Daniel Tilson: Florida Democratic Party needs to connect some dots

Hey, have you heard? The Florida Democratic Party (FDP) machine will proudly display some shiny moving parts this weekend at a swank hotel in Hollywood.

Two days of meetings, marketing and fundraising events will deploy like a windup toy, highlighted by Saturday night’s $225 per person “Leadership Blue Gala,” starring Bill Clinton as keynote speaker.

I’ve been part of several of these events over the past decade, once as President of a South Florida Democratic Club and “New Media” consultant to the Palm Beach County Democratic Party. So when I use the term “windup toy,” I’m not just being snarky.

As much as the FDP and grassroots activists who keep local clubs and party activities percolating year-round may have their “hearts in the right place,” that place remains stuck somewhere between 1960 and 2000. There’s the strong sense looking in from the outside now that the mostly older “establishment” Democrats who still rule the roost haven’t quite caught up with the year 2014.

At ground level, Florida’s a freaking mess. Income inequality is at record levels, worse than most of the rest of the country. Wage stagnation has trapped what’s left of the middle class in economic quicksand.

What’s worse is that most working folks fear if they rise up and fight to get out, they could lose whatever foothold they have and sink into poverty.

What’s sold by the Republican Party of Florida (RPOF) as  “economic growth” and “job creation” is in fact mostly a post-recession spike in tourism that created a glut of low-wage, no-benefit jobs in hotels, motels, restaurants and theme parks. You know, the kinds of jobs that force working poor parents onto public assistance, which is painfully paid for by all those middle-class taxpayers treading water themselves.

Meanwhile, the same socially irresponsible, wealthy individuals, giant corporations and “advocacy” groups (Florida Chamber, Associated Industries of Florida, etc.) that for years have successfully funded, empowered and used the RPOF to engineer all that economic inequality? They just keep doubling down.

They keep pushing privatization and profiteering in our public schools, prisons and hospitals. They keep brainwashing lower and middle-income people into supporting their agenda. They keep achieving their goals.

And yet, the Florida Democratic Party establishment remains unable or unwilling to reinvent itself in ways that engage with and inspire new and infrequent voters

Yes, there are “Young Democrat” and “Haitian American” clubs, Hispanic, LGBT and Progressive Caucuses, and so on. But there’s also an archaic, ongoing disconnect with the “new majority” of potential Florida Democratic Party supporters. And there’s a self-defeating distrust of new faces and voices who might create those connections.

As a political communications guy, I’ve come across one Democratic candidate and campaign after another in recent years that fall outside the “comfort zone” of the FDP. From a centrist African-American woman working in city government, to a progressive gay Hispanic teacher, to a one-of-a-kind African-American former heavyweight champion turned politician, all got the cold shoulder from the party because they dared challenge low-achieving, out of touch FDP establishment candidates in primaries.

As long as the FDP, its clubs, caucuses and all the rest leave candidates like these twisting in the wind, or worse, handicap them by denying access to important voter and donor data, we’re going to stay stuck with a Republican government — and all the heavy baggage that comes with it. 

Daniel Tilson has a Boca Raton-based communications firm called Full Cup Media, specializing in online video and written content for non-profits, political candidates and organizations, and small businesses. Column courtesy of Context Florida.