"The Democratic Party had no idea how to use the Internet. They treated it like free money and then kept on doing all the rest of the things they normally do"
About this Quote
Wes Boyd’s jab lands because it frames a technological revolution as a familiar political vice: mistaking a new tool for an unearned windfall. “They treated it like free money” is less about budgets than mentality. The Internet, in this telling, isn’t a communications ecosystem that rewards agility, authenticity, and iterative learning; it’s a magic ATM for fundraising and attention. That metaphor indicts not just incompetence but entitlement: the idea that a party can plug into a new medium and extract value without changing habits, incentives, or structures.
The sting is in the second clause: “and then kept on doing all the rest of the things they normally do.” Boyd implies the problem wasn’t merely tactical (bad websites, clunky email lists) but cultural. The Democratic Party, he suggests, tried to graft digital tools onto an old command-and-control model built for television ads, consultant gatekeeping, and risk-averse messaging. In that world, the Internet becomes a megaphone, not a feedback loop; a donation spigot, not a community.
As an activist, Boyd’s intent is also disciplinary. He’s warning that grassroots energy can’t be harvested like a resource deposit. Online supporters expect participation, transparency, and responsiveness, not just “click here to give” followed by business as usual. Contextually, it echoes the post-Howard Dean/early-Obama era lesson: digital organizing works when it reorganizes power, not when it merely digitizes the old politics.
The sting is in the second clause: “and then kept on doing all the rest of the things they normally do.” Boyd implies the problem wasn’t merely tactical (bad websites, clunky email lists) but cultural. The Democratic Party, he suggests, tried to graft digital tools onto an old command-and-control model built for television ads, consultant gatekeeping, and risk-averse messaging. In that world, the Internet becomes a megaphone, not a feedback loop; a donation spigot, not a community.
As an activist, Boyd’s intent is also disciplinary. He’s warning that grassroots energy can’t be harvested like a resource deposit. Online supporters expect participation, transparency, and responsiveness, not just “click here to give” followed by business as usual. Contextually, it echoes the post-Howard Dean/early-Obama era lesson: digital organizing works when it reorganizes power, not when it merely digitizes the old politics.
Quote Details
| Topic | Internet |
|---|
More Quotes by Wes
Add to List
