I have had the honest first time feeling (not a knowing) but feeling, a little sliver of what it must feel like to be a disenfranchised person...I wrote the other day about my sorrow at the harm to our Beloved Country THEN got it about the incredible resilience of Native peoples and those of color. I am dedicated to joining them with daily "small kindnesses."
1. The Democratic Party needs to get the folks behind the KamalaHQ posts on social media back online ASAP. They were GOOD and very important. This needs to be a 24/7/365 staffed operation hammering every weird, obscene, and offensive thing Trump & Republicans do, every day, every moment. (Just having MediasTouch doing it isn't enough.)
2. I strongly prefer the "opposition" framing than "resistance." Resistance is passive, opposition is active. Democrats are going to have to be a strong, anti-corruption, social libertarian party, that also pushes for an effective social safety net and the restoration of the ideas of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness".
Also, check out Oliver Willis' new site, https://breakingnewsusa.com/ -- Breaking News USA is an aggregator and directory of news and information sources that Americans need.
Pulls in news from left-center sources: Talking Points Memo, Salon, ProPublica, Wonkette, etc.
Is it unreasonable to blame David Plouffe and the other 2008 Obama campaign advisor for an ineffective social media campaign which got smoked by Trump and Elon Musk's social media campaign? In an election of fine margins, Trump only won PA, MI and WI by around 1% or less. Social media, where a majority of women and a near majority of youth get their political info, probably won Trump the election.
AGREE completely re opposition terminology rather than resistance. Another way of putting it is that opposition is on the front foot, while resistance is on the back foot.
With all respect I think the definitions used for resistance and opposition is reversed here. My research shows resistance is active and opposition more covert. FYI…I searched out of curiosity bc I’ve been in resistance activism for years and understood it as action oriented. Thank you
Yes! There are a couple other spaces we really need to actively contest:
1- Gaming. Twitch and the like do not have to be a pseudo-libertarian echo chamber. There are plenty of gamers who are receptive to other messages, who care about individuality, creativity, and community. Progressives and Dems are currently MIA in gaming-related spaces and conversations.
2- "Bottom of the page" browse ads.
Because of the way online ad auctions work, there is a lot of space on a lot of sites (and mobile apps) that can be obtained for a relatively low cost. These spaces offer a way to push information to people who are not actively seeking news or political content. They may be looking for recipes, reading sports results (especially local stuff!), clicking through a Quora page, hovering on an ad that come up on their social media, etc.
We should be doing a lot of experimentation with this space, to see what messages get any traction, and as a way of getting handle on the types of content that our current and prospective voter base is consuming that relates to our message but is not explicitly news or social content.
3- MSN browser homepage and the like. This is another space like the bottom of the browser. Many people who run Windows (which is most of the world) are going to open up Microsoft Edge (which Windows is pushing harder all the time), and see a slurry of news or headline nuggets that Microsoft is aggregating. This is an enormous audience, and even if people don't click through much, they've essential had an "ad impression" of whatever headline was there. So making content that breaks through there would help us connect with the large fraction of the country that is not on Twitter and rarely or never (actively) watches CNN, MSNBC or even Fox News.
Another advantage of this kind of approach is that we can get political viewpoint and preference data without relying on traditional polling. 2024 showed us that traditional political polling (i.e. calling people on the phone) is now mostly useless. People just don't answer their phones, and anyone who's trying to contort the data to "adjust for responses" is basically injecting their own view of what the electorate will be into the responses.
At the same time, the ability to track people's actions and content consumption via their internet usage has never been more extensive. Our understanding of the electorate should be built on this sort of data rather than largely meaningless polls.
Happy Thanksgiving to you, Simon, and all the Hopium community. Our community is more important than ever and this Thanksgiving I am grateful for it. Thank you!
