Progressive Democrats aren't turning activism into election wins

[RandySF]

Despite the intense focus the past couple of months on pro-Palestinian protests, many of which were championed by the far-left wing of the Democratic Party, the self-proclaimed progressive bloc has struggled to churn out victories at the ballot box.

Oregon’s Democratic primary served up the latest example of this uphill fight, as the more traditional liberal wing won two contested primaries. State Rep. Janelle Bynum, with the backing of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, crushed a progressive favorite, Jamie McLeod-Skinner, by about 40 percentage points.

And in a safely Democratic seat around Portland, state Rep. Maxine Dexter won by 15 percentage points with the backing of centrist donors who sought to defeat Susheela Jayapal, a former Multnomah County commissioner whose sister is Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. The seat is being vacated by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), a mostly reliable ally of Democratic leadership over the past 28 years.

Those races mirrored several other recent elections that featured ideological clashes for Democrats in House primaries without an incumbent running.




https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/05/25/progressives-liberals-democrats-primaries/

[Cha]

1. Happy that Dr Maxine Dexter Won the Oregon 3 Primary!

Maxine Dexter easily winning race to replace U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer

Blumenauer issued a statement Tuesday night congratulating her: “Maxine has proven herself to be a serious and effective legislator,” he said. “I am confident she’ll take this success with her to Washington D.C.”

The physician was not always a sure bet in the contentious race to replace Blumenauer. She announced her candidacy later than either Morales or Jayapal, and didn’t seem to bring any special advantage in terms of name recognition or political connections. That was a partial contrast to Jayapal, who was viewed as an early frontrunner in part because her younger sister, Pramila Jayapal, is a congresswoman from Seattle.

https://www.opb.org/article/2024/05/21/oregon-primary-election-3rd-congressional-district-morales-dexter-jayapal/

[orange jar]

2. Progressive vs. "progressive"

98% of my political beliefs are aligned closest with politicians like Sanders, Warren, and AOC.

Unfortunately, however, a lot of people within that "realm" have been more talk than action. I think a lot of people are getting tired of hearing righteous platitudes and want actual results that they feel are still not being met. Tweeting out dunks on other politicians, while funny, doesn't do much to help constituents who actually care about issues.

[Walleye]

3. Could it be, that they are so cynical, they don't even vote?

[brooklynite]

6. Is that an explanation or an excuse?

If you don't vote, someone else will.

[TheKentuckian]

64. They are lazy and entitled as much as anything.

One gets a little more space to claim cynicism after at least putting forth the bare bones minimum effort to achieve the goal.

Primaries are relatively low participation events yet they refuse to show up over and over and over again but find ways to pop up to whine.

No effort, high expectations, no skin in the game wannabes.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

4. I am very happy that Maxine Dexter won

The nominee is a member of the MomsDemand group.

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

If she wins in November, Maxine will become one of four @momsdemand volunteers elected to Congress, including Lucy McBath, Marie Newman and Abigail Spanberger.

[mcar]

13. This is good news.

[Cha]

18. "I'm in Portland today to get out the vote for Dr. Maxine Dexter, a physician, longtime ⁦ @MomsDemand ⁩ voluntee"

Link to tweet

TY, LMPV!!

[Think. Again.]

5. Thank goodness for the strength of the far left....

...helping to pull the entire political spectrum away from the right and more and more to the left.

For too many years now we've allowed the right to pull the "center" way too far right. Without a strong far-left pulling us all back in the correct "left" direction, we would end up with a "center" that is what the far-right used to be.

[brooklynite]

7. Pulling the "political spectrum" is worthless...

...they'll be effective when they can pull actual voters. They';ll be influential when they can actually win seats from Republicans rather than other Democrats.

[Think. Again.]

8. Yeah, those things are the political spectrum.

Edit to add;

Are you suggesting that our overall politics should be either far right or far left?

