This decision by the Democratic National Committee to withhold the publication of its internal autopsy report on the last presidential race appears shocking yet not surprising. Opposed to frank assessments, the DNC behaves closer to a PR firm rather than an electoral entity committed to cultivating local power to secure victories.
A Culture That Avoids Dissent
Hesitant to break with the prevailing attitude of conformity, the DNC has continued under that legacy throughout this past year. Publishing an official autopsy might have shown whether the leadership truly desire to promote public discourse regarding the errors that paved the way for Donald Trump to return to the White House. Instead, the committee is acting under the pretense that there is little to glean from the tragic debacle from the last cycle.
"Here’s our North Star: will this lead to victory? If the answer is no, it’s a distraction from what truly matters," a justification which was presented for withholding the report.
Major Failures an Analysis Could Have Explored
Any valuable post-mortem of substance would not dodge key points of failure. Among them are:
- Electoral Disenchantment: Losing of a significant portion of the electorate who supported the Democratic ticket during the previous election was decisive during the tight recent race.
- A Choice to Seek Re-election: The unwavering choice by a party leader to stay in the race, alongside an extremely delayed withdrawal, has been criticized as denying the party's base of a competitive nomination process.
- Losing Touch With Everyday Americans: Amid economic anxiety, the electoral effort allegedly ceding to corporate donors' interests and not managing to challenge the impact of corporate greed.
- A Foreign Policy Factor: An unwillingness to reconsider a policy position regarding a major international conflict reportedly led to losing significant blocs, especially among youth voters, Arab-Americans, Muslim voters.
- A Decline in Youth Support: Research indicates a significant drop-off in support for the party among voters aged 18-29.
A Pattern Avoiding Accountability
This refusal is consistent with a longstanding habit of sidestepping difficult realities. It recalls a situation in which the vast majority of Democratic officeholder in Washington supported an incumbent's insistence on seeking another term until a catastrophic public debate performance forced an exit.
Concurrently, large majorities within the party's base were repeatedly informing researchers that they opposed the incumbent to seek re-election.
Campaign Spending Issues
A substantive autopsy might also investigate issues about where money went, such as what sums were directed to insider consultants and ad buyers during a campaign which expended a colossal war chest over a few months.
The Underlying Implication
At its core, the secrecy surrounding this report points to a submission toward the established hierarchy responsible for an unsuccessful presidential campaign. The implication to rank-and-file members – including millions of dedicated activists – appears to be that they do not be trusted to know the lessons the leadership claim to have learned from a report based on conversations with insiders.
A political entity unwilling to honestly assess where it went wrong is unlikely to break free from the pattern that proved so beneficial to the winning candidate.