And, from here in Alaska, wanted to send out good news. Ranked choice voting has survived Republicans' dishonest efforts to repeal it (they are now in trouble with APOC) -- by just 660 votes. This will continue to challenge the dominance the GOP has claimed since the 80's with their closed primary, now broken. We expect them to try again, but we will fight. Sadly, we did lose our Dem. House Rep. Mary Peltola to the GOP. She is quality, and we hope she runs again.
AND - the best news, from the Anchorage Daily News today: "for the first time in Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s six-year tenure*, the House and Senate are both set to be governed by Democrat-dominated coalitions. Dunleavy is set to finish his second term in December 2026.
Senate President Gary Stevens said Friday that it would make “a tremendous difference” to have two bipartisan majorities that are largely aligned on legislative priorities."
*We cannot wait to get rid of our do-nothing-trump-sycophant MAGA governor. He has done nothing but decimate Alaska, and apparently he is not heading to fill out trump's despicable cabinet despite his one claim to fame--being tall (seriously). We can still hope.
Biden's infrastructure act will shore up our Alaska Marine Highway System of ferries that has been neglected under Republican 'leadership'. Forward!
I feel like Alaska is a great place to start an aggressive, 50 state, reform and renewal agenda. Peltola has shown what can be done. Murkowski’s appeal and occasional bold stance gives us some other messages we can win on. Cheap media market. Small population that is engaged on some state and local issues that the Federal government plays a big role in.
It may only be 3 EC votes but it’s two senate seats.
Apparently, given its closeness, Alaska’s SoS has ordered a recount of the referendum to repeal RCV and dump the state’s Top Four primary. But with a 660-vote difference, the result is unlikely to change.
Johnson is going to find it easier to work with Democrats than with Republicans. He's incentivized now that Republicans can't easily punish him with a one-person Motion to Vacate (the threshold will be nine persons for the incoming Congress).
I suspect Democrats will do their utmost to work with Speaker Johnson and Senate Majority Leader Thune to find compromises on non-crazy legislation. I suspect this will also drive a wedge between Trump and Congressional Republican leaders – an added bonus.
Friends...while I do not usually recommend reading for groups such as ours, I think that Jon Haidt's piece in the Atlantic daily today -
Why the Past 10 Years of American Life Have Been Uniquely Stupid
- is a must read. Especially so given our current search for foundation and bearings. In order for us to become more viable, and in turn, for important adjustment to be made in the way we approach politics, we need to understand the erosion of COMMUNIcation and Community this past decade plus because of technology and social media. Haidt's insights inform us of the need to restore the "intimacies" of our democracy as the foundation of strength and courage.
The Town Hall - and the difficult but respectful dialogue that comes with it - need to once again be at the forefront, if what we stand for has a chance of once again being the prevalent standard. I hope you read the article and take away some ideas for healing, renewal and the challenges that are in our hands.
Best to all for the Thanksgiving holiday and enjoy and appreciate those things and people you love.
Moving focus to HOW to deal with the MAGA “game” and especially sharing calm talking points on dealing with the voters that should have D but needed to hear the “deeper why” that may have not hit home
To Simon and all Hopium members: happy thanksgiving from a balmy 80 degree miami (i know!!). Let's rest up, regroup, reimagine and come back strong and ready. Anticipating lots of brutality/chaos/corruption/lies/violence starting 1/20. Let's build up our defenses!! And let's always remember to laugh and live in love and light!!!
My takeaways (These are neither quotes, nor my ideas. Just my "I listened to it so you don't have to unless you want to" summary):
1) It was always a close election. We were fighting unfavorable sentiment of the Biden administration, and the perception of economic pain and that Trump’s first term was successful in a compressed 107 period.
2) We’re playing by different rules than they are with Super PACs.
3) Harris got hammered on things like whether she was or wasn’t doing Interviews, and Trump didn’t.
4) Democrats are eating our own. Republicans are not. If we disagree with our leaders, we shout about it. They do not.
5) Republicans have a well-tuned, well-oiled media machine outside of campaigning. We are losing the culture wars.
6) We were trying to empower people to talk to the people in their own lives. We made some inroads. Trump has it figured out.
