Matt Lombardo
@mattlombardo.bsky.social
15K followers 2K following 4.7K posts
National NFL Reporter Founder/Writer/Editor: Between The Hashmarks. FOX29 Sports On-Air Contributor You can read me and subscribe here: https://MattLombardoNFL.Substack.com Have covered the NFL for 15 Seasons, including stops at NJ.com and Heavy Sports
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mattlombardo.bsky.social
People sitting out last election, or voting for Trump got us here.

I’d rather try to pull left of center politicians to the left via lobbying and such than lose to a fascist regime.
Reposted by Matt Lombardo
miketanier.bsky.social
"Justin Fields remains breathtakingly talented. He’s a diligent worker and righteous dude. But he still searches for his second read the way my wife searches for her car keys before she’s had her coffee."

New (and FREE) at the Too Deep Zone:

miketanier.substack.com/p/tankwatch-...
TankWatch: New York Jets
The Jets are winless. Yet they should be better. Blaming Aaron Glenn and looking for a QB in the 2026 draft would be very Jets of them.
miketanier.substack.com
mattlombardo.bsky.social
Looks different and more amenable to the trans community, LGBTQ, and women’s rights with 4-8 years of Democratic power and a Harris Presidency than potentially perpetual right wing fascistic rule where they control power, messaging, and the direction of the culture, in my opinion.
mattlombardo.bsky.social
Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema are wolves in sheep’s clothing.

The big problem here is that the existential threat level of electing Donald Trump and likely ending any opportunity to ever hold truly free and fair elections again wasn’t enough to motivate people. The country undoubtedly…
mattlombardo.bsky.social
I’m saying, do whatever is necessary from a messaging standpoint to win, and fight for our morals with politicians who are favorable to the issues, rather than sitting back watching people led to slaughter.

If I were a piece of shit, would I donate as often as I do to help fight for that community?
mattlombardo.bsky.social
No argument there, but how different and optimistically are we looking at life and society if Build Back Better gets passed in it’s complete iteration?

How well did sitting out and watching black and brown folks brutally targeted by ICE and deported to gulags play out? And it’s only accelerating
mattlombardo.bsky.social
Correct. But, at some point, the calculous of status quo with the upside of incremental gains towards a more progressive agenda and pluralistic society has to win out over the authoritarian plans and targeted oppression in Project 2025.

The fact that folks didn’t understand the danger got us here
mattlombardo.bsky.social
I’m aware

Donald Trump said he would lower prices

The sad reality is that saying and doing are very different things. The question, to a sitting VP, put her in a very difficult spot. That moment probably played a large role in her losing, but I’m not sure that would have been her reality as POTUS
mattlombardo.bsky.social
What are we doing with data that 66% of voters support banning trans folks from playing sports of their chosen gender or 56% banning transition care to minors?

Maybe I’m misinformed and maybe that’s what’s happening here, but I can’t ignore the data matching the relentless barrage of anti-trans ads
mattlombardo.bsky.social
I think there was too little time to make sweeping messaging changes and perhaps doing so would have negatively impacted what the admin. was trying to accomplish or could have made her job ending genocide/future negotiations more difficult.

Just my read, but understand and respect the perspective
mattlombardo.bsky.social
As someone who worked for the campaign, donated repeatedly and rallied my social followers to make matching donations, I think listening to strategists too significantly was a fatal error and her loyalty to Biden became an anchor. I don’t believe her administration would have been more of the same..
mattlombardo.bsky.social
People and voters hold deeply misogynistic, racist, and homophobic views, enough people to swing an election.

I hate it, and I desperately hate it here, but the sad fact is that they drilled their messaging for a reason and it won them all three chambers.
mattlombardo.bsky.social
Agreed!

So, I guess my ask is, why did folks not vote for Kamala, who offered a plan to expand access to housing, jumpstart small business, continue the Biden administration’s commitment to improving infrastructure and continuing to lower inflation which had been dipping?

Sadly, too many …
mattlombardo.bsky.social
Doing any of the things you mentioned. Not one. And they still won control of all three branches.

The sad and terrifying reality is how racist, misogynistic, homophobic and transafobic a vast portion of this country and voting electorate is to the point it shapes their worldview and votes.
mattlombardo.bsky.social
I was merely replying to that post, with an observation for how potent the anti trans messaging was last cycle.

We’re talking in circles a bit at this point but my point was that elevating the issue was playing on the GOP’s turf rather than a position of strength.

The GOP had no designs on …
mattlombardo.bsky.social
So then, I ask, what’s the alternative?

Condemn ourselves, our children to repressive perpetual GOP rule, stripping women’s and LGBTQ rights, free speech, economic oppression and furthering the wealth divide? I hope Mamdani wins NYC and moves the Overton Window back left, but the center has changed
mattlombardo.bsky.social
I’m not saying to feed them to the blender.

I’m suggesting that perhaps to expand the voting pool of prospective Democratic voters is to emphasize other issues in terms of messaging, having watched how it played out last time and being exposed to ppl outside the terminally online world.
mattlombardo.bsky.social
No argument here.

And it’s why the electorate was so primed to vote the way they did back in November. But, what’s troubling is how far the GOP has moved the center rightward, and I don’t know how you reach “normies” who have had their belief system adapted/emboldened to be more repressive.
mattlombardo.bsky.social
The real fight/advocacy begins once you have leaders in power who are favorable to the cause/issues.

Maybe I’m naive and that’s on me, but I think there’s a far greater chance at advancing rights and equality with Dem/left leadership in power than a fascistic conservative authoritarian.
mattlombardo.bsky.social
And that’s fair. But how often were those centrist Dems running against sanitized versions of Republicans, rather than outright Nazis intent on stripping LGBTQ rights?
mattlombardo.bsky.social
I think he won the election largely riding the wave of anti-inflation sentiment among global incumbents.

But, I’m not naive enough to completely dismiss the polling on where the electorate (sadly) stands on this issue and the correlation to why a specific ad was more prominent than ab inflation ad
mattlombardo.bsky.social
Nothing about how they actually govern says that. But, they won the popular vote this time, and the bedrock of their campaign was tech oligarchs who have access to unprecedented amounts of data. That group seems to know how to target and motivate voters via messaging significantly better than Dems.
mattlombardo.bsky.social
Obviously fighting for and prioritizing those issues once in office and holding the levers of power. We have seen the damage and pain the GOP inflicts, and my lone concern is getting them out of power and trying to move more favorable politicians into policy positions of meaningful change/equality.
mattlombardo.bsky.social
Entrusting those organizations to put funds towards helping people where it is most desperately needed.

Maybe I am naive, but when majorities of voters favor (wrongly so!) restrictions on trans folks, maybe softening language and prioritizing the issue in campaigns could be the approach while …