Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Just saw Kamau Bell on CNN still defending the phrase "defund the police". [View all]LetMyPeopleVote
(145,176 posts)52. Read the material posted on other threads
Again, your false claims that any real Democrat who lost their race due to the moronic "defund the police" slogan are really bad democrats and deserved to lose. Such a claim is both ignorant and offensive. I had two friends who ran in state house races in my county who lost after the GOP ran another of ads using socialism and defund the police. These ads quoted or featured members of the squad (who are not popular outside their deep blue districts) and were effective. Both of my friends are actual members of the Democratic party and ran campaigns that should have won but the negative ads used.
These ads were effective. For example these attacks were used in the Maine Senate race which Susan Collins won
Link to tweet
This line of attack was used in South Carolina against Jaime Harrison
Link to tweet
President Obama is clear that this line of attack cost Democrats down ballot races
Link to tweet
Former President Barack Obama drew criticism from progressive Democrats this week for suggesting that snappy slogans like defund the police are alienating voters and making it harder from a political standpoint to enact changes you want done.
In an interview with Peter Hamby, who hosts the Snapchat political show Good Luck America, Obama said you [lose] a big audience the minute a slogan like defund the police is used, making it a lot less likely that youre actually going to get the changes you want done.
Defund the police refers to the reallocation or redirection of government funding from police departments to social services for minority communities. As Rashawn Ray of the Brookings Institution noted, defunding does not mean the abolishment of police departments but instead highlights fiscal responsibility and advocates for a market-driven approach to taxpayer money.....
Obama ― echoing other centrist Democrats whove similarly taken issue with defund the police and what theyve decried as radical messaging ― told Hamby that Democrats could benefit from adopting softer rhetoric when talking about police reform.
If you instead say, Hey, you know what? Lets reform the police department so that everybodys being treated fairly. And not just in policing, but in sentencing, how can we divert young people from getting into crime? he said.
In an interview with Peter Hamby, who hosts the Snapchat political show Good Luck America, Obama said you [lose] a big audience the minute a slogan like defund the police is used, making it a lot less likely that youre actually going to get the changes you want done.
Defund the police refers to the reallocation or redirection of government funding from police departments to social services for minority communities. As Rashawn Ray of the Brookings Institution noted, defunding does not mean the abolishment of police departments but instead highlights fiscal responsibility and advocates for a market-driven approach to taxpayer money.....
Obama ― echoing other centrist Democrats whove similarly taken issue with defund the police and what theyve decried as radical messaging ― told Hamby that Democrats could benefit from adopting softer rhetoric when talking about police reform.
If you instead say, Hey, you know what? Lets reform the police department so that everybodys being treated fairly. And not just in policing, but in sentencing, how can we divert young people from getting into crime? he said.
Joe Biden is clear on this also That is how the real worls works Here is a good explanation https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/huge-catastrophe-democrats-grapple-congressional-state-election-losses-n1248529
The Biden campaign's goal was to make 2020 a referendum on Trump's chaotic term, and it succeeded, but the results were far worse down the ballot.
In leaked recording, Biden says GOP used 'defund the police' to 'beat the living hell' out of Democrats
Republicans barraged swing districts with ads linking moderates to the most far-left voices in the party, which has led to bitter recriminations between the factions.
"When you're Joe Biden and you have 47 years in public life and you have a billion dollars behind you, you can build your own brand," said Matt Bennett, executive vice president of the centrist think tank Third Way. "But when you're down-ballot, it's hard to outrun that brand in red and purple districts."
In leaked recording, Biden says GOP used 'defund the police' to 'beat the living hell' out of Democrats
Republicans barraged swing districts with ads linking moderates to the most far-left voices in the party, which has led to bitter recriminations between the factions.
"When you're Joe Biden and you have 47 years in public life and you have a billion dollars behind you, you can build your own brand," said Matt Bennett, executive vice president of the centrist think tank Third Way. "But when you're down-ballot, it's hard to outrun that brand in red and purple districts."
I saw this in two down ballot races in my county where the GOP ran a ton of defund the police and soclialsim ads
I have forwarded you polling that showed that the defund the police was toxic and the fact that you are unable to understand such polling is another source of amusement to me. The fact that you do not understand the polling does not mean that it does exist. Clearly the GOP understood this polling and used such polling to win some races
Again, I trust the polling posted and I trust Presidents Obama and Biden on this issue. Your claims are false and offensive
Edit history
Please sign in to view edit histories.
289 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
RecommendedHighlight replies with 5 or more recommendations
Just saw Kamau Bell on CNN still defending the phrase "defund the police". [View all]
brush
May 2021
OP
"Defund the Police" Was A Gift to Republicans. It Cost Us Close House Elections That We Won in 2018.
