Summary

Historians suggest Democrats might have fared better against Donald Trump by embracing the economic issues championed by Senator Bernie Sanders, who has long pushed for a focus on “bread-and-butter” concerns for working-class voters.

Despite Kamala Harris’s progressive policies, polls showed Trump was favored on economic issues, particularly among working-class and Hispanic voters.

Historian Leah Wright Rigueur argued that Sanders’ messaging on economic struggles could be key for future Democratic strategies.

Sanders himself criticized the party for “abandoning” the working class, which he said has led to a loss of support across racial lines.

  • boaratio@lemmy.world
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    4 days ago

    That’s the real problem with historians. They always talk about the past and not the future.

  • bquintb@midwest.social
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    5 days ago

    I usually vote along with the democrats, but neoliberals are so freaking elitist and clueless. As much as it pisses me off that I’m going to have to deal with whatever fascist bs Trump has in store, it’s really quite nice seeing them get their asses handed to them by a populist… It’s just too bad it wasn’t a left-wing populist.

  • AidsKitty@lemmy.world
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    5 days ago

    Ive always liked Bernie. Bernie demonstrates the Democratic party would much rather lose with Kamala than win with Bernie. Never thought I would see them campaigning with Dik Cheney, the mask fell away for a few moments on that one.

    • GrymEdm@lemmy.world
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      5 days ago

      I legit could not believe they accepted that endorsement at all, much less ran with it as hard as they did.

  • Grandwolf319@sh.itjust.works
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    5 days ago

    You guys need to think of the DNC as more of a for profit business.

    From that perspective, they were super successful in making so much money.

    Remember, there can be more money made when you intentionally lose, similar to butch in pulp fiction.

  • generalEdo@sh.itjust.works
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    5 days ago

    Sorry for the dumb question but I really don’t follow politics. What did he mean when he says the dems ditched the working class.

    • AdolfSchmitler@lemmy.world
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      5 days ago

      Things like more paternity leave for workers, universal Healthcare that isn’t tied to your job, increased minimum wage. Things like that to help strengthen everyday working people and give them more power and just generally improve their lives.

    • Madison420@lemmy.world
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      5 days ago

      He means they chose identity politics of worker protections and unions. You buy votes and pandering to business was the wrong purchase. Trump may be a liar but he chose the right lie and sold his base a fallacy but one they can get behind and are unfortunately not educated well enough to know it’s a improbablity to the point of near impossibility.

      Though in this case he might actually be able to do it, though it will mean causing a world war to destroy every other major countries industrial base and choosing the right time to sue for terms.

      • generalEdo@sh.itjust.works
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        5 days ago

        Thank you that clears things up. One more question though, how was trump able to flip almost the blue wall States. I live in WI as an example and we totally flipped from blue to red. I couldn’t imagine Kamala lost that many blue votes, unless there is something else I don’t understand. Even educated people seemed to flip from what I have read.

  • vga@sopuli.xyz
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    5 days ago

    It seems to me that a lot of people are confused about what “supporting the working class” would actually mean.

    It wouldn’t mean that the working class would start thinking like Democrats. It will mean that Democrats will start thinking like the working class. Think about the implications, they’re not all what you want them to be.

    Probably worth it, though.

    • Landsharkgun@midwest.social
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      5 days ago

      Like the other out-of-touch libs, when you say ‘working class’ what you mean is ‘racist white rural people’.

      Half my coworkers were either born outside the US or are second-gen. My national just voted to affirm and support trans rights. Turns out, people who work for money are working class. That includes, well, everybody.

      This misunderstanding is why the Dems ‘moved to the right’ this election. They still think it’s 1950. Moving to the right doesn’t make you appealing to the working class, it makes you appealing to bigots.

      Literally just make life easier for the working poor. That is all you need to do.

    • inv3r510n@lemmy.world
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      5 days ago

      The implications, like supporting a higher minimum wage, universal healthcare, labor protections, unionization, and ending the forever wars?

