Yes, Thom. This. Is. The. Stuff!! And I'll say, flavor it with a bit of fire and brimstone! Me being who I am, I'd flavor it with what 'religious' hypocrites they all are; how they praise Jesus with their mouths,but their hearts could harldy be further from Him, for example.
And we don't even need to make up anything; just tell the unvarnished truth!
At the WH press conference Karoline Leavitt wore an oversized cross to indiscriminately lie.
Gives her total absolution to the unwashed.
We need fire and brimstone. Wages of sin......
What we need are a few Republican Congressional "Christians" to flip.
My rep, a Batitstiana MGAT sent the Trump admin a letter:
Dear Acting Secretary Huffman,
I am writing in response to the January 23, 2025, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement memo titled “Guidance Regarding How to Exercise Enforcement Discretion.”
I am concerned with how this new guidance may affect individuals in Miami. As you know, on Monday, January 20, President Trump ended the program formerly known as the “Processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans (CHNV).” Following up on this, yesterday’s guidance expands expedited removal against these populations. Since many of these individuals currently reside in Miami, there are open questions on how exactly this will be implemented.
Individuals must be afforded due process. I strongly urge you to ensure that all Cubans paroled in under the CHNV program eligible for or with pending applications for the Cuban Adjustment Act are protected from deportation until their cases are fully resolved. Additionally, Venezuelans, Nicaraguans, and Haitians who arrived under the CHNV program, have no criminal record, and have applied for asylum through the proper legal
channels, should also be protected until their cases are fully resolved....
they were still enrolled under programs offered to them. they should have the ability to see their applications out to rectify...."
Send a message to Karoline telling her that there's no cross big enough to absolve her from promoting the sins of the Trump administration. Jesus didn't exhort his followers to lie constantly and commit crimes against humanity.
You cannot fight corupted gangsters who shit on the constitution, purge voters lists, cheat and invent bigger lies after big lies with just the law. You must use the same weaponry (although bigger guns would come handy…) and fight more seriously. Dems are too weak, dreaming in the land of the sacred unicorn. Wake up indeed and move it! Thank you
I heard this as a commentary on News Nation last night, The Democrats do not have a voice one that is heard and speaks in prose, they also don't have a writer who can capture what the Democrats are trying to achieve. My take on this is that right now the Democratic party is rudderless there is no leader there's a bunch of people who think alike mostly and talk amongst themselves and do not get heard. They need a person who is magnetic or somewhat magnetic and who speaks with authority and targets those issues that people are really concerned about Right now they don't have that at all.
Barbara, the problem with a Democratic voice, and a writer that is heard, speaks in prose, who can capture what Democrats are trying to achieve
Is that the Democrats don't know what they are trying to achieve, except political office.
There are the corporate Democrats, there are Democrats who have an agenda, which they believe is of he greatest priority and demand the most attention.
I was going to use some analogies, but then realized that I would piss off a lot of people.
The Republican party is motivated by the culture war, and the oligarchs fund their side, they have convinced the boobs that it is the Democrats, the woke, the libs, that are responsible for their woes and angst.
And the Democratic response, emphasize the positive, what they have done, sing Kumbaya, and hold hands, peace and love will conquer all. , air headed B.S.
Instead of parading under banners and signs for one's pet cause, we need to unite in an anti fascist (not antifa) struggle, If we had called out the fascists from day one, instead of worrying about the price of eggs, or telling people who well off they are becomes of the Inflation Recovery Act, we would have done bettter.
The masses could care less about the stock market, but the oligarchs are obsessed over the stock market. The masses could care less a bout the GDP, but the stock market is obsessed over the GDP.
You can't serve two masters, And the Democratic party has been doing just that, serving Wall Street, while making pretense of serving main street.
And when real populists like Bernie Sanders show up, they rally the wagons and shut him out, and when populists like AOC show up, they do the best they can to isolate and shut them out.
And when the Dem's have managed to have the power, they don't do anything! Trump is using his power maximally through all these firings, Biden didn't fire anybody! It's all about turning the page and looking forward and reaching across the isle. This needs to change.
That has been my complaint, the Dems are either spineless wimps, or they are participants on a game, and we are the pawns.
