GAWD DAMN -This Florida shit is going too far -

[In It to Win It]

67. I don't disagree

I don't think it's a problem that you can just throw money at to fix. You need serious reform, starting from the ground-up there. And investing national time and effort to do that seems counterproductive given that you resources are finite and could better be used on more Democratic friendly purple states (e.g., Georgia and Arizona) or even red states where such time and effort could actually pay off in the near term (e.g., North Carolina).

I think we're on the same page here, mostly. I agree that it's not a problem that only money will fix. I think that whatever it takes rehab the Florida Democratic Party, it will take outside help to accomplish. If the Florida Democratic Party is left to fend for themselves, we will remain massively disadvantaged as we are now because the opposing party has support in every way possible beyond financial support. They have money, infrastructure, and structure. The Republican Party in Florida didn't get those things all by themselves with no outside help. They had help over the years from the broader Republican Party.

Just as you listed Georgia, Arizona, and North Carolina, those states were (and are) being nurtured and developed by the Party. The Party is willing to invest the time, support and money to do that. We were not winning in those states for a long time until we were and that took being active and engaging in those states. That same long term view and commitment of Florida would be needed, rather than just thinking of the short term. I think the short term view is one of several reasons why the Florida Dems have crashed and burned. There's no thought to the long term. There's not been much thought to incremental improvement until we have the structure and support to put us over the top. More importantly, I think that the Florida Dems overall are not very united, and I think outside help is needed to corral the Party into a cohesive group. I don't think the Florida Dems is in a position currently to do that on it's own.

I think back to 2008 and 2012 with Pres. Obama winning Florida. I think about how that scared Republicans and made them realize it's where they should increase their efforts in engagement and voter drives over the years with every incremental increase in voter base until they surpassed Dems. They completely took advantage of the conventional wisdom that Democratic turnout is poor in midterm years, which is when the most important elections in Florida happen. Florida Dems did not prove that conventional wisdom wrong yet. I look at the map and I feel there's not much room for expansion unless the Party is willing to lay down roots in places they don't usually win, which now includes Florida.

Florida just seems like a lost cause, in large part thanks to the voters -- maybe non-voters is more apt at this point... -- on the left.

Tell me about it! I do GOTV drives, I donate, I do everything I could to support the party. However, I live in Florida. If I don't fight for it, who will?

I haven't seen this near hopeless mix of factors in any other presumed "gettable" state and until it is somehow resolved, I think it is a waste pouring resources into the state when those resources at the present time could better be spent on other states that are closer to being Democratic leaning or even future Democratic stalwarts than Florida is right now.

I understand the feeling but that's why my view is long term, rather than near term or right now. You have to start somewhere. I think Texas is in the same boat. There are people that are willing to show up and vote. I'm one to think that just because we didn't win in 2018 or 2020 or 2022 (in Texas or Florida), that doesn't mean you take your foot off the pedal. While I understand that it's difficult to keep people engaged, if you ever hope to win in those states, you have to keep nurturing the base you're building as just we did in Georgia or Arizona, and are doing in North Carolina.

Maybe that's just my hopeless optimism.