Laura Washington
There is nothing worse for a columnist than realizing that your view of the world does not jibe with your audience’s worldview. The same holds true for a political party, and in the case of the 2024 presidential election, the Democrats. Misapprehension is a serious offense. In the wake of Nov. 5, the Democratic Party stands convicted of the crime.
Me too. Let it be said that my faculties were way out of whack with reality. My convictions overruled my critical thinking. My convictions, that is, that sane American voters would reject the evil, racist, misogynistic and ruinous campaign of President-elect Donald Trump.
The thought that Trump could make inroads with young Black men and young Latino men seemed a bridge too far. Also, that Trump would carry all seven battleground states with ease, when for months, the polls were nearly tied across that diverse demographic expanse.
Trump lost the popular vote in 2016 and 2020. In 2024, he leapfrogged over Vice President Kamala Harris to capture the popular vote by nearly 4 million. Trump and his MAGA followers grew in stature while the Democratic Party receded.
It all seemed too far-fetched. Harris, the Democratic nominee, was a strong and qualified candidate. She ran a nearly flawless campaign. In August, the Democrats were gushily enthusiastic as they emerged from their Democratic National Convention in Chicago. For those of us who care about equity, advancement and justice, Harris’ rise seemed a phenomenon in the making, a political treat of massive proportions.
On Nov. 5, there was no treat. Just tricks. Halloween came late this year.
It is hard to fathom. Harris’ trajectory out of the box was exhilarating. When President Joe Biden lateraled the ball to Harris, Democrats cheered and marveled at her breakaway run down the field. It was “Kamala IS Brat,” “Coach Walz,” her styling in pant suits. Democrats preened at Harris’ debate performance, as she ran circles around Trump’s flat-footed dinosaur demeanor.
Democrats were elated, as they cheerfully jettisoned old slow Joe and replaced him with a younger, smarter, Black woman.
Alas, it was all a mirage. Voters didn’t want what she was selling. The Democrats misread the mood of the nation.
As it turned out, Harris was not a popular figure. And she was a woman. Just ask Hillary Clinton.
Harris replaced slow Joe but never separated herself from his poisonous positions on a dubious economy and the chaos at the border.
After all, she was dubbed the so-called border czar, the worst job title in Washington. One might wonder whether Biden gave Harris the job early on to sink her and secure his own reelection bid. If so, the ploy failed spectacularly.
Most Americans wanted a new beginning on the economy, even though gas prices and unemployment are down. They fingered Biden administration and Harris as the culprits for the scourge of inflation.
So, let’s read the tea leaves of what’s ahead. But instead of reaching for the teapot, I feel like grabbing a slug of bourbon.
Sigh. Look at the hordes of 2028 Democratic presidential contenders who are already gathering at the gate. There are the governors, including Gavin Newsom of California, Josh Shapiro in Pennsylvania, Wes Moore from Maryland, Andy Beshear of Kentucky. There are senators, Georgia’s Raphael Warnock and Bernie Sanders of Vermont. There are Harris and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, but after two failed attempts to elect a female president, I fear that Democrat honchos will flee that prospect.
That brings us closer to home, where Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker needs his own list. Pritzker has been burnishing his national credentials for years, so look for him in the 2028 hunt. He picked up national media coverage last week, when he told reporters his first order of business would be to protect the state from the incoming Trump administration.
“People have often said that I’m a happy warrior” on behalf of Illinois, he noted at a news conference.“To anyone who intends to come take away the freedom and opportunity and dignity of Illinoisans: I would remind you that a happy warrior is still a warrior,” he added. “You come for my people, you come through me.”
If he wants to be taken seriously for a White House run, getting reelected to a third gubernatorial term is the No. 1 priority.
Then comes addressing Chicago’s challenges. Mayor Brandon Johnson has been at times a distraction and, other times, a disaster. Pritzker must find ways to help Johnson dig out of the city’s financial and political morass. Then identify and back a mayoral challenger with the competence and political savvy to address issues such as crime, affordable housing, downtown development and mass transit.
Pritzker will spend a lot of time in Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan, neighboring states that will be swingier than ever in 2028. He has already cultivated strong relationships with elected officials and parties and the Democratic Party in those states. Barack Obama shocked the nation when he won the Iowa caucuses in 2008. He laid the groundwork via his Midwestern ties.
Finally, Illinois’ billionaire governor should lean into his business success and unlimited resources. No one has made more hay from a “perception” of business acumen than Trump.
That, mercifully, is where all comparisons end.
Laura Washington is a political commentator and longtime Chicago journalist.
