The Democratic Party

What do you see as the root cause of the Democratic Party's current struggles: messaging, policy substance, leadership, or something else entirely?

What's driving the divide within the Democratic Party over the shutdown vote, and do you think the political fallout will actually land on them as these headlines suggest?

Given the mixed signals in this coverage, is the shutdown strategy a principled stand or a political miscalculation for Democrats—and what would you do differently?

What does it say about internal vetting and messaging discipline when a party dealing with a security scandal is simultaneously fielding questions on shutdown strategy and unapologized-for controversial remarks?

Which of this week's storylines—Manchin's "rudderless" comment, El-Sayed's demo problem, or the new midterm tickets—says the most about the Democratic Party's direction right now?