Math and bridges are racist.
https://amac.us/democrats-are-trapped-by-the-extremism-of-their-own-base-on-cultural-issues/
In the aftermath of their defeat in Virginia, a few, mostly older liberal commentators have begun warning about the Democratic Party’s leftward drift on cultural issues. Some have criticized Democrat candidate Terry McAuliffe for his failure to distance himself from the far left on CRT or the transgender bathroom and sports issues that had inflamed parents in Virginia schools.
It is easy to condemn McAuliffe for this choice, but the way he chose to navigate the race highlights a much larger problem for the party than many have understood. The challenge is that given the dynamics he faced within the Democratic electorate, it is unclear what other choice McAuliffe had. In all likelihood, McAuliffe did not decide to adopt his losing strategy thinking it was good. He probably deduced, correctly, that was simply the least bad option. And the alarming fact for Democrats nationwide is that if their least bad option was not good enough to win in a Biden+10 state earlier this month, there are a lot of other places it will not be good enough either.
McAuliffe’s choice on the cultural issues was both simple and impossible. If he spoke out against the radicalism of the left, he would be on the wrong side of a majority of Democrats, and potentially enrage 30% who would think him a bigot or at least pandering to bigots. If he supported their policies, he would offend the nearly quarter of Democrats who think the “woke” turn of Democrat politics is total nonsense, and potentially a danger to their kids – not to mention alienating a majority of independent voters McAuliffe desperately needed to win. So, facing this choice, McAuliffe did nothing, hoping he could hold the coalition together. Nothing may indeed have been his best option—but as we saw, it could not get him across the finish line.
https://amac.us/democrats-are-trapped-by-the-extremism-of-their-own-base-on-cultural-issues/
In the aftermath of their defeat in Virginia, a few, mostly older liberal commentators have begun warning about the Democratic Party’s leftward drift on cultural issues. Some have criticized Democrat candidate Terry McAuliffe for his failure to distance himself from the far left on CRT or the transgender bathroom and sports issues that had inflamed parents in Virginia schools.
It is easy to condemn McAuliffe for this choice, but the way he chose to navigate the race highlights a much larger problem for the party than many have understood. The challenge is that given the dynamics he faced within the Democratic electorate, it is unclear what other choice McAuliffe had. In all likelihood, McAuliffe did not decide to adopt his losing strategy thinking it was good. He probably deduced, correctly, that was simply the least bad option. And the alarming fact for Democrats nationwide is that if their least bad option was not good enough to win in a Biden+10 state earlier this month, there are a lot of other places it will not be good enough either.
McAuliffe’s choice on the cultural issues was both simple and impossible. If he spoke out against the radicalism of the left, he would be on the wrong side of a majority of Democrats, and potentially enrage 30% who would think him a bigot or at least pandering to bigots. If he supported their policies, he would offend the nearly quarter of Democrats who think the “woke” turn of Democrat politics is total nonsense, and potentially a danger to their kids – not to mention alienating a majority of independent voters McAuliffe desperately needed to win. So, facing this choice, McAuliffe did nothing, hoping he could hold the coalition together. Nothing may indeed have been his best option—but as we saw, it could not get him across the finish line.
