For a Democratic Win in 2020

I have been a democrat my whole life. I care about the party and don’t want to see avoidable mistakes made. Because of that, I have been thinking about the election in 2020 and where the party should go if we are going to win the presidency in 2020. As a resister I hear a lot of different opinions on that. But, most people simplify it too much.

Progressive leaning democrats love Elizabeth Warren and are pushing for others hinting at running to embrace progressive agendas. Personally, I don’t think we can win a presidency with a progressive candidate. But, I do think it’s important to have progressive voices in congress. Some districts are progressive leaning. Their voices matter and should have a say in the laws that get written and passed. But, a lot of those ideas are missing important things.

Let’s take Medicaid for all. I love the idea of not having to pay for medical expenses. But, that raises taxes. Some would say “but it would be cheaper overall because you wouldn’t have medical bills.” That is probably true. But, creating a system that works isn’t as easy as copying from universal healthcare countries.

Too many people work for health insurance companies. Some would keep their jobs. Medicaid is covered as community plans through companies like United Health Care and Blue Cross Blue Shield as part of the Affordable Care Act. In fact, these companies supported keeping the Medicaid expansion when congress was considering repealing the Affordable Healthcare Act.

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/20/us/politics/insurers-oppose-obamacare-repeal.html

It’s not as easy as training these employees for other jobs. First, good paying jobs have to be created. There is a real fear about how switching to a universal healthcare system will affect the economy. A “healthcare for all” candidate can’t win a presidency. But, there is widespread support for strengthening and fixing the Affordable Care Act. A candidate with concrete ideas on what specifically they would do to strengthen and fix the Affordable Care Act would look good for a wide group of people. That includes moderate republicans.

 

We don’t want someone who is slightly left of center either. Conor Lamb is great for a red district. But, he wouldn’t get enough votes from the progressive voters to win the presidency. Left of center voices are also important to have in congress. They speak for the voters whose views are more republican but disagree with what republicans in congress are doing. These are the voters that like the Affordable Care Act and want it fixed. But, they are very much against universal healthcare and would never vote for a progressive candidate.

What we need is someone in the middle. I know there are some possible candidates hinting about running for president. I don’t think any of them can unite the party like we need. They are strong for their local areas. But, the party is just too diverse across the country. Whoever wins will need to be able to get Doug Jones and Conor Lamb to back them as well as Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. They also would need support of a few lawmakers with views more liberal then left of center and more moderate then progressive.


How can a candidate do that? By embracing progressive ideas but offering a more practical twist. The progressive movement came from the “Occupy” movement. These are the same people with those same ideas. That can’t be ignored so address their concerns. Make a living wage determined by the cost of living in each district a platform. $15 an hour is intimidating in areas of the country with a much lower cost of living. These voters are very much against that specific number. For other areas, that number isn’t high enough. Calculate the minimum wage by the cost of living for each congressional district in the country. It means a different minimum wage in each district. But, it also means it matches the varying needs of the wide variety of districts in the country. When everyone makes a living wage for where they live, everyone in the country benefits in one way or another. A candidate supporting that addresses concerns of a variety of voters.


As for healthcare, stick with strengthening and fixing the Affordable Care Act but add that you would like the input of representatives from all political ideologies. If progressive representatives have a hand in the changes to the Affordable Care Act, progressive voters might still vote for this candidate. But, if republicans and moderate democrats also have a say, moderate republicans and moderate democrats might support this candidate too.


I don’t know enough about the current politicians to name specific possible options. In the 2016 primaries I favored Martin O’Malley. He might be the strongest choice if he chooses to run. There are other options on where to look. I have read that there is a growing democratic base in Texas, a red state. A Texas candidate might get some attention. A last strong option might be from the middle of the country. The red states with high Electoral College votes that felt ignored by Hillary Clinton. The home state of the candidate matters.


It’s great for representatives in congress to have diverse ideologies. When those representatives compromise, we get the bills that benefit the most Americans. But, it’s hard to find presidential candidates that have ideas that embrace parts of the entire party’s ideologies. How do you reach the Conor Lamb voters as well as the Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez voters? If we find someone who can do it, we can win the presidency in 2020. My favorite at the moment is Rep. Beto O'Rourke from Texas.