But This Worries Me

 I mean, OK, a lot worries me. But in talking about how Democrats have to simply be decent and competent and - if we have free and fair elections - they should be returned to some power, I come across a troubling find: Democrats are struggling to register voters.

Now, I'm not sure I join in Longman's feelings about not having ACORN anymore. As he notes, Democrats have lost some support among Black and Hispanic voters. My point is that Trump's awfulness is not lost on them, and many are souring on Trump and Stephen Miller's version of American governance.

Still, Democrats have a fecklessness problem. Bill Clinton once said that people will choose someone "strong and wrong over someone weak and right." Right now, Democrats seem weak, because they have zero institutional levers to work, beyond some governorships. What's more, Trump is largely counting on provoking a George Floyd type protest movement, so that he can shoot some protestors and declare martial law.

The struggles to register Democrats could be offset if more people are registering as independents. Secondly, the old strategy of focusing on registering  minority voters belies the fact that Democrats are doing really well with college educated Whites in the suburbs. If those are former Republicans moving towards Democrats, that won't show up in voter registration numbers, especially if they are becoming independents.

Still, there is no question that Democrats are struggling with not having any institutional power, which makes it hard for casually invested citizens to see them as strong enough to lead. I remember back in the 2002-05 period, they had the same problem. It's one reason why they turned to a war hero politician in John Kerry and flirted with guys like Wesley Clark as standard bearers. 

There are, in fact, charismatic leaders in the Democratic Party, but without a place to demonstrate strength, they will not be seen as strong.

Ideally, we have elections in 2026, Democrats win at least one House of Congress and begin the process of doing in substance what Gavin Newsom is doing on social media.