Mirroring GOP’s Playbook, New Democratic Agenda Faces Uphill Battle Against Public Perception
A new initiative within the Democratic Party, dubbed “Project 2029,” is underway with the ambitious goal of crafting a comprehensive political agenda to help the party reclaim the White House in 2028. However, as first reported by The New York Times, this effort is already generating significant internal debate and skepticism about its potential to bridge existing divides and re-engage a disillusioned electorate.
Andrei Cherny, former Chair of the Arizona Democratic Party and creator of “Democracy: A Journal of Ideas,” is spearheading Project 2029. He is reportedly assembling a diverse group of “Avengers of public policy” – well-connected party members and thought leaders – to develop a ready-made platform for the eventual 2028 Democratic presidential nominee.
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Cherny’s motivation, he told The New York Times, stems from the perceived failure of past campaigns, noting that a strategy focused solely on attacking an opponent’s agenda, as he believes occurred in the 2024 White House bid, is insufficient. “The oldest truism in politics is you can’t beat something with nothing,” Cherny stated.
The project’s name itself is an “unsubtle play” on the Heritage Foundation’s “Project 2025,” a conservative policy blueprint that has been influential in shaping the current Republican administration’s agenda.
This deliberate mirroring has not gone unnoticed, with some observers on social media already panning the Democratic initiative, given the party’s previous criticisms of Project 2025 during the 2024 election cycle. Similar to its Republican counterpart, Project 2029 aims to culminate in a book that future Democratic presidential candidates can rally around during the 2028 primary season.
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New York Times political correspondent Shane Goldmacher highlighted the core debate within the Democratic Party that Project 2029 touches upon: whether the party’s struggles stem from a lack of compelling ideas or a failure to effectively communicate those ideas to the public.
Prominent Democratic pollster Celinda Lake argues for the latter, suggesting the party has offered voters “agencies and acronyms and statistics” instead of a clear, compelling narrative about “what we’re going to fight for.”
Conversely, others, like Neera Tanden, CEO of the Center for American Progress and an advisor to Project 2029, believe the party’s ideas themselves may be stale. Tanden pointed to the perceived effectiveness of simple, populist ideas from the opposition, such as “No tax on tips,” which she believes champions working-class people more effectively than complex policy discussions.
The push for a pre-defined agenda comes at a challenging time for Democrats. The party is reportedly facing significant intraparty tensions and a noticeable decline in major donations to the Democratic National Committee (DNC) this year. Public polling also indicates a widespread lack of enthusiasm for Democratic leadership.
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Adding to the complexity, the surprise June 2024 victory of socialist candidate Mamdani in the New York City Democratic mayoral primary has led some analysts to suggest it could push the party further left in future elections. This potential ideological shift could exacerbate existing internal divisions.
Skepticism about Project 2029’s ability to unify the party is evident. Adam Jentleson, former chief of staff for Senator John Fetterman, D-Pa., voiced concerns that an agenda crafted by a coalition might perpetuate the very issues currently plaguing the party.
“Developing policies by checking every coalitional box is how we got in this mess in the first place,” Jentleson stated, suggesting that a truly transformative agenda might need to challenge established interest groups within the party.
Despite these challenges, Michael Tomasky, editor of The New Republic, expressed optimism that Project 2029 could rejuvenate the public’s view of the Democratic Party, particularly among less affluent voters. He differentiated it from Project 2025 by arguing that Project 2029’s “ideas aren’t radical or extreme.”
As prominent Democratic leaders begin to raise their national profiles in anticipation of 2028, Project 2029 represents a concerted effort to provide a unified vision. However, its success will depend on its capacity to navigate the party’s internal ideological struggles and present a compelling narrative that resonates with a broad spectrum of American voters.
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