In a new interview with the Harvard Political Review, 2028 potential Democratic candidate Pete Buttigieg delivers one of the most effective, aspirational stump lines I’ve heard in awhile on “freedom,” which is currently one of the most disputed concepts in our democracy.
(Hey, free to dispute freedom, right?)
HPR: What does Pete Buttigieg stand for?
PB: One way that I try to shorthand it is freedom, security, and democracy, properly understood. That means freedom not just from, but freedom to. I think that in order to be free, you need a government that can provide basic services, and that can protect you from anyone who would make you unfree, including itself. I think security includes economic as well as physical security. And I think that a good democracy can deliver all of that.
What I care about is making sure that we get our government to do the things that it needs to do for us to live a better everyday life. The government can’t make you thrive, but it can tear down the barriers between you and living the life of your choosing. I got into public service because I think it matters who’s making those decisions and what their priorities are.
Now note that: “Freedom not just from, but freedom to.”
Sharp.
Now even though that’s a great line, it’s not immediately accessible.
It’s a little wonky, but it frames the rest of what he says in an extremely effective way.
In the era of Donald Trump, Democrats have been seized by “freedom from” — in other words, the overall goal to be free from the Trump era. If you’re a Democrat, it’s easy to see why. And it will probably get a lot of Democrats elected this fall.
But ever since Trump arrived on the scene, there’s the temptation for Democratic message-drift.
The entire platform becomes “freedom from” and therefore dominated by Donald Trump.
Voters know all about Trump and MAGA. They don’t need to be reminded. Trump won’t stop voters from being reminded. Centrist voters might want freedom from, but they want to know — what’s the Democratic party providing that’s freedom to?
The key for Democrats is offering an aspirational alternative, and that all stems from “freedom to” and not “freedom from.”
Pete spells out what freedom to looks like — “tear down the barriers between you and the living the life of your choosing.”
Now that’s a great campaign message, all stemming from the intellectual building block of “freedom to.”
Now… I’m not sure Americans are ready for 30 second commercials that are simply tag-lined “freedom to.”
But I’d bet they’re hungry for a commercial where every sentence begins with “freedom to… X, Y, and Z,” where, of course, X, Y, and Z are substantive issues that resonate with the vast and influential center of Americans.
How does that play out in a Democratic nomination? I’m not sure. It’s hard to know the climate in 2028. Right now, aspirational messages don’t really get you the clicks.
But Democrats should realize that if they want to win, they’re going to have to go on Rogan, Shaun Ryan, Theo Von, Flagrant etc., and if you can offer something that’s not just freedom from but freedom to, then that’s got the potential to be a winning message.
I’ll get to more about the interview in a separate post, but I had to flag that statement as Classic Pete in how he thinks (theoretically) and then can offer a coherent message based upon a central premise.
It’s a unique skill, but the top tier all have their unique gifts. Hence, the top tier.
