Lori Falce: Politics, elections and not listening

Over the last week, cable news and political columns have been thick with criticism of the Republican Party for not paying attention to what voters want.

“Last night was a disaster,” U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz said on Fox’s “Hannity.”

It was definitely rough. There were gubernatorial losses in Virginia and New Jersey, plus the mayoral race in New York City. The Mississippi legislature lost its supermajority. Pennsylvania pushed back on a hard campaign against retaining three Democratic state Supreme Court justices.

But did it really merit Megyn Kelly castigating the entire party on her podcast?

“The Republicans like to lose. They enjoy losing,” she said.

Calm down, Megyn.

As much as Democrats seemed to enjoy the GOP’s wailing and rending of garments, it’s important to recognize that they are just as apt to lose and just as likely to burn down their whole tent in the aftermath.

After the 2024 elections ended in losing the White House, the finger-pointing on the left was just as bad. They blamed Joe Biden for not bowing out sooner, Kamala Harris for being the candidate and everyone else for not fixing the problems along the way.

If you think MSNBC — or MS NOW, as it will become Saturday — is critical of Republicans, you haven’t seen the way its hosts and guests will savage the carcass of a floundering Democratic career.

More than one has said the unorganized Democrats will never win again. Or at least they did before Nov. 5. They returned to that after eight Democratic senators voted to reopen the government. Oh well.

Meanwhile, the focus is always on the next “big” election. You know, the one that really matters, either midterms or presidential.

All the while, everyone misses the point.

Yes, Democrats did not pay enough attention to the economy in 2024. Yes, Republicans oddly seemed to have missed the same this year — as well as underestimating the impact of many Trump administration actions.

But all of them are spending their time telling the voters what should be important to them. While that does seem more efficient than actually listening to the voters, it doesn’t work.

In writing, the recommendation is always “show, don’t tell.” If there is a way to illustrate the issue, you do that.

Imagine a world where politicians did this. Think for a moment what it would be like if Democrats and Republicans alike ran on their actions instead of the recommendations of focus groups and the exhortations of the political blogosphere.

The depression is already fading from Republicans as they pivoted first to ending the government shutdown and now to reacting to the Epstein files. Democrats have already rollercoastered from the high of their win to the low of trading away any capital that bought them — and, yes, reacting to the Epstein files.

But there is a year between now and the midterm elections. That’s a year where real work could get done — a year to show instead of tell.

Not that any of them are listening.