There's an asymmetrical perception issue between rural areas and big cities/metros

[radius777]

3. the base of the modern day Dem party are metro areas

and their surrounding suburbs.. of people of color, immigrants, women, urban progressives, young people, suburban moderates, etc.

The old FDR Dem party that focused mainly on the white working class (WWC) at the expense of everyone else is long dead.

We need to do much better with WWC, but it likely won't be the overly conservative or religious rural whites, but the more secular and pragmatic ones, the types who voted for Bill Clinton, who was very good at talking about hot button social issues (like abortion) in a way that didn't offend many moderates and traditionalists.

But ultimately Dems are a metro party, and it makes more sense to build upon this and turn out our metro base, than pander to rural conservative who are at odds with everything modern America stands for