The Morning: Patriotism and diversity in 2024

May 30, 2024

	By David Leonhardt

Good morning. We're covering the battle for Senate control — as well as Trump's trial, extreme heat in New Delhi and a once-in-a-generation dancer.

An image of a man walking among several American flags.

From a Ruben Gallego campaign ad. The New York Times

Patriotism and diversity

Climate change. Student debt. Diversity, equity and inclusion. The war in Gaza.

These topics are central to progressive politics today. They are the subject of campus protests and online debates. They are also almost completely absent from the campaigns of Democratic Senate candidates trying to win tough races this year.

In yesterday's newsletter, I noted that Democratic candidates are leading the polls in six states where President Biden is trailing — and that all six have based their campaigns around populist themes of defending ordinary citizens against the powerful. Today, I'll look at some other campaign themes.

One is the contrast between the country's most heated political debates and the top concerns of most voters. Those heated debates are shaped by policy experts, campaign donors and political activists, all of whom tend to be highly educated and relatively affluent. The full electorate often has different priorities.

Student debt and housing costs make for a useful comparison. Student debt, a subject that the Biden administration has emphasized, may seem like the ultimate pocketbook issue. In reality, it's more niche: Only 18 percent of U.S. adults have any federal student debt.

That helps explain why, in a recent Harvard University survey of U.S. residents between 18 and 29 years old, student debt ranked dead last when the pollsters asked respondents which of 16 issues mattered to them. Israel and Palestine ranked 15th of 16. Climate change was 12th — and, again, this was a poll of voters under 30. The top three issues were inflation, health care and housing.

No wonder that student debt is largely missing from these Democratic campaigns, while housing — a cost almost every family faces — is a focus. Senator Jacky Rosen, who's running for re-election in Nevada, has devoted an entire ad to housing costs. Senator Jon Tester's campaign lists the "housing crisis" as one of Montana's biggest problems.

A clarifying point about American politics is that people who follow it closely are very different from swing voters. With that in mind, I offer four other themes from the Senate campaigns:

1. Bipartisanship

From a Tammy Baldwin campaign ad. The New York Times

As polarized as the country is, many voters still hunger for bipartisanship. In their ads, the six Democrats generally treat Republicans with respect and celebrate collaboration.

Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio boasts about working with Republicans to pass a semiconductor law. Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin shows videos of Donald Trump and Biden in one ad, and a narrator explains that she worked with both to crack down on Chinese imports. Rosen brags of being "named one of the most bipartisan senators."

The issue on which the Democrats try hardest to distance themselves from their own party is immigration, which polls show is a major Biden weakness. Rosen tells voters that she "stood up to my own party to support police officers and get more funding for border security." A Tester ad says that he "fought to stop President Biden from letting migrants stay in America instead of remain in Mexico."

2. Abortion

Abortion is the opposite. It's the issue on which the Republican Party is out of step with public opinion — and Democrats are on the offensive.

Rosen describes her likely Nevada opponent, Sam Brown, as "another MAGA extremist trying to take away abortion rights." Tester, when listing the ways he fights for Montanans, says, "We've got folks who want to take away women's right to choose."

That said, abortion remains a secondary issue in most of these campaigns.

3. Patriotism

From a Ruben Gallego campaign ad. The New York Times

"Growing up poor, the only thing I really had was the American dream," Ruben Gallego, an Arizona congressman running for Senate, says in the opening line of an ad. "It's the one thing that we give every American no matter where they are born in life."

That sentiment is typical of the six campaigns' unabashed patriotism. Gallego highlights his Marine service in Iraq. Veterans' health care is a theme of a few campaigns. An ad for Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania that is focused on steel includes the line "Take that, China."

4. Diversity, subtly

The candidates' ads portray a diverse America. When Rosen talks about housing, she shows a racially mixed group of young couples. A Brown campaign ad about the Ohio steel industry stars both Black and white workers. In a Baldwin ad, a Wisconsin businesswoman with a European accent praises the senator for fighting against federal rules about cheese making. Gallego talks about his mother's struggles as an immigrant.

But the campaigns treat diversity as a natural part of American life, rather than as a political project. They emphasize the commonalities of Americans with different backgrounds. It's a different approach from an identity politics that centers race.

Gallego has even achieved some notoriety for mocking the term Latinx. It disrespects the Spanish language, he has said, and is "largely used to satisfy white liberals." He barred his congressional office from using the term.

It reminds me of a point that Steve Bannon, the far-right political strategist, has made: When American politics focus on race, Republicans — like Bannon and Trump — tend to benefit.

The flip side is that when campaigns focus on economic class, Democrats have the chance to benefit. You can see that lesson in these six populist campaigns.

Related: Watch campaign ads from these candidates.

THE LATEST NEWS

Politics

Justice Samuel Alito told Congress he would not recuse himself from Supreme Court cases related to Jan. 6 after flags associated with the "Stop the Steal" movement flew above his houses. "My wife is fond of flying flags. I am not," he wrote.
Jurors in Trump's Manhattan criminal trial went home after deliberating for almost five hours and will return this morning. Read about the drab room where they will make their momentous decision.
For months, Biden has trailed in national and battleground polls, but the race is still pretty close, Nate Cohn writes.
Biden framed Trump as a racist at a rally in Philadelphia. "What do you think would have happened if Black Americans had stormed the Capitol? I don't think he'd be talking about pardons."
Richard Grenell tried to overturn Nevada's 2020 presidential election results. He hopes to become Trump's secretary of state.

