Learn How to Win From Ulysses S. Grant

Democrats lost another presidential election they should have won. That’s the third time (along with 2000 and 2016) in the last seven presidentials—the fourth if you count 2004. This time it’s dawning on Democrats that something deeper is wrong than the usual things Democrats fight about after a loss, such as the candidate was unexciting; the campaign was poor; we were too liberal, no we were too conservative; we should have offered this policy; it was the economy; it was values; it was the press, etc.

What is this deeper thing? Democrats don’t have a strategy.

A strategy is a plan that is capable of achieving your ultimate objective and that you pursue single-mindedly over the long term. It’s sounds obvious, doesn’t it? But somehow it isn’t. It takes honesty and focus.

• Honesty—Are you willing to do what it takes to win, or do you only want to do what you’re comfortable doing?

• Focus—Are you willing to keep at it even when it’s costly or runs into trouble?

Ulysses S. Grant, America’s greatest general, can show us how strategy works. In the Civil War, the North’s ultimate objective obviously was to defeat the South’s rebellion and reunite the country. A big part of the strategy to achieve this objective was to split the Confederacy in two along the Mississippi River. This is what Grant did, systematically taking strategic points along the Mississippi River basin from Kentucky south to Mississippi between 1861 and1863. For example, it took Grant seven months to capture Vicksburg, Mississippi. He patiently built siege works around the whole Confederate perimeter until he’d cut the town off.

Grant executed his own strategy as fast as he could. He went on the offensive and stayed on the offensive. He didn’t care what the Confederates were doing. He kept an eye on the Confederates only to the extent that it affected his own plans. Certainly, Grant suffered reverses. Confederate forces routed his army on the first day of the battle of Shiloh. He didn’t hesitate. The next morning, he counterattacked and won a complete victory.

Lincoln was so impressed, he put Grant in charge of the whole army in 1864. In the east the strategy was to defeat the main Confederate army under Robert E. Lee, something a long series of Union commanders had failed to do. They moved too cautiously, afraid of what Lee was up to. If they lost a battle, they pulled back to regroup. If they won a battle, they didn’t pursue Lee’s army while it was in disarray. Casualties were so high the generals didn’t want to risk their men.

Once in Virginia, Grant immediately attacked Lee, fighting a series of battles, slowly encircling the Confederate army, and building siege works to contain it. An enormous number of men were killed and wounded. He was labeled Grant the butcher. But he kept at it till he accepted Lee’s surrender the next year.

Lessons for us:

• Clarity: Our ultimate goal is to destroy the Republican Party as a threat to democracy. Our strategy must be to pry away enough Republican voters that the party can’t win national elections.

• Patience: It won’t be easy. People tend to stick with their political party, and Republicans are notoriously loyal. Our strategy may not help us win in 2026, but over the long term it will save us from losing elections we should win.

• Discipline: Know how you contribute to the strategy, stop doing other things. This Substack contributes by developing rhetorical approaches for delegitimizing the Republican Party.

• Aggression: Figure out what you’re going to do and keep doing it no matter what. Stop anguishing over what Democrats did wrong. Stop listening to what Republicans say and obsessing over their outages and threats.

• Resolve: Republicans and the press will howl with fury, decrying us for worsening incivility and polarization. We can’t stop like Lincoln’s earlier generals. We must keep pressing our strategy until we impose our view on Republicans.

• Fight: Like Grant at Shiloh, no matter what, we keep going at them till we win.

Please subscribe for free to this Substack and forward this piece to your contacts.