Remember Carters funeral, Obama and Trump laughing it up, sharing an inside joke. And the corporate media, including the bright lights on MSNBC said absolutely nothing.
As a candidate a couple of years ago. Li'l Marco Rubio, now Secretary of State, held himself out to the public to be the savior of Venezuelans, Cubans, etc. Now, as a Trump appointee, when they are demagogued and some unjustly deported, crickets.
We actually have three (3) Batistiano MAGATs here in Baghdad By the Sea, representing a Democratic majority electorate.
Trump would send 30,000 deportees to Git-mo, which, even to MAGAT Cubans, should not be in US hands.
I keep sayin that one size does not fit all. We need all kinds of Democrats. Biden and especially Bernie Sanders said stuff that was taken here to support a totalitarian dictatorship and the word on the street was that Harris was a communist. We could not rebut it.
The letter from super MAGAT Elvira Salazar, which I posted above, should give the Democrats an opening .... I remember when Congressman Mario Diaz Balart's brother Lincoln, flipped from a Dade County Young Democrat to the Republican Party. Republican MAGAT Congressman Carlos Gimenez had once been a Democratic county mayor
Same should go for Republican members who oppose a Russian takeover. MAGA Mike Johnson fired the top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, Ohio congressman Mike Turner, who supported Ukraine. How many others strongly oppose Russian imperialism.
Maybe Hakeem Jeffries can convince them to flip back. Offer a couple of committee chairs.
Do you know why the MAGAts are so enthralled with Putin and Orban?
It is because Russia and Hungary are firmly in the grip of Catholic culture warriors. misogynist, homophobic, patrirchal theocrats, and the Opus Dei, 7 Mountain Domionists, New Apostolic Reformation, Evangelical, Mormons, Southrn Baptists love it.
This fervor on the Christian right is not about religion, Jesus, the Bible, it is about preservation of the masculine prerogative and superiority, which means subjugation of the female.
Of course there are always Quisling females, like Schafly, Green, Boebert who see attaching themself to and defending the patriarchy is the way to butter their own bread.
Every army has had them, they are called camp followers.
There was a character in the movie Django Unchained, that explains them,regardless of race, religion gender or sexual preference/identity.
He was Stephen, the brandy drinking, slave beating, house slave or as Malcolm X called them House Negro., but that type is not confined to a race.
Case in point: Last night's Potomac plane crash, no, COLLISION, caused by a military aircraft under command of the brand new, unqualified Secretary of Defense Hegseth. What confusion or new permissions, if any, let a copter or drone operate in the landing path of a commercial airliner?
They think it was a training mission with three army officers aboard. If it was a training flight, that would be a pilot, copilot and instructor. Are such flights controlled or even reported to the air traffic controllers? What instructor would operate it in the fixed landing path of a civilian airport?
And was the cargo explosive? Why were there two visible explosions on impact? And who will the President try to blame?
Having watched the show "Air Disasters"'s episodes dozens of time, it was clear that in collisions between civilian and military craft, the military was at fault simply because of the military's failure to check with civilian authorities - maps of civilian airport traffic, letting civilians know about flights in their airspace, even failing to notice civilian flights - often because they were flying too fast to see the heavier aircraft. And unlike the civilian planes, military planes are deliberately painted to be nearly invisible. Can't think of one episode where the civilians were responsible for the accidents.
From my perspective the airplane flew into the helicopter. The helicopter flies to slow to plow into the airplane. The view is obscured by the bright lights of the airplane.
As a person who was ATC rated in a control tower, it is my opinion that this was a problem with terminal air traffic control. The plane was coming in for a landing, the chopper has excellent forward vision, it only had three crew,pilot,co pilot and crew chief, if the crew chief had been looking to his left, he would have seen the jet, but the closure rate of a jet coming in for landing is at least 130 mph, the helicopter was probably moving tangential to the approach of the Jet at perhaps 90 mph.
If anything the pilot or co pilot of the Jet was distracted and not paying attention as the helicopter would have been off its port side.
Apparently at the last minute it saw the collision because, according to an eye witness, it banked and he saw sparks under the underbelly.
