Well, if Dems talk too tough, then it's "cancel culture." What they really need to is wise up, stop taking the emotional bait, and just call out the bullshit.
For example, trying to explain that CRT wasn't actually being taught in schools only reinforced the false notion that CRT is scary. Instead, Dems should have just fired back with, What's wrong with teaching kids the history of all Americans?
But no, by reacting off-guard and on the defense, they allowed not just an election loss, but for the GOP to move forward with an agenda to indoctrinate kids with BS like blacks preferred being enslaved and Holocaust denialism deserves equal time in the classrooms.
And meanwhile, using cries of being against cancel culture (which is actually just private citizens expressing strong opinions they disagree with), the GOP is also moving forward with legislation to ban books and restrict free speech.
My suggestion is that Dems stop reacting emotionally and especially with the fucking namecalling. Instead, focus on legitimate and thoughtful critiques of what the GOP is actually doing, and please use the strongest words possible (they do).
And finally, always remember that while "the base" consists of people who would rather lose their jobs and/or take horse dewormer with no proven efficacy than a proven vaccine, the con artists who pull their strings are in no way stupid. That's a common mistake people make about con artists in general... that they must be stupid because you'd have to be stupid to believe them. When in fact the con artists are counting on your offended responses in order to convince their chumps to double down.