The Real Democratic Debate Should Be Over How to Win Moderates
Weak centrists and strong progressives with limited appeal are raising the question: Can anyone beat Trump?
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: Democrats are panicking.
Less than three months before voters gather in Iowa to choose the party’s 2020 nominee for president, the fear that Democrats are at risk of picking a standard-bearer who cannot beat President Donald Trump is palpable.
In the last two weeks, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has tentatively thrown his hat in the ring. Former Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick has already taken the plunge. Democratic donors are practically apoplectic about the state of the race, particularly after recent polls showed the top Democratic candidates barely edging Trump in key battleground states.
While this kind of hand-wringing is a quadrennial rite of passage for Democrats, the growing concerns should not be dismissed — there are legitimate reasons to be afraid. While the Democratic presidential field is as impressive a group as has ever been assembled in a party primary, the top-tier candidates are all flawed in fundamental ways that risk giving Trump another four years.