This is where the elitist label sadly fits for today’s Democrats. We are too educated, too proud, to speak in language that grabs hearts, not just minds. Our adversaries do the reverse. Sadly, that has always been the more successful path in history, for demagogues and true champions of the people. If we do not follow that truth now, fast, hard, and constantly, we will see a far worse future than even these first days of the returned regime of the felon in chief has started giving us. We adapt, we attack, or we die. It really is, as Thom so trenchantly describes, that simple.
Thanks Thom, these basic steps for making Democrats visible and audible again are perfect.
In the last several years we’ve assumed that because Trump and the Magas lie constantly, everyone knows it and is as disgusted by it as we are.
Apparently not .
And we cannot wait for them to catch on .
Specific brief statements that are clear and direct are best .
When we think about the messaging from Trump, we can count on a few things .
One, it’s a lie, two it’s a direct and clear lie.
I think we’ve been resting on our laurels , thinking that ‘Right will win out ‘
Not necessarily .In the meantime , a lot of bad things are happening .
Fear must be set aside.
Our Strength is “ Truth” but it must be communicated loudly.
Adam Kinzinger remarked yesterday , forcefully , that Democrats have been silent and sad for two long .
It’s time to get ‘ Mad and Loud’ .
There are some Democrats who are expressing the truth more loudly I think of Jasmine Crockett, Raskin, AOC, and some others who’ve been direct and truthful , not just Democrats . Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, are also comfortable telling the truth .
If we don’t act now , all of us , we will not have a mission to accomplish , such as ‘ Save Democracy ‘ from its Maga murderers.
The common lexicon is critical. You make a strong marketing point. Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. If we want to gather and convince our voters of the value offered in the candidate and the platform, we must market with skill, integrity, and unified voices driving home the benefits we envision and promise. Our hardest task before us is the need to rouse the DNC. I believe it needs reconstruction. What do you think? https://hotbuttons.substack.com/p/i-will-call-the-dnc-today?r=3m1bs
Gerrymandering and the ability of Republicans to throw out votes from the count and prevent valid voters access to the polls is what won Trump the election...that and the 93 million people who did not vote. See Greg Palast's convincing article in Rolling Stone or Thom's coverage of it in an earlier newsletter. And donate to the Palast Investigative Team for 2026. Convince electoral boards to throw out specious challenges to mainly black and brown and young voters.
Thank you, thank you. I've been trying to figure out this messaging problem that the Democrats have had for the last 50 years going back to Nixon. I think this article should be required reading for every Democrat. Martin Cohen
Republicans long ago built a "Communications Infrastructure" that features experts and strategies that the Democrats should try to duplicate.
Dems need to study and implement the work of dedicated, skilled operators like Roger Ailes, Frank Luntz and others who have so greatly impacted political discourse and campaigns. They were/are masters at communicating to the emotions and visceral triggers in voters. When their sound bites like “Job killing tax hikes”, or simply “Big Government Overreach” keep impacting discourse and policies, it should be evident the Democrats haven’t figured out how to fight in this game. FWIW, This link takes a look at Luntz's mind and work, https://www.salon.com/2010/04/21/frank_luntz_bailout/
I'm a novice at this, but were I able to help craft Dems' messaging, I'd have been working on something like this:
"Trump sent a crazed mob of Cop Killers to the Capitol on January 6th.
They killed 5 policemen.
Then he pardoned them. Trump… Pardoned. Cop. Killers. !!!
Trump issued commutations to his Cop Killers, freeing them to kill again."
(BTW, Trump’s desire “to pardon” was known well before the election, and there should have been ads run every day for the Harris/Walz campaign.)
Today we are reminded that, “Anything can be politicized.” If Republicans think they can score points and affect policy, they will politicize it. What's known as the "Republican Echo Chamber" is what I often think of as "The Vast Right Wing Blame Show."
So today, Trump immediately jumped onto the stage, Blaming the Potomac collision disaster on Democrats, Obama, Biden and DEI!
Will Democrats take this opportunity to fight back hard on this Republican garbage with some really damaging info that could be made to “stick”? Some are pointing out how Trump's nazi space chimp (chump?) Musk demanded the firing of the head of the FAA in December.
Attacks by Dems can further Define Musk and Trump, highlight their stupidity and the lethal risks of,
“Willy Nilly Government Cuts.”
Consider if there was a regular broadcast, or otherwise featured Democratic "Program" about Republicans called, "Profiles in Treason."
