What did Democrats do wrong?

[dann]

I guess corporate interests are more important that=n their actual constituents.

It's bound to make the donors interested!

These are moderates? So basically the right-wing ecosystem is now the standard.

It's what the alleged moderates and centrists have always pretended.

 

[dann]

I am a centrist Democrat and I am terrified of success | Opinion (USA Today, June 28, 2026)
Hello, I am a centrist Democrat who is terrified that progressive liberal candidates keep winning primary elections.
I am also terrified of my own shadow, but this is somehow worse.
Suddenly, voters are being won over by liberal candidates ‒ even a few who are democratic socialists! ‒ who aren’t afraid to lean into populist messages with passion and an apparent drive to actually do things that will make people’s lives better. What is that all about? Since when did the things voters want become so important?

"The Democratic centrist must remain timid and accommodating" ​

 

[d4m10n]

"The Democratic centrist must remain timid and accommodating" ​

It looks like you are referencing local races in overwhelmingly blue districts to make an argument about the only national election enjoyed by U.S. citizens. Presumably I've misunderstood whether you wanted to make a serious point here, and since the emoji counsels against that conclusion, I'm going to charitably assume that I've read too much into what you are trying to claim.

 

[dann]

It's a quotation from the article.
Read into it whatever you want.
I hope that you at least understood that the article is a parody.
Read it!

 

[dann]

Do you remember James Carville writing, "The most radical thing we can do is nothing at all"?
He refused to do anything at all against the MAGA takeover, but now he has suddenly found an enemy that he wants to go to war against instead of rolling over and play dead like he did with Trump.

James Carville calls for formal Democratic party divide after far-left Mamdani-backed candidates sweep primaries (New York Post, June 27, 2026)
House Dem centrists plot Mamdani Caucus counterattack (Axios, June 25, 2026)
Centrist Democrats are freaking out about progressives' winning streak (Politico, June 23, 2026)
House Democrats' anxiety rises after wins by Mamdany-backed candidates: 'Are we going to let them take over the party?' (CNN, June 24, 2026)
Centrist Democrats Rebuke Party's Left-Wing: 'We Are Capitalist, Not Socialist' (New York Times, June 26, 2026)
Promise to America

LOL: Centrist Dems Face Plant Immediately After Declaring “War” on Socialists (The Humanist Report on YouTube, June 30, 2026 – 23:15 min.)
Centrist Democrats are still coping and seething over the rise of socialism within the Democratic Party. Worse, their efforts to defame and thwart the socialists is turning into humiliating self-owns for them. Many so-called “centrists” (read: conservatives) like James Carville, John Fetterman and Joe Manchin are running to Fox News to attack leftists and destroy the “vote blue no matter who” narrative they’ve pushed on the left for decades. Moreover, fifteen House Democrats released an anti-socialist manifesto (read: strongly worded letter) that reeked of the vapid, substanceless politics that lead to their defeat in the first place. In this video we’re going to look at some hysterical overreactions and explain why socialism is winning and centrism is losing.

2:00---> Turns out that strategy was not too popular with the Democratic Party's base, as any poll or Democrat that attended a town hall will tell you. And the party's refusal to fight galvanized the base against the Democratic establishment to the point where they started voting for socialists because they're the only ones who seem to actually want to fight the fascists in power. So, good job, James Carville, because the stupidity and incompetency of democratic strategists such as yourself helped pave the way for our victory.

The Democratic tent was big enough to house the Cheneys, but it's not big enough to house the people who want Medicare for all and rent freeze.
And an awful lot of Democrats already seem to have grasped that the 'Promise to America' (see above) really doesn't promise anything at all. It's nothing but platitudes without substance, empty slogans.

Great analysis by Mike Figueredo at The Humanist Report!

 

[ZiprHead]

I read the Carville article from the New York Post. Typical Post click bait. Nowhere did the article quote Carville wanting a formal split of the party.

I read it because I couldn't imagine Carville saying something so stupid.

 

[dann]

I read the Carville article from the New York Post. Typical Post click bait. Nowhere did the article quote Carville wanting a formal split of the party.
I read it because I couldn't imagine Carville saying something so stupid.

Nowhere?!

