Why Don’t Democrats Defuse Their Political Opponents?

After noting that a) a significant percentage of voter don’t like either Trump or Biden and b) Democrats have some serious problems in winning over those voters, Ruy Teixeira observes:

Certainly Democrats can point to issues like abortion where Democrats do have an advantage, even with the swing group discussed here. But perhaps they should consider a Plan B, where the success of the Bidenomics pitch is not assumed and compromise is not anathematized. As I have argued previously, Democrats have generally dealt with culturally-freighted issues by some combination of ignore (change the subject) and attack (our opponents are hateful bigots who want to roast the planet). The latter now seems like the preferred Democratic approach. But there is a third way, if you will, that would fit nicely into a Plan B.

That approach is to defuse. This means moving aggressively to neutralize vulnerabilities in cultural areas by (a) dissociating the party from extreme positions in their own ranks; and (b) embracing a common-sense approach to these issues which typically aligns well with both Democratic values and public opinion.

Why, indeed? I’ve already provided my answer: the party leadership actually supports all of those “culturally freighted” ideas. They can’t defuse the situation without defenestrating themselves.