Most of these accomplishments, while they do benefit the middle class, are largely invisible to the average American who’s not perpetually following politics.
Student loan forgiveness only directly affects people who go to college, an increasingly less popular/accessible career path amongst the working class. It also has restrictions and has been facing legal challenges, both of which limit its effectiveness.
Lower prescription drug costs are only really visible to people who are taking prescription drugs long-term and doesn’t prevent the healthcare system from bankrupting you in countless other ways.
The Affordable Care Act is arguably the single most significant accomplishment for the Democratic party in my millennial lifetime and if it survives to the next election cycle it will be old enough to vote in it.
As for the rest, improving infrastructure moves too slowly for people to notice in the short-term and despite the efforts to slow them we are still facing record increases to the cost of living and job insecurity.
The working class is getting desperate, people are worried about how they’re going to keep up with rising grocery prices or whether they’ll get laid off from their job when they’re living paycheck to paycheck. If you don’t own a home yet you’re likely questioning whether homeownership will ever be within reach while your landlord increases your rent for no apparent reason other than greed.
In a relative sense to the struggles the working class has been facing coming out of the pandemic, the Democrats have thrown them bones, told them the economy is great, in fact it’s the best in the world when you know for a fact you were better off before the pandemic.
Do we know tariffs and mass deportations aren’t going to make anything better? Do we know things are likely to get a lot worse? Are we the average American? The results of the election prove that we aren’t.
Twist: They’re alive. And they’re angry. Choose your weapon.