Parenting & Family Quote by Francis Maude

A defense that pretends to be affectionate, then quietly turns into a rebuke. Maude starts with grievance politics in miniature: “maligned” signals that the real injury isn’t policy failure but cultural contempt. It’s a plea for respect on behalf of a party base routinely caricatured as out-of-touch, and it’s doing double duty as a warning to critics inside the tent: stop sneering at the foot soldiers.

The tell is “Obviously the average age is 60 something.” “Obviously” concedes the stereotype while trying to neutralize it, like an insurance policy against the obvious counterargument: old members can’t possibly grasp a fast-changing electorate. Maude’s move is to launder demographic weakness into moral and experiential strength. They have “children and grandchildren,” so they’re not sealed off from modern life; they possess a proxy connection to the future. That’s the subtextual bargain: you can be aging, but you’re still relevant if you can claim an intimate line to younger generations.

It’s also a subtle act of party management. By insisting “they understand what we need to do,” he’s not just praising members; he’s asserting discipline, implying that any modernization agenda has grassroots permission. The closing line, “they want to win,” is the most revealing. Principle is left implied, not argued. The ultimate credential is electability, and the membership is framed less as ideological guardians than as a loyal machine. In a moment when parties fear their bases are obstacles, Maude insists the opposite: the base is ready; it’s the doubters who need correcting.