7) We cannot pay for the kind of effect that the organic reach of people talking to the people in their lives gets you.
8) What we did mattered, and you have to keep fighting every day.
Thank you for listening so I didn't have to. The Obama boys lost me over a year ago, that includes Axe and Plouffe. As there were many reasons that we lost I am still of the belief the Right-wing media/propaganda machine is No. 1. I am looking forward to Simons analysis.
I agree. I wonder, though, even if we had the appropriate media machine, would our message be broadly appealing enough? Something about RW messaging (or the way they do it) seems to catch on. It would behoove us to figure that out.
Totally disagree. People vote for our ideas like abortion, Medicaid expansion, Equal Rights Amendment in NY State even when they vote for Trump. It's our lack of a media machine operation that allows our opponents to lie about us with impunity. That's what needs to change.
Yes, however, what I'm talking about is messaging, not policies. Messaging is how one talks about policies/positions. Why are people immune to RW media when it comes to policies, but not candidates? My question is simply: why did RW media take off like it did? My main point was that while we 100% absolutely need to invest in building a similar infrastructure, we need to make sure our message will catch on. Or else we'll be building a giant radio station that no one listens to.
I watched it earlier today and I’m still in disbelief. Shocking. It made me literally sick to my stomach.
Plouffe kept emphasizing, over and over again, that the Harris campaign took the high road on most matters thinking that was somehow the path to winning moderates. He seemed to be saying, “yes, it looked like weakness but that was the only thing we could do”. His reasons for not responding to the anti-trans ads at all (“not wanting to play Trump’s game”) were infuriatingly obtuse, if not just silly.
After listening to Plouffe, I’m surprised it was as close as it was. Seriously.
These consultants should never be allowed near another Dem campaign.
I LOVE your Department of Jobs, Skills and Economic Development proposal. Our party and next presidential candidate should start developing and talking about that asap. And thanks so much for the news on the CA races. Definitely doing more and worrying less here at my house. Warmest wishes to you Simon and the whole Hopium family.
More news to give thanks for this morning - Derek Tran of CA 45th declares victory! Given his 613 vote lead over incumbent Steele this Wed morning, with 99% of the vote counted and Tran's steadily increasing lead, that's a pretty secure call, even though the AP has not yet followed.
I phonebanked for Derek Tran via Activate America, which lets you make calls on your own schedule and leave voicemails - it was so easy. Otoh I also phonebanked with them for Susan Wild and she lost, so did I make a difference? Hard to say. Some phonebanks feel useful, others feel like a waste of time, plagued by technical difficulties, bad scripts, and outdated lists.
We're not all natural salespeople so a good script is important, esp when calling for candidates outside our own state or district, who we're not as familiar with. Please don't say "Speak from the heart about why you support x" because my heart is filled with rage and disgust for the f-ing fascists. A short bullet list is better imho.
Thanks for sharing the great news about the CA-13 potential flip! Have a great holiday.
I am pleased to see our efforts helped in the house.
I have had the honest first time feeling (not a knowing) but feeling, a little sliver of what it must feel like to be a disenfranchised person...I wrote the other day about my sorrow at the harm to our Beloved Country THEN got it about the incredible resilience of Native peoples and those of color. I am dedicated to joining them with daily "small kindnesses."
Okay, putting this in first!
1. The Democratic Party needs to get the folks behind the KamalaHQ posts on social media back online ASAP. They were GOOD and very important. This needs to be a 24/7/365 staffed operation hammering every weird, obscene, and offensive thing Trump & Republicans do, every day, every moment. (Just having MediasTouch doing it isn't enough.)
2. I strongly prefer the "opposition" framing than "resistance." Resistance is passive, opposition is active. Democrats are going to have to be a strong, anti-corruption, social libertarian party, that also pushes for an effective social safety net and the restoration of the ideas of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness".
Also, check out Oliver Willis' new site, https://breakingnewsusa.com/ -- Breaking News USA is an aggregator and directory of news and information sources that Americans need.
