Former President Barack Obama says the Democratic Party needs to be a ālittle more groundedā in its attitude.
Speaking on the āPod Save Americaā podcast, Obama said, āI think we do get into trouble ā Look, I used to get into trouble whenever, as you guys know well, whenever I got a little too professorial and started⦠when I was behind a podium as opposed to when I was in a crowd.ā
āThere were times where Iād sound like I was giving a bunch of policy gobbledygook. And thatās now how people think about these issues,ā he continued.
He went on:
āThey think about them in terms of, you know, the life Iām leading day to day. How does politics even, how is it even relevant to, you know, the things that I care most deeply about. My family, my kids, work that gives me satisfaction, you know, having fun. You know, not being a buzzkill.ā
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When one of the co-hosts chimed in to suggest his comment is a lesson for the Democratic Party, the former president, said, āAnd sometimes Democrats are , right?ā
āItās like, you know, sometimes, people just want to not feel as if they are walking on eggshells, and they want some acknowledgment that life is messy and that all of us at any given moment can, you know, say things the wrong way, you know, make mistakes,ā Obama added.
He shared the example of his 86-year-old mother-in-law, who may not use the proper āphraseology when weāre talking about issues.ā
ā like, thatās like her trying to learn Spanish. It doesnāt mean she shouldnāt try to learn Spanish. But it means that sometimes sheās not going to get the words right. And thatās OK. Right? And that attitude of just being a little more real and a little more grounded is something I think that goes a long way in counteracting the systematic propaganda that I think is being pumped out by Fox News all these other outlets all the time,ā he added.
Setting aside his gratuitous shot at Fox News, which seems he is contractually obligated to take, Democrats should heed his comments.
In recent years, weāve been treated to story, after story, after story, about the number of Americans who say they are āself-censoringā due to the fear other people will find what they say offensive.
A 2020 survey conducted by the CATO Institute, a libertarian think tank, found that only āstaunch liberalsā said they feel they say what they believe. Meanwhile, 52% of liberals, 64% of moderates, and 77% of conservatives said they feel they have to limit what they say.
The survey also found that 50% of āstrong liberalsā were more inclined to say someone should be fired if they donated to then-President Donald Trump, while 36% of āstrong conservativesā said someone should be fired if they donated to Joe Bidenās presidential campaign.
Those are ridiculous numbers. And they show that liberals appear to be more in favor of punishing people for donating to the āwrong campaign,ā or being on the āwrong sideā of an issue ā though there is apparently an element of that amongst conservatives.
But both sides need to recognize, as Obama pointed out, that the average American does not want to feel like if they accidentally slip up and say the āwrong thingā or donate $25 to āthe wrong guyā because they liked something he or she said, their life could be ruined.
That is no way to live, and it is no way to treat people. And having a party full of whiny crybabies who kick and scream and throw temper tantrums and then try to get someone fired because they did not use the āright languageā one time is not a way to win people over to your side.