James Carville calls for formal Democratic party divide after far-left Mamdani-backed candidates sweep primaries (New York Post, June 27, 2026)
"I have the quote right here, I'll get to it. She has attacked interracial relationships and the American flag. Lady, I ain't in the same party as you. I'm sorry," Carville said. "I'm just not, and I actually do think it's time for Democrats to talk 'the S-word.' 'Schism.' I really do."
"Everybody always said, 'No, no, we're a coalition. We're a big tent,'" he said. "And there's some – there's just some s–– that I can't be in the same tent with."
Carville suggested that many of the recent far-left candidates do not actually like the Democratic Party, but are nonetheless running as Democrats, and proposed, "Let's negotiate a terms of a schism here. Maybe we can part under some kind of advantageous terms for both of us, but I'm done. And I'm not in that f––ing political party."

If you can't imagine Carville saying something so stupid, did you read this from last year?
James Carville: It's Time for a Daring Political Maneuver, Democrats (NYT, Feb 25, 2025)

Or there's this, also from last year, if you'd like to hear Carville "double down on imminent White House collapse."
It can't get any dumber than this!

 

[d4m10n]

The Democratic tent was big enough to house the Cheneys, but it's not big enough to house the people who want Medicare for all and rent freeze.

I do not recall anyone from the Cheney family ever identifying with the Democratic Party, whether that means running for office as a Democrat or just registering to vote in party primaries. I do recall people who want Medicare for All running for office as a Democrat, though.

 

[dann]

I do not recall anyone from the Cheney family ever identifying with the Democratic Party, whether that means running for office as a Democrat or just registering to vote in party primaries. I do recall people who want Medicare for All running for office as a Democrat, though.

Yes, those people who are fighting for Medicare for All and running as Democrats are the progressives that 'centrist' Democrats are now busy attacking.
You won't find Medicare for All in the 'Promise to America'! Instead, there's stuff like this:

We are capitalist, not socialist.
We believe in a growing, fair, and competitive economy that rewards hard work, innovation, entrepreneurship, and ownership. Full-time (!) work should make it possible to own a home, raise a family, afford healthcare, and retire with dignity. Economic, permitting, and tax policy should expand opportunity and lower costs for workers, families, entrepreneurs, and those striving to join the middle class, not disproportionately favor those already at the top.

You can't afford health care? You can't get a full-time job? Well, we still believe that you should – if you can afford it!

Considering the number of capitalist countries with free health care for all, it's astonishing that those right-wing Democrats are till trying to paint free health care it as communism as if MAGA voters would reward them for it. (However, we know who will! be more than willing to pay for their campaigns, which explains why they do it.)

Do you know that Liz Cheney campaigned with Kamala Harris? And that Dick Cheney promised to vote for her?
And that the Harris campaign tried to appeal to Republican voters who were as reactionary as the Cheneys but just didn't like Trump? Are you aware that it didn't work and instead alienated people who would otherwise have voted for Democrats?

 

[dann]

A democratic socialist unseats a 15-term congresswoman in Colorado (Yahoo!News, July 1, 2026)
DeGette, a 15-term incumbent first elected in 1996, is the second member of Congress to lose her seat to a younger democratic socialist challenger after Darializa Avila Chevalier unseated Rep. Adriano Espaillait, the chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, in New York's 13th District last week.

Seen here:

Democratic Socialist CAN'T STOP WINNING! (The Humanist Report on YouTube, July 1, 2026 – 12:17 min.)
In this breaking news video Mike reacts to Melat Kiros' victory in Colorado's 1st congressional district and talks about the dynamics of the race as well as the attacks she faced during her primary campaign.

Zohran's Wins Are Driving Corporate Dems Insane (The Majority Report on YouTube, June 30, 2026 – 14 min.)
0:30–> Have you ever seen, though, a larger gap between public sentiment and how the media is portraying what the public wants right now? I mean, it really is a jarring experience.
(...)
5:50–> Here's a fun quote from Suozzi in Axios:
"Economic insecurity, climate change, and immigrant injustice are all real problems. An alternative solutions must be offered. It's time for a great deal of hard work to out-organize the extremists on the right and the left."
It's, like, 'What are your actual solutions to economic insecurity, Suozzi, or climate change or immigrant injustice?'

One thing is that Suozzi doesn't say how he'll solve those problems, but I would actually like to know how he defines those problems: What is it about them that makes him call them problems? What does he think causes economic insecurity and climate change? And what exactly is "immigrant injustice" supposed to mean?

