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CNN host warns Dems must actually 'get rid of some sacred cows' of far-left ideology, not just talk about it

CNN host warns Dems must actually 'get rid of some sacred cows' of far-left ideology, not just talk about it

Yahooa day ago

CNN host Abby Phillip warned that if Democrats want to win back voters, they will need to risk offending their consultant class base with concrete policy changes.
Since their historic defeat in November, the Democratic Party remains divided about how to move forward. While some Democrats are doubling down on the far-left politics many argue alienated voters, others are calling to abandon so-called "woke" politics. But as the party remains in flux, a rising tide of commentators are challenging such Democrats to actually articulate which far-left policies they will kick to the curb in order to regain the working-class voters they lost.
On Tuesday evening, a panel on CNN discussed The New York Times' report claiming that Democrats are spending $20 million on a study called "Speaking with American Men: A Strategic Plan." The study is purportedly a project to "study the syntax, language and content that gains attention and virality in these spaces" of male voters.
The panel spoke about how Democrats lack their own equivalent of podcaster Joe Rogan, and how he gradually went from a nonpolitical figure to becoming prominent in the "MAGA universe." CNN media correspondent Hadas Gold said one idea she has seen pitched is a "sleeper" podcast, "where they just they help fund the podcasters, let them do whatever they want, really build up that base, it has nothing to do with politics, and then in a few years, sort of seep into politics," she said, "just like Joe Rogan."
Democratic Party Scrambles To Fix Image As Members Acknowledge Party 'Lost Credibility'
However, she argued, such an idea probably wouldn't work.
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"The only way that that works is through authenticity, and you're not going to make it work by building up these funds and, in any way, being connected to a political party, because the political parties, especially Democrats right now, don't exactly have a good brand people want to be attached to," she said.
When Gold praised Arizona Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego for appealing to authenticity in his rhetorical style, Phillip responded that Democrats need actual substance to their reform.
"Okay, but here's the thing. They're going to have to — you alluded to this," Phillip said as she pointed to former Biden White House official Dan Koh, who called to take positions that may offend parts of the party. "They're going to have to get rid of some sacred cows. This is going to be the hard part. Everybody talks about authenticity until the rubber meets the road, and they have to actually take positions that the activist, you know, consultant class base does not want them to take."
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"I don't think they will," CNN commentator Shermichael Singleton said. "I mean, for Democrats to effectively target men of every color, they are going to have to drastically change some of their positions, especially some of the cultural stuff. I don't think that's going to happen, Dan. I think you guys have moved so far to the left, many — I know you're from the South, Dan, you seem to be more reasonable than most, but for the most part, a lot of you guys don't make room for guys to express their views in an open way about a lot of issues."
When Koh was asked what he would do to change the party, he proposed doing a better job of enforcing the border and supporting upward mobility, saying, "These positions aren't popular with a lot of the party, but it's what people are — to the point of putting people where they are, it's where people are, and it's where we need to be as well."Original article source: CNN host warns Dems must actually 'get rid of some sacred cows' of far-left ideology, not just talk about it

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It's Musk's last day - what has he achieved at the White House?
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Yahoo

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  • Yahoo

It's Musk's last day - what has he achieved at the White House?

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On education reform, Rahm Emanuel talks a big game but is unlikely to deliver
On education reform, Rahm Emanuel talks a big game but is unlikely to deliver

The Hill

time34 minutes ago

  • The Hill

On education reform, Rahm Emanuel talks a big game but is unlikely to deliver

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This stunning Spelling Bee winner photo sums it all up
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Yahoo

time36 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

This stunning Spelling Bee winner photo sums it all up

The 100th Scripps National Spelling Bee is over, and we have a winner who overcame a rough late-bee error to win it all. Faizan Zaki, a 13-year-old from Allen, Texas, finished as a runner-up last year and was one of the three spellers left on Thursday when he was given "commelina." He immediately started spelling it wrong and told head judge Mary Brooks to ring the bell for an incorrect answer. You can see that moment below, but he got through to spell the final word correct: éclaircissement, which he nailed right away without asking for language origin or to be used in a sentence. BEST SPELLING BEE MOMENTS OF ALL TIME: The result? A win and his reaction was simply the best: No, it wasn't kamaaina, but a Mogollon (Shourav Dasari reference in 2015) attempt gone wrong for Faizan Zaki when he tried to spell "commelina" because he said "kam-" but then he realized he couldn't edit his answer 🙃 #spellingbee (R18)Mogolloned Cupar a round after 🫠 — ruletheword335 // TS 🐝 (@ruletheword335) May 30, 2025 You have to love it. He fell right to the ground in pure elation. And why did he spell words quickly? Per the Associated Press: Faizan had a more nuanced explanation: After not preparing for the spell-off last year, he overcorrected, emphasizing speed during his study sessions. Congrats to Faizan, who needed four tries to get the victory. Here he is talking about his preparation, in which he talked to CNN about how he focused on the vocabulary and the spell-off at the end: One of this year's Spelling Bee favorites, Faizan Zaki, showing off his fashion knowledge on @CNN. 🐝 — Kenneth Cole (@kennethcole) May 29, 2025 What a win! And we'll leave it off with the photo of Zaki collapsed on stage, which sums it all up: Awesome. This article originally appeared on For The Win: National Spelling Bee winner photo of Faizan Zaki sums up his run

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