When the party that’s screaming “Release the Epstein Files!” won’t even release its own election postmortem, there’s an issue with the optics. By reversing its pledge to be open and transparent with its 2024 election “autopsy,” the DNC looks like it’s trying to hide something.
That’s problem #1: The PR fallout within the Democratic Party.
NEW: Secrecy around the 2024 election autopsy is dogging the DNC’s Ken Martin w/more than a dozen members & leaders telling us they want it out.
“Genuinely, what did you all find that we did not?” NC party Chair Anderson Clayton said.
Me & @JonAllenDC https://t.co/phh10D2Ihx
— Natasha Korecki (@natashakorecki) April 16, 2026
This was just outside the hotel where DNC meeting is happening. Group of protesters there as well, carried signs against war in Iran, others waving Palestinian flags. pic.twitter.com/9wBbjpefH2
— Natasha Korecki (@natashakorecki) April 10, 2026
On April 16, NBC News wrote about the outrage: “Democrats Want the Full 2024 Election Autopsy Released — No Matter the Findings.” But, alas, Democrats don’t always get what they want, do they?
Axios: DNC Chair Tries to Tamp Down Uproar Over Hiding Election Autopsy
Democratic National Committee chair Ken Martin is quietly trying to quash criticism over his decision to hide the party’s “autopsy” of what went wrong in the 2024 election, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: Nearly four months after DNC officials announced they planned to keep the autopsy private because they wanted to focus on winning the 2026 midterms, they’re still trying to contain the fallout from inside and outside the party.
The optics are disastrous for the Democrats — and it exposes a vulnerability the GOP should exploit: In a 2026 YouGov poll, the top issue that Democrats say their own party focuses too little on is corruption (54% say too little; 4% say too much). By hiding its post-election autopsy, the DNC risks reinforcing its reputation as corrupt, dishonest, elitist, and unwilling to tell the truth.
With a modest PR push, Republicans could run their own version of “Release the Epstein Files DNC Autopsy!” because it’s fair and reasonable for Democratic voters to know what the Democratic Party actually believes. How on earth can the Dems be entrusted with power — or have the chutzpah of asking for donations — if they refuse to be honest? Should the GOP seize the anti-corruption mantle and call for transparency, the DNC’s optics would go from bad to worse.
Dem insiders are aware of the problem:
Unreal. The DNC’s actual position is that if the public knew more about what Democrats got wrong in the last election, it would hurt the party’s chances in the next election.
How does this rebuild trust between the party insiders and grassroots activists and organizers?
— Jon Favreau (@jonfavs) December 18, 2025
This is a very bad decision that reeks of the caution and complacency that brought us to this moment https://t.co/YiCIihv5fv
— Dan Pfeiffer (@danpfeiffer) December 18, 2025
I suspect the reasons why this isn’t being released are precisely the reasons why it should be released https://t.co/C8IlVIys9q
— Lis Smith (@Lis_Smith) December 18, 2025
But it’s more than just an optics problem: The DNC’s stubborn insistence on hiding its autopsy report is inadvertently shining a spotlight on its greatest weakness.
Because, very obviously, if the DNC believed its autopsy would be well-received by voters and galvanize public opinion, it would’ve already released the results — and done so with gusto. DNC leaders would’ve hit all the top podcasts and news shows, bragging about what they’ve discovered, insisting that the party has learned from its mistakes, and energizing left-leaning voters with its “new and improved” battle plan.
This means that the DNC is hiding the report because the opposite is true: Whatever’s in the autopsy will demotivate grassroots liberals, anger its donors, and/or brand the Democratic Party in unfavorable terms.
So, to quote Brad Pitt in the movie Se7en, “What’s in the box?”
According to Axios, initial speculation centered on Kamala Harris:
Several Democrats — including many advising possible 2028 presidential candidates — said burying the report unfairly helps former Vice President Harris if she runs again, and shields top party consultants by hiding potentially damaging information about their efforts.
- “Kamala Harris certainly benefits from not having an open discussion” about the 2024 campaign, said Jeff Weaver, Sen. Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign manager in 2016 and top adviser in 2020 who’s a frequent critic of the DNC.
- Mike Casca, chief of staff to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, a potential 2028 presidential contender, asked whether everyone who worked on the DNC report committed to not working on a 2028 campaign. “Seems like a problem to me,” he added.
I don’t think this is the answer. Harris wasn’t a Donald Trump-like character with a Kung Fu grip on her party’s base, but an accidental candidate who failed to win liberal hearts and minds. There are no Kamala Harris diehards in the DNC — no grassroots movement to draft her for 2028.
If anything, it would’ve been easier to hang the 2024 loss on her head and cast her overboard.
