Totally agree with the central point: DSA is not currently building a faction within the Democratic Party. This is because the DSA members and “allies” in the Democratic Party are more committed to remain in the mainstream of the Democratic Party than they are to forming a faction or bloc.
If this is true, and if the Democratic Party is not a vehicle for building a left bloc in Congress or state legislatures and city councils, why are DSA members in the Democratic Party? Why, at a time when the Democratic Party is defeated and discredited, especially among the working class and progressive activists, and is supporting a genocide in Gaza, NATO expansionism in Europe, and the encirclement of China, and when mainstream Democrats are voting for anticommunist education bills and supporting the suppression of pro-Palestine speech, why are DSA members still in the Democratic Party?
In my opinion, the time has come for DSA to publicly break with the Democratic Party, to denounce the Democratic Party’s pro-war and pro-genocide foreign policy, their turn to the right on immigration and free speech, and their alliance with Larry Fink, Mark Cuban, JB Pritzker and the billionaire corporate elite. We have nothing to lose and much to gain by distinguishing our politics from the politics of the Democratic Party.
You have nothing to lose by breaking from and attacking the Dems as a whole? Try it and find out. You'll be left squabbling over space on the margins with PSL. PDA/WFP are building left groupings under the Dem tent, and it works well for them. Pershaps DSA can be a socialist sub-bloc within each or both of them.
I hadn't seen that, but yes, a bloc within a progressive caucus, but not a "faction". That would just isolate demsoc folks unneccasarity and drive a wedge between them and other progressives.
I agree the Squad/CPC are not building the coherent faction they need to build if they are leftists (or even really progressive), but why is that SMC/Duhalde’s fault? Having worked in state legislative offices, I can say with some confidence that outside groups cannot generally force particular strategic orientations simply as a matter of pressure. Your arguments, which I do generally agree with, suggest a conclusion that we actually need more inside work with these reps to have a shot at convincing them we have a better strategic idea for them to pursue. Really do not see what is being advocated here.
You set a handful of strange benchmarks and litmus tests to decide whether there is a Left faction in Congress.
There is the Progressive Caucus, the Squad and many other networks in which Left-leaning Dem caucus members coordinate, fundraise for one another, etc.
Is it fully coherent and disciplined and tied to a stable activist coalition in the Party grassroots and social movements? No, unfortunately not.
But that's not for AoC and others trying. Neither DSA nor OR is actually committed to being that, as this whole debate demonstrated.
So all of this needs to be actively built. Duhalde's insight is that this strategy is sitting there in front of DSA, etc, and that the status quo is that we are just an inactive and unstrategic faction that doesn't want to admit it is a faction.
But no, the fact that AoC offered a personal deal to stop personally supporting challengers doesn't prove she was never or isn't still interested in the thing she's been talking about and trying to do since running for office.
Re: Nick French's piece in Left Notes: https://www.left-notes.com/p/socialists-democrats-dsa-bernie-aoc. Didn't see Carl Davidson's response below and do not disagree. Still, this is a thought-provoking post from Left Notes. I tend to agree with David Duhalde. I have responded at length, as I prepare my own election analysis for publication as an essay in my Speaking from the Heart substack. Meanwhile I’ve added the piece by Nick French to my Zotero report of my bibliography of well over 500 Election Analysis items, at the link at the top of this post in my substack election analysis post: https://michaelalandover.substack.com/p/2024-election-analysis
Totally agree with the central point: DSA is not currently building a faction within the Democratic Party. This is because the DSA members and “allies” in the Democratic Party are more committed to remain in the mainstream of the Democratic Party than they are to forming a faction or bloc.
If this is true, and if the Democratic Party is not a vehicle for building a left bloc in Congress or state legislatures and city councils, why are DSA members in the Democratic Party? Why, at a time when the Democratic Party is defeated and discredited, especially among the working class and progressive activists, and is supporting a genocide in Gaza, NATO expansionism in Europe, and the encirclement of China, and when mainstream Democrats are voting for anticommunist education bills and supporting the suppression of pro-Palestine speech, why are DSA members still in the Democratic Party?
In my opinion, the time has come for DSA to publicly break with the Democratic Party, to denounce the Democratic Party’s pro-war and pro-genocide foreign policy, their turn to the right on immigration and free speech, and their alliance with Larry Fink, Mark Cuban, JB Pritzker and the billionaire corporate elite. We have nothing to lose and much to gain by distinguishing our politics from the politics of the Democratic Party.
You have nothing to lose by breaking from and attacking the Dems as a whole? Try it and find out. You'll be left squabbling over space on the margins with PSL. PDA/WFP are building left groupings under the Dem tent, and it works well for them. Pershaps DSA can be a socialist sub-bloc within each or both of them.
I hadn't seen that, but yes, a bloc within a progressive caucus, but not a "faction". That would just isolate demsoc folks unneccasarity and drive a wedge between them and other progressives.
I agree the Squad/CPC are not building the coherent faction they need to build if they are leftists (or even really progressive), but why is that SMC/Duhalde’s fault? Having worked in state legislative offices, I can say with some confidence that outside groups cannot generally force particular strategic orientations simply as a matter of pressure. Your arguments, which I do generally agree with, suggest a conclusion that we actually need more inside work with these reps to have a shot at convincing them we have a better strategic idea for them to pursue. Really do not see what is being advocated here.
Would love to see a debate between yall.
You set a handful of strange benchmarks and litmus tests to decide whether there is a Left faction in Congress.
There is the Progressive Caucus, the Squad and many other networks in which Left-leaning Dem caucus members coordinate, fundraise for one another, etc.
Is it fully coherent and disciplined and tied to a stable activist coalition in the Party grassroots and social movements? No, unfortunately not.
But that's not for AoC and others trying. Neither DSA nor OR is actually committed to being that, as this whole debate demonstrated.
So all of this needs to be actively built. Duhalde's insight is that this strategy is sitting there in front of DSA, etc, and that the status quo is that we are just an inactive and unstrategic faction that doesn't want to admit it is a faction.
But no, the fact that AoC offered a personal deal to stop personally supporting challengers doesn't prove she was never or isn't still interested in the thing she's been talking about and trying to do since running for office.
Re: Nick French's piece in Left Notes: https://www.left-notes.com/p/socialists-democrats-dsa-bernie-aoc. Didn't see Carl Davidson's response below and do not disagree. Still, this is a thought-provoking post from Left Notes. I tend to agree with David Duhalde. I have responded at length, as I prepare my own election analysis for publication as an essay in my Speaking from the Heart substack. Meanwhile I’ve added the piece by Nick French to my Zotero report of my bibliography of well over 500 Election Analysis items, at the link at the top of this post in my substack election analysis post: https://michaelalandover.substack.com/p/2024-election-analysis