democratic-party

California's Rowdy Bernie Crowd Might Get Loud Again Tonight 

Andy Cush · 07/26/16 04:43PM

Bernie-supporting delegates were out in full force during the Democratic National Convention speeches last night. Over the telecast, it was easy to hear boos and chants of “we can’t trust her” during pro-Hillary speeches. I wasn’t on the floor, but I’d heard that a small crowd of California delegates were delivering the loudest jeers. Bernie was even booed by a crowd of his own California supporters when he urged them to back Hillary. This afternoon, a few delegates from the state said they might deliver a similar protest tonight.

Welcome to Philly, America's Yellingest City

Alex Pareene · 07/25/16 05:42PM

PHILADELPHIA — All the Democrats had to do was have an uneventful, competently run convention. That’s it. Just four days where nothing horrible and embarrassing happened, with no ridiculous organizational fuckups or humiliating own goals.

Evan Bayh Is Done Making a Lot of Money and Would Like to Return to the Senate Now, Please

Alex Pareene · 07/12/16 02:39PM

Evan Bayh is returning to politics. The former Democratic governor of Indiana and U.S. senator has decided to enter the race for his old Senate seat, which is currently occupied by a retiring Republican. This is exciting news for people who want Democrats to retake the Senate, and bad news for people who want Democrats to retake the Senate not just for the sake of retaking the Senate, but so that those Democrats can actually accomplish things.

The Democrats Are Boldly Fighting For a Bad, Stupid Bill

Alex Pareene · 06/22/16 03:20PM

After Democrats in the Senate staged a filibuster in support of gun control measures, their colleagues in the House have begun a “sit-in” aimed at embarrassing Republicans into allowing a vote on a measure that would restrict the ability of suspected terrorists to legally buy guns. The move is fantastic political theater. It’s also a tremendous waste of popular support and activist energy in support of a measure that isn’t just ineffective but also actively offensive.

Don't Blow This

Alex Pareene · 05/06/16 11:15AM

It’s Trump versus Clinton. It’s a well-funded mainstream Democrat against a widely reviled demagogue who will struggle to earn the support of his party’s donor base. It’s a man whose every public utterance is a potential negative ad waiting to be cut, versus the most cautious candidate in modern memory. The Clinton campaign has been given a tremendous gift, as I am sure they know.

The Clinton Campaign Is Keeping a Lot of That "Joint" Fundraising Money For Itself

Brendan O'Connor · 05/02/16 11:40AM

Just before launching the rather specifically-named Hillary Victory Fund, ostensibly formed to help “rebuild” the Democratic Party “from the ground up,” Hillary Clinton declared, “When our state parties are strong, we win. That’s what will happen.” According to Politico, however, less than 1 percent of the $61 million raised by the fund has remained with the state parties.

Bernie Sanders Is Running as a Democrat for "Media Coverage"

Brendan O'Connor · 03/14/16 06:30PM

Asked by a voter on Monday why he is running as a Democrat, the senator from Vermont, who is an independent but has historically caucused with Congressional Democrats, conceded that “in terms of media coverage, you have to run within the Democratic Party.”

Hillary Clinton Has a Henry Kissinger Problem

Alex Pareene · 02/05/16 11:46AM

At last night’s Democratic debate between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton invoked an unexpected figure: Henry Kissinger. “I was very flattered when Henry Kissinger said I ran the State Department better than anybody had run it in a long time,” she said, in an off-hand aside. It wasn’t an endorsement of Kissinger, or really much of anything. It was just a little brag that would have played well in a different room.

Would Elizabeth Warren Have Beaten Hillary Clinton?

Alex Pareene · 02/02/16 12:16PM

Hillary Clinton eked out a narrow victory over Bernie Sanders last night in the Iowa caucuses, which has led to a lot of punditry. There’s one branch of that punditry that I think ought to be examined a bit more rigorously before it spreads. Here’s Ezra Klein, last night:

Jeb Bush Should Become a Democrat

Alex Pareene · 10/29/15 09:31AM

If Jeb Bush became a Democrat, I’m not saying he’d win the nomination, let alone the presidency, but he’d have a better shot at either than he currently does in the Republican Party.