Leftward Momentum

Since Clinton’s loss, the Democratic party has opted to become radical rather than drift towards the center.

Keith Ellison (Flickr) / The Overtime Illustration

Following the most polarizing election in America’s modern political history, the Republican and Democratic parties are trending in two entirely dissimilar trajectories. After a stunning Presidential election victory, the GOP has begun to unite behind President-elect Donald Trump, essentially attempting to heal the tremendous self-inflicted primary wounds. The Democratic Party, however, has completely splintered. Moderate, traditional voices — those of Charles Schumer, Hillary Clinton, and Nancy Pelosi — have largely been drowned out by a progressive chorus headlined by Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. Some Democrats have blamed the catastrophic election loss on interim and and embattled DNC chair Donna Brazile, and now are proposing progressive Congressman Keith Ellison take over the party’s leadership post. These developments signal a hard left turn for the party — one which will undoubtedly feed the continued polarization of American politics.

For nearly a decade, Bernie Sanders was an afterthought in the Senate. He has repeatedly used his position mostly as a bully pulpit for his Democratic socialist agenda, as rarely, if ever, has he sponsored or cosponsored meaningful legislation that was passed into law. In fact, Sanders was an independent for all those years as he considered himself too progressive for the Democratic party. He in fact remains an independent today. Yet, after a widely successful primary campaign, Democrats have essentially capitulated, naming Sanders the Chief of Outreach on the Democratic Senate leadership team. This position is one traditionally held by a minority, or a woman — obviously in order to secure the vote of the diverse Democratic coalition. The appointment of Senator Sanders thereby signals a shift in Democratic approach.

Hillary Clinton dominated Bernie Sanders in the primaries among minority voters. Bernie, however, was appointed to appeal to the white working class voter that helped him win primaries in Michigan, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, and Minnesota. These are states that ultimately voted for Donald Trump, as he broke through the blue wall, winning states such as Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan and Wisconsin.

Trump won these states primarily thanks to the blue collar, white working class voters who felt left behind by the Democratic establishment — an establishment most often embodied by Hillary Clinton. Picking Sanders for Senate Chair of Outreach signals that not only are Democrats focusing on white working class voters, but they are willing to use the radical left wing of the party to do it.

Congressman Keith Ellison’s run for Democratic National Committee Chairman only further reinforces this point. Ever since he took office, Ellison has aligned himself with the progressive wing of the Democratic party, as he is a favorite of the Black Lives Matter movement, and has repeatedly critiqued Israel, even tweeting a photo which described the nation as an apartheid state.

The two most influential figures of the progressive wing of the party, Senators Sanders and Warren, have backed Ellison’s candidacy for the party’s top position. Ellison has also received surprising endorsements from establishment Democrats like Chuck Schumer, and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid. If Ellison is elected chair of the Democratic National Committee, he would be the most progressive DNC chair in party history, thereby the ushering out the party of John F. Kennedy and Bill Clinton — replacing it with that of Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders.

By moving to the left, Democrats are banking on an eventual rejection of Donald Trump. Democrats believe that those who voted for Obama in 2012 and Trump in 2016 will eventually flip back to the 2020 Democratic nominee, thereby restoring the ‘blue wall.’ Moving farther to the left, however, likely sets the Democratic party on a trajectory similar to that of Republicans prior to the 2016 election — leading to a battle between the radical and establishment wings of the party.

If Democrats choose to nominate an ultra-progressive candidate for President, such as Elizabeth Warren, it could alienate thousands of moderate voters and independents. More importantly, however, it will only add to the cesspool inflammatory and radical rhetoric, thereby leaving moderate voters without a Democratic candidate they can comfortably vote for. This Democratic strategy, while refreshing, has the potential to only further the Left’s disconnect with the white working class they so desperately need.