“Freedom” is just potatoes to Republicans
The 2022 midterm elections are just 124 days away, and the results will likely make or break Joe Biden‘s presidency and the Democratic Party’s agenda. All seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, as well as approximately one-third of U.S. Senate seats, are up for grabs. If the Republicans gain a majority in either house of Congress, at minimum, the Biden/Democratic agenda will be stymied as they won’t be able to pass any meaningful legislation. Additionally, either house under Republican control will bog the government down in senseless hearings involving laptops and other shiny object distractions, in order for the GOP to try to score political points. Moreover, many state and local offices are up for election, which could determine how crucial matters ranging from abortion to elections themselves are handled. Suffice it to say that, if any Democrats claim “this is one of the most important elections of your lifetime,” they are not exaggerating.
Republicans, predictably, are bashing President Biden and Democrats over inflation and gasoline prices as their 2022 election theme. Fair enough, as the party out of power generally attacks on any economic front that it can, even though in this case, Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine, as well as leftover COVID-based supply chain problems, both of which can be laid at the feet of Donald Trump, are largely to blame. Indeed, inflation is a problem worldwide, and the United States is on the lower side of gasoline prices around the world.
Therefore, it would be really helpful if the Democratic Party would express a unifying and galvanizing theme for the upcoming elections, to counter the Republicans and drive all-important voter turnout. This has worked in the past, e.g., House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi‘s healthcare message for the 2018 midterms, which led to a Democratic takeover of the U.S. House, catapulting Pelosi to House Speaker.
As it turns out, President Biden and Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell of California, among others, seem to be leading the way with a theme that can succeed for the Democrats in this year’s elections. That theme can be seen in recent tweets from Biden and Rep. Swalwell:
This fall, Roe is on the ballot. Personal freedoms are on the ballot.
Until then, we will do everything within our power to ensure that women have access to the medication they need and that they will have the freedom to travel to seek the care they need.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 5, 2022
Freedom is on the ballot this November.
Freedom from gun violence
Freedom of health care choices
Freedom to vote #ChooseFreedom
— Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) July 5, 2022
Perhaps surprisingly, “freedom” is the leading Democratic theme right now. It is surprising because that’s a word the Republicans have tried to co-opt for years, from their Freedom Caucus in the U.S. House to their silly “Freedom Fries.”
However, “freedom” is a much more natural fit for the Democrats than for the Republicans. The Democratic concept of freedom includes freedom of speech, which is denied in Republican-run Florida under the Don’t Say “Gay” law. It includes a woman’s freedom to choose, and to make her own medical decisions, which will now be denied in at least half the country under the Republican majority U.S. Supreme Court‘s recent decision striking down Roe v. Wade. It includes free elections, which Republican extremists led by Donald Trump tried to take away on January 6, 2021. And it includes the right to celebrate our nation’s freedom, which ironically is now under threat by right wing terrorists wielding Republican-sanctioned AR-15 assault rifles.
More than nine years ago, we showed how Democrats could take “freedom” back from the Republicans as a political theme, from gun violence to economic mobility to healthcare and more. Now, with our freedoms under threat from the Republicans like never before, it might be just the right time to push this theme to achieve electoral victory in November.
Photo by istolethetv, used under Creative Commons license. https://is.gd/dpWUeW
