I didn’t vote for Harris or Trump and have no regrets about that decision. Even as the Republican train goes off the rails driven by an increasingly insane engineer my former party the Democratic Party sinks even deeper. The Democrats lost in 2024 and will continue to lose in the future because of one reason. They have lost the support of the American working class.The historic Democratic icons FDR, and JFK would laugh at what passes for policy in their beloved party. Although they were upper class they understood that victory for their party depended on appealing to working class voters. Current party leaders distain the “deplorable” and “racist” members of the working class. Working class Americans hate many of the policies foisted on them by Democrats.
Here’s a laundry list of things for Democrats to keep and to dump if they ever want to win again nationwide.
Keep a woman’s right to choose for the first trimester. Dump abortion until birth unless the mother’s health is at risk or the fetus is not viable.
Keep a concern for climate change and grow energy efficiency and nuclear power. Dump intermittent, unreliable renewable energy that relies on using expensive batteries or natural gas generators. Germany has destroyed its industry with this approach.
Keep and develop new effective vaccines. Dump vaccine mandates and allow individuals to decide.
Keep equality of opportunity for all. Dump equity of results based on discriminating on the basis of race and sex because in the past we discriminated on the basis of race and sex.
Keep the protection of gay, lesbian, and trans rights. Dump men in women’s sports, private spaces and prisons and the mutilation of children in pursuit of the impossible.
Keep an opportunity for selective high value immigration. Dump sanctuary cities and open borders.
Keep helping the homeless find jobs, mental health assistance and a place to live. Dump camping in cities, shitting in our streets and allowing open drug use.
Keep a concern for due process in criminal justice. Dump letting shoplifters and other petty thieves off the hook and allowing violent criminals loose prior to trial.
Do all of the above and you might find your way back to power.
It would be pretty to think that the Times has finally, at long last, decided not to normalize unconstitutional Republican behavior. But I'm going to need to see a lot more from them before I believe it.
As it becomes ever more clear that Trump is massively unpopular, hugely weak, deep in the throes of dementia, and a lamest of lame ducks, even the NYT will switch from the usual "both sides" to join the winning team. It's too little, too late, but we'll take it.
"Am I being too optimistic?" That's a question I would expect a responsible reporter to ask himself, which is why you posed it, Dan.
My short answer is "YES." Optimism in my view requires willful blindness. The New York Times will revert to form as soon as Trump runs out of immediate grievances, and a member of his kakistocracy reminds him that the "Failing New York Times" has momentarily committed acts of actual journalism.
The reason The Washington Post and the AP still do stenography and transcription is because they're just chickenshits and they're afraid that Trump will call them a bad name, or figure out how to exact revenge or a bribe from them through yet another bogus lawsuit.
Yes, you are being too optimistic. Those of us who cancelled the NYT aren't going back. They broke the trust, and one example doesn't re-earn trust. In this game, Trump is a useful idiot, and the more bizarre he acts, the more he distracts from what's really happening: the dismantling of all the guardrails that Congress has created, allowing the ultrawealthy to steal even more wealth from the rest of us. They've got control of the cowardly Senate, and they've got Vought, Miller, and the Supreme Court doing the dirty work. The Ochs-Sulzberger family has much to gain from the destruction and much to lose if they don't kowtow to his highness.
Sadly, I don't share your optimism. I think their newfound belligerence is one half about the lawsuit and one half Sulzbergerian self-righteousness. "We sanewashed and normalized him for a decade and STILL hr wants to sue us? WE will decide when we want to speak truth to power." And keep in mind, too, that the Times' version of speaking "truth to power" is remarkably short on truth when the power happens to be Democratic. At this point the Times has squandered whatever goodwill it might have had given its totally lopsided coverage of the run up to the Iraq War, Hillary's emails, Joe's age, and Kamala's laugh. File it under "too little, too late..."
Good point about Pentagon policy, William Smith. If I'm the Times and Baker perhaps I've realized that the vein of ore in this mining operation is just about mined out. It's been worked for a long long time.
I think you missed the new Pentagon policy as well. Especially for an "inside baseball & bothsides process" writer like Baker (& Haberman), the Pentagon policy is a death knell. It also signals that all leaks must be authorized and a crime to use unauthorized leaks "in the name of national security" or some line like that. For the "insider access" writers, that's just impossible to do more than repeat lies verbatim, and the NYT can save a lot of money and hire college students to do that.
They are getting more bold. See the coverage of the ‘meeting’ with the military leaders this week. Pretty tough.
I didn’t vote for Harris or Trump and have no regrets about that decision. Even as the Republican train goes off the rails driven by an increasingly insane engineer my former party the Democratic Party sinks even deeper. The Democrats lost in 2024 and will continue to lose in the future because of one reason. They have lost the support of the American working class.The historic Democratic icons FDR, and JFK would laugh at what passes for policy in their beloved party. Although they were upper class they understood that victory for their party depended on appealing to working class voters. Current party leaders distain the “deplorable” and “racist” members of the working class. Working class Americans hate many of the policies foisted on them by Democrats.
