CHICAGO—Intraparty conflicts, protests, and the attempted assassination of a former president have ratcheted up political tensions as the nation prepares to select its 47th president.
As angry protesters gathered outside the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago on Aug. 20, former President Barack Obama called for unity inside.
“The vast majority of us do not want to live in a country that is bitter and divided,” Obama said, expressing confidence that Vice President Kamala Harris was the right person to bring the country together.
Is Unity Possible?
While several Democrats attending the convention at the United Center expressed a desire for a more unified America, others expressed doubt that that feat was achievable—for Harris or anyone else.“I’m not sure there’s anything she can do,” Joan Vignocchi, a delegate from Santa Barbara, California, told The Epoch Times.
Vignocchi said she thinks many supporters of former President Donald Trump are entrenched in their views, making any attempts toward reconciliation nearly impossible. Nonetheless, she said the Democratic Party should be ready to welcome former Trump supporters back into the fold if they change their minds.
“I don’t think it’s valuable to trash-talk them,” she said. “I think to still have compassion and empathy and love for them is really important, and so I think there’s a way [Harris] can do that.”
Retired Maj. Gen. Randy Manner of Virginia said he believes it’s the idea of trying to say, “We are trying to do what is right for you, and we care about you.”
He added that Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, should convey that message by stressing that the race is not about them, but about the people.
“The reality is, Vice President Harris is reaching out to everyone to say how important they are and that our job is to serve you. So it’s this concept of serving other people and giving hope,” he said.
Divisions within the Democratic Party have also intensified during this election cycle over the Israel–Hamas war. On Aug. 20 in Chicago, pro-Palestinian protesters clashed with police near the Israeli consulate.
While one wing of the party supports aiding Israel in its war against the terrorist group Hamas, the other is demanding a cease-fire.
For Harris, healing that rift could be vital to securing the presidency.
Is Touting Policy the Best Policy?
For Democrats in battleground states, politically charged rhetoric poses more of an electoral risk than it does in the party’s strongholds.Chokwe Pitchford, a county commissioner in Michigan, said he had found focusing on the issues to be an effective strategy for bridging the gap with conservative voters, rather than criticizing Trump.
“I think a lot of people are ready to turn the page on that vitriol in American politics and talk about the brass tacks issues that matter to people,” Pitchford said, noting that most families are still struggling with the impacts of inflation.
“To the average person, it still costs more to get something to eat at McDonald’s, still costs more to get your groceries at the grocery store. So we have to talk about those issues and what the Democratic Party and what Kamala Harris and Tim Walz are going to do to help out people’s pocketbooks.”
Alternate Wisconsin delegate Deborah McGrath said she had been working hard to do just that in her politically purple hometown of Menomonie.
“People don’t realize that there’s been a lot of disinformation in this race, and that the Democratic Party is the party that’s going to help them economically, that is going to fight for their rights,” she said, noting that she had knocked on doors and made many phone calls to engage with voters on those issues.
McGrath added that illegal immigration is another issue relevant to voters in her state. Wisconsin’s dairy farms and factories need more workers, she said, and they aren’t receiving help from anywhere else.
Lawmakers Weigh In
Despite some Democrats’ hopes for a cooler political climate, there were others who downplayed the need to lower the temperature.Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), for instance, said that as a surrogate for Harris, she had observed not bitterness or division, but rather “an inspired unity.”
“I’m seeing people very clear about the moment we find ourselves in,” she said.
The member of the “Squad” in the House of Representatives argued that voters now understand “the harm of a weaponized Supreme Court” thanks to the three justices former President Donald Trump added to the bench.
She further charged that another Trump presidency would result in the dismantling of the federal government and “our democracy as we know it.”
As for unification, Pressley said she considers herself to be “a consensus builder, not seeker.”
“That is always harder work. That is always a greater lift. But in the end, it’s important to meet people where they are and to bring them along,” she said, adding that the most effective way to do that is through policy change.
Washington delegate Azziem Underwood shared the congresswoman’s perspective. In his view, the Democratic Party needs to keep moving further left, not shift back toward the center.
“Why should we meet them in the middle of taking women’s rights away?” Underwood said. “I think we should fight for what we believe in because it’s right for all Americans.”
But Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.), a former presidential candidate himself, said that Harris needs to listen to voters on both ends of the political spectrum if she wants to win this November.
“If you’re in politics and you’re not a good listener, you’re going to eventually lose,” Phillips said.
“I think she and Gov. Walz have to listen, have to understand people’s concerns, whether it’s border security, our economy, national security, immigration system—these are real. And the Democratic Party that I represent has not done a good job in the last number of years listening to everyday Americans that need to be heard, deserve to be heard.”
The congressman added that he thought Walz would help expand Harris’s appeal in that respect.
