Analysis: Democrats' Campaign To Win Back Normal Americans Going as Poorly as Expected

There are at least some Democrats who believe that to win elections, the party needs to stop alienating the working-class voters without college degrees who comprise a majority of the American electorate. Perhaps the easiest way to achieve this goal would be to stop saying things and acting in ways that normal Americans might consider insane. At least some Democrats appear to be trying, but in general the party's early efforts to appear less deranged and out of touch suggest that many are unwilling or simply unable to abandon their old ways.

Earlier this month, Democratic state chairs gathered in Phoenix for their annual winter meeting. They kicked things off with a "land acknowledgement," a symbolic apology for standing on ground that was "stolen" from Native Americans. Jaime Harrison, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, lashed out at critics who have urged the party to stop obsessing over "identity politics." Judson Scanlon (they/them/theirs), the director of a PAC that sold "White Dudes for Harris" merchandise, complained about MSNBC. Reports suggest the gathering was eerily similar to the Washington Free Beacon's satirical account of a Democratic Party post-election "listening session."

Remember Tim Walz, the prancing VP nominee who was supposed to help Democrats woo male voters by wearing camo hats, pretending to hunt, and playing video games with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez? In his first interview since the election, Walz revealed that the party's defeat in 2024 had taught him an important lesson about the American people's preference for racism. "We were pledging to be inclusive, we were pledging to bring people in," he said. "Donald Trump has said that that isn't what he wants, and so if that's what America is leaning towards, I guess for me, it's to understand and learn more about America, because I thought that they were going to probably move towards a more positive message."

Walz's obtuse assessment—after Trump won the election by assembling one of the most inclusive Republican coalitions in history—was rather tame compared with some Democrats' reactions to recent events. For instance, most Americans were far from outraged when Marine Corps veteran Daniel Penny was acquitted of all charges in the death of Jordan Neely, the drug-addled criminal vagrant who was threatening to kill people on the New York subway before Penny intervened. A number of prominent Democrats and Democratic allies felt otherwise.

"This is more than a miscarriage of justice—it is a green light for more violence against unarmed Black Americans," Rep. Jasmine Crockett (Texas), who is widely regarded as a rising star in the Democratic Party, wrote in response to Penny's acquittal. Her colleague Summer Lee, a Democrat from Pennsylvania best known for her hatred of Israel, called the verdict a "painful reminder of a long-standing reality: vigilante violence against Black people often goes unchecked." Lee's comments echoed those of the NAACP, which wrote that Penny's acquittal "has effectively given license for vigilante justice to be waged on the Black community without consequence." A Black Lives Matter activist who spoke outside the courthouse was more succinct: "God damn [the white people on the jury], and God damn America."

Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D., N.Y.), who lost his bid for reelection this year in part due to his fanatical support for Hamas terrorists, reacted to the verdict by lashing out at "White People" and the evil of "white supremacy" as personified by Daniel Penny. "I don't know why I feel the need to keep talking to [white people]," he wrote. "I don't know why part of me still has hope for you and for us. Some of you are too far gone." When his deranged response was widely condemned, Bowman argued there "must've been a lot of truth in what I posted." (There was not.)

While condemning Penny as a heartless killer, many on the left have lionized Luigi Mangione, the 26-year-old real estate scion suspected of gunning down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Former Washington Post reporter Taylor Lorenz recalled feeling "joy" after Thompson was murdered in midtown Manhattan earlier this month. She also described Mangione as a "national hero." Julia Alekseyeva, a media studies professor at the University of Pennsylvania, which Mangione attended, said she had "never been prouder" to be affiliated with the school. Anthony Zenkus, a social work professor at Columbia University, argued that Thompson should not be mourned because the health care executive was responsible for tens of thousands of preventable deaths. Late night "comedy" shows are treating Mangione like a sex symbol.

A few sane Democrats, including Governor Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, have sought to distance themselves from these depraved reactions. "Some attention in this case, especially online, has been deeply disturbing, as some have looked to celebrate instead of condemning this killer," Shapiro said after Mangione was apprehended in his state. "The suspect here who shot at that CEO and killed that CEO is a coward, not a hero." Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.) was less dismissive of Mangione's sympathizers during an interview with MSNBC's Joy Reid, who recently compared Tennessee lawmakers to Nazis for seeking to ban transgender medical interventions for children. "Violence is never the answer," Warren said. "But you can only push people so far. And then they start to take matters into their own hands." Warren told HuffPost that the "visceral response" to the "vile practices of their insurance companies should be a warning to everyone in the health care system."

Warren's efforts to exploit the health care CEO's murder for political gain are not surprising, but they do present a problem for Democrats who want to expand the party's appeal among normal working-class Americans. Warren is beloved by the college-educated white professionals who comprise much of the Democratic Party apparatus as well as the mainstream media. During Warren's failed presidential run in 2020, Vox was compelled to publish an article explaining "why Elizabeth Warren is losing even as white professionals love her," which could easily have been written about Kamala Harris in 2024. (It wasn't misogyny. Warren performed better among college-educated men than she did with working-class women.) Meanwhile, normal Americans are repulsed by her condescending schoolmarm vibes.

Pete Buttigieg is another example of a candidate beloved by the professional class—particularly in the liberal "boat shoe" enclaves of Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, and Nantucket—who struggles to appeal to normal voters. He's probably going to run for governor of Michigan in 2026 or for president again in 2028. The media will publish dozens of new articles about his husband, Chasten, and praise his historic gay candidacy. They'll be shocked when he loses. Buttigieg, who moved to Michigan from Indiana in 2022, recently visited a union hall outside Detroit, where he was asked what team the Lions are playing next Sunday. He didn't know.

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