Fortunately, it doesn't work that way, we will be either a right-leaning nation or a left-leaning nation, and the more pull coming from the far-left to overcome the pull coming from the far-right is what we need to pull us to be left-leaning.

[brooklynite]

11. I think the track record of progressive candidates outside of safe Democratic seats.....

...point out that our overall politics succeed in the center.

See: Biden, Joe, President.

[mcar]

14. Yup

[Think. Again.]

16. Yes, and what helps to succeed in the center...

...is the strong left pull to counter-act the strong right pull of the far-right.

[Cha]

19. No.. Thank Goodness for the Primary Winner in Oregon 3..

An elected State Rep who worked hard and earned her Votes.. while the loser whined "dark money"

Link to tweet

[Think. Again.]

24. No, thank goodness she won that primary due to the strong left pull that...

...counterbalanced the strong right pull, or a more right-leaning opponent might have taken it.

[Cha]

26. No.. Dr Maxine Dexter Won on

Her Own Will her Supporters . .. NObody is taking that away from her.

[Think. Again.]

27. Yes, her supporters supported her rather than a more right-leaning candidate...

...due to the strong and recent leftist pulling.

[Cha]

30. Nobody else is horning in on Dr Dexter's Victory...

Editorial endorsement May 2024: Elect Maxine Dexter in Democratic primary for 3rd Congressional District

snip***

Perhaps reflecting that daunting challenge, the field of candidates seeking to take his place is not especially deep. And from a policy standpoint, there aren’t significant differences among the three leading candidates – state legislator Maxine Dexter, former Multnomah County Commissioner Susheela Jayapal and Gresham City Councilor Eddy Morales. All identify themselves as progressives solidly committed to safeguarding reproductive rights, expanding climate policies that cut carbon emissions, seeking greater federal investment in housing and creating a single-payer health care system. But Dexter, whose steady work ethic and down-to-earth approach have yielded solid wins in the Oregon Legislature, emerges as Democrats’ best candidate to make an impact, eve n in an unpredictable Congress.

https://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/2024/04/editorial-endorsement-may-2024-elect-maxine-dexter-in-democratic-primary-for-3rd-congressional-district.html

[NanaCat]

37. That isn't what happened

I know the far left likes to think they have tons of influence...

But they don't. If they did, they'd win outside of districts that would vote for a flea if it had a (D) by its name.

They never have.

[NanaCat]

36. LOL

Yeah. That's so happening.

[betsuni]

42. The pulling/pushing Democrats to the Left myth.

[Think. Again.]

43. If there wasn't a pull to the left...

...the only pull would be to the right, and there would be no "center", there would just be farther and farther right.

[betsuni]

44. The country (except right-wingers) naturally becomes more liberal.

Obama's party platform was the most progressive in history, then Hillary's, now Biden's. Zero evidence of any Democratic shift to Right that needs pulling or pushing. Democrats aren't both sides right-wing. This is a forum for supporters of the Democratic Party. What's right-wing about the Biden administration that needs to be pulled or pushed?

[Think. Again.]

48. Are you trying to pretend....

...that the country has become more liberal ?????

[betsuni]

49. Democrats are liberal. Classic New Deal Democratic liberals.

Culture has become much more accepting of diversity.

[Think. Again.]

51. Now you're just OPENLY gaslighting.

[betsuni]

53. Does this mean we're breaking up? My sleeves are wet with tears.

[Zipgun]

60. Hillary's platform was more progressive in part because of Bernie. He knocked out the two other candidates that were

to the right of Hillary and would have pulled her to the right. Once he was the only challenger ( she was always the front runner and likely winner) the primary stayed more left. While Obama's platform was more liberal, at the urging of some of his people he pushed Dean out of the DNC and installed Tim Kaine. And we all remember what a fireball Kaine was, I mean he changed the party logo! Who wants something like an aggressive 50 state strategy when we can change a logo! After Debbie Wasserman Schultz ran the DNC into the ground, Hillary's campaign had to start secretly funneling money to the DNC to keep it afloat. And Wasserman Shultz is no progressive. And yet it was the progressives in the DNC that got pushed out.

