Democratic politicians and strategists are reportedly terrified that they may have made a big mistake in their midterm strategy, focusing excessively on side issues like abortion rights and threats to democracy instead of kitchen table matters such as the economy, gas prices and inflation.
“The truth is, Democrats have done a poor job of communicating our approach to the economy,” Michigan Democratic Representative Elissa Slotkin said. “I have no idea if I’m going to win my election – it’s going to be a nail biter. But if you can’t speak directly to people’s pocketbook and talk about our vision for the economy, you’re just having half a conversation,” the politician said.
According to media tracking company AdImpact, the president’s party spent a whopping $320 million on abortion rights-focused advertisements, and just $31 million on inflation-related messaging.
Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey (D) expressed fears that the party has not been aggressive enough in blocking Republican attacks on bread and butter issues. “If Republicans are going to attack on inflation, you should turn to them and say, ‘What the hell have you done?’ The answer is ‘nothing.’ And I think Democrats should talk about that more," Casey said.
Some candidates fear it’s too late to do anything to correct the approach. “It’s late in the game,” Milwaukee Democratic State Assemblyman David Bowen said. “Especially as you get bogged down into what is the proper strategy to use in some of these races.”
Republican candidates ranging from run-of-the-mill George W. Bush-era neocons to adepts of former President Donald Trump have spent months campaigning on issues like gas prices, the economy, inflation, violent crime and immigration, and blaming Democrats for either causing the problems or failing to do enough to address them.
The Problem in the White House
Some Democrats have hinted that President Joe Biden is just too weak a leader to get the party through the coming storm. Commenting on former President Barack Obama’s recent series of stump speeches in support of Democratic candidates, Congressman Ro Khanna wistfully lamented that “if he were running in every state, we’d win every Senate race, but he’s a once-of-a-generation talent.” Obama “shouldn’t be the only one delivering the basic economic message. We should have 20, 30 people capable of doing that and doing that around the country,” Khanna said.
The progressive California Democrat agreed with the sentiment that the party’s “consultant class” had failed, blowing all of their energy and capital on issues like abortion rights and the need to “protect democracy” against disgruntled Trump voters.
President Biden defiantly lashed out against Republicans in a train wreck of a speech in Florida on Tuesday night, vowing to give the GOP “hell” in the final days of the campaign, adopting a phony southern drawl and asking Republicans “who the hell do they think they are?” after accusing the GOP of planning to gut Social Security and Medicare.
Biden’s speech went off the rails after he suggested that inflation had become a “worldwide problem right now because of a war in Iraq,” and said that his son Beau, who died of brain cancer in 2015 at the Walter Reed Medical Center, died in Iraq. Biden also referred to Hurricane Ian, the storm which rocked Florida and the Carolinas earlier this year, as “Hurricane Ivan,” and said he had spoken to the man who “invented insulin,” who died before Biden was born. Finally, Biden referred to Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schulz a “friend” of his from the Senate.