There's this false narrative out there that when Democrats offer bold approaches to big problems—like Medicare for All to cure what ails our sick health care system—they alienate voters and lose. The opposite is true.
In this year's elections, 112 members of Congress who were sponsors of the Medicare for All legislation stood for reelection. Do you know how many of them lost? Zero.
It was the corporate-funded congressional Democrats like former University of Wisconsin-Madison chancellor Donna Shalala who lost. She not only opposed Medicare for All but also said a state plan in Florida to allow the importation of cheaper prescription drugs from Canada was “the silliest thing I’ve ever heard of.” Shalala received more than $135,000 in campaign donations since 2018 from health industry PACs, executives and lobbyists, including many tied to American pharmaceutical companies.
Shalala lost her bid for reelection in Florida in a year when voters there approved a ballot initiative raising the state's minimum wage to $15 an hour. In a year when even Fox News was reporting on the night of the election that most voters support progressive policies like Medicare For All.
It's not just overhauling our nation's sick health care system that voters want. They want bold climate action. A total of 98 sponsors of the Green New Deal legislation in Congress were on the ballot all across the country. All but one was reelected. Voters in swing states and even in red Republican states showed their support for progressive ideas. It might not be such a big surprise that New Jersey voters approved a ballot initiative legalizing marijuana use, but Arizona, Montana and South Dakota voted to legalize cannabis too.
Goes to show that standing up for progressive policies and acting boldly on the biggest problems facing our country not only is the right thing to do, it's good politics and a winning strategy.
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