Democrats are getting Swift-boated again

Republicans are unified in their response to Trump's conviction while Democrats are debating whether to respond

I’m getting an awful sense of déjà vu.

Back in August of 2004, John Kerry was coming off a very successful Democratic convention in Boston with a unified party behind him and a feeling of momentum. Then, a group called Swift Boat Veterans for Truth unleashed an ad attacking Kerry’s Vietnam War record, a key part of his campaign story. They accused Kerry of exaggerating his deeds and questioned his valor and honesty. The ad, which was only run in three states, blew up into a national controversy.

I was part of the Kerry-Edwards direct mail team. Two weeks after the ad began running, Kerry had not responded but the controversy continued to brew. Members of the paid communications team grumbled that the campaign should hit back, attacking Bush for serving in the reserves and comparing the two candidates’ war records. The campaign held a conference call to quell the dissension in the ranks.

The lead pollsters told us that the ads were not affecting Kerry’s numbers and that his war record was still his strongest single attribute. They believed that the controversy would die down and that we would not hear about criticism of Kerry’s heroics going down the stretch in the period from Labor Day to Election Day. They would not respond with attacks on Bush and would address the ad’s criticism mainly through the press.

I thought then, and believe now, that it was the most naive response to an attack I had seen up to that point in my political career. Democratic strategists did not understand what was happening. Regardless of the impact on polling numbers, Kerry was on the defensive for the rest of the race. From the Swift Boat ad at the beginning of August until the Wolves ad that closed out the campaign, the GOP defined Kerry as unprepared to lead the country in a time of terrorism and war. The Democrats tried to make the race about health care and missed the emotional response that Republicans evoked in the wake of the country’s uncertainty due to 9-11.

Today, we’re seeing a similar response to Trump’s conviction. Republicans are unified in their response to verdict. They universally called it a miscarriage of justice. They attacked the legal system and accused Joe Biden of using the justice system to lock up his political opponents. They don’t even try to deny that Trump did what he was accused of doing. They just attack.

Meanwhile, Democrats are arguing about how or whether to respond to the verdict. What the hell? Throw caution to the wind. We’re about to elect a convicted felon to be President of the United States and the entire Republican Party is attacking the rule of law.

Every elected Democrat should be calling for Donald Trump to drop out of the race. He was convicted by a jury of his peers for paying off a porn star to hide an affair that could damage his campaign and he conspired with the leading tabloid in the country to kill negative stories that could hurt his presidential bid. Americans should be outraged and it’s Democrats’ job to make sure they are.

If every Democrat from city hall to the White House stood up and called on Donald Trump to drop out of the race we would be probably arguing over whether a convicted felon is fit to serve, not whether the conviction was political. In other words, Democrats would be controlling the debate. That’s smart politics.

Republicans have a unified national response that is being covered in every media outlet in the United States and being parroted ad nauseam throughout the right-wing media ecosystem. In contrast, Democratic strategists are waiting for the polls to come in to determine how to respond and which witty ad to make. They look weak, uncertain, and incompetent.

As a country, we’re getting Swift-boated again and Democrats seem to be blind as to what is happening. In 2004, Republicans attacked John Kerry’s greatest asset and cast doubt upon his ability to lead. In 2024, Republicans are attacking the institutions that protect our freedom and casting doubt about legitimacy of the Biden presidency. They are turning Trump’s liability into Biden’s problem.

Back in 2004, Kerry strategists insisted that health care was the top issue for swing voters across the nation. That may have been true in poll numbers but emotions are much harder to test and an ill-defined fear of another 9-11 was really driving voters. In 2024, Former Biden Spokesperson Jen Psaki says that the Biden campaign doesn’t want to distract from the abortion message that is driving so many voters away from the GOP.

Well, here’s a message: Republicans are so desperate to end access to abortion that they are willing to attack the rule of law and support a convicted felon for President of the United States. The debate, right now, should be about whether a convicted felon is fit for office, not whether the conviction was legitimate. Silence leaves people assuming that even Democrats quietly agree that Trump’s conviction was political. Don’t let that happen.

The Biden campaign has an opportunity to make this race about Donald Trump’s legal problems and character. They should cast the entire GOP as accessories after the fact in trying to cover up Trump’s misdeeds. As political strategists, they need to recognize the opportunity and take it. As Americans, they need to DO SOMETHING before it’s too late.