Progressive groups are calling out the DCCC and demanding it stop its "crackdown on progressive values." (Image: Justice Democrats)
New Campaign Challenges DCCC's "All-Out War Against Progressives"
"Stop undermining progressive values," a new petition to the DCCC demands.
Pushback on the left to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee continued on Friday with a trio of groups launching a campaign directed at DCCC chairman Ben Ray Lujan demanding the political committee "stop undermining progressive values."
"Right now," said Heidi Hess, co-director of CREDO Action, "the DCCC's advice to candidates and its failure to fully embrace candidates of color is standing in the way of progress. That's why we're demanding that the DCCC immediately stop its shortsighted and unhelpful attacks on progressive values."
Petitions from CREDO, Justice Democrats, and Our Revolution cite a flurry of recent revelations about the DCCC, which is the campaign arm of Democrats in the U.S. House.
To wit:
- The Intercept reported this week on polling documents presented to House Democrats last April which suggested that the messaging Democrats push on healthcare in no way discuss how Medicare for All cold be a solution.
- Also this week, the Huffington Post reported on how the DCCC told House candidates the day after the mass shooting in Las Vegas "Do NOT POLITICIZE IT TODAY." The candidates were instead directed to offer "thoughts/prayers."
- The DCCC repeated that message to candidates following the mass shooting in Parkland, Fla. last month.
- The DCCC also attacked progressive candidate Laura Moser, a progressive Democrat who is running to represent Houston, Texas in the U.S. House. Its effort, however, seems to be backfiring.
- BuzzFeed also reported last month on how a group of black Democrats, Collective PAC, is asking the DCCC why it has not included any black candidates in its "Red to Blue" program.
"Their consultant-driven strategy seems to prefer milquetoast candidates who they believe can appeal to moderate Republicans over progressive candidates of color. This is what systemic racism looks like," Waleed Shahid, a spokesman for Justice Democrats, said to the Washington Post about the situation faced by Greg Edwards, who's running for a swing seat in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania. Edwards, who called himself "the most progressive candidate, the only candidate of color," told the Post the DCCC asked him to leave the race.
Given the recent reporting, the petition declares: "Democrats should fight for progressive values and offer a clear contrast to Trump and the Republican Party. Stop undermining progressive values."
As Saikat Chakrabarti, executive director of Justice Democrats, sees it, the DCCC is waging "an all-out war against progressives."
"Poll after poll is showing overwhelming support for progressive issues. Across the country, an unprecedented number of grassroots activists are demanding healthcare as a right, a ban on assault weapons, and action on economic and racial inequality," he said.
"Despite this, the DCCC is doubling down on a strategy to court moderate Republicans and the billionaire class instead of the progressive wing of their own party," he continued. "Now that progressives are threatening major upsets against their hand-picked candidates in upcoming primaries, the DCCC has begun an all-out war against progressives."
"Their attacks on Laura Moser's campaign, their internal memos directing their candidates to stand down on fighting for gun reform and Medicare for All--these are not just attacks on progressives but a completely incompetent strategy that will guarantee more losses," Chakrabarti argued.
Urgent. It's never been this bad.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just two days to go in our Spring Campaign, we're falling short of our make-or-break goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Pushback on the left to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee continued on Friday with a trio of groups launching a campaign directed at DCCC chairman Ben Ray Lujan demanding the political committee "stop undermining progressive values."
"Right now," said Heidi Hess, co-director of CREDO Action, "the DCCC's advice to candidates and its failure to fully embrace candidates of color is standing in the way of progress. That's why we're demanding that the DCCC immediately stop its shortsighted and unhelpful attacks on progressive values."
Petitions from CREDO, Justice Democrats, and Our Revolution cite a flurry of recent revelations about the DCCC, which is the campaign arm of Democrats in the U.S. House.
To wit:
- The Intercept reported this week on polling documents presented to House Democrats last April which suggested that the messaging Democrats push on healthcare in no way discuss how Medicare for All cold be a solution.
- Also this week, the Huffington Post reported on how the DCCC told House candidates the day after the mass shooting in Las Vegas "Do NOT POLITICIZE IT TODAY." The candidates were instead directed to offer "thoughts/prayers."
- The DCCC repeated that message to candidates following the mass shooting in Parkland, Fla. last month.
- The DCCC also attacked progressive candidate Laura Moser, a progressive Democrat who is running to represent Houston, Texas in the U.S. House. Its effort, however, seems to be backfiring.