Indykatie
May 2021
#2
Do you have any polling showing it cost us? Not polling of DTP popularity but polling that voters
uponit7771
May 2021
#15
Come on...it hurt us. When people insist on polls, usually they know the truth. It hurts us
Demsrule86
May 2021
#21
Facts matter, people get impressions that are wrong. For instance, slavery is still ...
uponit7771
May 2021
#25
I'd agree with the 2nd sentence ... IF... the candidate ascribed to the slogan but few to no one
uponit7771
May 2021
#136
Ask Trump if they work, if in kind and with merritt counters do work if the lie is caught quickly
uponit7771
May 2021
#138
Not defending the slogan, my position is 1. there's no exit polling or close to proof that it was
uponit7771
May 2021
#155
Ad homs are an indicator of a weak position and even you agree that allowing reps to define ...
uponit7771
May 2021
#168
That's all great advice, and I agree with your premise. But the slogan is still ...
Whiskeytide
May 2021
#289
True, but to show it was a gating factor no one has done with anything empirical. One poster ...
uponit7771
May 2021
#108
Accepting only anecdotes when hard evidence could be available is what's foolish
uponit7771
May 2021
#180
Not an exit poll or anything close to it, got anything post election saying people didn't vote
uponit7771
May 2021
#104
I'm old enough to recall myriad times republicans have turned Dem slogans against us
bigtree
May 2021
#201
A key excerpt from that article, in answer to those repeatedly saying "show us the polls...."
George II
May 2021
#218
None of that is exit polling data etc. answer the question about the Biden and Beef for me
uponit7771
May 2021
#53
Those aren't exit polls or post polling data, "These ads were effective" is an opinion not ...
uponit7771
May 2021
#57
+1, the article is also very jaded seeing there was no national movement to dtp and few to no
uponit7771
May 2021
#113
Sigh, still no exit polling or anything like it... I'm done ...If you can't find the data no one can
uponit7771
May 2021
#109
Posting an article falsely claiming there was a nationwide move to defund the police is false ...
uponit7771
May 2021
#115
No credible exit polls exist for dtp and not one has been shown so far. If dtp was such a gating ...
uponit7771
May 2021
#106
They weren't exit polls or anything like it, please don't jump on band wagons without knowing why
uponit7771
May 2021
#133
New Post-Election Poll Reveals How Democrats' Leftward Movement Cost the Party in the 2020 Election
LetMyPeopleVote
May 2021
#87
There was no movement across the country to defund the police as this polls says this attempt
uponit7771
May 2021
#103
Calling people stupid, foolish and telling them to shut up is probably not going to help
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#165
Well yeah, you're right we should allow reps to define us first and falsely that worked great 🙄
uponit7771
May 2021
#171
When the Cooperative Congressional Election Study 2020 Data Guide is released
lapucelle
May 2021
#184
None of that works...that will still be protrayed as defunding the police. We need to reform the
Demsrule86
May 2021
#23
some of those terms are not loaded and are not the same old tired ass 'reform' bollocks that has
Celerity
May 2021
#24
Reform is a process and that is what is needed...not reforming police departments exactly.
Demsrule86
May 2021
#27
I taked about nothing other than better branding so I do not know what you mean by this:
Celerity
May 2021
#29
What you say makes sense but, sorry, "reform" is played. It's tired as it's been slung about...
brush
May 2021
#75
Of course, but do you care to comment on the wisdom of the phrase "defund the police"...
brush
May 2021
#8
+1, ... they should've backed her up saying they're enabling an out and out racist, sexual ...
uponit7771
May 2021
#17
THIS !!!! ☝🏾☝🏾☝🏾 ... and they show ... ***NO PROOF*** in any exit polling of voters that DTP was
uponit7771
May 2021
#16
There is no proof, but since even our local Dem activists were questioning whether it meant...
TreasonousBastard
May 2021
#18
I agree with the poster that we should own the SENTIMENT and tell the nazi kkkons to fuck off
uponit7771
May 2021
#19
This board is made up of activists with long histories of protesting in the streets so can the...
brush
May 2021
#102
Been there and done that many times. Never thought up such a stupid slogan though.
brush
May 2021
#125
... but we'll let you know when it is. In the meantime, be careful not to annoy or offend us
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#116
"they are the cause of most of the violence." maybe you do have to explain?
EX500rider
May 2021
#146
Wait...what? Where did anybody claim that W Camau Bell didn't have the right to express his opinion?
lapucelle
May 2021
#31
Pushing a misinterpreted slogan associated with the Democratic Party hurts Democrats.
lapucelle
May 2021
#40
I see you're new to this. If you're a Democrat and want to see Democratic candidates...
brush
May 2021
#100
Who's censoring him? Just as he can, we can also express our opionions on dumb opinions.
brush
May 2021
#124
We alreay knew you were a defund the police fan. IMO it's the dumbest slogan ever.
brush
May 2021
#128
Please just stop you look foolish peddling your bs, go on keep costing us elections
caber09
May 2021
#166
Is that the only criteria for you, that one be an "official" or "spokesman" of the Democratic Party?
George II
May 2021
#204
Is he a registered Democrat? If so, he's "affiliated with the Democratic Party".
George II
May 2021
#205
And even if he is a registered Dem, expressing his opinion on a topic is not speaking for the party
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#222
You're equating Bell expressing his opinion about DTP with what Fox, et al, do?
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#226
I'm equating the argument that Bell can say whatever, damaging or not, on a public forum,...
