MILLER: “Freedom” becomes baseline strategy for Democrats

Several stories and columns appeared in the national news media shortly before and during the recent Democratic National Convention about Vice President Kamala Harris’ emphasis on the concept of “freedom” in her speeches and messaging. Convention delegates in Chicago hoisted signs with the word “Freedom” on them all week. Oprah Winfrey even talked about freedom in her speech to the DNC. Quite a few pundits seemed to be caught off guard by how popular the concept had suddenly become with Democrats.

The word has been used by Republicans to define their own party for decades and decades. These days, for instance, far-right congressional Republicans belong to a “Freedom Caucus,” as do several Illinois state House Republicans.

I don’t know if he pioneered it or not, but while reading the national commentary, it occurred to me that Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker has been pressing home the importance of “freedom” for several years here. His staff hasn’t always been comfortable with the rhetoric, viewing the word as almost a lost cause. But Pritzker has told his staff that he believed that Republicans were “usurping” freedom and that he and his party were supporting it.

Pritzker has long described abortion rights as “reproductive freedom.”

“The GOP should be ashamed of themselves,” the governor said two years ago on social media. “For a party that says they’re all about individual freedom, they’re hellbent on taking away freedoms for women.”

His use of the word has not been confined to abortion, however. Two years ago, Pritzker said, “As long as I’m governor, Illinois will remain a beacon of freedom among a rising sea of right-wing extremism.” Democrats, he said last year, will keep fighting for “more freedom.”

As far back as 2018, Pritzker said of then-President Donald Trump and then-Gov. Bruce Rauner, “While Trump and Rauner attack the freedom of working people to come together and fight for a better future, we must defend the hardworking men and women of the labor movement.”

“Trump and the anti-democracy, anti-freedom ideology he represents will systematically destroy our constitutional democracy if left unchecked,” the governor warned this past January.

Pritzker described marriage equality in 2022 as “The equity and freedom that characterize America.” In 2021, he described a bill to prevent discrimination against students for their hairstyle choices as “freedom of expression.” In 2020, he said a bill he signed to excuse students from school for two hours to vote gave kids the “freedom to fit voting into their school day without fear of repercussion for engaging in the very civic education we should all be proud to encourage.” Getting a COVID booster shot in 2021 was, Pritzker said, “freedom from the virus.”

Two years ago, after attending a Juneteenth celebration, Pritzker said, “we’ll continue ensuring Illinois lives up to its promises of freedom for all.”

After I had pulled up all those quotes (and more) I asked the governor’s people why he has leaned so heavily on the concept.

“The Governor uses freedom to describe Democratic policies to call out the truth about so many Republican policies: they’re about control,” a spokesperson said. “It is the Democratic Party that stands up for your right to make your own healthcare decisions, to choose what book you read, to live without fear of gun violence, to build a family on your own terms. It’s Democrats fighting for equal access to these rights. Republicans use buzzwords and branding, but what they don’t say is that their freedom only goes so far as the choices they would make for themselves. The Governor truly believes that the Democratic Party is the party of freedom, and is working to ensure that freedom for all Americans.”

Pritzker also said a couple of years ago that he believed the state government standing up for these rights and freedoms will eventually help attract businesses to Illinois. “I do think in the long run it benefits the state of Illinois,” he said during a Crain’s Fast 50 Business Luncheon in 2022. “Does it happen overnight? Like everything, right, creating one tax incentive or creating a benefit for individuals and protecting people’s rights. That’s something that seeps into the groundwater, in my view, for workers and for companies.”

Now, you may understandably disagree with Pritzker over his definition of the word, his attacks on Republicans and how he believes this could eventually help Illinois’ economy, but there can be no doubt that the national party has finally caught up with him, even if he didn’t get the nod for national office.

Rich Miller also publishes Capitol Fax, a daily political newsletter, and CapitolFax.com.