Nat Cohn identified climate/energy transformation as a losing strategy in “Why Are Democrats Having Such a Hard Time Beating Trump?” (November 2, 2024). “Whatever happens Tuesday, it’s fair to say this campaign has not gone as smoothly as Democrats expected,” he stated in New York Times‘s The Tilt. Some quotations follow.
“How is Mr. Trump still so competitive? The simplest answer is that the national political environment just isn’t as conducive to a Democratic victory as many might imagine.”
“Trust in the media, ‘experts’ and scientists plunged. Younger Americans took to social media — perhaps with the help of algorithmic changes — to vent their frustrations with an aging president, high prices, lost opportunity and anger at a system that wasn’t working for them.”
“[Democrats] enacted much of this agenda over the last 16 years, but many voters still aren’t satisfied with the state of the country.”
“Inflation and high interest rates could be blamed on high government spending stimulating excessive demand. High gas prices could be blamed on suspending drilling permits and the termination of the Keystone pipeline project.”
“The party championed a tough response to the virus…. It … sought to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and spent trillions on stimulus. As the pandemic ended, all of this quickly became a liability.”
“On issue after issue, Democrats have responded by moving to the right. Most obviously, Ms. Harris had to back away from positions she took when the progressive cultural ascendancy was near its peak in 2019 — a ban on fracking …. But the Democratic shift isn’t simply about backing away from positions taken during a Democratic primary. Across the board, Democrats have de-emphasized policies they preached with confidence to a general electorate only a few years ago.”
If Kamala loses, the recriminations will be fast and furious. And the Green New Deal is part of the problem, the subject of yesterday’s post. If Kamala wins, she will be the most unpopular president on Day One. But will her Progressive Left even notice? Or will they race down the road to serfdom as if getting there will bring propensity and stability?