2016 Postmortem
In reply to the discussion: What lessons do YOU take from the results? [View all]phylny
(8,353 posts)1) Stop opposing guns, period. I hate guns. I hate hate hate them. I have no use for them. I hate mass murders, I hate suicides, I hate one life lost to them. Where I live, in Virginia, guns are more important than Jesus Christ. You could BE Jesus Christ running for the President and be against guns, and you'd lose. Let the NRA and the gun nuts win this in the short term.
2) Here's another unpopular one, and one that hurts me the most: Let people suffer a bit as a result of THEIR votes. I can't believe I'm so lacking in compassion with this one, but the future of our nation is at risk. I work around poor people and they have no idea that when they don't vote (possibly 25% of them) or they vote for Republicans, they are voting to cut their benefits off. We've already had some panicky parents who didn't understand that they might lose Medicaid for their child. I'm sure the owner of my company voted for Trump (she wants to keep all her money). Of course, 75% of our business comes from Medicaid. SMH. I wish there were a way to keep our tax dollars within our states. New York keeps all their money, California keeps all theirs. It would hurt where I live in Virginia, but there's enough $$$ in Northern Virginia to keep us afloat.
3) Call your Senators and Congresspeople - monthly. Visit them if you're able when they visit constituents near you. Let the Democratic ones know that you support them and have their backs, and if you can, support them financially. For those with Republican representatives, put a face to your suffering and to your concerns.
4) Demand - DEMAND - that our Democratic representatives oppose and obstruct. Don't play nice. Act like Republicans.
5) Start early making sure everyone, Democratic or Republican, is permitted to vote.
6) Support good journalism with a paid subscription.
7) This is my favorite one - Democrats who are running in the primaries need to keep it positive and stop denigrating the opposing candidates.