Democrats clearly learned nothing from their 2024 defeat | Opinion

The anticipated “autopsy” of the Democrats’ 2024 defeat shows that the party has learned … well … nothing.

The report is 192 pages long but says very little. Its biggest revelation is that Democrats want to blame everything for their loss except the main reasons behind it: the progressive ideas and policies voters rejected. It also ignores the devastating decision by then-President Joe Biden to run again, even though his declining physical and mental capacity had become obvious.

The report was commissioned by the Democratic National Committee, even though party leaders now say the document doesn’t “meet our standards.” Embarrassingly, the DNC describes it as a draft – and it reads like one, too – while also stating it “cannot independently verify the claims presented.”

The autopsy was prepared by Democratic strategist Paul Rivera.

Democrats, who have struggled with record-low approval ratings since the election, would have been better served examining the issues that drove the campaign – inflation, the economy and illegal immigration – and how first Biden and then Vice President Kamala Harris failed to offer a message that resonated with voters.

Democrats didn't go after President Trump hard enough? Really?

One of the report’s takeaways is that the “national campaign did not effectively drive (Donald) Trump’s negatives, and the White House did not effectively support Vice President Harris over three and half years to improve her standing before the candidate switch.”

It also argues that the Biden and later Harris campaigns “failed to remind voters of his (Trump’s) incompetence.”

Huh?

First of all, when it came to attacking Trump, Democrats – including Biden and Harris – were obsessed with portraying him and his supporters as dangers to democracy. Remember Biden’s remark comparing Trump and his supporters to “semi-fascists”?

Second, in trying to shift blame away from Harris’ failed candidacy, the report ignores the broader reasons she struggled with voters.

“The White House did not position or prepare the Vice President,” the report says. “Had the White House explored and evaluated ways to leverage Kamala Harris earlier in the administration, perhaps it would have improved the President’s standing, and it certainly could have helped prepare her to lead the ticket.”

Biden and Harris were bad on the issues. Period. 

That was the problem. Harris, who is reportedly considering another presidential run in 2028, may want to deflect blame. That doesn’t change what happened.

The White House did plenty to “leverage” Harris early in the Biden presidency. She simply failed at the task she was given.

Biden gave Harris the high-profile job of overseeing his immigration agenda. Essentially, she became the administration’s border “czar,” yet she did nothing to stem the flood of illegal immigrants crossing the southern border. In fact, the situation worsened during her tenure. She also visited the border only once, after being criticized for not going sooner.

The Harris campaign, aided by a complicit media, tried to rewrite her record on the border after she became the Democratic nominee. But voters still saw her ineffective leadership on one of the campaign’s biggest issues.

While the DNC autopsy glosses over most of the major policy issues that shaped the 2024 campaign, it does acknowledge one effective Trump ad targeting Harris’ views on transgender issues. The tagline was simple: “Kamala is for they/them. President Trump is for you.”

Most Americans oppose allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls’ and women’s sports. Trump capitalized on that sentiment by promising to protect fairness in female athletics.

The autopsy acknowledged that pollsters knew the ad was effective, but noted that “the Vice President would not change her position.”

That’s the point Democrats still seem unwilling to confront: Voters rejected the ideas Harris backed.

On May 13, Harris took part in a “no bad idea brainstorm” on the “Win with Black Women” podcast while searching for an “expanded playbook” for the Democratic Party.

But there are bad ideas. And many of the ideas pushed by Biden and Harris helped drive voters away from the Democratic Party in 2024.

If the DNC autopsy is any indication, Harris and many other Democrats still haven’t learned that lesson.

Ingrid Jacques is a columnist at USA TODAY. Contact her at [email protected] or on X: @Ingrid_Jacques.