The decision by the DNC to block the release of its internal autopsy report on the last presidential race appears shocking yet entirely predictable. Averse to hard truths, the party's leadership apparatus operates closer to a publicity machine rather than a political organization focused on cultivating local power for winning elections.
A Climate of Conformity
Reluctant to challenge the party establishment's culture of conformity, the committee has continued under that legacy throughout this past year. Publishing an official autopsy would have indicated that the leadership actually want to promote open debate regarding the errors that enabled Donald Trump to return to the White House. Yet, the committee is acting as if there's nothing to glean from the electoral catastrophe from the last cycle.
"Here’s our North Star: is this good for winning elections? Should the answer be negative, it is an unnecessary diversion from our fundamental goal," an explanation reportedly given for withholding the document.
Major Failures a Report Might Have Addressed
A genuine analysis worth its salt would confront key points of failure. Among them are:
- Electoral Alienation: Failing to retain among millions of voters who voted for the Democratic ticket in 2020 proved pivotal during the tight recent race.
- The Insistence to Seek Re-election: The determined decision of the incumbent to seek re-election, coupled with a very late exit, is viewed as denying the party's base of a genuine choice.
- Losing Touch With Core Democratic Voters: While facing rising costs, the electoral effort reportedly ceding to elite contributors and not managing to address the impact of corporate greed.
- The Foreign Policy Effect: The refusal to adjust an approach regarding a major international conflict allegedly caused driving away many voters, especially among youth voters, Arab American communities, and Muslim Americans.
- Eroding Young Voter Support: Extensive evidence indicates a significant decline in support for the party from voters aged 18-29.
A History of Evasion
The decision to withhold fits a recurring tendency to avoid difficult realities. It echoes a dynamic where virtually every elected Democrat in Congress went along with an incumbent's decision for running for re-election until a disastrous public debate performance forced a reversal.
At the same time, overwhelming numbers of Democratic voters had been continually telling researchers that they did not want the incumbent to run again.
Financial Questions
A thorough autopsy might also investigate questions about financial allocations, including how much money flowed to party strategists and media firms during an electoral effort that managed to spend a colossal sum over a few months.
A Larger Implication
Fundamentally, the suppression of the official autopsy highlights a deference toward party leaders that oversaw a losing presidential campaign. The signal to ordinary supporters – which includes millions of dedicated activists – is that they do not have a right to see the lessons the leadership have learned from a report compiled from conversations with insiders.
A party incapable to publicly examine where it went wrong will struggle to climb out of the rut which was so helpful to the winning candidate.
