Biden's democracy speech should have been about 'cost of living,' says former Sanders campaign manager
Sen. Bernie Sanders has argued that ignoring the economy ahead of the midterms is 'political malpractice'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Former Bernie Sanders campaign manager Faiz Shakir suggested hours before President Biden's speech on democracy that it should have been rewritten to be about the economy and "cost of living."
NBC's "Meet the Press Now" host Chuck Todd asked Shakir about Democratic voter turnout and said Republicans were likely going to have "great turnout" and Democrats were going to have "good" turnout.
"I hope there are some people at the White House watching. You think about the address that he’s about to give tonight, I hope that they're rewriting it and focusing on cost of living," Shakir said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Todd followed up and asked if he believed Biden's speech should be about the economy. Shakir argued that Americans who are planning to vote on democracy or on abortion have likely already made their decision.
Former Bernie Sanders campaign manager Faiz Shakir suggests President Biden's democracy speech should have been about the economy. (Screenshot/NBC/MeetThePressNow)
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"The persuasion audience, the people who haven't decided, the undecided, they are all in on economy," he said. "President Biden and the Democratic Party need to tell them that not only do I feel and see your pain, every morning I wake up thinking about this, every night I go to sleep on it, I'm thinking about how to get you support, whether its child tax credit or something like that," Shakir added.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Todd turned to Republican strategist Brad Todd, who said the 2022 midterms were decided in 2021 when Democrats decided they were going to do two things, "spend $3 trillion on an economy that was already heating up" and "do everything they could" to stop the domestic production of fossil fuels.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., recently said it was "political malpractice" for Democrats to focus on just abortion and ignore the economy ahead of the midterm elections.
"I believe that if Democrats do not fight back on economic issues and present a strong pro-worker agenda, they could well be in the minority in both the House and the Senate next year," he wrote.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders campaigns for Democratic Oregon gubernatorial nominee Tina Kotek. (AP Photo/Claire Rush)
SANDERS: DEMS SHOULD PUSH ECONOMIC MESSAGE, NOT JUST FOCUS ON ABORTION
Veteran Democratic strategist James Carville told the Associated Press in October that a focus on abortion wasn't going to win.
"It’s a good issue. But if you just sit there, and they’re pummeling you on crime and pummeling you on the cost of living, you’ve got to be more aggressive than just yelling abortion every other word," he said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Biden gave a speech for the Democrat National Committee on Wednesday evening at Union Station in Washington, D.C., and suggested voting Republican is a threat to democracy.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during a rally hosted by the Democratic National Committee (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
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"We're facing a defining moment," Biden said. "We must with one overwhelming, unified voice speak, as a country and say there's no place for voter intimidation or political violence in America."