Editorial: Results are in – Democratic elites still out of touch
Super Tuesday offered a few lessons on the media, voters, and political power brokers. They weren’t good.
For starters, it seems as if Democratic allies in mainstream media learned nothing from the last presidential election, in which Donald Trump’s supporters were lambasted as “deplorable” dolts ignorant of the real problems that faced the country.
MSNBC anchors Jen Psaki, Joy Reid and Rachel Maddow mocked GOP primary voters in Virginia live on air for considering immigration as their top concern.
The presenters at the liberal-leaning news network took jabs at voters while discussing the results of early exit polls on Super Tuesday, according to the New York Post.
“I live in Virginia. Immigration was the No. 1 issue,” Psaki said, drawing laughter from Reid.
“Well, Virginia does have a border with West Virginia, a — very contested area,” Maddow sarcastically chimed in, setting off more chortles from her co-hosts.
Later Reid broadly painted Republicans as racists who vote against their own economic interests out of bigotry.
“They don’t vote based on economics, or based on the benefits they’re getting economically from the president,” she argued. “They are voting on race; they are voting on this idea of an invasion of brown people over the border, the idea that they can’t get the job they want.”
One can assume that Reid doesn’t live in a neighborhood “selected” to house migrants. The “economic benefits” coming from President Biden are abundant for the young voters whose support he craves — he’s done much to erase college debt for swathes of that demographic.
For those who paid off the loans they took, or didn’t go to college, not so much. Ditto for people whose paychecks have yet to keep pace with inflation.
And in what world do higher grocery prices count as an economic benefit?
Psaki, Reid and Maddow can snicker all they want in efforts to diminish the concerns of Republican voters, Trump supporters are used to it. But their smug posturing hits a wall when the numbers are crunched. A New York Times/Siena College poll over the weekend showed Trump leading Biden 48% to 43% among registered voters nationwide.
The survey showed a majority of voters think the economy is in poor shape, and 47% strongly disapprove of Biden’s job performance, the highest such disapproval rating of any point in his presidency measured by Times/Siena polling.
When you’re earning big bucks at MSNBC, the economy is an abstract, not a daily battle to stretch a buck for food and bills.
Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) is trying to shore up support for the president. On the economy, Welch said the economic indicators are “solid” but people are “feeling some anxiety” about making ends meet when they pay the grocery bills, The Hill reported.
“Feeling some anxiety.” How out of touch can one be?
But being out of touch with ordinary Americans and their day-to-day concerns is a hallmark of Democratic elites. It was true in 2020 and it’s true now.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton may urge voters to overlook Biden’s age, but that’s not the only number a large section of the country cares about.
They care about the price of a loaf of bread, a simple chicken for dinner and lunches for their children. They care about the number of migrants crossing the border and crushing state resources and budgets.
Unless they lose the superior smirk, Democrats will have a very rude awakening in November.
Editorial cartoon by Gary Varvel (Creators Syndicate)