A challenge to illustrate the difficulites of breaking through the right-wing misinformation machine [View all]

[EarlG]

When it comes right down to it, what we had this past election was an electorate primed to believe that certain things were a problem, and then a Republican candidate who presented them with solutions to those problems.

Americans were primed to believe these things because over the last few years the right has flooded our entire information ecosystem with misinformation. It didn't matter that most of the problems were fake, or that the solutions were lies or nonsense or both. All that mattered was that people perceived there was a problem, and then voted for a solution.

Political pundits would have you believe that Democrats failed in 2024 because they didn't understand the electorate, or didn't reach out to the right demographic groups, etc. Maybe. But this challenge might illustrate the difficulties of doing that.

Below are the top 10 issues on voters' minds according to a YouGov poll taken about a week before the election. I've included the Republican "solution" to each "problem."

The challenge
Provide a Democratic "solution" to each "problem."

The rules
1) You are not allowed to use any more words than are present in each Republican solution.
2) You are not allowed to give variations of "That isn't a problem" as an answer.

Good luck...

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Inflation/prices
Problem: Inflation is out of control!
Republican solution: Tariffs on foreign imports will force made-in-the-USA products, lowering prices.
Democratic solution: ???

Immigration
Problem: Dirty hordes of violent illegal immigrants are stampeding across the border!
Republican solution: We'll round up all the immigrants and send them back where they came from.
Democratic solution: ???

Jobs & the economy
Problem: The gig economy sucks! Where are the good jobs with great benefits?
Republican solution: When all the immigrants are gone, you'll have great jobs with great benefits
Democratic solution: ???

Abortion
Problem: Women are killing their babies for fun!
Republican solution: We will force them to stop killing their babies.
Democratic solution: ???

Healthcare
Problem: The price of drugs is too high!
Republican solution: Obamacare is to blame, so we'll finally get rid of it.
Democratic solution: ???

Climate & the environment
Problem: The government is going to force us all to buy electric cars!
Republican solution: Drill, baby, drill. Climate change isn't real anyway.
Democratic solution: ???

National security
Problem: We're giving billions of dollars to Ukraine even though they started the war with Russia!
Republican solution: We'll stop funding Ukraine, and pull out of warmongering NATO as well.
Democratic solution: ???

Taxes & government spending
Problem: My taxes are too high, and I don't get enough benefits!
Republican solution: Savings from corporate tax cuts will flow directly to you, and the immigrants are taking your benefits.
Democratic solution: ???

Civil rights
Problem: White people are being discriminated against!
Republican solution: We'll end wokism, DEI, and affirmative action.
Democratic solution: ???

Education
Problem: Teachers are changing our kids' genders and making them read porn!
Republican solution: We'll get rid of trans people and all the porno schoolbooks.
Democratic solution: ???