James Carville Turns Back the Clock to Deliver Chesa Boudin’s Electoral Autopsy Report: ‘It’s the Economy, Stupid’

James Carville referred to his famous 1992 campaign slogan while he conducted an autopsy of Chesa Boudin‘s tenure as San Francisco’s district attorney.

“It’s the economy, stupid,” he said on CNN.

Boudin’s lax record on prosecuting criminals led to his recall by voters in the city Tuesday. After his ouster, he complained voters took their “frustrations” regarding the state of San Francisco out on him.

The New York Times succinctly summarized Boudin’s fight before the votes were counted:

There is no compelling evidence that Mr. Boudin’s policies have made crime significantly worse in San Francisco. Overall crime in San Francisco has changed little since Mr. Boudin took office in early 2020. But his message of leniency for perpetrators has rankled residents of the city, many of whom feel unsafe and violated by property crimes.

The Times referred to the recall election as “Democratic civil war in one of America’s most liberal cities.” Boudin’s loss has been celebrated by Republicans. According to Carville, it is a lesson for Democrats on how to not lose bigger races.

On CNN Wednesday, he and guest host John Berman discussed the race on AC360.

Berman asked, “How much of a wakeup call should this be for national Democrats?”

Carville said the recall results were a pivotal moment where moderate Democrats seized back control of their party. He said,

The people of San Francisco won last night. The faculty at Berkeley, at the University of Berkeley in California, lost. This is not unusual. They lost in Seattle, Minneapolis, Buffalo, Cleveland, New Orleans, New York City. I mean, hopefully a lot of people in the party and a lot of people that cover the party and influencers understand that Democrats around the country live in this country and they want a safe country and they want people to pay attention to them.

Carville said common people who want safe communities are louder when they vote than “snobby, self-righteous elites.”

Berman asked the famed Democratic strategist if the issue of crime is now defining Democrats. Carville said the issue is more nuanced, but he ripped members of his party for ignoring voters’ concerns on the issue.

Berman later asked, “How much of the struggle do you trace back to the perception, fair or unfair, that your party embraced the defund the police mantra?”

Carville assessed the slogan as a loser, unlike the one he used to help keep former President Bill Clinton‘s first campaign on track.

“‘Defund the police’ is what we call in our business, it’s sticky,” he said. “Okay, think of ‘It’s the economy, stupid.’ It’s sticky. It’s sticky in a good way, but it’s sticky. Defund the police is sticky in a bad way.”

Watch above, via CNN.