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The Good Vibes Didn’t Tell the Whole Story
Democratic Party leaders gathered in Los Angeles this week for the Democratic National Committee’s winter meeting, intent on projecting confidence — and for the first time in a while, the effort largely worked. After strong off-year election results in places like New Jersey and Virginia, the mood was lighter, donors were back in the mix, and the party leaders present spoke openly about momentum.
But mood is not reality. Beneath the selfies, speeches, and celebratory tone, the Los Angeles gathering revealed a party still wrestling with unresolved problems — financial, ideological, and strategic. As the Democrats who decided to attend head home, there are at least seven inconvenient truths they cannot escape.
Inconvenient Truth #1: The Party Is Still Borrowing to Get By
For all the upbeat talk in Los Angeles, the Democratic National Committee remains in a weakened financial position. The DNC recently took out a $15 million loan to fund early-cycle operations — an unusually large move at this stage — while the Republican National Committee reported roughly $91 million in cash on hand at the end of October, compared to about $18 million for the DNC. That leaves a gap of more than $70 million even before accounting for Democratic debt. Optimism is easy to project in a hotel ballroom; borrowing tens of millions while trailing badly in available cash tells a different story about institutional health.
Inconvenient Truth #2: Off-Year Wins Don’t Equal a National Mandate
Democrats deserve credit for outperforming expectations in New Jersey and Virginia. Those wins matter. But they also came in states Democrats were favored to win, during an off-year with lower turnout and highly localized dynamics. Converting those results into a durable national message — especially in swing states — remains an open question, not a settled conclusion. There are eleven long months before the midterm elections.
Inconvenient Truth #3: “Everything Is Too Expensive” Is an Awkward Message For A Party Making Things Expensive
Democratic leaders repeatedly emphasized that Americans are struggling with rising costs. The concern is real and widely shared. The complication is that Democrats govern most of the country’s largest states and cities — the very places where housing, energy, and taxes are often the most expensive. A message built around affordability inevitably invites voters to ask who has been writing the rules. Gavin Newsom was front and center at this confab, and we’ve documented how unaffordable the policies he supports have made California [ [link removed] ] relative to other states.
Inconvenient Truth #4: The Party’s Deep Bench Was Missing
For a party celebrating renewed confidence, the absence of many of its most recognizable leaders was hard to miss. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Bernie Sanders. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Elizabeth Warren. Several governors routinely described as future national figures were nowhere to be seen. Also absent were some of the party’s newer, left-facing standard-bearers, including New York City’s mayor-elect, Zohran Mamdani — an avowed Democratic Socialist whose rise reflects where many activists want the party to go. If this gathering was meant to showcase Democratic leadership, the roster felt thin and carefully managed.
Inconvenient Truth #5: California Keeps Becoming the Face of the Party
Los Angeles was not merely the host city; it was the message. Governor Gavin Newsom dominated attention, drawing donor interest and national buzz throughout the gathering. Whether by design or by default, Democrats continue to nationalize California’s political brand. That may energize activists and donors, but it complicates efforts to persuade voters in states that look nothing like coastal blue strongholds. There is zero chance that anyone was inspired by a speech from Karen “I was on a junket across the world when the fires hit my city” Bass.
Inconvenient Truth #6: The Party Is Still Looking Backward
More than a year after Democrats suffered sweeping losses at the top of the ticket, the DNC still has not released a full public accounting of what went wrong. That unfinished reckoning was underscored by the contrast on display in Los Angeles. While many figures described as the party’s future were absent, one of the most prominent presences was Kamala Harris — the central figure of the 2024 defeat — even as Newsom dominated the spotlight. Showcasing the past while the next generation remains largely offstage is an awkward way to signal renewal.
Inconvenient Truth #7: The Party’s Center of Gravity Keeps Pulling Left
Even without its most prominent progressive figures on stage, the institutional signals were unmistakable. Activist councils, absolutist climate rhetoric, and language focused more on grievance than reform set the tone. Energy inside the party continues to flow toward its most ideological elements, while appeals to moderation remain largely rhetorical. Democrats say they want to win back swing voters, but their messaging, priorities, and governing record in deep-blue states suggest a party more inclined to double down than recalibrate. Voters in the middle tend to notice the difference. This is a party that is so far left that it sent swing voters right into the arms of Donald Trump after all…
So, Does It Matter?
This matters because voters do not reward vibes. They reward results. Democrats can celebrate a good night at a Los Angeles hotel, but they cannot wish away debt, high costs of living, ideological overreach, or an unresolved reckoning with recent failure.
They also have to confront a strategic reality: running against Donald Trump may rally voters in deep-blue states like California, but it is not a governing philosophy — or an electoral roadmap — for the battleground states whose Electoral College votes they need to win back. A national party cannot rely indefinitely on opposition alone, especially when voters are looking for answers to the everyday pressures shaping their lives. And, oh yeah, Trump will not be on the ballot in 2028…
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