I get that there is friction from time to time between the progressives and the more centrist members of the party. And not all of their battles are good ones, or fought well, but the same can be said for the centrists. And the progressive members of the house and senate are FAR more reliable votes than some of the more right leaning democrats, like Manchin. And yet it seems that time and time again progressives are pushed out or locked out, then bend over backwards for the Manchins of the party. You want the progressives to be better team players with the party? So do I and maybe a good start would be for the party to not constantly bash them or shutting the door in their face. Especially when progressives sometimes get motivated and show up when the party needs them, and not look for ways to hamstring the party like Manchin.

[Sympthsical]

9. Progressivism and Leftism aren't synonymous

And sometimes, as with the Gaza issue, they aren't even consonant.

I think most voters would be very open to progressive economic messages. It's when the Leftism creeps in that the normies get skittish. Nobody wants to hear the latest bit of nonsense straight from a sociology department (see: any San Francisco public education issue at random). They want an economic system that works for them and basic social fairness.

There are some local races here in the Bay Area with AAPI candidates where the (not a small bit racist) shtick of, "But they're so white-adjacent" is getting its usual airing.

I just want to say to these people, "Shut. Up. Voters hate this stuff. No one likes it but you and a couple of faculty at Stanford."

[WhiskeyGrinder]

10. IME, electoral politics are not the primary focus of activists.

[BannonsLiver]

55. Winning elections is definitively not a priority.

That much is clear.

[betsuni]

56. +1

[mcar]

12. So, you mean, constantly

running down the Democratic party doesn't result in Democratic primary wins?

I'm shocked, I says.

[betsuni]

15. Democratic voters like Democrats, it's a big tent party, they want things to get done and

don't think Incrementalism or compromise are dirty words, it's how government works. They don't think the party has to be replaced.

I saw an example of the ideology again here yesterday. The belief that voters want progressive populists but for the last 30 years the party shifted center right, centrists (used to say neoliberals), abandoning New Deal economic policies. Only progressive populists support New Deal policies and that's why they're considered outsiders. (The People want New Deal populist policies so when a progressive candidate loses it HAS to because of rigging or money or some establishment plot. That voters just like the other candidate better is inconceivable.)

Blame Bill Clinton! Supposedly he started it by deregulation, globalization, and free trade to be mean to working people. After the 2008 crash, economic anxiety grew (Obama under the neoliberal bus too -- no mention of Republicans, ever), that's why Trump is so popular (they voted for him because of "economic anxiety," not immigration, racism). I have to quote this gem: "And yet here we are 16 years later and the only party that addresses the economic anxiety of the population is the extreme right wing ... ." They have effective messaging. That's the ideology.

Sigh.

[JustAnotherGen]

17. I did not see that post

And I do not want to.

High COL state resident. The GOP raised the taxes of the working class and everyone else here.

[pecosbob]

20. AIPAC put a shit-ton of money into the races, swamping them.

[betsuni]

22. Voters decide elections. How does AIPAC money affect them or candidates?

[Think. Again.]

45. Are you seriously trying to say...

...that money doesn't affect elections?

[betsuni]

46. How? Ads? Lawn signs? How does that force voters to vote for the candidate with the most money?

[Think. Again.]

50. Wow, I've never even heard a full-on magat...

...try to pretend money doesn't affect elections let alone a poster on a Democratic discussion board.

We're entering a whole new realm of surrealism now.

[betsuni]

52. ...

[betsuni]

54. How does it affect voters?

[RandySF]

57. Dexter's tenure in the Oregon State House had nothing to do with her victory?

[Think. Again.]

58. We were discussing the affect of the donations on the elections.

But thank you for your input.

