If Joe Biden declines a 2024 race — against, please, please God, Trump — Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut is my first presidential choice. He's impressively informed and extraordinarily articulate about both foreign and domestic policies. But this guy, a regular firebrand when called for, is my second choice.
Missed these fireworks earlier pic.twitter.com/tyv4aYPGgF
— Steven Dennis (@StevenTDennis) April 8, 2022
As the Washington Post's Greg Sargent asked, "Why don’t Democrats create moments like this more often?" Why indeed. "Are there other ways of getting loud, as Schatz did here, that don’t degrade our politics and are substantively and politically productive?"
Of course there are. Just point out any Republican position, if you can find one (even the GOP's pregnant absence of positions and habitual negativism would do), and explain it to the electorate in plain, simple English — simple enough that fence-sitters and undecideds can understand it. Then briefly, briefly and simply explain where Democrats stand.
Such would be a powerful, one-two punch of a campaigning offensive. But Democrats too often wear kid gloves when addressing Republican recklessness, or idea-lessness. Then they compound this political error by wading into the tall grass of complex wonkishness.
Successful Democratic politicians — e.g., FDR, Truman, LBJ, Obama — for decades employed the one-two technique. A bachelor's degree in public administration was unneeded by the average voter to "get it." But most contemporary Dems have lost the knack for brevity and simplicity.
Not, however, Sens. Chris Murphy and Brian Schatz.