The Message Then That Applies Just the Same Now
Knock, knock! Hello? Is anybody in there? Hey Democratic leaders, we’re out here marching in the streets. Are you being quiet because you’re busy planning behind closed doors? You’re about to burst out here any second now and join us? You’re going to add the top-down piece to our bottom-up piece, right? Hello?
This piece, beginning in the next paragraph, was originally released in March of 2017, shortly after Trump’s first inauguration. Huge grassroots demonstrations led by pink hat women were happening across the country. Hillary Clinton was reportedly taking long walks in the woods processing her loss. The grassroots were busy but Democratic leadership was largely mute. Unfortunately the piece applies just as well now.
There should be multiple, major, Democratic office-holders at most of the biggest marches and events. They shouldn’t lead them because they are grassroots events, but they should be very visible and vocal. Plus they should be having their own events. And what should they be saying? Three things:
1: They messed up, partly in weak policy, partly in weak messaging, partly in not being serious enough.
2: They get it now. They will be taking steps. With vigor. Non-stop.
3: They will be real steps. None of this saying how you sympathize with demonstrators and then go away and do nothing different and assume you’ve got the demonstrators’ votes. Screw that! My vote is worth more than that. It’s not going to anybody who isn’t legislatively storming the gates.
I know you can’t do much while the GOP are blocking, but you can send a message, that if obstruction were out of the way you would tilt the field radically away from Wall St. and toward workers. You can propose real and powerful changes, which, yes, will get blocked in Congress, but which show what you would do. Elizabeth Warren can’t do much now either, but we have no doubt that she would enact serious change, and that it’s not just some brief bit of theater for votes. This is her ceaseless, all-consuming cause. Take a lesson.
Have you missed the fact that you have very little time to act? Things happen fast. Big, unexpected changes happen. Trump is messing up now. Demonstrators are in the streets now. For as many of the Trump supporters as will ever get it, the dawning that he’s just going to favor the rich is already starting. The wave that could bring all of those Obama voters back, that could lead to taking back the Senate and maybe even that crazy long-shot the House, is rolling past now.
Have you missed the fact that there are only 24 months between last November’s election and the 2018 midterms? That four have already passed? You need to have a convincing message in place long before. And what is that message? That you’ve made this change and it’s real and it’s staying. People have to see that change being sustained for a while to believe it’s permanent. That, “Oh! They’ve really changed!” realization needs time to seep into peoples’ minds. You have about an 18-month window in which to do that, which means it really needs to happen now, and then be sustained, and seep in. Tick, tick, tick!
Are you waiting for an engraved invitation? Already been done. Bernie engraved it in headline after headline. For that matter so did Trump. He engraved it in lie after lie; populist lies about how he was going to turn the country away from bankers and toward workers. All lies, but look at the crowds he drew. Between Bernie, and Trump, and Hillary failing because she didn’t grab that same message, if you haven’t gotten the message from all of that, I don’t think we can pound it into your heads any clearer.
If you aren’t breaking through the headlines every day, if you aren’t storming the legislative and PR gates with efforts at real change, you might as well head off now to start wandering in the woods with our dear Hillary. Now get off your asses and get out here.
Photo at top by Ana Benet via Pexels
TAKE ACTION
If you believe that the leaders of the Democratic Party aren’t doing enough, here are a few ways that you can take action to create change:
1. Contact the Democratic National Committee (DNC)
📬 Mail:
Democratic National Committee
430 South Capitol St. SE
Washington, DC 20003
📞 Phone: (202) 863-8000
🌐 Website Contact Form: https://democrats.org/contact-us/
📧 Email: [email protected]
2. Reach Out to Your State Democratic Party
Each state has its own Democratic Party office.
👉 Find yours here: State Parties Directory
3. Contact Your Elected Democratic Officials
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Senators: Find Your Senator
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House Members: Find Your Representative
📢 Tell them directly:
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Show up at grassroots demonstrations.
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Hold visible, public events of their own.
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Commit to bold policy action, not just sympathetic words.
4. Use Social Media to Demand Action
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Tag @TheDemocrats on X (Twitter), Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.
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Use hashtags like #DemandAction #DemocratsLeadNow to amplify the message.
5. Join & Pressure Progressive Caucuses
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Congressional Progressive Caucus: cpc-grijalva.house.gov
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Justice Democrats: justicedemocrats.com
These groups often push mainstream Democrats to act more boldly—adding your voice here increases pressure.