There's an abundance of traitors and criminals serving the GOP.
Everyday the national discourse should include
Trump's "Daily Desecrations"
- of America, democracy, the American Military, the Constitution...
Hell yes! As I’ve observed here or elsewhere, the Dems couldn’t sell sex in a mining camp on payday. This column, or your book, should be the guiding document for Democratic leadership going forward, starting before sunset today. Somehow, remarking that donvict is an “unserious person” didn’t get it done for Harris, perhaps because that’s like saying the recent fires in LA have been “inconvenient”. MSNBC’s ratings have tanked because while there’s abundant fascist abuse to report, the Dem’s tepid, barely audible responses are profoundly inadequate and uninspiring, leaving virtually nothing of interest to report. Rachel and Nicolle and Lawrence and all the other great people there know that; watching Democratic “leadership” stumble and bumble like Mr. Magoo must drive them nuts. And there ARE, after all, great (much younger, much more inspiring) voices to be heard. AOC, Crockett, Frost, Swalwell to name just a few House Dems who get it. And there are strong voices in the Senate: Whitehouse, Warren, Sanders, and others should be driving the debate there. Flaccid responses and Clintonian triangulation have given us donvict, creeping fascism in the congress, Supreme Court, and right wing media, and a deeply dispirited Democratic electorate. Employing the points you’ve made here could make all the difference.
If this tragedy occurred under a new Democratic administration, right-wing extremists would be charging that it was a targeted missile or a drone sent up as a distraction to vital Senate hearings. Or perhaps that the helicopter crew had bailed out using hang gliders prior to impact. There's no limit to the conspiracy theories that would be spread.
This last election was all about money. The conversations and ads should start and end with M-O-N-E-Y.
Start asking people to finally wake-up about who is getting richer. Those statistics are NOT boring. Using the pics from the inauguration with dollar figures superimposed.
Start showing the real waste. The over-priced flights for deportation, the cost of reopening Gitmo, and how the tax cuts balloon the debt.
Find actual headlines and information from allies that show how we are losing their respect and support. Talk about the blood we have shed together to keep this country and world free from dictators. Make sure Americans know there is a COST for standing ALONE.
We can have nice things, but not if we do all the work and these asshats get to not pay their fair share (insert pictures).
Thank you Thom! All of us that read your daily letter should post these messages on our social media daily. We can’t wait for the Democratic Party to get it together! What would you say is the most critical message for all of us with our varied social media accounts to blast out this week? Thanks for leading us!!
This is great. It spells out a coherent and effective messaging strategy. Done right it will turn people against Trump. The question is, will we Democrats embrace and adopt it.
Keep up the great work! And as always stay safe and watch your six.
Why Democrats haven't figured out that messaging in this social media world is more important than anything else is the biggest mystery in the USA. Hopefully the new chairman understands the importance of messaging and immediately sets the tone for the 2026 elections. Remember: Our uneducated Republican Americans need as few words as possible, LOL!
I feel like we’re all screaming for this, we’re desperately in need of all of this, and our Party continues to play it safe. They’re so busy worrying about decorum & donations that they have zero grasp on (or interest in) what it means to be a Democrat.
I don’t know who the hell they’re listening to and it’s super frustrating and I’ve written letters about it that just go unanswered.
Also, I do think “Over 45,000 Americans die every year because insurance companies refuse to pay for procedures or treatments” should be on billboards.
[Seriously, why don’t we advertise? Why *aren’t* we on airwaves and billboards and meme coins and podcast commercials and Alexa apps and ev-er-y-where? Isn’t there a single PAC out there who’d be willing to take this on? Why are we only contacted when they’re begging for another $25 campaign donation?! Are there laws against promoting ourselves? Cuz we sure act like it.]
Yes, Thom. This. Is. The. Stuff!! And I'll say, flavor it with a bit of fire and brimstone! Me being who I am, I'd flavor it with what 'religious' hypocrites they all are; how they praise Jesus with their mouths,but their hearts could harldy be further from Him, for example.
And we don't even need to make up anything; just tell the unvarnished truth!
At the WH press conference Karoline Leavitt wore an oversized cross to indiscriminately lie.
Gives her total absolution to the unwashed.
We need fire and brimstone. Wages of sin......
What we need are a few Republican Congressional "Christians" to flip.
