A 50 state strategy requires a big tent

[democrank]

32. Gaining control of local, state and federal offices requires a big tent.

We can ignore all red state Trump voters, tell Bernie supporters to get lost, ignore Independents and Greens....but how will that help Democrats recover from our tremendous losses?

Over the last eight or so years, Republicans have gained complete control over about 32 states. Democrats have lost about 1,034 state and federal offices. Obviously these losses directly impact Democrats' ability to go forward with our priorities. If our support continues to come (mostly) from the two coasts and a couple of states in the middle, Republicans will maintain control of Washington and the national agenda. We can't let that happen which means the "Big Tent" idea must be realized. The Electoral College rules.

Not all Democrats are the same, so there is a chance the same goes for Republicans. I know some Trump voters who voted for President Obama....twice. They were not driven by racism in 2016. We should try to reach voters like that, voters who sat home on Election Day, and others. One thing we could try is reinvigorating Howard Dean's 50-state strategy and dive deep into these red states with a new Democratic message that focuses on old fashioned Democratic values of social and economic justice, education, the environment, human rights, to name a few. A West Virginian coal miner has some of the same concerns as a potato farmer in Maine, a logger in upstate New York, or a former factory worker in Michigan.

We should outlaw lip service and demand action in Chicago, Flint, with the Standing Rock Sioux, in Appalachia, and elsewhere. We should throw any hints of elitism out the window, roll up our sleeves, open the tent flaps and get to work. We can do this and come back stronger than ever.