Out of a sense of profound frustration with my Party, I came up with a small (tiny?) plan that I hoped would be practical and realistic. We’re all in uncharted waters. As a person who’s usually competitive, I hate losing. I especially hate losing elections. And losing the last election was particularly painful, and it nearly blew my mind.
While the Dem. Party seems more than a little stuck in the mud, I crave progress. I crave action. And I crave winning elections. With all that in mind, I am making a MODEST PROPOSAL For The DEMOCRATIC PARTY. I know, it’s not big, and most certainly not comprehensive. It’s just a sliver of the plan(s) we need. But it could be a way forward, if and only if the Dem Party leadership AND candidates adopt it and follow it!!!
Concerning the Dem Party Plank on the Economy
The Democratic Party has a long-term claim on being far better on the economy than the Rep Party.Bboth the DNC and all Dem candidates need to clarify the facts, and both must also re-assert our record of superior performance on that score. Anyone who viewed the general election of 2024 remembers how VP Kamala Harris and Gov. Tim Walz fared in that debacle. The resulting Rep. House majority is yet another reminder that Dem. campaign messaging fell well short of hopes and expectations. None of us want to see that happen again. We need to quickly find effective ways to fight harder on offense as well as on defense.
Now may be the perfect time to radically challenge the Republican Party on their long-standing claim that they are “better on the economy”. As the US economy continues to flounder, and as President Trump and the GOP continue to flail Democrats as “left-wing radicals”; “losers”; “Dems. want crime- and they incite it”; “radical left lunatics”, etc., we need to mount a counter-offensive.
I’m suggesting Now that both the DNC, the Democratic leadership, and virtually all Dem candidates for office start an information offensive to counter the popular misconception that it’s Repubs. who are better on the economy- when in truth it is the Democrats who are best on the economy. That mistaken perception was created by GOP leaders and propaganda campaigns over decades of speeches and written statements. The GOP has long had a penchant for mendacity and perfidy. But that can be a skill as well, and by using it liberally- with a time-honored practice of steady repetition over the years, convinced tens of millions of lower-information voters that it’s the “truth”.
Through repetition well beyond what a normal person can tolerate, they have created a mythical sense that the Rep. Party does a far better job of managing and guiding the US economy for the benefit of all. While most of us see the myth for what it is, it has nevertheless been very effective in convincing the majority of voters that the GOP does a better job on economy. I do not think we can afford to let that myth continue. And I think we need a collective, multi-year campaign of truth-telling about the economy.
As Bill Clinton noted in his address to the Dem. National Convention in Aug. 2024, (paraphrased) “Since 1989, Democratic Administrations have created about 50 million jobs in the US. During the same time period, Repub. Administrations have produced about 1 million jobs. So, 50 to 1; So, who’s really better on the economy?”
Yet political poll after poll confirms that most US voters polled say that the Rep. Party is “better on the economy”.
“AI Overview (as follows below)
As of late September and early October 2025, polls from Ipsos, Reuters, and Pew Research Center show that a plurality of Americans trust the Republican Party more than the Democratic Party on the economy. However, these results show a strong partisan divide, and overall public opinion of the economy remains largely negative.”
For Example:
Latest polling on the economy
Reuters/Ipsos Poll (September 2025)
34% of respondents said the Republican Party has a better plan for managing economic policy.
24% said the Democratic Party was better.
Ipsos Poll (September 2025)
39% of Americans said they trust Republicans more on the economy.
32% of Americans said they trust Democrats more.
Notably, this same poll found that a majority of Americans would rather have Democrats control the next Congress to "act as a check on Trump".
Pew Research Center Poll (October 2025)
Overall outlook: Nearly three-quarters of Americans (74%) rate economic conditions as only "fair" or "poor," an increase from January 2024.
Partisan divide: The poll found a significant partisan gap, with Democrats and Republicans holding deeply negative or positive views depending on which party controls the presidency.
Trump's economic policies: 53% of those polled said President Trump's economic policies have made conditions worse, while 24% said they have made them better.
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So, there we have it- the sum of how voters see the Dem. Party vs. the GOP on guiding the US economy. As political observers and daily participants in the democratic process, I thank we can recognize and acknowledge the truth in the polling. Despite the failures and biases of polling per se, I think they prove the basic point. The GOP has beaten us in messaging, thereby creating a false myth. Now we need to reverse that belief, as soon as possible, and well in advance of the approaching Midterm Elections!
To clarify the point, what I/we want to see is a gradual extinction of the GOP economic superiority myth. Over the next 4 years, for example, the ideal situation would be for us to see polling numbers on GOP favorability on the economy reduced by 5-10 points annually. By the time the General Election of 2028 rolls around, Dems could (and should) be heavily favored as better stewards of the economy. Even hitting a point in polling where Dems and the GOP are equal on that key question (50%- 50%) would be great progress in that program!
So to briefly summarize, what I am proposing is that all Dem leaders and candidates for elected offices start now to create a new- and accurate- narrative on the US economy. That is that Democrats have made a masterful effort of creating more jobs for US workers. Putting that into action would mean suggesting, but not forcing, all Dem candidates to repeat some variation of the same theme;
- That Dems create more jobs
- That Dems are better on managing the US economy
- That more and better jobs creates the strongest US society and economy
If put into action as I hope, All Dem leaders would be using one or more parts of the theme on a regular basis. Saying it or writing it daily at best, but at least 1-2 times weekly. And in every major speech, continuing throughout the year, and not ceasing till hell freezes over!
As many of us like to say, and I tip my hat here to chloriscreator for the phrase: “Repetition is good”. Repetition makes us more likely to remember the theme, and it is just as likely to help Independents and some Republicans remember the theme as well. The key for us is to keep up the theme, and repeat it over, and over, and over!!
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The 2026 Midterm Elections will be a gigantic test of democracy vs. autocracy, of Trump favorability vs the truth, of the GOP vs the Democrats. Conventional wisdom says that the midterms are generally a referendum of sorts on the Presidency. Looking ahead, and recognizing that Trump’s favorability is historically low for any US presidency since 1900, it seems that we have a very big opportunity to replace a very large number of Repub. House members with Dem candidates. In addition, we have a chance to win a few Senate seats.
It is now a given that one of the reasons Trump and his Party won the 2024 squeaker election was “the economy”. Many thought that inflation was too high, that prices were rising too fast, and that the Rep. Party was “better on the economy”. [Bullshite!!] If Dems agree to use this idea, to embrace the theme, and to use it not just regularly but religiously or even “fanatically”, I think we can do far better in all coming elections!!!
That’s about it. Please comment on the tone, the content, the direction, or any element, as usual. But also, please use the DK Rules of the Road!
If Kossacks like this idea, I’ll meet with my OR House Rep., and (Hopefully) one of my OR Senators to pitch the idea!
