Francie Von Mertens recently wrote “Only Republicans can save their party” (June 23 Monadnock Ledger-Transcript). I agree. Yet the Democratic Party needs saving as well. Any party that couldn’t beat Donald Trump in 2016 (and barely won in 2020) needs something.
The Democratic Party emphasizes cultural issues while sidelining foundational economic reforms. They pay lip service to inequality, weak labor laws and our common good, but then come the excuses: Sens. Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, the filibuster, the Electoral College and “unwinnable red states.” Democrats could try a truly liberal economic platform to win red states. Many red-state citizens feel left behind economically. Democrats could try offering them a future.
Could it be that Democratic elites only care about serving donors? Take the federal minimum wage. In 2008 President Barack Obama claimed to want a $10.10 minimum wage and to reform labor laws. Yet even with a Democratic-controlled Congress, nothing happened. In 2021, New Hampshire U.S. Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan voted against a $15 minimum. It remains $7.25,
Democrats responded to Citizens United with their Disclose Act in 2010. It went nowhere. Resurrected in 2021, it’s languishing in committee.
Democratic elites won’t support nationalized health care. They haven’t authorized Medicare to negotiate drug prices. They support expanding military spending instead of redirecting that money to underfunded domestic programs. Profiteering goes unchallenged. They allowed their Supreme Court nomination to be stolen. They won’t end the filibuster. They couldn’t pass the American Rescue Plan. They’re antagonistic to progressives.
Trump and the Republicans attacked our institutions for four years while Democrats are seemingly impotent. Why?
Both parties are prioritizing the protection of corporate power above all else. Cultural issues aside, the only thing that separates them is the color of their camouflage.
Tricia Saenger
Temple