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Pennsylvania Democrats are trying to show they can be populists, too.

When Gov. Josh Shapiro took office in January, he sent a symbolic message by using his first executive order to end the four-year college degree requirement for most state government jobs. Sen. John Fetterman campaigned as a Democrat who would fight for forgotten communities. And as U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio has started his first term representing a Western Pennsylvania district, hes delivered sharp criticism of the incompetence and greed of big corporations such as Norfolk Southern.

Its about building a government that serves everyone, not just the rich and powerful, said Deluzio, a Navy veteran and Georgetown Law graduate whose congressional bio emphasizes his work helping form a union at the University of Pittsburgh.

As politics in Pennsylvania and nationally have shifted, and Republicans have gained ground with white working-class voters epitomized by Donald Trumps crucial victory in the state in 2016 the GOP has portrayed Democrats as the party of a snobbish elite, attacking liberals as scolds who have lost touch with everyday workers while trying to impose their views on race, gender, guns, and the environment.

Some of it is just cultural, and the label of the Democratic Party right now just doesnt appeal to some parts of Pennsylvania that they used to appeal to really well, said Nick Trainer, a Republican strategist who worked on Trumps 2020 reelection campaign.

But Democrats argue theyve always been and remain the true party of working people. They say their policies, including support for labor unions, expanded health-care access, and a higher minimum wage, offer tangible help for the working class while Republicans have pushed tax cuts and deregulation that benefit the wealthy and corporations.

But populism a broad term often used to convey everyday peoples attitudes and anger toward the powerful isnt only about policy ideas. Its often about image and approach.

We dont have to overthink it and out-policy the other folks, said Rebecca Kirszner Katz, Fettermans longtime strategist. We have to be smart and remind people what we stand for and how well fight for them. Its not that complicated, and weve just done a terrible job of explaining it.

While some on the Democratic side, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.), have embraced populism, railing against financial elites, Trump channeled it most emphatically in his 2016 victory. He blended white racial grievances with raw fury at the establishments in both parties, which he said had sold out ordinary workers. It was hugely successful in some culturally conservative parts of Pennsylvania that had lost much of their industry and that finally broke with their Democratic roots.

Despite Trumps wealth and a business career catering to the upper crust, he made disaffected voters feel seen, Katz said. A lot of Democratic politicians were very clinical.

Democrats have tried to correct for that, nominating more plain-spoken candidates such as Fetterman and President Joe Biden. And theyve used suspicion of wealthy elites in their own way, attacking last years GOP Senate nominee in Pennsylvania, Mehmet Oz, as a rich out-of-stater, and using a similar approach against David McCormick, a former hedge-fund executive eyeing another Senate bid in 2024.

Pennsylvania has a higher than average share of voters who didnt attend college, giving much of it a blue-collar culture and worldview.

You cant win Pennsylvania if youre not able to appeal to non-college voters, said J.J. Balaban, a Democratic strategist based in Philadelphia.

He argues Democrats have always been the party of the working class, but its become more important to emphasize as Trump and his imitators have adopted populist rhetoric, if not policies.

For Democrats, populism is about economics. For Republicans, its largely about cultural grievances, Balaban said.

The Norfolk Southern train derailment near the Pennsylvania-Ohio border presents a prime target for anger at big business.

Shapiro told The Inquirer about a conversation with a woman in Beaver County, which borders East Palestine, Ohio, the site of the crash. Her family had lost several dozen eggs from their family chickens and this was real money for them and important for their family income.

Shapiro said that when he met with Norfolk Southerns top executive, he cited that story as he pushed the railroad to provide aid.

That kind of stuff happens when you show up, treat people with respect, listen, and then are willing to take on the powerful, Shapiro said, a theme he came back to several times in a late March interview.

Changing the states hiring rules, he said, would expand opportunities for people who didnt attend college. It tangibly affects only a sliver of jobs, but the fact that Shapiro made that move his first official act illustrates the political imperative of showing working-class appeal.

Fetterman rarely emphasized specific policy ideas during his campaign, but his image as the tattooed mayor of a hard-hit steel town was a powerful marker. Katz said his success came down to something more fundamental.