My rep, a Batitstiana MGAT sent the Trump admin a letter:
Dear Acting Secretary Huffman,
I am writing in response to the January 23, 2025, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement memo titled “Guidance Regarding How to Exercise Enforcement Discretion.”
I am concerned with how this new guidance may affect individuals in Miami. As you know, on Monday, January 20, President Trump ended the program formerly known as the “Processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans (CHNV).” Following up on this, yesterday’s guidance expands expedited removal against these populations. Since many of these individuals currently reside in Miami, there are open questions on how exactly this will be implemented.
Individuals must be afforded due process. I strongly urge you to ensure that all Cubans paroled in under the CHNV program eligible for or with pending applications for the Cuban Adjustment Act are protected from deportation until their cases are fully resolved. Additionally, Venezuelans, Nicaraguans, and Haitians who arrived under the CHNV program, have no criminal record, and have applied for asylum through the proper legal
channels, should also be protected until their cases are fully resolved....
they were still enrolled under programs offered to them. they should have the ability to see their applications out to rectify...."
Amen and amen. We DO need fire and brimstone, coming from OUR side now!
Send a message to Karoline telling her that there's no cross big enough to absolve her from promoting the sins of the Trump administration. Jesus didn't exhort his followers to lie constantly and commit crimes against humanity.
You cannot fight corupted gangsters who shit on the constitution, purge voters lists, cheat and invent bigger lies after big lies with just the law. You must use the same weaponry (although bigger guns would come handy…) and fight more seriously. Dems are too weak, dreaming in the land of the sacred unicorn. Wake up indeed and move it! Thank you
I heard this as a commentary on News Nation last night, The Democrats do not have a voice one that is heard and speaks in prose, they also don't have a writer who can capture what the Democrats are trying to achieve. My take on this is that right now the Democratic party is rudderless there is no leader there's a bunch of people who think alike mostly and talk amongst themselves and do not get heard. They need a person who is magnetic or somewhat magnetic and who speaks with authority and targets those issues that people are really concerned about Right now they don't have that at all.
Barbara, the problem with a Democratic voice, and a writer that is heard, speaks in prose, who can capture what Democrats are trying to achieve
Is that the Democrats don't know what they are trying to achieve, except political office.
There are the corporate Democrats, there are Democrats who have an agenda, which they believe is of he greatest priority and demand the most attention.
I was going to use some analogies, but then realized that I would piss off a lot of people.
The Republican party is motivated by the culture war, and the oligarchs fund their side, they have convinced the boobs that it is the Democrats, the woke, the libs, that are responsible for their woes and angst.
And the Democratic response, emphasize the positive, what they have done, sing Kumbaya, and hold hands, peace and love will conquer all. , air headed B.S.
Instead of parading under banners and signs for one's pet cause, we need to unite in an anti fascist (not antifa) struggle, If we had called out the fascists from day one, instead of worrying about the price of eggs, or telling people who well off they are becomes of the Inflation Recovery Act, we would have done bettter.
The masses could care less about the stock market, but the oligarchs are obsessed over the stock market. The masses could care less a bout the GDP, but the stock market is obsessed over the GDP.
You can't serve two masters, And the Democratic party has been doing just that, serving Wall Street, while making pretense of serving main street.
And when real populists like Bernie Sanders show up, they rally the wagons and shut him out, and when populists like AOC show up, they do the best they can to isolate and shut them out.
And when the Dem's have managed to have the power, they don't do anything! Trump is using his power maximally through all these firings, Biden didn't fire anybody! It's all about turning the page and looking forward and reaching across the isle. This needs to change.
That has been my complaint, the Dems are either spineless wimps, or they are participants on a game, and we are the pawns.
Remember Carters funeral, Obama and Trump laughing it up, sharing an inside joke. And the corporate media, including the bright lights on MSNBC said absolutely nothing.
As a candidate a couple of years ago. Li'l Marco Rubio, now Secretary of State, held himself out to the public to be the savior of Venezuelans, Cubans, etc. Now, as a Trump appointee, when they are demagogued and some unjustly deported, crickets.
We actually have three (3) Batistiano MAGATs here in Baghdad By the Sea, representing a Democratic majority electorate.
