Democrats may have learned the wrong lesson from the last presidential election, according to a new report.
Public polling shows that Americans overwhelmingly want their legislators to fight for them, but that doesn't always translate into electoral victories, The Atlantic reported on Sunday. The report was published at a time when the Democratic Party is searching for ways to combat the second Trump administration and re-engage voters who fled during the 2024 election.
One Democrat who seems to fit the party's aggressive attitude is Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX). Crockett has been at the center of public feuds with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and has become well-known for her in-your-face communication style. She also seems capable of selling the party's message, Elaine Godfrey, a staff writer for The Atlantic, argued.
But Crockett's communication style has also put her at odds with party leadership, Godfrey reported.
"Plenty of other Democrats believe that Crockett’s approach comes dangerously close to arson," Godfrey wrote.
Analysts like legendary Democratic strategist James Carville argued that Crockett's style may not be in the party's best interest.
“I don’t think we need a Marjorie Taylor Greene,” Carville told The Atlantic. "She has an instinct for making headlines. But does that help us at the end of the day?”
“You’re trying to win the election. That’s the overall goal," Carville added.
What voters really want is someone who will pass legislation that improves their lives, Lakshya Jain, an analyst at the political-forecasting site Split Ticket, told the outlet.
Democrats focusing their energy on rebranding themselves as loud fighters means they're "misreading the moment," Jain argued.
"People think the brand issue that Democrats have is they don’t fight enough and that they’re not mean enough,” Jain said, but “those are all just proxies for saying that they can’t get stuff done for people.”