Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) panned Democrats who are upping their criticisms of President Biden ahead of the November election, saying they might as well don a “MAGA hat.” Fetterman not…
What is a party if not just a group of people with similar values? Change the values of the Democratic party from within (which I believe is already happening, especially with all the ancients dying off) to the type of party that realizes when they need to start grooming new candidates sooner.
Easier said than done, sure. Young people need to show that they are a voting bloc that demands to be taken seriously, but that can’t happen until they actually start voting. It’s kind of infuriating. That’s really the thing that could begin fixing all of this, and yet… Who knows, maybe Taylor Swift will throw a wrench in things and get enough young folks involved.
As for Obama, maybe he was a once in a lifetime phenomenon, I don’t know… But like you said, the DNC didn’t even want him. He was a black guy with an Arab name, but he had the money and power of the DNC (and, I believe at that time Howard Dean in charge who actually knew how to get progressives elected up and down ballot. Could be wrong though, it might have been after he lost his career for getting a little too excited), and that allowed him to mobilize people who had never thought about voting before.
That’s what we need again. We need to start bringing up young, charismatic progressives from state and local politics, and give them the money and support they need to get their message (which, let’s not forget, is correct) to those types Obama mobilized back in 08.
We should have been doing this for years already. In fact, I would say Howard Dean’s removal as chair of the DNC especially doomed the party to years of tepid neiliberalism.
We need another Howard Dean running the DNC and we need it yesterday.
What is a party if not just a group of people with similar values? Change the values of the Democratic party from within (which I believe is already happening, especially with all the ancients dying off) to the type of party that realizes when they need to start grooming new candidates sooner.
The party is very separate from the people who vote for it. I don’t have a vote for who becomes Speaker, only a vote for my individual representative, who himself is chosen by both Democrats and Republicans (our primary is open and everyone knows the Democrat is going to win the general election so the real election is in the primary). He’s in something like a D+30 district and still threatens to oppose Democratic legislation unless it’s more fiscally conservative.
The ancients are dying off, but this isn’t resulting in an open race for replacement, they’re using their influence to pass it on to chosen successors that share their values. Theoretically there could be a revolution, but politics isn’t really just a battle of ideas, but a complex web of relationships and fundraising. One of Hakeem Jeffries primary qualifications for succeeding Pelosi is simply that he can raise a lot of money.
But I agree that’s not fixed, and a good chair could really lean into candidates who excite voters rather than are approved by donors. The Obama’s of the party win while the machine politicians generally just maintain power in safe districts. You need someone who excites people to flip districts and states.
It’s unfortunate that Katie Porter might be eliminated in the initial round in California. We need progressive successors to our own ancients in the senate. Massachusetts has a pretty good bench getting built. Hopefully when Warren steps down Ayanna Pressley will succeed her. I’m not sure if Bernie has anyone in Vermont lined up.
Hey, I’m just glad someone read my comment lol…
What is a party if not just a group of people with similar values? Change the values of the Democratic party from within (which I believe is already happening, especially with all the ancients dying off) to the type of party that realizes when they need to start grooming new candidates sooner.
Easier said than done, sure. Young people need to show that they are a voting bloc that demands to be taken seriously, but that can’t happen until they actually start voting. It’s kind of infuriating. That’s really the thing that could begin fixing all of this, and yet… Who knows, maybe Taylor Swift will throw a wrench in things and get enough young folks involved.
As for Obama, maybe he was a once in a lifetime phenomenon, I don’t know… But like you said, the DNC didn’t even want him. He was a black guy with an Arab name, but he had the money and power of the DNC (and, I believe at that time Howard Dean in charge who actually knew how to get progressives elected up and down ballot. Could be wrong though, it might have been after he lost his career for getting a little too excited), and that allowed him to mobilize people who had never thought about voting before.
That’s what we need again. We need to start bringing up young, charismatic progressives from state and local politics, and give them the money and support they need to get their message (which, let’s not forget, is correct) to those types Obama mobilized back in 08.
We should have been doing this for years already. In fact, I would say Howard Dean’s removal as chair of the DNC especially doomed the party to years of tepid neiliberalism.
We need another Howard Dean running the DNC and we need it yesterday.
The party is very separate from the people who vote for it. I don’t have a vote for who becomes Speaker, only a vote for my individual representative, who himself is chosen by both Democrats and Republicans (our primary is open and everyone knows the Democrat is going to win the general election so the real election is in the primary). He’s in something like a D+30 district and still threatens to oppose Democratic legislation unless it’s more fiscally conservative.
The ancients are dying off, but this isn’t resulting in an open race for replacement, they’re using their influence to pass it on to chosen successors that share their values. Theoretically there could be a revolution, but politics isn’t really just a battle of ideas, but a complex web of relationships and fundraising. One of Hakeem Jeffries primary qualifications for succeeding Pelosi is simply that he can raise a lot of money.
But I agree that’s not fixed, and a good chair could really lean into candidates who excite voters rather than are approved by donors. The Obama’s of the party win while the machine politicians generally just maintain power in safe districts. You need someone who excites people to flip districts and states.
It’s unfortunate that Katie Porter might be eliminated in the initial round in California. We need progressive successors to our own ancients in the senate. Massachusetts has a pretty good bench getting built. Hopefully when Warren steps down Ayanna Pressley will succeed her. I’m not sure if Bernie has anyone in Vermont lined up.