Trump would send 30,000 deportees to Git-mo, which, even to MAGAT Cubans, should not be in US hands.
I keep sayin that one size does not fit all. We need all kinds of Democrats. Biden and especially Bernie Sanders said stuff that was taken here to support a totalitarian dictatorship and the word on the street was that Harris was a communist. We could not rebut it.
The letter from super MAGAT Elvira Salazar, which I posted above, should give the Democrats an opening .... I remember when Congressman Mario Diaz Balart's brother Lincoln, flipped from a Dade County Young Democrat to the Republican Party. Republican MAGAT Congressman Carlos Gimenez had once been a Democratic county mayor
Same should go for Republican members who oppose a Russian takeover. MAGA Mike Johnson fired the top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, Ohio congressman Mike Turner, who supported Ukraine. How many others strongly oppose Russian imperialism.
Maybe Hakeem Jeffries can convince them to flip back. Offer a couple of committee chairs.
Do you know why the MAGAts are so enthralled with Putin and Orban?
It is because Russia and Hungary are firmly in the grip of Catholic culture warriors. misogynist, homophobic, patrirchal theocrats, and the Opus Dei, 7 Mountain Domionists, New Apostolic Reformation, Evangelical, Mormons, Southrn Baptists love it.
This fervor on the Christian right is not about religion, Jesus, the Bible, it is about preservation of the masculine prerogative and superiority, which means subjugation of the female.
Of course there are always Quisling females, like Schafly, Green, Boebert who see attaching themself to and defending the patriarchy is the way to butter their own bread.
Every army has had them, they are called camp followers.
There was a character in the movie Django Unchained, that explains them,regardless of race, religion gender or sexual preference/identity.
He was Stephen, the brandy drinking, slave beating, house slave or as Malcolm X called them House Negro., but that type is not confined to a race.
Mostly the lumpen proletariat. I think religion is secondary to the need to be a follower.
The Trump attraction is the cult of personality. Holds himself to be God's redeemer.. https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/maga-god-religion-donald-trump.html
Actually he's more probably the second coming of the Pied Piper. https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20200902-the-grim-truth-behind-the-pied-piper
Europeans are less likely than Americans to be religious fanatics.
Case in point: Last night's Potomac plane crash, no, COLLISION, caused by a military aircraft under command of the brand new, unqualified Secretary of Defense Hegseth. What confusion or new permissions, if any, let a copter or drone operate in the landing path of a commercial airliner?
They think it was a training mission with three army officers aboard. If it was a training flight, that would be a pilot, copilot and instructor. Are such flights controlled or even reported to the air traffic controllers? What instructor would operate it in the fixed landing path of a civilian airport?
And was the cargo explosive? Why were there two visible explosions on impact? And who will the President try to blame?
Having watched the show "Air Disasters"'s episodes dozens of time, it was clear that in collisions between civilian and military craft, the military was at fault simply because of the military's failure to check with civilian authorities - maps of civilian airport traffic, letting civilians know about flights in their airspace, even failing to notice civilian flights - often because they were flying too fast to see the heavier aircraft. And unlike the civilian planes, military planes are deliberately painted to be nearly invisible. Can't think of one episode where the civilians were responsible for the accidents.
From my perspective the airplane flew into the helicopter. The helicopter flies to slow to plow into the airplane. The view is obscured by the bright lights of the airplane.
As a person who was ATC rated in a control tower, it is my opinion that this was a problem with terminal air traffic control. The plane was coming in for a landing, the chopper has excellent forward vision, it only had three crew,pilot,co pilot and crew chief, if the crew chief had been looking to his left, he would have seen the jet, but the closure rate of a jet coming in for landing is at least 130 mph, the helicopter was probably moving tangential to the approach of the Jet at perhaps 90 mph.
If anything the pilot or co pilot of the Jet was distracted and not paying attention as the helicopter would have been off its port side.
Apparently at the last minute it saw the collision because, according to an eye witness, it banked and he saw sparks under the underbelly.
I did 3 more comments on this topic before noon.
This is where the elitist label sadly fits for today’s Democrats. We are too educated, too proud, to speak in language that grabs hearts, not just minds. Our adversaries do the reverse. Sadly, that has always been the more successful path in history, for demagogues and true champions of the people. If we do not follow that truth now, fast, hard, and constantly, we will see a far worse future than even these first days of the returned regime of the felon in chief has started giving us. We adapt, we attack, or we die. It really is, as Thom so trenchantly describes, that simple.