I'm not sure, but I think this is the (paywalled) Axios article they're referring to:
Socialist "earthquake" leaves Democrats reeling (Axios, June 23, 2026)

 

[dann]

Ta-Nehisi Coates about James Carville

“I don’t get it!” Ta-Nehisi Coates BAFFLED by centrist Dems’ opposition to progressives (MS NOW on YouTube, June 28, 2026 – 10:39 min.)
The recent victories of Zohran Mamdani’s candidates, all of whom sharply criticized Israel’s war in Gaza, has underscored how the politics in the Middle East has shifted in the Democratic Party since 2024. The election results have reignited the question whether Gaza played a role in Kamala Harris’ loss to Donald Trump. Vanity Fair’s Ta-Nehisi Coates joins The Weekend: Primetime to talk about the future of the Democratic Party regarding Gaza and the Middle East.

6:41–> James Carville: She was voted, but she doesn't have to be in a Democratic caucus.
I don't have anything in common with Ms. Chevalier and I really don't want to be in the same party she's in.
(...)
Ta-Nehisi Coates:
whatever you think of future Congresswoman Chevalier, she represents actual voters. Okay? She represents actual voters.
And what James Carvel is saying is that those voters should be disenfranchised, that he is so disgusted with whatever opinion she has that those voters should, like, you know, that is a district filled with black and brown people. They made their choice, and he just doesn't respect it. You know what I mean?
Which to me says, you know, not so much, you know, it's not so much a statement on Palestinians. It's not so much a statement on Israelis. It's not so much a statement on, you know, anything that future Congresswoman Chevalier has said.
It's a statement on how he feels about black and brown people.

 

[dann]

Taniel on X, July 1, 2026
Updated: Over last 8 days, I'm counting 15 Democratic incumbents who lost to a challenger to their left.
—3 congressmembers (2 NY, 1 CO)
—4 state senators (2 in NY, 2 in MD)
—8 state house members (5 in NY, 1 in MD, 2 CO)
Here's a thread for you to know about all 15 results:

I saw it here:
TSUNAMI OF DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISTS WIN IN COLORADO!! (Secular Talk on YouTube, July 1, 2026 – 17:18 min.)


See also:

Voters Send Israel-First Democrats HOME (TYT on YouTube, July 1, 2026 – 18:36 min.)
Democratic socialist Melat Kiros defeated Rep. Diana DeGette after making her pro-Palestinian stance central to her campaign.

(At this point, Anna Kasparian and Cenk Uygur appear to have realized that it was huge mistake to embrace MAGA.)

And:

Democratic Socialist Melat Kiros STUNS With Monumental Colorado Election Victory (The Damage Report on YouTube, July 1, 2026 – 7 min.
Democratic Socialist and first-time candidate Melat Kiros scores massive win against the nearly 30-year incumbent Rep. Diana DeGette in stunning Colorado election. John Iadarola and Sharon Reed break it down on The Damage Report. Leave a comment with your thoughts below!

 

[d4m10n]

Petition to rename thread to "DSA spams"

 

[Tero]

On this wrongness issue, it's strange how candidates who are rapists are OK as GOP candidates. Voters trust them to do god's will.

 

[Donal]

Because they only hurt women. Women who were probably asking for it.

 

[d4m10n]

On this wrongness issue, it's strange how candidates who are rapists are OK as GOP candidates.

Is this a sarcastic bank-shot reference to Tara Reade^WP or just another attempt to change the topic from Democrats to Republicans?

 

[Tero]

Platner.

 

[d4m10n]

Finally, a one word post that's actually responsive to the OP.

 

[dann]

As so often before, Mike Figueredo comes across as one of the most sensible left-wing commentators on YouTube:

Why Absolutely Nobody Should be Surprised by the Graham Platner Allegation (The Humanist Report on YouTube, July 8, 2026 – 21:18 min.)
Former Blackwater mercenary turned Senate candidate Graham Platner, an enjoyer of killing, has been credibly accused of r*** by his former girlfriend, Jenny Racicot. In this video we’ll discuss Racicot’s allegation and talk about how unsurprising it is that a mass murdering war criminal would commit a violent crime of this nature.

10:39--> ... there were just too many warning signs pointing to him being the next John Federman. And I based my conclusion mostly on things that he said after he launched his campaign that didn't quite add up to me. But I still offered to bring him on leftist mafia so that way he could address some of our concerns.
And uh guess what? I never heard back from him. Shocker. Because as we learned with Tulsi Gabbard's campaign for president in 2019, it's much easier for these ◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊ to uphold their facade if they exclusively talk to media figures who aren't going to challenge them.

