Instead of focusing on what Democrats did wrong in the last election. I suggest we focus on what the Republicans did right. David Brooks (NY Times, 11/8) has a theory that makes sense to me. Since 1980 we have been in an information era. Offices have been automated with word processors; factory workers have been replaced by CNC machines, robots and offshoring of production. Whole industries have disappeared such as shoes, clothing and tool and die shops. The mantra has been “get a college education and join the revolution.” But college education has been expensive and at times not the ticket that it was supposed to be, leaving many people without the dream job and holding a lot of debt.

And what about the middle-aged workers, who could not make the transition to the information age? This is why the Democrats lost the election, and Donald J. Trump and the Republican party won. The message of illegal immigration, and the economy (i.e. inflation) articulated by them won big. The Democrats message of reproductive rights and the horrors of Donald Trump clearly did not work. It is time for the Democrats to come up with policies that address the real fears that many Trump supporters hold.

Craig Fournier

Webster