Thanks Thom, these basic steps for making Democrats visible and audible again are perfect.
In the last several years we’ve assumed that because Trump and the Magas lie constantly, everyone knows it and is as disgusted by it as we are.
Apparently not .
And we cannot wait for them to catch on .
Specific brief statements that are clear and direct are best .
When we think about the messaging from Trump, we can count on a few things .
One, it’s a lie, two it’s a direct and clear lie.
I think we’ve been resting on our laurels , thinking that ‘Right will win out ‘
Not necessarily .In the meantime , a lot of bad things are happening .
Fear must be set aside.
Our Strength is “ Truth” but it must be communicated loudly.
Adam Kinzinger remarked yesterday , forcefully , that Democrats have been silent and sad for two long .
It’s time to get ‘ Mad and Loud’ .
There are some Democrats who are expressing the truth more loudly I think of Jasmine Crockett, Raskin, AOC, and some others who’ve been direct and truthful , not just Democrats . Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, are also comfortable telling the truth .
If we don’t act now , all of us , we will not have a mission to accomplish , such as ‘ Save Democracy ‘ from its Maga murderers.
The common lexicon is critical. You make a strong marketing point. Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. If we want to gather and convince our voters of the value offered in the candidate and the platform, we must market with skill, integrity, and unified voices driving home the benefits we envision and promise. Our hardest task before us is the need to rouse the DNC. I believe it needs reconstruction. What do you think? https://hotbuttons.substack.com/p/i-will-call-the-dnc-today?r=3m1bs
"Marketing." That assumes the vote was kosher. It wasn't. WE WAS ROBBED!
What happened was that after asserting the vote was stolen in 2020, in 2024 with the help of Russian psy ops, oligarchs buying favor, he STOLE it.
Gerrymandering and the ability of Republicans to throw out votes from the count and prevent valid voters access to the polls is what won Trump the election...that and the 93 million people who did not vote. See Greg Palast's convincing article in Rolling Stone or Thom's coverage of it in an earlier newsletter. And donate to the Palast Investigative Team for 2026. Convince electoral boards to throw out specious challenges to mainly black and brown and young voters.
Carl, you are talking in academic terms,. Do you teach marketing, or are you a student of marketing.
You sound like you are teaching or preaching.
You would do better by getting down to earth, and speak in plain language. Can that stuff about value, skill, integrity, benefits.
Thank you, thank you. I've been trying to figure out this messaging problem that the Democrats have had for the last 50 years going back to Nixon. I think this article should be required reading for every Democrat. Martin Cohen
Republicans long ago built a "Communications Infrastructure" that features experts and strategies that the Democrats should try to duplicate.
Dems need to study and implement the work of dedicated, skilled operators like Roger Ailes, Frank Luntz and others who have so greatly impacted political discourse and campaigns. They were/are masters at communicating to the emotions and visceral triggers in voters. When their sound bites like “Job killing tax hikes”, or simply “Big Government Overreach” keep impacting discourse and policies, it should be evident the Democrats haven’t figured out how to fight in this game. FWIW, This link takes a look at Luntz's mind and work, https://www.salon.com/2010/04/21/frank_luntz_bailout/
I'm a novice at this, but were I able to help craft Dems' messaging, I'd have been working on something like this:
"Trump sent a crazed mob of Cop Killers to the Capitol on January 6th.
They killed 5 policemen.
Then he pardoned them. Trump… Pardoned. Cop. Killers. !!!
Trump issued commutations to his Cop Killers, freeing them to kill again."
(BTW, Trump’s desire “to pardon” was known well before the election, and there should have been ads run every day for the Harris/Walz campaign.)
Today we are reminded that, “Anything can be politicized.” If Republicans think they can score points and affect policy, they will politicize it. What's known as the "Republican Echo Chamber" is what I often think of as "The Vast Right Wing Blame Show."
So today, Trump immediately jumped onto the stage, Blaming the Potomac collision disaster on Democrats, Obama, Biden and DEI!
