Progressive Democrat Cori Bush refuses to stop using the phrase “defund the police” ahead of the midterm elections, despite pleas from some of her colleagues to drop it, according to Axios.
"I always tell [fellow Democrats], 'If you all had fixed this before I got here, I wouldn’t have to say these things,'" the Missouri lawmaker told reporters.
Many blamed the phrase’s use ahead of the 2020 elections for Democratic losses and close calls.
Virginia Democrat Abigail Spanberger, for example, said the phrase nearly cost her the race because of an attack ad using it.
Spanberger on the Dem caucus call: We lost races we shouldn’t have lost.
— Erica Werner (@ericawerner) November 5, 2020
Defund police almost cost me my race bc of an attack ad.
Don’t say socialism ever again.
Need to get back to basics.
(Is yelling.)
Bush insists, however, that “’defund the police’ is not the problem.” She also noted that her party must do a better job explaining what their goals are when they say "defund the police"—namely to shift some resources to preemptive social services.
If there are major Democratic losses in the midterms, Bush claimed it will be more a result of her party’s failure to pass key pieces of legislation.
"We dangled the carrot in front of people’s faces and said we can get it done and that Democrats deliver, when we haven’t totally delivered,” she added. “If [Republicans] take the majority, it’s just done as far as trying to get the legislation across.”
But her Democratic colleagues aren't the only ones asking her to drop the phrase.
Many of us voters are making the same request, @RepCori . The slogan is misleading and damaging. You are hurting our chances of accomplishing the goals you claim to want to achieve. STOP USING IT.
— Gayton Gomez (@gpgomez) February 9, 2022
Periodic reminder:
— Angry Staffer (@Angry_Staffer) February 9, 2022
- if you have to explain your slogan, your slogan is bad.
- If your slogan doesn’t mean what it LITERALLY says, it’s awful https://t.co/sythVTsc7Q
Why? This has already done so much damage and accomplished nothing. https://t.co/yZMwYjysq0
— Khashoggi’s Ghost (@UROCKlive1) February 9, 2022
@CoriBush Please don't die on this hill. Refine the message.
— JayMcPea (@McPea54) February 9, 2022
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