailing force at work here, though, because the Democrats' presidential primary will also take place the same day and will likely still be in full swing by mid-March. If that contest draws out large numbers of more liberal voters eager to cast ballots for candidates like Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders—both of whom have endorsed Newman—Lipinski could find himself washed out to sea no matter how much GOP support he can finagle.
More and better Democrats, please! Can you donate $3 to Marie Newman?