NBC News: New progressive chair: Democrats must refocus on workers and wages to combat Trump's culture wars

[Dennis Donovan]

NBC News - New progressive chair: Democrats must refocus on workers and wages to combat Trump's culture wars

Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas, told NBC News that the Democratic Party brand is in tatters and that it must “re-emphasize core economic issues” to welcome more voters.



Dec. 5, 2024, 2:29 PM EST
By Sahil Kapur

WASHINGTON — The Democratic Party messed up in the 2024 election, says Rep. Greg Casar of Texas, the newly elected chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and it needs a dramatic course shift to rediscover its brand and put winning “above being right.”

In a wide-ranging interview with NBC News on Wednesday, one day before he was officially elected as chair, Casar laid out his vision for the future, saying that Democrats need to return to their roots as the party of the working class. That means welcoming voters who disagree with the left on cultural issues and not being “seen as preachy or disconnected.”

In the wake of a devastating defeat to President-elect Donald Trump that Casar insists was avoidable, the congressman said Democrats must refocus their core identity on helping workers and increasing wages — but do so “without throwing vulnerable people under the bus.”

He rejected the view that Democrats need to turn against immigrants or transgender people after Trump campaigned heavily on those issues in his victory over Vice President Kamala Harris. Instead, Casar said Democrats should change course by redirecting such attacks and accusing the GOP of fueling culture wars to distract voters from their agenda of helping the rich get richer.

“The progressive movement needs to change. We need to re-emphasize core economic issues every time some of these cultural war issues are brought up,” Casar said. “So when we hear Republicans attacking queer Americans again, I think the progressive response needs to be that a trans person didn’t deny your health insurance claim, a big corporation did — with Republican help. We need to connect the dots for people that the Republican Party obsession with these culture war issues is driven by Republicans’ desire to distract voters and have them look away while Republicans pick their pocket.”

That means the Democratic Party needs to “shed off some of its more corporate elements,” to sharpen the economic-populist contrast with Republicans and not let voters equate the two parties, he said. He predicted Trump and the Republican-led Congress will offer plenty of opportunities to drive that distinction, including when it pursues an extension of tax cuts for upper earners.

/snip

[Redleg]

1. I thought we were already doing this

Trump seemed to do fine with the white working-class voters and he offered them next to nothing besides "no taxes on tips." In fact, the GOP has never done much for workers. They oppose unionization, they oppose the minimum wage, they oppose much of the workplace safety and non-discrimination statutes and regulations. Yet it is the Democratic party that has to continuously do what they have already been doing.

[Fullduplexxx]

2. What's he talking about harris was doing just that

[WarGamer]

3. Oh so no more playing footsie with neocons and our own bunch of billionaires?

Go back to the roots of the Party... when the ACLU was respected, not seen as a roadblock?

I'm all for it.

[Hope22]

4. And what do the Republicans need to focus on...

…..carry on their blank slate of obligations….

[slumcamper]

5. It's BOTH

Our party platform can and must strike a balance between both pillars, e.g., cultural and economic.

I think Casar agrees, but he is correct that we need to bolster the economic side of the equation.

Also, the moment presents a great opportunity to do so. The actions of the vandals at the door will elucidate Democratic alternatives. We need to be heard and noticed.

MSM??