Will Democrats take this opportunity to fight back hard on this Republican garbage with some really damaging info that could be made to “stick”? Some are pointing out how Trump's nazi space chimp (chump?) Musk demanded the firing of the head of the FAA in December.
Attacks by Dems can further Define Musk and Trump, highlight their stupidity and the lethal risks of,
“Willy Nilly Government Cuts.”
Consider if there was a regular broadcast, or otherwise featured Democratic "Program" about Republicans called, "Profiles in Treason."
There's an abundance of traitors and criminals serving the GOP.
Everyday the national discourse should include
Trump's "Daily Desecrations"
- of America, democracy, the American Military, the Constitution...
Hell yes! As I’ve observed here or elsewhere, the Dems couldn’t sell sex in a mining camp on payday. This column, or your book, should be the guiding document for Democratic leadership going forward, starting before sunset today. Somehow, remarking that donvict is an “unserious person” didn’t get it done for Harris, perhaps because that’s like saying the recent fires in LA have been “inconvenient”. MSNBC’s ratings have tanked because while there’s abundant fascist abuse to report, the Dem’s tepid, barely audible responses are profoundly inadequate and uninspiring, leaving virtually nothing of interest to report. Rachel and Nicolle and Lawrence and all the other great people there know that; watching Democratic “leadership” stumble and bumble like Mr. Magoo must drive them nuts. And there ARE, after all, great (much younger, much more inspiring) voices to be heard. AOC, Crockett, Frost, Swalwell to name just a few House Dems who get it. And there are strong voices in the Senate: Whitehouse, Warren, Sanders, and others should be driving the debate there. Flaccid responses and Clintonian triangulation have given us donvict, creeping fascism in the congress, Supreme Court, and right wing media, and a deeply dispirited Democratic electorate. Employing the points you’ve made here could make all the difference.
If this tragedy occurred under a new Democratic administration, right-wing extremists would be charging that it was a targeted missile or a drone sent up as a distraction to vital Senate hearings. Or perhaps that the helicopter crew had bailed out using hang gliders prior to impact. There's no limit to the conspiracy theories that would be spread.
Or navigated that helicopter into the path.
Brutal Truth
This last election was all about money. The conversations and ads should start and end with M-O-N-E-Y.
Start asking people to finally wake-up about who is getting richer. Those statistics are NOT boring. Using the pics from the inauguration with dollar figures superimposed.
Start showing the real waste. The over-priced flights for deportation, the cost of reopening Gitmo, and how the tax cuts balloon the debt.
Find actual headlines and information from allies that show how we are losing their respect and support. Talk about the blood we have shed together to keep this country and world free from dictators. Make sure Americans know there is a COST for standing ALONE.
We can have nice things, but not if we do all the work and these asshats get to not pay their fair share (insert pictures).
Thank you Thom! All of us that read your daily letter should post these messages on our social media daily. We can’t wait for the Democratic Party to get it together! What would you say is the most critical message for all of us with our varied social media accounts to blast out this week? Thanks for leading us!!
Thom,
This is great. It spells out a coherent and effective messaging strategy. Done right it will turn people against Trump. The question is, will we Democrats embrace and adopt it.
Keep up the great work! And as always stay safe and watch your six.
Steve Dundas
Why Democrats haven't figured out that messaging in this social media world is more important than anything else is the biggest mystery in the USA. Hopefully the new chairman understands the importance of messaging and immediately sets the tone for the 2026 elections. Remember: Our uneducated Republican Americans need as few words as possible, LOL!
You’re 💯 💯💯 right
I feel like we’re all screaming for this, we’re desperately in need of all of this, and our Party continues to play it safe. They’re so busy worrying about decorum & donations that they have zero grasp on (or interest in) what it means to be a Democrat.
I don’t know who the hell they’re listening to and it’s super frustrating and I’ve written letters about it that just go unanswered.
Also, I do think “Over 45,000 Americans die every year because insurance companies refuse to pay for procedures or treatments” should be on billboards.
[Seriously, why don’t we advertise? Why *aren’t* we on airwaves and billboards and meme coins and podcast commercials and Alexa apps and ev-er-y-where? Isn’t there a single PAC out there who’d be willing to take this on? Why are we only contacted when they’re begging for another $25 campaign donation?! Are there laws against promoting ourselves? Cuz we sure act like it.]