The move by the Democratic National Committee to block the public viewing regarding its internal autopsy report on the last presidential race seems stunning however to be expected. Averse to hard truths, the Democrats' governing body operates more like a publicity machine than an electoral entity committed to building a volunteer base to secure victories.
A Climate of Conformity
Reluctant to challenge the prevailing attitude of conformity, the DNC has stayed under that legacy throughout this past year. Making public such a report would have indicated that the leadership truly desire to promote honest conversation regarding the strategic failures which allowed Donald Trump to return to the White House. However, the leadership is moving forward under the pretense that there are no lessons to glean following the tragic debacle from the last cycle.
"Here’s our North Star: does this help us win? Should the answer be negative, it becomes a sideline issue from what truly matters," a rationale that has been offered to justify concealing the document.
Key Issues an Autopsy Might Have Addressed
Any valuable post-mortem worth its salt would confront certain uncomfortable matters. Among them are:
- Electoral Disengagement: Failing to retain among millions of voters who supported the Democratic ticket in 2020 became a critical factor during the tight recent race.
- The Choice to Seek Re-election: The stubborn choice by the incumbent to run again, and a very late withdrawal, has been criticized as robbing the party's base of open primaries.
- Abandoning Everyday Americans: While facing inflation, the campaign allegedly accommodating elite contributors while failing to challenge the role of profit-seeking.
- A Foreign Policy Effect: The refusal to reconsider a policy position concerning a ongoing war is cited as alienating key demographic groups, notably among youth voters, Arab American communities, Muslim voters.
- Eroding Young Voter Allegiance: Research indicates a major decline of Democratic support among voters aged 18-29.
A Record of Evasion
Choosing secrecy aligns with a longstanding habit of evading hard truths. This mirrors a situation where the vast majority of elected Democrat in Washington supported an incumbent's decision for running for re-election until a disastrous televised debate forced a change.
At the same time, overwhelming numbers within the party's base had been repeatedly informing surveyors of their opposition to that candidate to run again.
Campaign Spending Questions
A thorough report would also examine questions about campaign spending, such as how much money were directed to party strategists as well as ad buyers over the course of an electoral effort that burned through a staggering war chest over a few months.
A Broader Implication
Ultimately, the blockage regarding the analysis points to an allegiance toward party leaders responsible for a losing electoral effort. The signal for the party's base – including millions of loyal volunteers – is that they do not be trusted to understand the lessons the insiders claim to have learned from a report compiled from conversations with insiders.
An organization incapable to publicly examine where it went wrong will struggle to break free from the cycle that ended up being so helpful to the winning candidate.
