Outgoing Democratic Rep. Jim Cooper of Tennessee sat down for an interview with a local newspaper on Tuesday to give his thoughts on upcoming elections and the future of the Democratic Party in his state.
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Outgoing Democratic Rep. Jim Cooper of
Tennessee sat down for an interview with a local newspaper on Tuesday to give his thoughts on
upcoming elections and the future of the
Democratic Party in his state.
Cooper's predictions were far from optimistic, as he said that the party is "facing extinction" in Tennessee and claimed that Democrats have no strategy to appeal to rural voters.
"As usual, Democrats are not alert to future dangers," Cooper lamented to the Nashville Scene. "The biggest danger we face in an off-year election after we won the White House is the 100-year trend toward the other party. Redistricting is small potatoes compared to that historical trend."
Asked if he believed the Democrats would prove competitive in the long term, Cooper said that he hopes so, but "hope is not a strategy." Cooper criticized the management of the party in his state, and told the Scene that the Democrats in Tennessee needed a new direction.