Israel-Hamas War

Israel said it had taken control of a slice of Gaza along the border with Egypt. An Israeli spokesman said Hamas used the zone to smuggle weapons.
Israel's national security adviser said he expected the war in Gaza to continue at least until the end of the year.
Hamas has physically abused hostages, prevented them from speaking and denied them food and water, according to a former captive whose husband is still being held.
The Israeli offensive in Rafah has forced all but one hospital to close, aid groups said. Transporting patients has been difficult and dangerous.

War in Ukraine

A woman in a red jacket wraps herself protectively around a child as their town is shelled, another woman speaks into a phone, and in the background another person is running.

In the Russian town of Shebekino. Nanna Heitmann for The New York Times

In northeastern Ukraine, a new front line divides families who live on either side of the border with Russia.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken suggested that the U.S. might let Ukraine strike inside Russia using American-made weapons.
From an apartment in Moscow, a former Florida sheriff's deputy operates more than 160 fake news sites that spread Russian disinformation.
An ammunition factory outside Dallas is making artillery shells for Ukraine. See inside.

Extreme Weather

People stand along a wall while holding plastic canisters and hoses.

In New Delhi. Rajat Gupta/EPA, via Shutterstock

New Delhi recorded its highest known temperature: 126 degrees Fahrenheit. Several Indian states have been above 110 for weeks.
In Texas, a Washington Post meteorologist encountered hailstones larger than grapefruits.

Energy

Oil companies announced two big deals in recent days: ConocoPhillips is buying Marathon Oil, and Hess shareholders approved a sale to Chevron.
Saudi Arabia completed work on a solar farm covering 14 square miles of desert, its first major renewable energy project.

MORNING READS

Ready for a close-up. Dolly Faibyshev for The New York Times

Fleet Week: Once a year, members of the Navy, the Marines and the Coast Guard cruise into New York. It feels like a movie.

Myth: Remember that old map of taste buds on your tongue? It's wrong.

Sleepless: At night, a modified Dodge Charger is noisily roaming downtown Seattle. No one seems to be able to stop it.

Social Q's: "Why can't I break into my new boyfriend's friendship group?"

Buy a dino: The largest Stegosaurus fossil ever found will be auctioned at Sotheby's.

Lives Lived: Despite having no formal training in painting or marine biology, Richard Ellis fused his artistic flair with his knowledge of ocean creatures to create works like the life-size blue whale at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. He died at 86.

SPORTS

N.H.L.: The Edmonton Oilers defeated the Dallas Stars to even their series, 2-2.

Women's hockey: Minnesota became the first winner of the Walter Cup after beating Boston 3-0. This is the inaugural season of the professional women's hockey league.

Golf: The police dropped all charges against world No. 1-ranked golfer Scottie Scheffler, two weeks after his arrest at the PGA Championship.

ARTS AND IDEAS

Yumi Kawai and Sadao Abe in "Extremely Inappropriate!" TBS

In the hit Japanese television show "Extremely Inappropriate!," a grumpy phys ed teacher boards a bus in 1986 and steps out into 2024, where he must navigate a world that no longer accepts sexism and indoor smoking. The show has started conversation in Japan about changing norms: Some fans, even younger ones, find scenes set in the past refreshing, while critics decry the series as retro.

More on culture

Mira Nadon, 23, is a New York City Ballet principal and a once-in-a-generation dancer.
Behind the denim curtain: Benjamin Talley Smith may have designed some of your jeans.
Merch — like the New Yorker tote bag or tour T-shirts — dominated fashion for the better part of a decade. No longer, Samuel Hine writes for GQ.
Bette Nash, a Guinness record-holder as the world's longest-serving flight attendant, died at 88. She started flying in 1957 and never stopped. Her regular route from Washington to Boston was nicknamed the Nash Dash.

THE MORNING RECOMMENDS …

Crisp rice and a salmon fillet coated in a crimson glaze sits next to some long thin strips of cucumber in a black bowl. At left is a small bowl with more of the glaze.

Bryan Gardner for The New York Times

Get this easy gochugaru salmon on the table in 20 minutes.

Escape the crowds during Paris's Olympic summer.

Grow edible flowers.

Work with two screens anywhere using a portable monitor.

Make your own ice cream.

GAMES

Here is today's Spelling Bee. Yesterday's pangram was dogpile.

And here are today's Mini Crossword, Wordle, Sudoku, Connections and Strands.

Our colleague Kitty Bennett contributed research to yesterday's newsletter and today's.

Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. — David

Editor: David Leonhardt

Deputy Editor: Adam B. Kushner

News Editor: Tom Wright-Piersanti

Associate Editor: Lauren Jackson

News Staff: Desiree Ibekwe, Sean Kawasaki-Culligan, Brent Lewis, German Lopez, Ian Prasad Philbrick, Ashley Wu

News Assistant: Lyna Bentahar

Saturday Writer: Melissa Kirsch

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