He talks to people like theyre on the same level as him, Katz said. One of the bigger problems with Democrats in the past is that they have spoken down to voters, and John never spoke down to anyone.

While Katz worries some Democrats are still too concerned about appealing to wealthy donors, others appear more comfortable channeling anger and frustration, even as their victories in recent elections have depended significantly on voters from affluent suburbs.

Who we are in Western Pennsylvania, our identity, our history, is wrapped up and tied to the labor movement, and its tied to fighting for working people, said Deluzio, whose district straddles the Pittsburgh suburbs and more blue-collar Beaver County.

His guest at his first State of the Union speech was a mailer on strike from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Many voters, Deluzio said, are right to feel angry about being harmed by businesses and politicians.

Folks were mad for a reason, one that I think is fair and valid: They saw jobs and factories ripped away, he said.

Fettermans pledge to stand up for forgotten communities echoed some of the language that once helped propel Trump.

While the start of his Senate career has been stunted by a hospitalization for depression treatment, Fettermans public statements so far have targeted corporate greed and accused oil companies of disgusting price gouging.

And Bidens approach toward reelection was on full display in his most recent visit to Philadelphia, where he told a room full of union members, For too long, working people have been breaking their necks ... while those at the top get away with everything.

Going after corporations and the ultrarich is overwhelmingly popular, and the fact that many Democrats dont do that is political malpractice, Katz said.

READ MORE:Bidens Philadelphia visit sets the stage for his clash with the GOP, and maybe for his reelection bid

Fettermans victory last year over Oz, for example, was driven by a devastating blitz casting Oz as a rich celebrity from New Jersey who couldnt relate to ordinary Pennsylvanians.

Democrats are already running a similar strategy against McCormick, who ran against Oz last year and is considering another campaign in 2024. They point to his immense wealth, expensive homes, and years leading a hedge fund.

So much of the attacks that worked on Oz can also work on McCormick, Katz said.

McCormick has countered by emphasizing his time growing up in rural Pennsylvania, working on his familys Christmas tree farm, wrestling in high school, and then fighting in the first Iraq War.

As with Trump, populism isnt always an obvious fit.

Shapiro, for example, is an attorney from one of the states wealthiest counties. He has made his career climbing the political ranks and has also won praise from the business community for some of his early steps.

The governor is always going to read like the corporate lawyer in the boardroom, said Trainer, the Republican strategist. You can put him in a polo and a quarter-zip all you want, hes still not going to be an everyman. He never will be.

Shapiro says helping working people is less about where youre from than what you do.

Its about your point of view or your state of mind and your focus on taking on the big fights for the people of Pennsylvania, Shapiro said. And then being willing for years and years and years to show up in their communities and show them respect ... and then go back and show them the results of your work.

Originally posted here:
Pa. Democrats aim to appeal to working-class voters with policy, symbolism, and some anger - The Philadelphia Inquirer

In some ways, it was the turn of events Democratic voters had dreamed of and some of the partys lawmakers had long demanded: After years of telling lies, shattering norms, inciting a riot at the Capitol and being impeached twice, Donald J. Trump on Thursday became the first former president to face criminal charges.

Weve been waiting for the dam to break for six years, declared Carter Hudgins, 73, a retired professor from Charleston, S.C. It should have happened a long time ago, added his wife, Donna Hudgins, 71, a retired librarian.

But as the gravity of the moment sank in, Democratic voters, party officials and activists across the country absorbed the news of Mr. Trumps extraordinary indictment with a more complex set of reactions. Their feelings ranged from jubilation and vindication to anxieties about the substance of the case, concerns that it could heighten Mr. Trumps standing in his party and fears that in such a polarized environment, Republicans would struggle to muster basic respect for the rule of law as the facts unfolded.

They are going to treat him as if he is Jesus Christ himself on a cross being persecuted, said Representative Jasmine Crockett, a Texas Democrat from Dallas who worked as a criminal defense lawyer before she was elected to Congress last year. She blasted Republican arguments that the charges were politically motivated, saying, We knew the type of person Trump was when he got elected the first time.

