In a This Week discussion about the prospects for different Democratic 2020 candidates on Sunday, ABC’s faux Republicans Matthew Dowd proclaimed that the Democratic Party was much closer to what the rest of the country believed than the Republican Party was. On top of that, Newsweek and Daily Beast writer Michael Tomasky suggested that a candidate with low name ID like Washington Governor Jay Inslee could “very easily” beat President Trump.
Dowd’s pontification came towards the end of the program and after Republican strategist Sara Fagen warned Democrats that their mad scramble further to the left was going to have dire consequences for them:
SARA FAGEN: The Democratic Party has moved farther to the left -- will move farther to the left by the end of the process than the Republican Party moved to the right over the last decade, and the most important and arguably influential Democrat isn't able to run. Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez and she's the intellectual drive now on the Democratic Party, and we see these candidates falling over themselves to adopt her positions and it's so going to be very costly.
“But where most voters are, are much closer to where the Democrats are than where the Republicans are,” Dowd scoffed. “Most voters support dealing deal with climate change.”
Continuing to ramble, he added: “Most voters don't support the wall at the border. Most voters support increasing taxes on the very wealthy. So, all of these things, the Democrats are much closer to where the country is than where the Republicans are.”
“That's true in a polling context. It's not true when you lay out this policy,” Fagen explained before she was cut off by host and Clinton lackey, George Stephanopoulos so he could end the show.
Shortly before Dowd’s comments there, Tomasky was hyping Inslee as seemingly a dark horse candidate who could come out of nowhere and beat the seating President. “You know, I think Inslee is an interesting figure. He's probably going to have trouble breaking through, (…) but here's the interesting thing about Inslee, George. I think he can beat Donald Trump very easily.”
Tomasky’s reasoning? Fox News hasn’t spent years smearing him. “Generic Democrat who, you know, Fox News hasn’t instructed its America to hate and despise for the last several years,” he argued.
New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman didn’t have time for that kind of pie in the sky dreaming from Tomasky. “Most people will not beat Donald Trump pretty easily,” she appeared to scold. “I think that's an important point about the general election. I don’t think that that – Look, if the election were tomorrow, he’d more likely than not lose, but the election is not tomorrow.”
“No, I agree. I’m saying he's different from other Democrats,” Tomasky defended himself.
ABC chief national affairs correspondent and weekend World News Tonight anchor Tom Llamas was concerned about the Democratic Party’s messaging for 2020 being too weak to get rid of Trump.
“And what’s the argument? The argument can't be, well, the President isn't a decent person. That can't be the argument. Republicans tried that in the primaries. It did not work against Donald Trump. They have to have an argument,” he opined.
So far, 2020 seems to be off to a rocky start for the left.
The transcript is below, click "expand" to read:
ABC’s This Week
March 3, 2019
9:56:29 p.m. Eastern(…)
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: So, the Democratic Party not where the Republican Party was in 2016.
MICHAEL TOMASKY: No. I don't think so, and I don't think Michael Bloomberg is where Democratic rank and voters are. Particularly on economic questions where rank and file Democrats have moved to the left of where they were eight or ten years ago. You know, I think Inslee is an interesting figure. He's probably going to have trouble breaking through, you know --
STEPHANOPOULOS: Isn't that the question for 80 percent of the field?
[Laughter]
TOMASKY: For a lot of them, but here's the interesting thing about Inslee, George. I think he can beat Donald Trump very easily. Generic Democrat who, you know, Fox News hasn’t instructed its America to hate and despise for the last several years.
MAGGIE HABERMAN: Most people will not beat Donald Trump pretty easily. I think that's an important point about the general election. I don’t think that that – Look, if the election were tomorrow, he’d more likely than not lose, but the election is not tomorrow.
[Crosstalk]
TOMASKY: No, I agree. I’m saying he's different from other Democrats.
[Crosstalk]
TOM LLAMAS: And what’s the argument? The argument can't be, well, the President isn't a decent person. That can't be the argument. Republicans tried that in the primaries. It did not work against Donald Trump. They have to have an argument.
SARA FAGEN: The Democratic Party has moved farther to the left -- will move farther to the left by the end of the process than the Republican Party moved to the right over the last decade, and the most important and arguably influential Democrat isn't able to run. Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez and she's the intellectual drive now on the Democratic Party, and we see these candidates falling over themselves to adopt her positions and it's so going to be very costly.
STEPHANOPOULOS: But it’s where most Democratic voters are now.
MATTHEW DOWD: But where most voters are, are much closer to where the Democrats are than where the Republicans are. Most voters support dealing deal with climate change.
HABERMAN: Health care.
DOWD: Most voters don't support the wall at the border. Most voters support increasing taxes on the very wealthy. So, all of these things, the Democrats are much closer to where the country is than where the Republicans are.
FAGEN: That's true in a polling context. It's not true when you lay out this policy.
STEPHANOPOULOS: And that has it got to be the last word today.
