Democrats search for a path back into rural America’s good graces

Great take by Dan Balz on the unfortunate outcome of this year’s presidential election. Quick takeaway:

 

“Democrats ought not to believe that their problems have been caused primarily by the actions of a foreign government. There’s too much other evidence that they have lost touch with parts of the electorate and will need to take stock as they begin to try to regain ground.

 

“As much as anything, the 2016 election highlighted the degree to which Democrats have lost favor among voters in rural and small-town America. Heading toward Election Day, Democrats dismissed the possibility that there were enough white, working-class voters in these nonurban areas to overcome their advantages with African Americans, Latinos, unmarried women and highly educated voters.

 

“The election proved them wrong.”

 

Meanwhile, Clinton and her campaign prefer to blame their loss entirely on the Russians, James Comey, the headwinds of a change-oriented electorate, etc., etc., rather than taking any responsibility for the weaknesses of their candidate and overall strategy. I admit to having had somewhat mixed feelings about the Trump nomination, feeling that he was one candidate that Hillary could actually beat. Not that I’m bitter or anything.

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/democrats-search-for-a-path-back-into-rural-americas-good-graces/2016/12/10/8bc92fea-bef8-11e6-ae79-bec72d34f8c9_story.html?utm_term=.d203f26b030c