Another Axios report blamed (who else?) Israel for costing the Dems the election:
Top Democratic officials who worked on the party’s still-secret autopsy of the 2024 election concluded that Kamala Harris lost significant support because of the Biden administration’s approach to the war in Gaza, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: The Democratic National Committee’s research on what went wrong in 2024 has been under lock and key since party leaders decided last year to hide it from the public — a reflection of how explosively it could resonate within the party and beyond.
- Progressive and moderate Democrats are particularly divided over Israel, with the left more critical of that nation’s actions against Palestinians in Gaza and many questioning the U.S.’s unwavering support for Israel.
But I don’t think that’s it either, mostly because Israel is no longer a controversial topic within the Democratic Party. It’s now a settled issue: Nearly 80% of Democratic voters have an unfavorable opinion of Israel. The pro-Palestinian faction won in a landslide, believing Israel is guilty of genocide, “Jewish money” (AIPAC) is the root of all evil, and supporting the Palestinians has become a mainstream Democratic position.
Why would the party that cosplays with keffiyehs, waves Palestinian flags at rallies, and calls Netanyahu a “war criminal” go out of its way to protect Israel?
Interestingly, the same YouGov poll that listed corruption as the #1 issue also listed “the Israeli-Palestinian conflict” as the #2 issue the Dems spend TOO MUCH time on. (The only issue that got more votes was transgenderism.) In fact, 13 other issues(!) — including income inequality, guns, education, inflation, social security, taxes, the environment, health care, civil rights, and tariffs — were deemed worthier of greater Democratic attention than Israel/Palestine.
This undermines the theory that Gaza concerns were so all-encompassing, it 86-ed the DNC’s autopsy: Why would the DNC have that much fealty to the 14th-ranked political issue?
It defies common sense. Releasing the autopsy and avoiding bad press would’ve been the smarter option.
So if it’s not Kamala Harris and it’s not Israel, what is it? Because, whatever it is, the DNC has clearly decided that it’s better to eat the negative PR for hiding its autopsy than to suffer the PR fallout from revealing it.
And that’s the biggest clue of all.
The Democratic Party has two masters. First are the donors: They pay for everything and demand favoritism in return. It’s a transactional, ROI-driven relationship.
Second are the grassroots activists. They’re fiercely anti-capitalist, anti-billionaire, and anti-free markets. In (rapidly) growing numbers, they believe socialism is the only solution to corruption, unfairness, and income inequality.
And a big reason why is because of the power of political donors.
Grassroots liberals don’t view their donors as “good” and GOP donors as “bad.” They hate all of ‘em: 75% of Democrats oppose billionaires spending money on elections — 64% of Democrats say billionaires’ donations hurt ordinary voters — and 62% of Democrats believe billionaires are bad for society.
But the DNC needs both donors and activists to win.
Without money, the DNC will collapse. Donors grease the wheels of the war machine, funding political campaigns — underwriting thousands of left-wing careers. From the DNC’s perspective, they’re a necessary evil.
But from the grassroots’ perspective, they’re just plain evil.
And that’s an existential problem, because without grassroots activism, the DNC won’t win enough elections to send kickbacks to its donors. It needs the former to fund the latter.
Donors, after all, are paying for access — and that’s something an out-of-power party can’t provide.
The Democratic Party used to be a sprawling coalition party, consisting of minorities, leftists, union workers, environmentalists, feminists, academists, and blue-collar workers. Although there was tension between certain factions, for the most part, all sides agreed that the Democratic Party was the best vehicle for advancing their interests.
But no more: The MAGA revolution reconfigured the political paradigm. One of President Trump’s legacies was realigning the two parties.
Today, the Democrats’ coalition has whittled to just two: wealthy, elite donors who want to get richer — and “Democratic Socialist” activists who hate billionaires and rank corruption (54%) and income inequality (48%) as their top two most under-focused issues.
Not Israel, abortion, DEI, crime, or transgenderism — all of which are BOTTOM ten issues. Corruption and income inequality are one and two!
That’s why the DNC refuses to release its autopsy: It unmasks the irrevocable conflict between liberal donors and liberal activists — and that’s the greatest threat to the Democrats’ chances in 2026. Come hell or high water, it’s got to keep its coalition together.
Which makes the GOP’s next move crystal clear: Splitting the Democrats’ coalition is key to winning the midterms.
The DNC’s autopsy cover-up is showing Republicans exactly where the Democrats are most vulnerable. The GOP would be wise to listen.
One Last Thing: 2026 is a critical year for America First. It began with Mayor Mamdani declaring war on “rugged individualism” and will reach a crescendo with the midterm elections. Nothing less than the fate of the America First movement teeters in the balance.
Never before have the political battle lines been so clearly defined. Win or lose, 2026 will transform our country.
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