Pulls in news from left-center sources: Talking Points Memo, Salon, ProPublica, Wonkette, etc.
Thank you!
So David Plouffe says their internal polling never had Harris beating trump. Nice to know, Dave.
Is it unreasonable to blame David Plouffe and the other 2008 Obama campaign advisor for an ineffective social media campaign which got smoked by Trump and Elon Musk's social media campaign? In an election of fine margins, Trump only won PA, MI and WI by around 1% or less. Social media, where a majority of women and a near majority of youth get their political info, probably won Trump the election.
Thanks, this site is great.
I'm glad to see someone like Oliver Willis taking action - he's a smart dude.
AGREE completely re opposition terminology rather than resistance. Another way of putting it is that opposition is on the front foot, while resistance is on the back foot.
💯
Moishe,
With all respect I think the definitions used for resistance and opposition is reversed here. My research shows resistance is active and opposition more covert. FYI…I searched out of curiosity bc I’ve been in resistance activism for years and understood it as action oriented. Thank you
Yes! There are a couple other spaces we really need to actively contest:
1- Gaming. Twitch and the like do not have to be a pseudo-libertarian echo chamber. There are plenty of gamers who are receptive to other messages, who care about individuality, creativity, and community. Progressives and Dems are currently MIA in gaming-related spaces and conversations.
2- "Bottom of the page" browse ads.
Because of the way online ad auctions work, there is a lot of space on a lot of sites (and mobile apps) that can be obtained for a relatively low cost. These spaces offer a way to push information to people who are not actively seeking news or political content. They may be looking for recipes, reading sports results (especially local stuff!), clicking through a Quora page, hovering on an ad that come up on their social media, etc.
We should be doing a lot of experimentation with this space, to see what messages get any traction, and as a way of getting handle on the types of content that our current and prospective voter base is consuming that relates to our message but is not explicitly news or social content.
3- MSN browser homepage and the like. This is another space like the bottom of the browser. Many people who run Windows (which is most of the world) are going to open up Microsoft Edge (which Windows is pushing harder all the time), and see a slurry of news or headline nuggets that Microsoft is aggregating. This is an enormous audience, and even if people don't click through much, they've essential had an "ad impression" of whatever headline was there. So making content that breaks through there would help us connect with the large fraction of the country that is not on Twitter and rarely or never (actively) watches CNN, MSNBC or even Fox News.
Another advantage of this kind of approach is that we can get political viewpoint and preference data without relying on traditional polling. 2024 showed us that traditional political polling (i.e. calling people on the phone) is now mostly useless. People just don't answer their phones, and anyone who's trying to contort the data to "adjust for responses" is basically injecting their own view of what the electorate will be into the responses.
At the same time, the ability to track people's actions and content consumption via their internet usage has never been more extensive. Our understanding of the electorate should be built on this sort of data rather than largely meaningless polls.
Happy Thanksgiving to you, Simon, and all the Hopium community. Our community is more important than ever and this Thanksgiving I am grateful for it. Thank you!
Great news, Simon. Hope lives.
And, from here in Alaska, wanted to send out good news. Ranked choice voting has survived Republicans' dishonest efforts to repeal it (they are now in trouble with APOC) -- by just 660 votes. This will continue to challenge the dominance the GOP has claimed since the 80's with their closed primary, now broken. We expect them to try again, but we will fight. Sadly, we did lose our Dem. House Rep. Mary Peltola to the GOP. She is quality, and we hope she runs again.
AND - the best news, from the Anchorage Daily News today: "for the first time in Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s six-year tenure*, the House and Senate are both set to be governed by Democrat-dominated coalitions. Dunleavy is set to finish his second term in December 2026.
Senate President Gary Stevens said Friday that it would make “a tremendous difference” to have two bipartisan majorities that are largely aligned on legislative priorities."
*We cannot wait to get rid of our do-nothing-trump-sycophant MAGA governor. He has done nothing but decimate Alaska, and apparently he is not heading to fill out trump's despicable cabinet despite his one claim to fame--being tall (seriously). We can still hope.
