Messaging Memo: The left's bizarre war on DOGE
North Carolina Democrats are rallying against government efficiency — Republicans should make them own it.
For whatever reason, national Democrats have decided to make the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) their chief opponent in the opening days of the second Trump administration.
North Carolina Dems are following suit.
After protesting outside Tesla dealerships in Charlotte and Raleigh last month, N.C. Democrats have now scheduled an anti-DOGE rally for Wednesday in Raleigh.
There is room for nuance on DOGE, especially at the national level. Is it moving too fast? Is it disrupting important services? Are there mistakes that need to be corrected? Sure. The tactics are certainly worthy of debate. But directionally, it’s clearly moving in the right direction.
When we’re talking about messaging, that’s all that matters. In the public realm, a lot of the nuance necessarily is lost.
I regularly say that the side that can explain its position most simply tends to win the debate. And here, there's no question which side has the upper hand.
The easiest way to explain DOGE is that it's using technology to figure out where our money is really being spent and cutting out the waste. Everybody is for that, or should be. But for some reason, Democrats think protesting DOGE as a whole is a wedge issue that cuts in their favor. But it's the opposite — it makes Democrats look silly.
This is a massive unforced error. Republicans need to make them own it and pay for it. Here’s how.
