Native American Sharice Davids, Democrat elected to Congress in 'reddest of red' Kansas
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There are limits to what we on the left can expect from a Democratic Party that remains as deeply corrupted by corporate cash (legal bribes) as the Republicans, but on the margins these progressive victories and near victories, and the rise of Latino and young voters as significant voting blocs, both groups being quite interested in or at least open to socialist or progressive ideas, are bound to have a profound influence on the Democrats going forward, particularly as their favored candidates start winning.
Leftists outside of the Democratic Party fret about voting for Democrats instead of honest Third Party candidates, but the reality is that progressives cannot ignore the importance of winning national and state elections, particularly as fascism's influence grows across the country. The reality is there is no chance of a powerful labor or socialist party rising up in two years or even six, if ever, to contest with the Democrats for power. If a mass movement like the Civil Rights movement of the late '50s and early '60s, or the anti-war movement of the late '60s and '70s should develop -- and we should all be working towards that -- it could perhaps shatter the Democratic Party and provide an opening for a genuine new left party, but until then electing progressive Democrats matters.
Meanwhile, contemplating the usual list of sorry Democratic presidential prospects (Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, Andrew Cuomo, or perhaps Amy Klobuchar or an aging Bernie Sanders), the idea percolating among progressive Democrats looking for someone more exciting is Beto O'Rourke as a presidential candidate in 2020. Beto would be like Bernie with a straight spine, youthful energy and a bracing willingness to condemn US militarism and to question military spending (in both fluent English and Spanish).
We've got an interesting next two years ahead of us.
DAVE LINDORFF is a member of ThisCantBeHappening!, the uncompromised, collectively run, six-time Project Censored Award-winning online alternative news site. His work, and that of colleagues JOHN GRANT, JESS GUH, GARY LINDORFF, ALFREDO LOPEZ, LINN WASHINGTON, JR. and the late CHARLES M. YOUNG, can be found at www.thiscantbehappening.net
(Article changed on November 12, 2018 at 14:45)
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