Rec'd.

& thank Your Friend!

it ain't easy.
But it ain't over.

I call bullshit. A loss is a loss. Period. Full stop.

Demographic changes? Gradual shifts in attitude? That's a sign to beat up ourselves?

You think any Republican would indulge in that kind of thing if they nearly beat a Democrat in a dem stronghold? they'll bolster their efforts is what they'd do.

This kind of thinking is no more or less than a rationalization for continuing the same FAILING strategies. We can't win elections right now. We're getting our asses handed to us because we're incompetent as a movement, and as an organization. A loss is a loss is a loss. Karen Handel goes to Washington, Ossoff goes in the political dumpster.

though Ossoff in my view did a lot of things right. I was just in another thread where people were saying maybe these small elections shouldn't get such a national profile, that it hurts Dems in the long run. Whatever movement we engage in will require mass mobilization and we need to control the narrative better.

They were able to make him the "Liberal Hollywood" candidate like... um, Hillary Clinton. We just don't learn.

Ossoff over performed - he was supposed to be dead in the water. If that same passion can be repeated in swing districts, we take the house.

that's why it's important to see this as a few steps forward instead of a massive step back. When was the last time a Democrat held this district?

Sorry, no disrespect intended, but it was a giant fall backwards. An ass kicking.

What ground did we lose? We haven't held that district in years - not since Carter.

If a district turns purple it means that district can be turned and efforts need to be sustained.

But our Dem candidates came sooooooo close, ya know.

Just give up and walk away. I mean, what's the use, right?

It kind of speaks to me.

Good points and although it sucks to lose, it is important to remember that this is a start. Have to stay strong and keep fighting.

Real change takes time. The repubs didn't create this disaster in 7 months. They have been working at it for years. It's going to take a lot of effort to turn this around. But, I'm with you. We can do this.

is certainly going to be spinning it that way for months. (Trump is already gloating.) But there IS such a thing as a TIPPING POINT.

Think of it this way:

Republicans lost 20% margins in deep red, safe seats. (All of those seats were considered rock solid, in deep red, gerrymandered districts. That's why they were chosen.) And yet they had to fight tooth and nail to hold onto them.

Had to fight tooth and nail to defend deep red seats...AND THE REPUBLICANS HAVEN'T EVEN HAD THE CHANCE TO DO ANYTHING UNPOPULAR YET. Yes, Trump's personal style is deeply unpopular, which is why he's sitting at 60% disapproval ratings. But he's only half the equation. The other half is what the GOP Congress will do. The House passed a mean-assed 'wealthcare' bill that will yank health insurance away from millions of people, all for the sake of giving a tax break to billionaires. Because it hasn't become law yet, the outrage was mostly symbolic. There was a big noise, and when the dust cleared, everybody still had their Obamacare.

Just watch what happens when the Senate tries to pass THEIR version of GOP-care. Even TRUMP will line up against it.

If Republican-Care doesn't pass...they're screwed with their base
If Republican-Care passes...they're screwed with everybody else.
If they raise the debt ceiling, they're screwed with their base.
If they don't raise the debt ceiling, they're screwed with everybody else, including the plutocrats who fund their campaigns.
If they try to reform the tax code, they'll run into an army of lobbyists who fight over every penny of every loophole that favors plutocrats. So, they're just going to leave all the loopholes in it, leave the tax code at 10,000 pages, and just lower the rates across the board. The deficit will explode before they've spent a penny on infrastructure.

If you think those margins of victory are small now...just wait until the Republican Congress gives people something to REALLY be upset about. I think the next year will be a true tipping point for the 2018 midterms, and then we have the new CENSUS coming in 2020, which will give us a chance to undo some of the gerrymandering that rigs the system against Democrats. There's a reason Republicans have a 50% seat advantage in the House, while things are essentially even in the Senate. And it has nothing to do with their messaging. It's pure gerrymandering and voter suppression.

for the optimistic (sort of!) analysis.