- BuzzFeed also reported last month on how a group of black Democrats, Collective PAC, is asking the DCCC why it has not included any black candidates in its "Red to Blue" program.
"Their consultant-driven strategy seems to prefer milquetoast candidates who they believe can appeal to moderate Republicans over progressive candidates of color. This is what systemic racism looks like," Waleed Shahid, a spokesman for Justice Democrats, said to the Washington Post about the situation faced by Greg Edwards, who's running for a swing seat in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania. Edwards, who called himself "the most progressive candidate, the only candidate of color," told the Post the DCCC asked him to leave the race.
Given the recent reporting, the petition declares: "Democrats should fight for progressive values and offer a clear contrast to Trump and the Republican Party. Stop undermining progressive values."
As Saikat Chakrabarti, executive director of Justice Democrats, sees it, the DCCC is waging "an all-out war against progressives."
"Poll after poll is showing overwhelming support for progressive issues. Across the country, an unprecedented number of grassroots activists are demanding healthcare as a right, a ban on assault weapons, and action on economic and racial inequality," he said.
"Despite this, the DCCC is doubling down on a strategy to court moderate Republicans and the billionaire class instead of the progressive wing of their own party," he continued. "Now that progressives are threatening major upsets against their hand-picked candidates in upcoming primaries, the DCCC has begun an all-out war against progressives."
"Their attacks on Laura Moser's campaign, their internal memos directing their candidates to stand down on fighting for gun reform and Medicare for All--these are not just attacks on progressives but a completely incompetent strategy that will guarantee more losses," Chakrabarti argued.
Pushback on the left to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee continued on Friday with a trio of groups launching a campaign directed at DCCC chairman Ben Ray Lujan demanding the political committee "stop undermining progressive values."
"Right now," said Heidi Hess, co-director of CREDO Action, "the DCCC's advice to candidates and its failure to fully embrace candidates of color is standing in the way of progress. That's why we're demanding that the DCCC immediately stop its shortsighted and unhelpful attacks on progressive values."
Petitions from CREDO, Justice Democrats, and Our Revolution cite a flurry of recent revelations about the DCCC, which is the campaign arm of Democrats in the U.S. House.
To wit:
- The Intercept reported this week on polling documents presented to House Democrats last April which suggested that the messaging Democrats push on healthcare in no way discuss how Medicare for All cold be a solution.
- Also this week, the Huffington Post reported on how the DCCC told House candidates the day after the mass shooting in Las Vegas "Do NOT POLITICIZE IT TODAY." The candidates were instead directed to offer "thoughts/prayers."
- The DCCC repeated that message to candidates following the mass shooting in Parkland, Fla. last month.
- The DCCC also attacked progressive candidate Laura Moser, a progressive Democrat who is running to represent Houston, Texas in the U.S. House. Its effort, however, seems to be backfiring.
- BuzzFeed also reported last month on how a group of black Democrats, Collective PAC, is asking the DCCC why it has not included any black candidates in its "Red to Blue" program.
"Their consultant-driven strategy seems to prefer milquetoast candidates who they believe can appeal to moderate Republicans over progressive candidates of color. This is what systemic racism looks like," Waleed Shahid, a spokesman for Justice Democrats, said to the Washington Post about the situation faced by Greg Edwards, who's running for a swing seat in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania. Edwards, who called himself "the most progressive candidate, the only candidate of color," told the Post the DCCC asked him to leave the race.
Given the recent reporting, the petition declares: "Democrats should fight for progressive values and offer a clear contrast to Trump and the Republican Party. Stop undermining progressive values."
As Saikat Chakrabarti, executive director of Justice Democrats, sees it, the DCCC is waging "an all-out war against progressives."
"Poll after poll is showing overwhelming support for progressive issues. Across the country, an unprecedented number of grassroots activists are demanding healthcare as a right, a ban on assault weapons, and action on economic and racial inequality," he said.
"Despite this, the DCCC is doubling down on a strategy to court moderate Republicans and the billionaire class instead of the progressive wing of their own party," he continued. "Now that progressives are threatening major upsets against their hand-picked candidates in upcoming primaries, the DCCC has begun an all-out war against progressives."
"Their attacks on Laura Moser's campaign, their internal memos directing their candidates to stand down on fighting for gun reform and Medicare for All--these are not just attacks on progressives but a completely incompetent strategy that will guarantee more losses," Chakrabarti argued.