Van Jones Rips Dems on ‘Threat to Democracy’ Midterm Messaging: ‘Fool’s Gold… Going to Potentially Cost Us’

CNN’s Van Jones said Democrats have spent too much time portraying democracy as being in peril ahead of Tuesday’s elections and predicted it might cost the party.

Jones added that the economy should have been broadly addressed more as Americans have repeatedly expressed that they are concerned about it.

On CNN Newroom, host Jim Sciutto asked the commentator about the “big picture” of the race to control Congress with less than 24 hours before the polls open in most states. Sciutto noted voters are concerned about money and jobs.

“In a cycle when that is the case, do the Democrats get their message wrong by focusing for instance on threats to democracy as opposed to economics as the top issue?” Scuitto asked.

Jones said in individual races across the country, Democratic candidates have spoken on the issue. But he deducted points from Democrats at a national level for being out of touch with voters’ concerns:

I think there was this kind of fool’s gold, this idea that the threat to democracy is so severe in the wake of this insurrection and wake of these election deniers possibly grabbing control of the government, that that was something that you had to talk about.

But you also have to talk about the economy. I think the tragedy here is that the Democrats have something to say on the economy.

Jones added Democrats should have focused more on portraying Republicans as a menace to Social Security and Medicare.

“We didn’t focus enough firepower on that issue, and I think it is going to potentially cost us,” he said.

Watch above, via CNN.