A message for Democratic leadership…
We often discuss the term cognitive dissonance as though it is the unintentional byproduct of confusion. Trying to reconcile conflicting beliefs or ideas can be confusing, but not if the dissonance is deliberate, and especially if one of the “ideas” is objectively evil. In cases in which choices can be categorized in moral or ethical terms as good or evil, there is effectively only one choice. For those who make the wrong choice, the paralysis of indecision resolves itself in a comforting justification.
Democrats often point to the cognitive dissonance of red-state MAGA followers who vote against their self-interests despite objective proof that their lives are made worse by their convictions. When the “reconciliation” of the competing ideas involves willful self-deception, the result is neither dissonance nor confusion; it is hypocrisy:
As originally formulated (Festinger, 1957), cognitive dissonance is induced when a person holds two contradictory beliefs, or when a belief is incongruent with an action that the person had chosen freely to perform. Because this situation produces feelings of discomfort, the individual strives to change one of the beliefs or behaviors in order to avoid being inconsistent. Hypocrisy is a special case of cognitive dissonance, produced when a person freely chooses to promote a behavior that they do not themselves practice.
- APA.org. “Teaching Tip Sheet: Cognitive Dissonance,” by Ann O’Leary, PhD
The recent pep talk by Donald Trump to U.S. military leaders, after Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s ‘warrior ethos’ warm-up address, is a fine example of the do as I say, not as I do hypocrisy Donald Trump practices as an art form. Imagine the professional soldiers in that auditorium contemplating taking orders from a draft dodging daddy’s boy, whose main objective is to use their bravery for his own self-aggrandizement. Bone spurs don’t begin to explain the discomfort felt in that room as their Commander-in-Chief proposed orders that would violate their oath of service to the Constitution.
Democratic leaders are also susceptible to their own form of dissonance, call it non-cognitive, when they misjudge how voters will react and respond to opposition to bad policy like ‘The Big Beautiful Bill’. The current political scenario is a good example of the Democrats’ own confusion. Their inability to convince voters of the toxicity of the Trump administration’s policies on immigration reform, DEI, LGBTQ rights, women’s issues, taxation, and a host of other issues, almost too numerous to cite, has dominated recent elections. The unintended result has been to hand over control of the three branches of government to the GOP. The problem isn’t so much that the Democratic Party is wrong on these issues, but rather that its messaging has been inept to its core coalitions, and its inherent misunderstanding of the electorate at large creates mixed, and therefore timid, messaging.
Trump has generated a flurry of bad policies, many of which have been implemented through executive orders that have the support of his hand-picked Supreme Court justices. He has essentially flooded the field for his opponents, producing an unfocused whack-a-mole response to the barrage of undemocratic and often illegal policies. The conflict among Democrats is over which ones to attack and how. At the moment, leadership’s answer has been “as many as possible.” Just as they formulate a proper attack on one, Trump’s carousel of awful choices offers up another, and the party pursues Trump’s latest dilemma de jour. The government shutdown this week is just another distraction that dissipates Democrats’ control over messaging. The shutdown has replaced the Epstein Files, the ICE debacles, Trump’s ongoing troop movements into American cities, the Homan bribery affair, and has watched as Democratic focus has turned from one diversion to another. The government shutdown will end, but is anyone convinced that this is the issue that will persuade voters to reward Democrats with the House in the mid-term elections?
The dissonance we are sensing in the Democrats’ inability to formulate a consistent message is the cynical construct of Trump’s authoritarian gambit. His strategy is to confuse, to obfuscate, and to frustrate us all into submission. If we choose to hop on the carousel, we are following his plan. Narcissists feed on the self-doubt and confusion of those experiencing the dissonance that, in part, is fed by the narcissist’s manipulative powers:
The individual who is emotionally abused experiences cognitive dissonance through the strategic, structured manipulation by the narcissist…
The result is a sense of deep and profound confusion about the relationship.
…It is not uncommon for narcissists to use this pattern in all aspects of their life. It is also possible for the narcissist to create more than two different ideas or “realities” about a specific issue, which only leads to more confusion, self-doubt, and loss of self-trust by the emotionally abused partner.
The feeling of cognitive dissonance is one of constantly doubting yourself and struggling to keep up with the whirlwind of changes and challenges to reality. The behavior of the narcissist that causes cognitive dissonance is called “ gaslighting.”
- Psychology Today, “Narcissists, Relationships, and Cognitive Dissonance,” by Sherry Gaba
The antidote is for Democratic leadership to disengage from Trump’s diversions. James Carville once distilled a message for the Clinton campaign in 1992. “It’s the economy, stupid!” was his clipped answer to the Reagan Revolution’s attempt for an unprecedented fourth term. Reagan and then his VP, Poppy Bush, gaslighted a nation with their version of GOP economic policy to enrich the wealthy at the expense of the rest of us. Trickle-down economics was sold on the same promise as all Ponzi schemes: that riches will follow if we are just patient enough. It is a concept as old as feudal times, when peasants invested their dedication and hard work in their Lord’s benefaction. Relying on the kindness of politicians is never a democratic ideal, mainly because kindnesses, by definition, are given freely without a quid pro quo.
Trump’s ability to manipulate chaos out of order begins with removing the nuance from issues. Democrats have long believed that immigration reform and control of our borders are needed. We also believe in fair elections, reducing crime, and a host of other issues that Trump has appropriated for his purposes. We agree in principle on the “what,” but Democrats are mired in internal conflict on how these policy goals are accomplished. It is the source of our own inner doubts and cognitive dissonance. We talk about our “constituencies” as if they are multiple, each with its unique needs, and our leaders fear them, afraid to trust their loyalty. The inner turmoil within the party’s factions requires leaders who aren’t afraid to lead them. In the end, their argument to quell disputes is to convince all that we have one coalition at the moment- the coalition of the sane. The message to all voters is a consistent one promising that, given power, Democrats won’t abuse it.
Americans are exhausted by the constant turmoil that MAGA politics has visited on us. Trump has united a coalition around uncertainty. Fear is his motivating strategy, and trust is nonexistent even within the MAGA coalition. He has succeeded in finding ways to divide us- men versus women, gays against straights, rich and poor, black and white. He has focused us all on our differences. We only help him when we acknowledge that we serve disparate constituencies. The messaging we need requires a different focus and better leadership. The party is adrift. I am one of the lucky ones to receive our daily notifications urging my support — and looking for money. In 2024, $2.9 billion couldn’t help Kamala Harris and the Democrats defeat Trump, whose campaign raised less than he raised when he lost to Biden in 2020. Those requests come wrapped within breathless claims to scare me and make me angry enough to open my wallet. Seems to me we are simply borrowing Trump’s tactics.
In the most recent battle for hearts and minds, we are behind and getting ‘behinder’. The message communicated to Dem leaders by its voters appears to be It’s not the money, stupid! There’s a gaping lack of trust. There’s a gaping lack of trust in their resolve once they return us to power. Not just in how we use it, but if. The message directed back should be, If trust is the issue, then whom do you trust more? If abuse is a concern, can you trust Trump even less?
Originally published at https://www.dailykos.com on October 5, 2025.
