The Democratic Party Core Values

What does it mean to be a Democrat?

I think the critical first step to rebuild the Democratic Party is to explicitly state what it means to be a Democrat. What are the criteria that includes Elizabeth Warren and Joe Manchin, but excludes Ted Cruz and Mitch McConnell.

Can you list what it means to be a Democrat? If I asked 10 Democrats, would there be clear agreement? We need to state who we are if we’re then going to sell the voters that we’ll govern well for them. Without clear core values the Democrat label is at best a non-issue and at worse a hindrance for candidates.

Core Values

So what are core values? To quote from my book (I Don’t Know What I’m Doing):

One of our key core values was “Do Our Damndest to Delight the Customer.”

…

“Do our damndest to delight the customer” took a lot of thought to get to. We realized somewhat quickly that doing a good job in customer support was worth striving for. But it took some discussion to realize it was more than that. The people we had working in support really and truly cared about our customers and wanted them to be happy. They created the value that we would make their satisfaction a high priority.

To be effective core values need to meet a couple of criteria. They are what we are, not what we hope to be - Windward did offer superlative support. They need to speak emotionally - delight & damndest are not marketing speak, they came from the heart.

They need to be short and clear as no one remembers a 5 sentence mission statement on support aspirations. And a maximum of 7 as no one is going to remember even 12 short pithy values. What makes the cut for the 7 is a powerful statement in itself.

And finally, they need to be values all of the party endorses as defining if someone can call themselves a Democrat. Each individual will have their own spin on each value. Each individual will emphasize different ones. But just as we say a neo-nazi is not welcome in the party, we need to select core values that we’re comfortable setting as admission criteria.

My Suggestions

I am not saying these should be the final accepted core values. This is just my first stab at what I think they should be. Figuring this out will take a lot of discussion and not only will others have a different take on this, but I’ll see room for improvement in the thoughts of others. (Plus I have zero influence in the party and so, if this is done, the final values will be the synthesis of the movers & shakers in the party.)

1. The United States is the greatest country on earth. And its greatest strength is that it continuously strives to become even better.

2. We support equal opportunity for all. We realize this does not mean equal outcomes.

3. Capitalism is the best means to deliver an ever better life to everyone. Appropriate regulation improves the productivity and advancement of the free enterprise system.

4. Our national security requires an industrial policy that insures we have national champions in key industries.

5. We will enforce the rules of a civilized society.

6. We will create an abundance economy.

7. We will base our decisions on evidence & science while understanding the limits of that.

Other Lists

Matt Yglesias has a great suggested set of values - A Common Sense Democrat manifesto

Ruy Teixeira also has a great list (he was ahead of his time) - Ten Short Statements

I’m sure there are others. If you know of one, please put it in the comments.

An interesting point on these two other lists - I will argue wording and priorities for some of their items, but I think they also capture what it means to be a Democrat. The trick is to coalesce all the various lists into one single accepted list - that is short and compelling.

What Didn’t Make the cut

So what did I first have on my list that didn’t make the cut? These two items are very important. But that limitation of 7 items is a necessary cut. So here’s 8 & 9.

1. Measure by what is built. We have a giant problem that many think the issue is resolved when legislation is passed and money is allocated. No, no, no! The measurement is what has been built. And how soon. This is where you address the giant roadblocks of NEPA, everything bagels, etc.

2. Govern only when & where necessary. Govern with the lightest touch. For every problem ask first if government is the right agent to resolve the issue. Keep in mind the government has limited resources & focus. And that everything the government takes on, it then needs to devote adequate resources to handle that issue competently.

Notes

Item 5: I struggled on how to phrase it and what I have is a placeholder, not a suggested final statement. Because it’s so vague to be meaningless. What I’m trying to put under the penumbra of that item is:

1. No more cutting in line for immigration by claiming asylum. We decide who immigrates.

2. We reclaim common spaces from the homeless.

3. We end (drastically reduce) the petty crimes of blatant shoplifting, vandalism, fare jumping, etc.

4. We provide sufficient housing at an affordable price.

5. We improve training of the police and removal of the few bad actors.

These are all part of delivering a more pleasant society. The 5 specifics above are way too detailed for a core value. But delivering that basket - it’s a very powerful core value.

Item 7: We have a problem where the scientific results overreach. The best example was COVID where science told us how many lives remote schooling would save. That was a valuable data point that very much belonged in the political conversation.

But then that data was used to solely drive how long remote schooling should extend. That larger decision should have been driven by multiple criteria, including the social skills schools teach just by having the kids interact in person. Yet too often the infection rate was the only criteria used.

Science, evidence, facts, etc. weaken their authority when they are used as a larger argument encompassing issues outside of their specific purview. And we have worse decisions and outcomes when we don’t take a holistic approach to problems.