I don't think this type of campaign against hate -- which many organizations have adopted! -- is effective. I even wrote to MoveOn.org at one point expressing this point of view, but was overruled by the votes for this campaign. (I believe it was something like 80% in favor of Fight Trump campaign, which aside from its lack of effectiveness I think also took away valuable resources from promoting Bernie and his platform). Don't get me wrong, we should absolutely stand against hate, but simply pointing out Trump is hateful doesn't accomplish much in my view.
Firstly, this email points out that Clinton is losing to Trump, then deflects to fighting Trump's hate. Nowhere is there an acknowledgement that this could be part of Clinton's problem, and her lack of appeal. Do we have a reason to vote for Clinton, other than Trump has said a few racist things?
Let me give you a personal anecdote. Anecdotes by their nature aren't proof, but I think it illustrates my point. Much of my family is conservative and has been voting Republican since the Reagan years. I have a lot of policy disagreements with them obviously, but I still like to know what they think. When the subject of Trump comes up, I get basically two responses: (1) excitement that a "non-establishment" candidate won, instead of having the typical mediocre establishment candidates rammed down their throats like Romney and previous years, and (2) a quiet acknowledgement that Trump is a little bit crazy and racist, which they aren't happy about, but they accept. Seriously, when asked, many of his supporters will tell you they don't like his racism, but they support him anyway as the best candidate this election.
Let me say that again: Trump supporters know he is racist. Do they agree with it? Most of them do not. (I'm sure there are some neo-nazis and what not, but let's keep perspective that they are a very small minority). They don't like his rhetoric on muslims or immigrants. But they do think he is sincere about making the country better by not following the establishment or maintaining the status quo. And that is what they really want: the status quo to be broken. They want to see change, and they're willing to put up with racist comments if they get that change.
Now here's the important point: they support Trump over the Republican field this year (Bush, Rubio, etc.) because he was anti-establishment. They don't like him very much though, and would consider voting for someone else. Except the other major party nominee is now officially Clinton, which they despise, for much the same reasons as the Republican field -- she represents the establishment and status quo in the Democratic party. And when she campaigned against Bernie, she basically admitted it -- in her words, Bernie was too idealistic and radical and the plans would never work, and she was instead going to fight for essentially the status quo because change is too hard. You might disagree with that assessment, but keep in mind that this is what the average American heard when Clinton spoke.
When I ask "Well, what about Bernie?", I am surprised by the response. I fully expected a rant against socialism. What I got, from many family members, was instead: "I don't agree with his policies, but he seems like an honest guy that wants to change things, so I would vote for him".
Let me repeat that too: Some Republicans would vote for Bernie, because they view him as an honest anti-establishment candidate. They don't agree with him on many things, but what they primarily want is change.
So back to that email. We need to donate money and Unite Against Hate, according to the email. Who is that campaign directed at? Loyal Democrats will not vote for Trump and are already on board. So you'd have to target Republicans and Independents, which means you need to know: why are they voting for Trump? For change. They know he's racist. It insults their intelligence as voters to tell them "But don't you know he's racist?!?". Yes, they do know. Of course they know. And they've made the calculation that racism is the lesser of two evils when compared to the status quo establishment continuing. You very well might disagree with that assessment; I certainly do. But it doesn't matter what we think, it matters what they think.
If we are going to win them over voters from Trump, we have to give them a reason, show them why they can accomplish their goals through a different method. Currently, Democrats and progressive organizations are focusing their energies on "exposing" Trump. But that's counterproductive; Trump exposes himself on a daily basis, he doesn't need help. What we need is a very clear strategy and plan to present to these people that shows them a positive vision of the future -- a positive plan that leads to the solutions they are looking for, rather than the fearful solutions Trump is pushing. You fight darkness with sunshine. And so far Democrats have not made a good argument full of sunshine. Trump supporters know he is racist, but want anti-establishment. Clinton being the first woman nominee doesn't mean she isn't establishment and status quo. This is the reality. Ignore it at your peril.
The Democratic party is making a huge mistake not pushing for a much stronger progressive agenda that is inclusive of all Americans. A real progressive agenda that tells every single American -- we hear you. We know you're afraid. But if we stand together and form a strong government of the people, we can support each other and make it through this.
For this and other reasons, I predict Clinton will lose to Trump, unless she makes a major change to her platform and campaign. Given she chose the establishment Tim Kaine as her running mate, I doubt this will happen. In my opinion, we will have President Trump unless we rally together behind a true progressive agenda with Jill Stein and the Greens. Her platform is essentially Bernie's, and I think at the end of the day, many Republicans and Independents will cross over to vote Green for a positive future. Very few will cross over for a Clinton status quo presidency.
Do you agree? Disagree? Let me know your thoughts.
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