Three things the Democrats don’t want to talk about

Modern political conventions are craftily constructed, carefully stage-managed events. Despite its struggles to stay on schedule and the unorthodox way in which its presidential candidate was chosen, this year's Democratic convention in Chicago was no different.

Democrats on the convention floor tried to put their best foot forward by talking about the qualifications and character of Kamala Harris, her plan for the economy and issues that have broad popular support, such as abortion rights and health care.

But what they don't talk about — the issues and areas they've largely tried to avoid, at least so far — says as much about their election strategies and weaknesses as what they choose to highlight. Here are three notable flaws halfway through the party extravaganza.

Immigration has been a liability for Democrats since the surge in undocumented crossings along the US-Mexico border early in the Biden presidency. Republicans have accused the administration's policies of fueling a historic surge in border crossings, and a flood of new arrivals — many of them driven by conservative governors to populous Democratic cities — has strained public services.

The Harris campaign recognizes his vulnerability on the issue. One of its first TV ads blamed Donald Trump for sinking a bipartisan border-security law earlier this year and touted Ms Harris's record prosecuting “transnational gangs, drug traffickers and human traffickers” as California's attorney general.

But immigration appears to be an issue the Harris group is talking about in 50-second TV commercials rather than speaking from the stage in Chicago. The topic has a few lines here and there, but compared to the 2020 convention — when Donald Trump's tough stance on immigration was the primary focus of attack — the silence is palpable.

Reports suggest that could change on Wednesday night, with some speakers due to address the issue.

Four years ago, amid mass protests over the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers, the Democratic Party — and the nation as a whole — engaged in a sometimes animated debate about institutional racism and how American history is presented.

While many mainstream Democrats have avoided aggressive calls to “take back the police,” most have engaged in debate about how the U.S. can take action to address what they see as a corrosive legacy of slavery in the nation's businesses, classrooms and government, including promoting the DEI. – Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

Recently, the issue of transgender rights has been an animating force among factions of the Democratic coalition — especially in the face of Republican efforts to limit or ban children's ability to receive transgender care.

No single topic has received more attention on the floor of the Democratic convention. An emotional tribute to the civil rights movement began Monday when wheelchair-bound Jesse Jackson — who marched with Martin Luther King Jr. and ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in the 1980s — took the stage. But DEI and other solutions have gotten short shrift.

“DEI has become a dog-whistle symbol” used to undermine minorities in powerful positions, said Shawn Arline-Bradley, president of the National Council of Negro Women, which organizes voter outreach efforts in presidential battleground states.

“Our country is based on opportunity for all men and women, but we're not asking for that right now because we don't want to alienate a certain base of people who are afraid of this.”

In this convention, alienating a small number of voters is the name of the game.

Transgender issues — currently the other hot-button social topic — have been largely ignored in programs that make national television, while the abortion rights convention gets daily attention.

Ms Arline-Bradley warns that by not talking about questions of equity and inclusion, problems are perpetuated.

“We need to talk about them because this party is a very inclusive and diverse party,” he said. “Show it up, act it out and live by those values.”

The last Democratic convention of 2020 was largely virtual – in empty halls and TV studios – due to the Covid pandemic. In 2016, when thousands of Democrats gathered in Philadelphia, the divisions within the party were on full display.

Supporters of Democratic Socialist Bernie Sanders ranked second behind Hillary Clinton's candidacy that year.

The party is divided on topics such as universal health care, free college education and, more broadly, whether Democrats should count on the support of deep donors, big business and what Mr Sanders labels the “corporate oligarchy”.

Those sections still exist. Mr Sanders delivered a speech on Tuesday night against the corrupting influence of money in politics. But his speech was immediately followed by Illinois Governor JP Pritzker, a self-proclaimed billionaire, and venture capitalist and former American Express CEO Ken Chenault. The big tent, at least for now, covers differences of principle and opinion.

Another current area of ​​sharp division within the party is US military support for Israel amid the ongoing war in Gaza. Thousands of protesters demonstrated outside the conference's security perimeter, but the fierce dissent received little attention inside the conference hall.

Mr Sanders drew applause when he called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and Joe Biden turned some heads in his speech on Monday when he said protesters were “one thing” when he said scores of civilians had died.

But all this is a far cry from 2016, when some anti-war conference attendees booed former four-star general John Allen and former defense secretary and CIA director Leon Panetta during their speeches.

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