progressives vs Democrats

On Monday I asked my Twitter followers if it is enough for a candidate to just be a Democrat fighting a Republican. A slight plurality said no. Only 16% said "yes, for sure," and another 25% said they would vote for the garden variety Democrat but not contribute to their campaign.

Politicians can label themselves any way they'd like and feel sure few people will challenge them. One of the most conservative Democrats to have served in the U.S. Senate in any of our lifetimes, Joe Biden, announced that he has "the most progressive record of anybody running" for the Democratic nomination. If the word "progressive" meant "conservative" that would be true.

So far Blue America has only endorsed 3 candidates for the Senate in 2020, outstanding incumbent Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and two progressives in hot primary races against conservative Establishment shleps: Andrew Romanoff in Colorado and

As you can see from the map above, New Mexico has 3 congressional districts. NM-01 is basically Albuquerque (most of Bernalillo County) and its surroundings in much less populated Sandoval (blue), Torrance (red) and Santa Fe (red) counties. The PVI is D+7 and Obama won it with big margins both times he ran. Hillary didn't do nearly as well but still beat Trump convincingly-- 51.6% to 35.1%.

We are living at an inflection point. 43% of us cannot afford the basics. 78% live paycheck to paycheck.

The headline is idiotic. The Texas Monthly asked, trying to be provocative, I suppose: Can Out-of-State Liberals Oust a Texas Democrat? The answer, of course, is NO. Only a solid home-grown progressive Democrat from Webb or Bexar County is going to oust Henry Cuellar.

Podesta, Tanden, Clinton-- How We Got Stuck With TrumpIf you've been reading DWT for more than a few days, you've probably noticed how pissed off I get when someone refers to a conservative Democrat as a "moderate." I get at least just as pissed off when someone uses the word "liberal" or "progressive" to describe someone or something that is notably neither liberal nor progressive.

How welcome are progressives in Congress? Obviously, Republicans don't want them around. But neither do large swathes of the Democratic congressional establishment. Before I get going... a little caveat. When the Democrats elected their leadership team this session, Pelosi had the most votes-- 202.

World CO2 emissions are growing, not falling. What will the children say? (source)by Thomas NeuburgerModern America is a tense place these days.

Early Monday morning, the NY Times published a piece by Catie Edmondson and Emily Cochrane, In Conservative Districts, Democrats Have To Answer For Party's Left Wing, that gets off on the wrong foot right from the very start, describing reactionary Utah Blue Dog Ben McAdams as a "moderate." He isn't.Edmondson and Cochra