[Celerity]

28. $4.7 million was spent by outsider groups attacking Jayapal versus $1,500 (yes fifteen hundred) spent attacking Dexter

$2.2 million was spent by outsider groups supporting Dexter, versus $7,000 spent supporting Jayapal.

Almost $7 million in toto versus $8,500 in toto, to Dexter's advantage.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100218974516#post2

Jayapal could never hope to recover from that massive outsider spend arrayed against her, and for Dexter.

The adverts painted Jayapal as the face of all of Portland's negative issues.

That said, I see nothing in Dexter's background that gives me any pause.

I so hope Dexter turns out to be the progressive stalwart she really faces up as, and I have no reason to think she will not do so.

.

[Cha]

31. So? Editorial endorsement May 2024: Elect Maxine Dexter in Democratic primary for 3rd Congressional District

snip***

Perhaps reflecting that daunting challenge, the field of candidates seeking to take his place is not especially deep. And from a policy standpoint, there aren’t significant differences among the three leading candidates – state legislator Maxine Dexter, former Multnomah County Commissioner Susheela Jayapal and Gresham City Councilor Eddy Morales. All identify themselves as progressives solidly committed to safeguarding reproductive rights, expanding climate policies that cut carbon emissions, seeking greater federal investment in housing and creating a single-payer health care system. But Dexter, whose steady work ethic and down-to-earth approach have yielded solid wins in the Oregon Legislature, emerges as Democrats’ best candidate to make an impact, eve n in an unpredictable Congress.

https://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/2024/04/editorial-endorsement-may-2024-elect-maxine-dexter-in-democratic-primary-for-3rd-congressional-district.html

[DFW]

34. Raising $8500 does not exactly indicate broad-based support.

Last edited Sun May 26, 2024, 05:11 AM - Edit history (2)

None of the outside groups prohibited or prevented Jayapal from raising more.

Star status progressives don’t always know how to connect with what should be their base, and some don’t even try.

A mutual friend of mine and Elizabeth Warren’s held a great little celebration of the 150 years of a publication for which she was executive editor. When we got there, she excitedly told us that Elizabeth Warren would probably be coming. Sure enough, she showed up, made sure the room went dark with a spotlight on her, gave her “the game is rigged” speech, and then left without talking to anybody. There was no reason for her to say hi to a peon like me, but this group included Raúl Grijalva, E.J. Dionne, Jerry Nadler, Cecile Richards, Rev. William Barber, John Nichols, and a lot of etc., and she didn’t have time to say hi to them, either. No wonder her short-lived presidential campaign went nowhere. A German chancellor once gave a speech before the US Senate when I worked there as a page, and said, “to have friends, you also have to be one.” I guess the message didn’t get plaqued on the wall. It should have been.

[Cha]

35. That's how much Dr Dexter raised? If you read the article

I posted with the Endorsement for Maxine Dexter.. she's done amazing work as a State Legislature in that part of Portland, Oregon.

And, Jaypal didn't fare so well in the article because of her work history..

snip***

Among her closest competitors is Jayapal, 60, who until recently served as the Multnomah County commissioner representing North and Northeast Portland. In our interview and others, Jayapal has identified herself as the most progressive in the race. An attorney, she rarely bobbles questions and responds with poise. Those qualities are helpful if voters in this Portland district are looking for someone who will be focused on fighting rhetoric wars with Republicans – or even fellow Democrats – in pushing for a more progressive direction. But Jayapal’s five years on the Multnomah County Commission were remarkably unaccomplished. Even as the homelessness crisis intensified, she did not challenge the aimless direction set by former Multnomah County Chair Deborah Kafoury, nor did she distinguish herself as someone who fosters compromise among competing views.

https://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/2024/04/editorial-endorsement-may-2024-elect-maxine-dexter-in-democratic-primary-for-3rd-congressional-district.html

I can't imagine why Elizabet Warren would not talk to fellow Dems who came to see her. But she's not one of my favorite political leaders.

That's as nice as I can be.

