Summary
Overview
Dan Pfeiffer interviews Danielle Butterfield, Executive Director of Priorities USA, about how Democrats are approaching digital strategy and early campaign efforts for 2028. They discuss groundbreaking research on how less politically engaged voters consume information, the failures of traditional Democratic digital advertising, and why Priorities has already launched a $30 million campaign to define potential 2028 Republican nominees like J.D. Vance and Marco Rubio.
The Evolution of Priorities USA and Digital Investment
Danielle Butterfield explains how Priorities USA transformed from a traditional presidential super PAC into a digital-first organization following the 2016 election. After recognizing Democrats were severely under-investing in digital compared to television, Priorities made it their mission to close the gap and build infrastructure for future campaigns. The organization now operates year-round, using midterms and special elections to innovate and prepare for presidential contests.
- Priorities USA shifted from being solely a presidential super PAC to building long-term digital infrastructure after 2016
- The organization identified that Democrats had severely under-invested in digital compared to television
- Priorities now uses midterm elections and special elections to innovate and test new approaches
The Fundamental Problem with Democratic Digital Strategy
Butterfield diagnoses a core problem: while Democrats now outspend Republicans two-to-one on digital, they're still running digital programs that mirror television campaigns. The party treats platforms like YouTube as broadcast channels, literally running the same 30-second TV ads online and expecting them to work. This approach ignores the creative possibilities digital affords and results in wasting money on content that doesn't match how people actually consume media online.
- Democrats outspent Republicans 2-to-1 on digital in 2024, so it's no longer a spending problem but a strategy problem
- Democrats are running digital programs to mirror television instead of leveraging digital's unique capabilities
- Nine out of the ten top YouTube ads in 2024 were just 30-second TV ads, which is 'literally lighting money on fire'
" While Democrats are spending a lot more money on digital than they were back in 2016, we're still running digital programs to mirror what goes on on television. And I think that's the crux of the problem that I'm seeing today. "
📚 10 more sections below
Sign up to unlock the complete summary with all insights, key points, and quotes
Get this summary + all future Pod Save America episodes in your inbox
100% Free • Unsubscribe Anytime
Sign up now and we'll send you the complete summary of this episode, plus get notified when new Pod Save America episodes are released—delivered straight to your inbox within minutes.