Biden's infrastructure act will shore up our Alaska Marine Highway System of ferries that has been neglected under Republican 'leadership'. Forward!
I feel like Alaska is a great place to start an aggressive, 50 state, reform and renewal agenda. Peltola has shown what can be done. Murkowski’s appeal and occasional bold stance gives us some other messages we can win on. Cheap media market. Small population that is engaged on some state and local issues that the Federal government plays a big role in.
It may only be 3 EC votes but it’s two senate seats.
The beginning of the new 50-state strategy :-)
Apparently, given its closeness, Alaska’s SoS has ordered a recount of the referendum to repeal RCV and dump the state’s Top Four primary. But with a 660-vote difference, the result is unlikely to change.
Johnson is going to find it easier to work with Democrats than with Republicans. He's incentivized now that Republicans can't easily punish him with a one-person Motion to Vacate (the threshold will be nine persons for the incoming Congress).
If we can just get Trump to appoint two more House Republicans to his administration, Hakeem Jeffries will be elected Speaker of the House.
At least for a little while.
I suspect Democrats will do their utmost to work with Speaker Johnson and Senate Majority Leader Thune to find compromises on non-crazy legislation. I suspect this will also drive a wedge between Trump and Congressional Republican leaders – an added bonus.
Yup. Get the debt ceiling raised, pass a sensible budget, maybe even get some more aid to Ukraine.
https://www.npr.org/2023/01/21/1150605281/an-economists-case-for-abolishing-the-debt-ceiling
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/why-congress-needs-to-abolish-the-debt-limit-testimony-before-the-house-budget-committee/
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/06/eliminate-debt-ceiling-gdp/674279/
Friends...while I do not usually recommend reading for groups such as ours, I think that Jon Haidt's piece in the Atlantic daily today -
Why the Past 10 Years of American Life Have Been Uniquely Stupid
- is a must read. Especially so given our current search for foundation and bearings. In order for us to become more viable, and in turn, for important adjustment to be made in the way we approach politics, we need to understand the erosion of COMMUNIcation and Community this past decade plus because of technology and social media. Haidt's insights inform us of the need to restore the "intimacies" of our democracy as the foundation of strength and courage.
The Town Hall - and the difficult but respectful dialogue that comes with it - need to once again be at the forefront, if what we stand for has a chance of once again being the prevalent standard. I hope you read the article and take away some ideas for healing, renewal and the challenges that are in our hands.
Best to all for the Thanksgiving holiday and enjoy and appreciate those things and people you love.
Moving focus to HOW to deal with the MAGA “game” and especially sharing calm talking points on dealing with the voters that should have D but needed to hear the “deeper why” that may have not hit home
Happy thanksgiving all. I Toast a vigorous opposition for a fair and even playing field America!
To Simon and all Hopium members: happy thanksgiving from a balmy 80 degree miami (i know!!). Let's rest up, regroup, reimagine and come back strong and ready. Anticipating lots of brutality/chaos/corruption/lies/violence starting 1/20. Let's build up our defenses!! And let's always remember to laugh and live in love and light!!!
Kitkatmia,
Great to hear a friendly and happy voice from Florida! Hope you’re surviving well after the election. Loved reading your Thanksgiving wishes for all.
A wonder TG to you and your loved ones too🧙🍁🍷
Pod Save America had the first "What Happened?" discussion with the leaders of the Harris-Walz Campaign team. Here it is: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/exclusive-the-harris-campaign-on-what-went-wrong/id1192761536?i=1000678260050
My takeaways (These are neither quotes, nor my ideas. Just my "I listened to it so you don't have to unless you want to" summary):
1) It was always a close election. We were fighting unfavorable sentiment of the Biden administration, and the perception of economic pain and that Trump’s first term was successful in a compressed 107 period.
2) We’re playing by different rules than they are with Super PACs.
