SUMMARY: Democratic states need to push back more effectively against Republican states’ efforts to impose their right-wing policies on the whole country. Democratic states need to use their policies and economic leverage to improve the well-being of their states’ and the country’s people. This will make a distinction for voters that will persuade some voters and non-voters to vote for Democrats.

(Note: If you find a post too long to read, please just skim the bolded portions. Thanks for reading my blog!)

(Note: Please follow me and get notices of my blog posts on Bluesky at: @jalippitt.bsky.social. Thanks!)

As my previous post described, Republican (“red”) states are aggressively using the courts and vigilantism in efforts to impose their policies on Democratic (“blue”) states. In thispolicy-driven cold civil war among the states, red states are using right-wing judges, condoning violence against political enemies, and protecting vigilantes from punishment to inflict their policies on blue states and municipalities. [1]

Blue states need to exercise their powers more fully and effectively, and to coordinate their actions. Blue states can push back by using their economic leverage, as well as their own policymaking and lawsuits.

The seventeen solidly blue states, where Democrats control the legislature and hold the Governor’s office, are 47% of the U.S. economy. There are 23 solidly red states, but they are only 37% of the country’s economy. One key source of economic leverage is the investment of pension fund assets; these seventeen blue states have about twice as much money in their pension funds as the 23 red states. [2] (This previous post described how Texas has used its pension fund assets to leverage its policy goals.)

In direct opposition to what Texas has done, blue states could explicitly permit or even require companies that their pension funds invest in to support environmental, social, and good governance (ESG) goals. They could require companies to be worker, union, and tenant friendly. They could avoid companies in the fossil fuel industry and favor companies involved with clean energy. They could make investments in housing and particularly affordable housing, as well as other public infrastructure and public goods. Blue state pension funds could even require companies they invest in that operate in red states to conform to blue state standards. [3]

Blue states could purchase medicines such as insulin and abortion drugs in bulk and make them available at low prices to residents and even non-residents who travel to blue states. Blue states could actively recruit teachers, health care workers, and others from red states by highlighting better pay, better working conditions, and a better life in general, including respect for LGBTQ+ and transgender individuals, support for ethnic and religious minorities, comprehensive reproductive health care, less gun violence, etc. Stronger safety nets and policies to address affordability challenges could and do present a better quality of life in blue states.

Blue states could and should create regional alliances on climate action, reproductive freedom, housing, education and training programs, and support for immigrants.

The goals of these strategies are not only to improve the well-being of the state’s and the country’s people, but also to make a distinction for voters of what Democratic policies do versus Republican policies. Hopefully, this would convince some voters and non-voters of the importance of voting for Democratic candidates. Furthermore, these blue state policies, by making it more desirable to live in blue states than red states, could attract people and businesses to locate in blue states, building vibrant economies that provide greater opportunity.

I encourage you to keep an eye out for opportunities in your state to promote policies that improve people’s well-being and to oppose right-wing policies that do harm. Contact your state elected officials, from your Governor to your local state representative, and encourage them to enact policies that improve the quality of life of residents of your state as well as for those of the country as a whole. Also, if your state or municipality is blue, urge your local officials to actively resist and push back on red state efforts to impose right-wing policies on you.

For lots of good news see Jess Craven’s Chop Wood Carry Water blog’s most recent good news Sunday post here.

---

[1]      Dayen, D., 10/7/24, “The cold civil war,” The American Prosect (https://prospect.org/2024/10/07/2024-10-07-cold-civil-war/)

[2]      Gerney, A., & Knight, S., 10/18/24, “Playing hardball,” The American Prospect (https://prospect.org/2024/10/18/2024-10-18-playing-hardball/)

[3]      Kuttner, R., 10/17/24, “Leveraging the money power,” The American Prospect (https://prospect.org/2024/10/17/2024-10-17-leveraging-money-power/)