Mahalo, DFW

[DFW]

40. I owe you a couple of clarifications, I think

I thought that $8500 was how much Jayapal raised, not Dexter. Maybe I need to go back over that.

The gathering in Washington was not specifically for Elizabeth Warren, and no one came to see her specifically. It was a celebration of the 150th anniversary of the founding of The Nation, America's oldest continuously published political magazine. It's current long-term editor, Katrina vanden Heuvel is a friend of mine. She invited me to the celebration pretty much as a courtesy, since I am NEVER in North America in September, and she knew it. Except for that one year, 2015. That one year, the daughter of some very dear friends of ours was getting married in September in Massachusetts. We said we would definitely come, and since there were only about 18 days between the end of my summer convention in (wherever it was that year) and the wedding, we decided not to go back to Europe for the short time. Instead, we booked a trip to Alaska round trip from Washington, DC, and left our summer stuff at my brother's house in Langley. We had three days between Alaska and Western Mass. and one of them was the date of Katrina's celebration in DC. She was amazed (and flatteringly excited) when I said I could make it. I only found out that Elizabeth Warren might be coming when I got there. Never having met her, I was interested to hear what she would have to say. Although I was standing about four feet from her, I have still never met her. She positioned herself under the spotlight, waited for the room to quiet, gave her speech, turned around, and hastily disappeared out the back entrance. Considering the intense concentration of Democratic prominence in that room, I was shocked, and I was not the only one. Later on, when she announced she was running for president, I thought to myself, "either she has vastly improved her people skills, or her candidacy will fizzle very quickly." It fizzled.

He mea iki, Cha !

[wnylib]

72. I can't imagine why Elizabeth Warren would not

take time to talk with people, either, unless she had a tight schedule and needed to leave. I remember that, during her primary campaign, she talked with each person who lined up for a selfie with her. The lines were so long that she was there long after the speeches were done. She came across to me as someone who made a real effort to connect with the people.

Warren was overshadowed by Sanders who was farther left than Warren. But, Biden was my choice because of his liberalism, broad-based experience, and knowledge. He could (and did) step into the job without needing to learn it. We needed someone with a broad base and background over people who were essentially one issue candidates.

[betsuni]

38. +1

[Rob H.]

33. Yep

Jayapal’s supporters were Link to tweet
" target="_blank">outspent 30-to-1, and donations to Dexter just happened to be timed in such a way that her her donors wouldn’t be revealed until after the primary.

[DFW]

41. Trone put a shit-ton of money into the Maryland Democratic Senatorial Primary, swamping the DC area airwaves.

It didn't do him any good. He lost.

[H2O Man]

66. Exactly.

Yet some shall ask what role money plays. Sad.

[Reader Rabbit]

21. Flood of Dark Money ads against Jayapal

https://www.opb.org/article/2024/05/07/congress-3rd-district-race-independent-pac-money-democrats-primary-blumenauer/

You couldn't get away from them. As Dexter is the person who benefited, I am skeptical of her. Really hope I'm wrong, though.

[RandySF]

23. Dexter is a member of Moms Demand Action.

[Cha]

32. They always blame "dark money" when they Lose.. Dr Dexter was the Best Candidate and she Won.

Editorial endorsement May 2024: Elect Maxine Dexter in Democratic primary for 3rd Congressional District

snip***

Perhaps reflecting that daunting challenge, the field of candidates seeking to take his place is not especially deep. And from a policy standpoint, there aren’t significant differences among the three leading candidates – state legislator Maxine Dexter, former Multnomah County Commissioner Susheela Jayapal and Gresham City Councilor Eddy Morales. All identify themselves as progressives solidly committed to safeguarding reproductive rights, expanding climate policies that cut carbon emissions, seeking greater federal investment in housing and creating a single-payer health care system. But Dexter, whose steady work ethic and down-to-earth approach have yielded solid wins in the Oregon Legislature, emerges as Democrats’ best candidate to make an impact, eve n in an unpredictable Congress.

https://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/2024/04/editorial-endorsement-may-2024-elect-maxine-dexter-in-democratic-primary-for-3rd-congressional-district.html

[JI7]

25. The far left tends to be anti liberal so most democratic leaning voters are turned off by them

The democratic party is a mostly liberal party .

