How Democrats Can Win the Information War
Plus, could Trump be the key to Dems keeping the House?
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RON FILIPKOWSKI on How Democrats Can Win the Information War
Again: It isnāt the mediaās job to fight partisan battles and the media as it currently exists simply isnāt configured to fight bad-faith, malicious propaganda and disinformation. But also, there are things that can be done by a partisan political group that traditional media cannot, will not, and should not do.
What would this team do exactly? Generally, it must identify what is being said and done on the right across multiple platforms, settings, and venues. Their game plans for today, this week, this month, and this year are all there, out in the open. Once you become aware of disinformation, it can be proven false and countered immediately. And then Democrats should take the fight directly to the right on their own platforms. I believe that many of the people who have been turned by lies can be won back with irrefutable truthābut the truth has to be put right in front of them, meeting them where they are.
Itās not to discredit most of the BS that comes from the right-wing echo chamber. Most of the āexpertsā there are obvious charlatansāquick searches of their backgrounds, credentials, and things they have said in the past almost always shows that they are frauds. But the people inside the echo chamber hearing them donāt know it. Democrats ought to work overtime to pierce that bubble.
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WILLIAM KRISTOL writes: Could Trump Be the River Card That Helps Democrats Hold the House?
If Democrats could pick up about three points on the congressional ballot over the next nine months, they could hold the House. Such a gain may be unlikely, perhaps even highly unlikely. But it isnāt beyond imagination.
Which brings us to the Democratsā hole card: The Republicansāand in particular the numero uno Republican, the 45th president of the United States, Donald J. Trump.
How much could Trump-caused, Trump-aligned, or Trump-adjacent madness damage Republican candidates in 2022? We donāt know, partly because weāve never really had a situation like the current one. What we do know is that the great bulk of the Republican partyās candidates will be aligned with and perhaps seen to be marching behind a former president whoās not popular with swing voters, whose visibility could motivate lots of Democrats to vote, and whose behavior could make it far easier for Democrats to link Republicans to unpopular causes. The report by the January 6th Committee could play a role here too.
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