Budi
May 2021
#228
I'll bet you couldn't describe one other thing Bell has said or a position he's taken or whether
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#230
As I said, you can't come up with anything else that Bell has said that you're aware of
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#237
Losing house seats isn't as big of deal as not having a veto proof majority in the Senate
AZProgressive
May 2021
#20
What do *you* think this man, a professional communicator, should say instead?
WhiskeyGrinder
May 2021
#28
One would hope that a "professional communicator" would say something more incisive and
lapucelle
May 2021
#34
It's ageist. There's no "perfection" in dismissing a demographic known for showing up at the polls.
lapucelle
May 2021
#38
Right, but that's still communication, and comics often use politics in their work.
WhiskeyGrinder
May 2021
#267
Never heard of him and as stated above, "Defund the Police" was a gift to Republicans.
SMC22307
May 2021
#42
Once "reform the police" is explained and people believe it's more than a bs.slogan
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#132
I don't think "defund" necessarily means to completely eliminate funding
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#144
"Taking funds away" is not the same as reducing or diverting the funding
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#151
Sentient, thinking people get nuance. I know all that, as do you, but you know...
brush
May 2021
#153
It's not up to Black and Brown people to dummy everything down for ignorant white people with
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#154
I hope what you say in your last graph happens because the elections are so close...
brush
May 2021
#156
That's what people always say when trying to justify telling Black and Brown people we have to
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#157
Too many allies spend too much time and effort telling Black and Brown people what we're doing
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#159
This ads worked because the GOP could point to prominent members of the Squad
LetMyPeopleVote
May 2021
#187
Most of the gains we made in 2018 were due to historic increase in voter participation...
Humanist_Activist
May 2021
#189
THANK YOU !!! If it wasn't dtp it would've been Biden hates beef or Socialism or any other ...
uponit7771
May 2021
#206
I think the issues are that both parties are somewhat of a mess right now....
Humanist_Activist
May 2021
#213
I wonder when was the last time anyone on DU quoted anything Kamau Bell had to say
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#77
I do not know who Kamu Bell is and I am not interested enough to try to find out
LetMyPeopleVote
May 2021
#79
I posted it because I couldn't believe another woke (uh-oh, another wording turned into a hot-)
brush
May 2021
#141
There are lots of reasons we nearly lost the Blue Wave advantage in the House, etc.
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#234
"Blaming it on "Defund the Police" is a lazy excuse." THANK YOU !!! Warnock and Osoff won with
uponit7771
May 2021
#241
BINGO !!! Few people are defending the slogan but to say it killed us down ballot is an excuse ..
uponit7771
May 2021
#236
There's a difference between a phrase that no campaign adopted being a "bad slogan"
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#195
+1, I think the bigger issue is the "demanding less" on the issue of policing is done so the ingroup
uponit7771
May 2021
#240
Neither did 99.9% of all dem candidates but somehow that slogan was blamed for their losses ...
uponit7771
May 2021
#182
Again, your lack of experience in working on campaigns in the real world is sad
LetMyPeopleVote
May 2021
#188
LOL thank you for confirming yet again that you do not understand how campaigns work
LetMyPeopleVote
May 2021
#212
Done, wont answer simplest question & your condescension is childish. Please post to someone else
uponit7771
May 2021
#227
More derision, you must have had a lot tied up in the dtp losing down ballot races analysis cause
uponit7771
May 2021
#245
Did you read the article? You are misquoting this article is a very deceptive manner
LetMyPeopleVote
May 2021
#263
... and neither did the other down ballot dems that lost. My point is weak messaging and unclear
uponit7771
May 2021
#231
However did Warnock and Ossoff win their Senate races with Defund The Police around their neck?!
Arazi
May 2021
#135
They're "throwing down the gauntlet" because they don't want to actually address the real problem
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#150
omg THANK YOU !! Also, when I ask people about EMPIRICAL evidence that it cost us down ballot ...
uponit7771
May 2021
#181
We can be smarter than to give the GOP such a gift to use against our candidates.
brush
May 2021
#251
I daresay, this in a time when those black voices and votes have been paramount
bigtree
May 2021
#199
I gave context. He had a video on with a chart showing how "reallocating" police finds...
brush
May 2021
#248
the 'gift' in this case is the bevy of Democrats who can't stop scolding people who say 'defund'
bigtree
May 2021
#260
How silly, as if Democrats paid for the myraid of negative ads republicans used to win...
brush
May 2021
#262
And the pushback ALWAYS is against the voices and messaging of the oppressed
StarfishSaver
May 2021
#246
I'm as against killer cops as anyone but we have to be smarter than to give the GOP...
brush
May 2021
#247
Thanks for the reminder that Kamau Bell's new season begins tonight! (10:00 P.M., 9:00 Central)
bullwinkle428
May 2021
#259
Agreed it's a dumb slogan. I still think it's not smart for prominent progressives...
brush
May 2021
#274
This is a Democratic discussion board, even less likely to be viewed by undecideds...
brush
May 2021
#279
For fuck's sake, we could call it "buy more mac and cheese" and the frickin' Republicans
Cuthbert Allgood
May 2021
#283