[DinahMoeHum]

29. Yep, a liberal community and a leftist community. . .

. . .are NOT the same thing.

[vercetti2021]

39. Big difference though

But I'm not convinced that they are as progressive as people believe, they are accelerationists that want to burn the system to the ground in hopes that their ideals will rise form the ashes. Reason why you see them actively move goal posts constantly. If it isn't Gaza, it's student loans, if its not that its abortion rights. Its constantly shifting.

[Think. Again.]

47. Hang on, are you saying all of the issues...

...that the left fights for are just meaningless and shifting goalposts?

[OneGrassRoot]

61. No...

I am going to respond to this comment, even though it is directed at another.

It’s the single-issue voter being described. “If Biden doesn’t do this one thing, I’m not voting for him.”

And that One Thing keeps shifting. Even if all of their wishes were granted, these accelerationists would find a reason to keep trying to destroy the election process because they can’t allow it to work. It ruins their reason for being. They actually hate Democrats and liberals more than they hate Republicans.

[Think. Again.]

63. That's such a weird (and extreme) assumption...

You do realize that different people (or groups) have different priority issues, right?

[OneGrassRoot]

65. We're speaking of a specific group...

the accelerationists as vercetti called them. They don’t act in good faith. They exist on the far left and far right (horseshoe).

[Think. Again.]

68. I thought the accelerationists were a rightwing civil war (or doomsday, or endtimes, or rapture, or whatever) cult.

And I don't get the weird B.S. of the left meeting the right at some point. The whole idea of being on opposite ends of a continuum is that the two end are opposites.

[OneGrassRoot]

69. They overlap a lot. But you do you. n/t

[Think. Again.]

70. They only overlap in the middle...

...which some people call "moderate" but is actually an attempt to pull the left toward the right.

And yes, I will continue to do me, no choice really.

[OneGrassRoot]

71. lol

We don’t have a choice in that regard, you’re right. lol

I speak as an older person who has been actively engaged in and a keen observer of politics and current events for 45 years. I’m not certain of many things and tend to only speak when I am, and of course could certainly be wrong, but I am quite certain about the horseshoe effect and the other things I mentioned.

I understand you disagree. Perhaps our experiences and perspectives are different.

[Think. Again.]

73. If the "horseshoe effect" is real...

...then we are forgetting the up and down poles (as opposed to the left and right poles), and the ideology those up and down positions would represent.

Until those two additional political stances are explained, I'm going to have to stick with the linear left/right visualization.

[wnylib]

75. I noticed what you call the horseshoe effect

years ago only I visualize it as a number line bent around a sphere.

Picture point zero degrees on the line. As you go left or right, the numbers increase. If each side starts at 0 and one goes 180 degrees left while the other goes 180 degrees to the right, they meet up on the other side of the sphere.

[OneGrassRoot]

76. Good visual, imo. n/t

[OneGrassRoot]

62. Thank you for this

I’ve been looking for a way to describe the left-wing content of nihilists, and accelerationist is perfect.

[betsuni]

67. Yes.

[shrike3]

74. I know a few. Don't know how common they are, but they're out there.

[OneGrassRoot]

78. In the age of social media...

and the rise of mis/disinformation, I’ve watched their numbers increase exponentially over the last decade. Sadly.

[Nixie]

59. Maybe voters don't care for being handed a MAGA Supreme Court for the next generation

or so just for some undesirable candidates who want to engage in empty sloganeering. Some of their endorsements are looking to be a guiding light as to who to avoid.

[RandySF]

77. This sum's up a leftist.

‘I agree with Candidate A 95% of the and the remaining 5% is why they represent everything I hate about politics.’