Hoping to do better than Trump in the simple messaging department, Democrats in the summer of 2017 rolled out a new slogan they hoped would encapsulate what they're offering and help the left win the midterm elections. But a year and half later, with those midterm elections now less than two weeks away, do you hear anyone talking about "A Better Deal"? Nope.

The slogan was mocked, picked apart on the left, basically scrapped, and then, this summer, replaced with a new slogan: "For the People." You don't really hear people talking about that slogan today, either. And maybe, in the end, whether by design or fortuitous failure, this turns out to be smart strategy?

After crashing before takeoff with these slogans that could have been used to try to nationalize the midterms (imagine Democrats all around the country now singing from the same "For the People" hymnal), the party has essentially given up on the one-simple-slogan idea and instead is letting Trump flail about looking for a way to nationalize the election on his terms (fear of the migrant caravan, fear of the Democratic "mob," false promises of a new tax cut) while Democrats push ahead with a de-centralized, "whatever works" strategy that lets their candidates tailor their language to their particular House or Senate contests.

Is it working? Would Democrats be doing better today if they were all talking in compelling specifics about the "Better Deal" they had to offer voters over Trump's fear and false promises?

If you know the answer to this question, let me know! We're gearing up to talk about it tomorrow on the next episode of the Blabbermouth podcast.