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The action from the Democratic National Committee to block the release regarding its own autopsy report on the last presidential race is remarkable however not surprising. Opposed to hard truths, the party's leadership apparatus behaves closer to a PR firm than a political organization devoted to cultivating local power capable of prevailing at the polls.

A Culture of Conformity

Unwilling to break with the party establishment's culture demanding unity, the DNC has remained under the influence of the previous administration throughout this past year. Releasing an official autopsy could have demonstrated whether the leadership actually want to promote open debate regarding the errors that enabled the former president to win re-election. Yet, the DNC is proceeding under the pretense that there is little to understand from the tragic debacle of 2024.

Our guiding principle: does this help us win? If the answer is no, it is an unnecessary diversion from what truly matters," a rationale that has been offered for withholding the document.

Critical Problems an Autopsy Would Have Explored

A genuine analysis of substance would confront a series of difficult topics. These include:

• Voter Disengagement: Failing to retain among millions of voters who supported the Democratic ticket during the previous election became a critical factor in the narrowly decided recent race.
• A Choice to Seek Re-election: The determined insistence by a party leader to seek re-election, and an extremely delayed withdrawal, has been criticized as robbing Democratic voters the chance for a competitive nomination process.
• Losing Touch With Core Democratic Voters: Amid economic anxiety, the electoral effort is criticized for bowing to corporate donors' interests without successfully attempting to address the impact of profit-seeking.
• A Foreign Policy Factor: The failure to shift a policy position concerning the situation in Gaza is cited as alienating many voters, especially with young people, Arab American communities, and Muslim Americans.
• Losing Young Voter Support: Polling data demonstrates a major drop-off of Democratic support among voters aged 18-29.

A History of Evasion

The decision to withhold fits a pattern of sidestepping difficult realities. This mirrors an episode where virtually every elected Democrat in Congress went along with an incumbent's insistence on running for re-election right up until a poor public debate performance led to a reversal.

At the same time, a significant majority within the party's base had been continually telling pollsters that they opposed the incumbent to be the nominee.

Campaign Spending Concerns

A substantive report could examine issues about campaign spending, such as how much money flowed to insider consultants and advertising contractors during a campaign which expended a colossal amount in a short period.

A Broader Problem

At its core, the blockage surrounding this report is symptomatic of an allegiance to party leaders who engineered a disastrous presidential campaign. The message for the party's base – which includes countless loyal volunteers – is that they cannot be trusted to understand what the insiders claim to have learned from an analysis based on conversations with insiders.

A party incapable to honestly assess its own failings is unlikely to escape the rut that proved so helpful to the rival party.