Van Jones warns that the Democratic Party is alienating working-class voters with "weird" political correctness. (Shutterstock)
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CNN political contributor Van Jones, a former special adviser to President Barack Obama, said last week that Democrats have cut themselves off from working Americans.
“I’ve never met a Latinx. I’ve never met a BIPOC. This weird stuff that these highly educated people say is bizarre. Nobody talks that way at the barbershop, the nail salon, the grocery store, the community center. But that’s how we (Democrats) talk now.”— CNN political contributor Van Jones
“We’re in danger of becoming a party of the very high and the very low,” Jones said during a CNN appearance on Thursday. “If you pull out the working class, you have people who are very well educated and very well off. Those people talk funny. Latinx? I’ve never met a Latinx. I’ve never met a BIPOC. This weird stuff that these highly educated people say is bizarre. Nobody talks that way at the barbershop, the nail salon, the grocery store, the community center. But that’s how we (Democrats) talk now.”
Quinnipiac Poll Results
Evidence of middle-class frustration with the Democrats is seen in the June 8 Quinnipiac University poll. Democrats in Congress received an approval rating of just 24% from Hispanics and 35% from Blacks. Ask about President Biden’s approval of handling the economy, 20% of Hispanics and 45% of Blacks gave him a thumbs-up.
With Blacks and Hispanics traditionally forming key constituencies of the Democratic base, party leaders have reason to be concerned about the 2022 mid-terms.
And, if Democrats value Jones’ input, they’ll start focusing on issues that matter — food and gas prices, for example — and stop turning off working-class voters with political correctness, political shaming, and terms coined by sociology professors.
Watch: Van Jones Says Democrats Are Alienating Voters
Bill McEwen is news director and columnist for GV Wire. He joined GV Wire in August 2017 after 37 years at The Fresno Bee. With The Bee, he served as Opinion Editor, City Hall reporter, Metro columnist, sports columnist and sports editor through the years. His work has been frequently honored by the California Newspapers Publishers Association, including authoring first-place editorials in 2015 and 2016. Bill and his wife, Karen, are proud parents of two adult sons, and they have two grandsons. You can contact Bill at 559-492-4031 or at Send an Email