      • vga@sopuli.xyz
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        5 days ago

        Not sure about how they think about universal healthcare and unionization. It’s hard to believe those are core issue for them if they’re willing to vote republican like this.

        And I can add to that list not caring about immigrants or minorities more than the bare minimum. Or about helping students financially.

        • inv3r510n@lemmy.world
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          5 days ago

          Why should I give a fuck about immigrants who directly drive down my wages? I’m talking legal immigrants. I work for a ski area - they can’t function without J1s and H2Bs or they’d have to pay double the wages for it to make sense for American citizens. I’m in a well tipped position so it doesn’t matter for me but my non tipped coworkers can barely make rent, meanwhile as a condition of employment J1s and H2Bs have to be provided housing (that they pay $500 a month for deducted in their paychecks) by the resort.

          Please note how minorities abandoned the democrats because democrats abandoned them.

  • Vespair@lemm.ee
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    6 days ago

    If we had run Bernie in 2016, Trump would still be nothing but a punchline.

        • vga@sopuli.xyz
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          5 days ago

          It’s one think to think that Sanders is correct, but to think that the American people would have voted for him in 2016 is just extremely delusional.

          • ZILtoid1991@lemmy.world
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            5 days ago

            Okay, maybe he would have alienated like a small percentage of liberals that thought he was “too radical” and he will bring a holodomor on the US for some reason. Maybe some of those Bernie bros were just troll pretending to like him, so they could play the “why I left the left”. Still, he not only could have won a lot of Republicans, but even more people who normally abstaining from voting.

          • inv3r510n@lemmy.world
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            5 days ago

            Every trump voter I know would of went for him. Explain how counties that twice went to Obama in a landslide magically flipped to trump in a landslide. You won’t.

  • kittenzrulz123@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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    6 days ago

    The workers of America need to abandon the Democrat party and establish a unified left wing party (a good name would be “American workers party”, yes I know that existed before). A few basic details of this party should include:

    • Primary focus on economic issues
    • The abolition of Capitalism
    • The establishment of worker ran co-ops (aka Syndicates)
    • Minimal government
    • Less taxes
    • Social Programs ran by Syndicates
    • The Abolition of Military (with a small reserve)
    • A fundamental restructuring of policing (with the door open to police abolition)
    • US-First policy, yes it means abandoning its “allies” but America needs to understand that it cannot be the world police forever.
    • And Education reform to ensure that the American people will never end up in this situation again
    • prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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      5 days ago

      I guess we’ll just have to put up with a couple of months of this fantasizing bullshit, before people realize just how much the paradigm is going to shift… We aren’t going to be talking about organizing parties, because it will be moot.

      Any real opposition will be removed (imprisoned and/or executed), and anything that remains will be purely for show.

    • undergroundoverground@lemmy.world
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      5 days ago

      I wish you the very best of luck. The main issues you’ll have will be, in order: funding, funding and funding.

      Anyone being serious about this will have to spend most of their time thinking about that. Its why they always, eventually, end up being g captured by the powers that be. But they can do a lot of good before then, in the right circumstances.

      One solution is through part of the party being a sort of union of trade unions. Unions have money, similar values and members who would potentially join. Membership subs would be another. They can do an awful lot of good but unions can also come with their own long list of problems you’ll have to keep your eye on.

      Whatever name you choose, check out the formation of political labour movements, as a kind of road map to building what you want. An example would be the labour party in the UK or NZ. It’ll have to be done your way and for an American electorate of course but im sure you won’t need any inspiration from me or any other country for that part.

        • jmf@lemm.ee
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          5 days ago

          You underestimate how sensitive the working class is to anything involving removal of capitalism. The red scare never really ended.

          • kittenzrulz123@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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            5 days ago

            Workers are scared of the terminology but not the ideology, if someone who’s powerful and charismatic enough is able to clearly explain left wing values the workers will follow along. Workers may be scared but they’re also easily convinced.