Here’s a laundry list of things for Democrats to keep and to dump if they ever want to win again nationwide.
Keep a woman’s right to choose for the first trimester. Dump abortion until birth unless the mother’s health is at risk or the fetus is not viable.
Keep a concern for climate change and grow energy efficiency and nuclear power. Dump intermittent, unreliable renewable energy that relies on using expensive batteries or natural gas generators. Germany has destroyed its industry with this approach.
Keep and develop new effective vaccines. Dump vaccine mandates and allow individuals to decide.
Keep equality of opportunity for all. Dump equity of results based on discriminating on the basis of race and sex because in the past we discriminated on the basis of race and sex.
Keep the protection of gay, lesbian, and trans rights. Dump men in women’s sports, private spaces and prisons and the mutilation of children in pursuit of the impossible.
Keep an opportunity for selective high value immigration. Dump sanctuary cities and open borders.
Keep helping the homeless find jobs, mental health assistance and a place to live. Dump camping in cities, shitting in our streets and allowing open drug use.
Keep a concern for due process in criminal justice. Dump letting shoplifters and other petty thieves off the hook and allowing violent criminals loose prior to trial.
Do all of the above and you might find your way back to power.
It would be pretty to think that the Times has finally, at long last, decided not to normalize unconstitutional Republican behavior. But I'm going to need to see a lot more from them before I believe it.
As it becomes ever more clear that Trump is massively unpopular, hugely weak, deep in the throes of dementia, and a lamest of lame ducks, even the NYT will switch from the usual "both sides" to join the winning team. It's too little, too late, but we'll take it.
"Am I being too optimistic?" That's a question I would expect a responsible reporter to ask himself, which is why you posed it, Dan.
My short answer is "YES." Optimism in my view requires willful blindness. The New York Times will revert to form as soon as Trump runs out of immediate grievances, and a member of his kakistocracy reminds him that the "Failing New York Times" has momentarily committed acts of actual journalism.
The reason The Washington Post and the AP still do stenography and transcription is because they're just chickenshits and they're afraid that Trump will call them a bad name, or figure out how to exact revenge or a bribe from them through yet another bogus lawsuit.
It is too be hoped that the Times has indeed made an effort to report the truth. Perhaps some of the "stenographers" will file suit.
We all know the #1 motivation for Trump and his supporters is hatred of others. They live to hate.
"Patriotism is when love of your own people comes first; nationalism is when hate for people other than your own comes first." – Charles de Gaulle
“Evangelical Christianity, as everyone knows, is founded upon hate, as the Christianity of Christ was founded upon love." - H.L. Mencken, 1925
Wow...the New York Times hits the Bloated Yam in the head. Maybe Adolph Ochs rose from the dead.
Yes, you are being too optimistic. Those of us who cancelled the NYT aren't going back. They broke the trust, and one example doesn't re-earn trust. In this game, Trump is a useful idiot, and the more bizarre he acts, the more he distracts from what's really happening: the dismantling of all the guardrails that Congress has created, allowing the ultrawealthy to steal even more wealth from the rest of us. They've got control of the cowardly Senate, and they've got Vought, Miller, and the Supreme Court doing the dirty work. The Ochs-Sulzberger family has much to gain from the destruction and much to lose if they don't kowtow to his highness.
A decade late? Sorry, still not ok.
Sadly, I don't share your optimism. I think their newfound belligerence is one half about the lawsuit and one half Sulzbergerian self-righteousness. "We sanewashed and normalized him for a decade and STILL hr wants to sue us? WE will decide when we want to speak truth to power." And keep in mind, too, that the Times' version of speaking "truth to power" is remarkably short on truth when the power happens to be Democratic. At this point the Times has squandered whatever goodwill it might have had given its totally lopsided coverage of the run up to the Iraq War, Hillary's emails, Joe's age, and Kamala's laugh. File it under "too little, too late..."
"The proof of the pudding is in the tasting."
Good point about Pentagon policy, William Smith. If I'm the Times and Baker perhaps I've realized that the vein of ore in this mining operation is just about mined out. It's been worked for a long long time.
I think you missed the new Pentagon policy as well. Especially for an "inside baseball & bothsides process" writer like Baker (& Haberman), the Pentagon policy is a death knell. It also signals that all leaks must be authorized and a crime to use unauthorized leaks "in the name of national security" or some line like that. For the "insider access" writers, that's just impossible to do more than repeat lies verbatim, and the NYT can save a lot of money and hire college students to do that.
College journalists of my experience were great on theory...but could not write a lead on deadline.
High school journalists will do. They'll hand the story to the teacher, who will rewrite it to glorify the principal, and then turn it in.
Excellent point. Thanks!