3) Harris got hammered on things like whether she was or wasn’t doing Interviews, and Trump didn’t.
4) Democrats are eating our own. Republicans are not. If we disagree with our leaders, we shout about it. They do not.
5) Republicans have a well-tuned, well-oiled media machine outside of campaigning. We are losing the culture wars.
6) We were trying to empower people to talk to the people in their own lives. We made some inroads. Trump has it figured out.
7) We cannot pay for the kind of effect that the organic reach of people talking to the people in their lives gets you.
8) What we did mattered, and you have to keep fighting every day.
Thank you for listening so I didn't have to. The Obama boys lost me over a year ago, that includes Axe and Plouffe. As there were many reasons that we lost I am still of the belief the Right-wing media/propaganda machine is No. 1. I am looking forward to Simons analysis.
I agree. I wonder, though, even if we had the appropriate media machine, would our message be broadly appealing enough? Something about RW messaging (or the way they do it) seems to catch on. It would behoove us to figure that out.
Totally disagree. People vote for our ideas like abortion, Medicaid expansion, Equal Rights Amendment in NY State even when they vote for Trump. It's our lack of a media machine operation that allows our opponents to lie about us with impunity. That's what needs to change.
Yes, however, what I'm talking about is messaging, not policies. Messaging is how one talks about policies/positions. Why are people immune to RW media when it comes to policies, but not candidates? My question is simply: why did RW media take off like it did? My main point was that while we 100% absolutely need to invest in building a similar infrastructure, we need to make sure our message will catch on. Or else we'll be building a giant radio station that no one listens to.
I’m not going to sit through the “Pod” but I may check out the transcript to understand better what their point is about Super PACs, given that:
Top Harris PAC Blew Through a Billion and Refused to Attack Trump
Sean Craig
Thu, November 21, 2024 at 10:53 AM EST
https://www.thedailybeast.com/election-defeat-exposed-pro-harris-group-as-moneyball-without-billy-beane-dems/
and
Harris’s Main Allied Group Raised Over $900 Million to Aid Her Bid
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/15/us/politics/harris-future-forward.html
In general, they suggested that the Republicans did not follow restrictions on Super PAC coordination with the campaign, while Democrats did.
I watched it earlier today and I’m still in disbelief. Shocking. It made me literally sick to my stomach.
Plouffe kept emphasizing, over and over again, that the Harris campaign took the high road on most matters thinking that was somehow the path to winning moderates. He seemed to be saying, “yes, it looked like weakness but that was the only thing we could do”. His reasons for not responding to the anti-trans ads at all (“not wanting to play Trump’s game”) were infuriatingly obtuse, if not just silly.
After listening to Plouffe, I’m surprised it was as close as it was. Seriously.
These consultants should never be allowed near another Dem campaign.
I LOVE your Department of Jobs, Skills and Economic Development proposal. Our party and next presidential candidate should start developing and talking about that asap. And thanks so much for the news on the CA races. Definitely doing more and worrying less here at my house. Warmest wishes to you Simon and the whole Hopium family.
More news to give thanks for this morning - Derek Tran of CA 45th declares victory! Given his 613 vote lead over incumbent Steele this Wed morning, with 99% of the vote counted and Tran's steadily increasing lead, that's a pretty secure call, even though the AP has not yet followed.
I phonebanked for Derek Tran via Activate America, which lets you make calls on your own schedule and leave voicemails - it was so easy. Otoh I also phonebanked with them for Susan Wild and she lost, so did I make a difference? Hard to say. Some phonebanks feel useful, others feel like a waste of time, plagued by technical difficulties, bad scripts, and outdated lists.
We're not all natural salespeople so a good script is important, esp when calling for candidates outside our own state or district, who we're not as familiar with. Please don't say "Speak from the heart about why you support x" because my heart is filled with rage and disgust for the f-ing fascists. A short bullet list is better imho.
my a utbiography, good ne ws, goes to publisher around Christmas, meanwhile,keep hope alive!! Al McSurely