Hillary’s campaign favored Trump as their opponent, and did what they could to elevate him above his competitors in the Republican Primary (though Hillary’s campaign is by no means solely responsible for his triumph over such formidable personalities as… Jeb “Please Clap” Bush, Little Marco, and Ted Cruz). They believed Trump was off the deep end, would carry the Republican Party off the deep end, and lead to an easy victory. Donald Trump did carry the Republican Party off the deep end, but this (famously) did not result in Hillary Clinton being elected President.

The “Pied Piper” is the titular character of an old folk tale in which, after being refused payment for enchanting the plague rats and leading them out of the city, the piper enchants the children and makes them disappear as well.

The Pied Piper thing is a red herring IMO. It demonstrates how cynical the Democratic Party is, but it is not the reason they lost, and not worth dwelling on too much. It is a drop in the bucket next to the torrent of grievances people feel towards the leadership of this country, and how the “Left” (Democrats) insists everything is fine and that “the long arc of history bends towards justice” while doing absolutely fuck-all, while the Right correctly points out that everything is going to SHIT, but directs that justifiable anger at the inept liberal institutions and the most powerless people on Earth instead of the motherfuckers who are seeing meteoric increases in wealth as the bridges collapse and the stores run out of toilet paper.

The Democrats ARE responsible for the rise of Trump, but it is a much bigger picture than some internal campaign memos circulating in 2016. It is their whole character as an organization to scold anybody who suggests a better future is possible. They have an unmaskable contempt for their voters, who owe them everything and deserve nothing in return. They insist on leaving people no choice between “keep things exactly the same,” and “burn it all down,” while building towards the most advanced police surveillance state in the world, ensuring the only people left around to “burn it down” are the cold blooded fascists because any other threat to the status quo is in prison.