Obama’s former campaign manager has a ‘brutal truth’ for Democrats: ‘We have no economic message, and if we don’t get one, we’re not going to win’

Across the country, progressives are lighting a fire that they hope will catapult Democrats back to power in Congress this year. But here in a hotel ballroom, the party’s beleaguered moderates have another message — not so fast.

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Leaders at Third Way’s conference talked over and over about how Democrats can’t swing too far left in the midterms, or when picking their next presidential nominee, if they have any hope of winning back the White House.

The title of the two-day, invite-only conference: “Winning the Middle.” And there was plenty of advice on how to do that.

Be plainspoken, not lofty or academic. Don’t live online, but be authentic on social media. Loosen up, and be patriotic without fear that something like the American flag or Pledge of Allegiance has been co-opted by conservatives.

Matt Bennett, co-founder of Third Way, said the organization of moderate Democrats plans to meet repeatedly as the next presidential campaign approaches, convening people who will be influencing and working for Democratic candidates.

“We’re doing it early, and we’re doing it much, much more aggressively than we did last time,” Bennett said. “We’ve got a team in place that is talking every day to the 2028ers.”

Jim Messina, who managed Barack Obama’s reelection campaign in 2012, said Democrats still need to find their footing with voters.

“In 2026, we’re going to win, because we have one great nominee, and his name is Donald Trump,” he said, meaning Trump’s unpopularity sets the stage for Democratic wins in his view. “But we’re going to lose the presidential election in 2028 if we can’t find an economic message that identifies with most people.”

Asked to give Democrats the “brutal truth,” Messina said, “We have no economic message, and if we don’t get one, we’re not going to win.”

The location of the conference was no accident. South Carolina has been pivotal in Democratic presidential primaries, including boosting Joe Biden to victory in 2020. Although a new calendar from the Democratic National Committee won’t be ready for several months, Bennett said Democrats expect the state to remain influential.

“We need to socialize these ideas immediately, so that they can begin to take hold and be widely shared by the time we get to the main part of their primary cycle,” Bennett said.

There was no shortage of stylistic tips at the conference.

“Democrats come across as like professors, academics, elites — I mean, my God, rip off your freaking sport coat and talk to me,” said Joe Walsh, who was a tea party Republican when he represented Illinois in the U.S. House but became a Democrat last year. “Voters in general are just crying out for authenticity.”

But to Walsh, that doesn’t mean taking a cue from those like California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has begun visiting early presidential primary states, including South Carolina. In critiquing Trump on social media, Newsom has taken to imitating the president’s tone, trolling Trump in his all-caps style.

“I think the mimicking and the copying a lot of the Trumpism isn’t the way you’re actually going to reach a lot of folks,” Walsh said. “Voters in general are just crying out for authenticity.”

There were recommendations on the issues, too. A smattering of the more than 100 people in the audience raised hands when asked how many had worked the word “affordability” — the buzziest of campaign buzzwords — into messaging materials.

“I think some of you are lying,” joked Gabe Horwitz, who leads Third Way’s economic program, intimating that the actual number was much higher.

Melissa Morales of Somos Votantes, a Latino voter and civic engagement organization, said Democrats should cut the word out of their campaign vocabulary.

“It barely makes sense in English, and it is a nightmare to translate into Spanish, so can we please call it something else?” she asked.

“They’re not asking us for economic theory, they’re asking us for a set of everyday solutions,” Morales added. “And if we want to connect with them, that’s how we’re going to have to do it.”

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