Have Democrats Really Lost the Plot?

After months of teeth gnashing, a gathering of some of the best political minds in the country gathered to consider what the future holds for the Democrats

Some of the most prominent minds in the Democratic Party (and a few thoughtful Republicans) gathered at the University of Southern California (USC) Warschaw Conference to examine what went wrong for the Democrats and what governing would mean for the country in the Trump era.

The gathering was also a farewell to a legend in the political consulting business, Bob Shrum, who has advised more Democratic presidential candidates than anyone alive. Bob is a brilliant man with a storied past… and a good friend. I had the honor of teaching at USC in the Spring semester of 2019 where my course titled “Race, Class, and Partisanship,” became the launching point for both my work on The Lincoln Project and my book, The Latino Century: How America’s Largest Minority is Transforming Democracy.

View the panel here in its entirety, alongside:

• Tad Devine (Chief Strategist, Bernie Sanders' 2016 Presidential Campaign)

• John Della Volpe (Director of Polling, Harvard Kennedy School)

• Dale Butland (Democratic strategist; former Press Secretary & Ohio Chief of Staff for Sen. John Glenn)

• Carissa Joy Smith (Former Senior Public Engagement Advisor, White House Office of Public Engagement)

• Stephanie Young (Former Deputy Assistant to President Biden; Senior Advisor to VP Kamala Harris)

A great recap of my specific comments is in a short but to-the-point article from Calo News.

After more than thirty years of attending and speaking at countless conferences, I’m going out on a limb and suggesting that this was one of the very best I have ever attended. If you’re interested in the future of the Democratic Party and the challenges it faces, you would have had an amazing time soaking in the brilliance of some of the country’s sharpest political minds. Fortunately, you can watch two of the panels on C-SPAN and catch James Carville, Mike Murphy, Bob Shrum, and Adam Nagourney on Firing Line.

Without spoiling too much, let me say that James Carville didn’t pull punches (does he ever?) He took direct aim at the Democratic Party’s capture by the woke left and had some choice words about Kamala Harris (our 7th-string quarterback)…take a look at the video here:

Among the notable figures who joined us were:

• Ed Goeas (GOP polling legend)

• Chris Cadelago (POLITICO)

• Elex Michaelson (LA political anchor)

• Jessica Millan Patterson (CRP Chairwoman)

• Reince Priebus (Former RNC Chair & Trump Chief of Staff)

• Simon Rosenberg (Democratic strategist)

• Chuck Todd (Former NBC News Chief Political Analyst)

• Sasha Issenberg (Political author on modern campaigns)

• Betsy Fischer Martin (American University’s Women & Politics Institute)

My takeaways for Democrats:

• Democrats have allowed a culture where they believe their own press clippings and ideological maxims over hard science and data. If they don’t replace the pollsters and consultants that led them to lose Latino votes in each consecutive Presidential election, then they will lose again - and deserve to.

• The future of the Democratic party, indeed both parties is in the Southwest. The Democratic obsession with white working-class voters in the Sunbelt is shortsighted. If they want to succeed, it will be with leaders like Gallego, Padilla, Cortez Masto, and Luján at the forefront.

• You can’t replace bad policy and poor results with good messaging and clever tactics. Working-class people have been slipping further behind under Democratic policies. If the party leaders can’t acknowledge that, I invite them to spend a week in California – it will open their eyes.

So sit back, grab some popcorn, and enjoy the panel.