One of the things that I hadn't seen mentioned before is what Platner had said about his time as a soldier.
Mike includes these two tweets (at 15:00-->):

James on X, July 7, 2026
The Graham Platner news should make some pause and think about how the exceptionalization of U.S. servicemembers and veterans in discussions of actors complicit in systemic harm is what opens the door for actors like Platner to thrive without any remote accountability or penance.

James on X, July 7, 2026
That lack of accountability stems from many being so willing to downplay harm done abroad by these servicemembers in the name of U.S. empire or even make justifications for their complicity. Devaluing the lives of those abroad for domestic political wins leads us here.

Mike warns against the things that may have made leftists prone to believe Platner's lies:

17:22--> ... and he just seemed like a regular dude which is a breath of fresh air in 2026 America. And when every single establishment Zionist ******** in the country is going out of their way to sink his campaign and he's making all the right enemies seemingly I understand the desire to rally around him and defend him from the attacks of objectively terrible ******* people within reason,though.

And that right there is where I think my friends on the left went wrong. They suspended objectivity and attacked comrades for highlighting legitimate concerns about Graham Blatner. And that is what really pissed me the **** off about this entire kerfuffle that was avoidable, quite frankly. When you tune out criticism from good faith actors, from allies, from comrades, you open the movement up to situations like this where wreckers come in and they opportunistically portray themselves one way when there's evidence to the contrary. And the people who want to ride or die with that candidate, tune everybody out. tell him to **** off no matter the cost to the movement long term.

- - -

Other left-wing YouTubers about the recent development in the case of Platner:

BREAKING: GRAHAM PLATNER ACCUSED OF GRAPE (Secular Talk on YouTube, July 7, 2026 – 6:50 min.)
6:34–> The allegations are serious and there's evidence and they're certainly way more credible than the previous ones.

(Unfortunate spelling mistake in the headline.)

Graham Platner is done.. (HasanAbi on YouTube, July 7, 2026 – 34:33 min.)
4:33–> This is a serious accusation of the highest order and it has all of the hallmarks of a verifiable accusation.

I Was Wrong About Graham Platner (HasanAbi Archive on YouTube, July 7, 2026 – 55:40 min.)

Graham Platner Must Drop Out (The Majority Report on YouTube, July 8, 2026 – 17:26 min.)
Emma Vigeland: at 3:27–> Platner and perhaps the campaign itself has violated the trust of many supporters.
I would include myself in that. (...) And so I'm sorry if there are any women in the audience that feel that I failed them. I take that super seriously. Um, I carry that with me. Um, and I'm sorry.

Graham Platner is going to have to resign (David Pakman Show on YouTube, July 7, 2026 – 10:27 min.)
3:52-->I believe ultimately he is going to step down. I would be surprised if he didn't.
And importantly, he has six days to step down while still allowing a different person to be made. the Democratic
nominee. There's a list of nine potential replacements.

- - -

If you are going to watch only one of these videos, I recommend the one from The Humanist Report. I do so mainly because it's not only about the rape allegations but also about what Platner has said in the past about his military career. It's even more awful than the more recent allegations.

 

[dann]

Petition to rename thread to "DSA spams"

Platner.

Finally, a one word post that's actually responsive to the OP.

Can you tell us why my posts about James Carville here on page 253 of the thread, i.e. 5,045, 5,047, 5,051, are not "actually responsive to the OP"?
Is it because you're Carville fan and thus finds my posts offensive to your sentiment? Or is it because you think Carville's proposed strategy, i.e. to roll over and play dead, wasn't wrong?

As for Platner, it's interesting that DSA appears to be one of the things he has been lying about:

Graham Platner: Political views (Wikipedia)
Before running for office, Platner described himself on Reddit as a member of the Democratic Socialists of America who was "pretty radically left" and a "vegetable growing, psychedelics taking socialist" (in 2017) and "rabidly anti-Hillary [Clinton]" (in the 2016 Democratic presidential primaries).[2] In a December 2025 interview with The New Yorker, he declined to call himself a socialist and described his political involvement before his campaign as "organizing around mostly local economic justice issues or social justice issues".[93]

This guy may replace Platner:

Troy Jackson files exploratory bid to replace Graham Platner (Washington Examiner, July 7, 2026)
Jackson was backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) for his gubernatorial bid. The Vermont senator wrote Tuesday in a statement that he has spoken with Platner, urging him to drop out of the race.
Jackson allies have started a “draft Troy” movement, as Democrats have until July 13 to replace Platner on the ballot.