Mr. Trump, who polls show is the leading Republican contender for the 2024 presidential nomination, was indicted on Thursday by a special grand jury in connection with his role in hush-money payments to a porn star. He was charged with more than two dozen counts, though the specifics are not yet known.

The race begins. Four years after a historically large number of candidates ran for president, the field for the 2024 campaignis starting out small and is likely to be headlined by the same two men who ran last time: President Biden and Donald Trump. Heres who has entered the race so far, and who else might run:

Donald Trump. The former president is running to retake the office he lost in 2020. Though somewhat diminished in influencewithin the Republican Party and facing several legal investigations he retains a large and committed base of supporters, and he could be aided in the primary by multiple challengers splitting a limited anti-Trump vote.

President Biden. While Biden has not formally declared his candidacy for a second term, and there has been much hand-wringing among Democratsover whether he should seek re-election givenhis age, he is widely expected to run. If he does, Bidens strategyis to frame the race as a contest between a seasoned leader and a conspiracy-minded opposition.

Marianne Williamson. The self-help author and former spiritual adviser to Oprah Winfrey is the first Democrat to formally enter the race. Kicking off her second presidential campaign, Williamson called Biden a weak choice and said the party shouldnt fear a primary. Few in Democratic politics are taking her entry into the race seriously.

It is one in a swirl of investigations Mr. Trump faces, on a range of explosive matters including his handling of sensitive government documents after leaving office and whether he and his allies criminally interfered with the 2020 presidential election. He could face multiple other indictments.

But the one this week, centered on a tawdry episode that predates Mr. Trumps time in the White House, struck some Democrats as a sharp contrast in substance with the other possible charges against the former president. Some felt conflicted between their view that no one is above the law, while wondering if this particular case will be worth the chaos for the country, especially when there may be other, bigger targets.

He isnt above the law and anyone who suggests otherwise is un-American, said Matt Bennett, a co-founder of Third Way, a centrist Democratic organization. The question is, is it worth it for this crime?

In Littleton, N.H., Bernd Weber, 65, a dentist, said he was glad the grand jury had voted to indict Mr. Trump, but he worried about the former presidents ability to spin it to make it look like a witch hunt, and there are people that are buying that.

There were any number of things that he could have been indicted for, and this was probably the least of them, he said.

Other Democrats made clear that while they welcomed this indictment, they believed Mr. Trump should be held accountable for far more.

No one is above the law, Representative Barbara Lee, a liberal California lawmaker now running for Senate, wrote on Twitter. Now do the rest of his crimes.

Jon Hurdle contributed reporting from Littleton, N.H., and Melissa Delaney from Charleston, S.C.

Continued here:
Democrats Absorb Trumps Indictment With Joy, Vindication and ... - The New York Times

The recent sparring between Starbuckss longtime CEO Howard Schultz and Senator Bernie Sanders reflects a conflict within the Democratic Party that is likely to get far more intense in the years ahead. Sanders accused Schultz, a self-described progressive who once considered a presidential run, of conducting illegal union busting at the coffee chains shops something that the Starbucks CEO vehemently denied.

Schultz is finding out the hard way that liberal intentions are not enough to prevent his employees from seeking better wages and conditions. This dilemma mirrors that of his gentry progressive allies, who represent the Democrats increasingly affluent, well-educated base. They are now primary funders of the party and it is their agenda that has come to achieve dominance.

Read the rest of this piece at UnHerd.

Joel Kotkin is the author of The Coming of Neo-Feudalism: A Warning to the Global Middle Class. He is the Roger Hobbs Presidential Fellow in Urban Futures at Chapman University and Executive Director for Urban Reform Institute. Learn more at joelkotkin.com and follow him on Twitter @joelkotkin.

Link:
We Are On the Cusp of a Democrat Class War - newgeography.com

The only Democratic Party state lawmaker who voted against Gov. Gavin Newsom's bill that could punish oil refiners for making too much money has been stripped of a key legislative committee. Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains confirmed in a statement to KCRA 3 on Thursday night that Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon removed her from the Assembly's Business and Professions Committee. "While I am disappointed, I remain firm in my commitment to serve the interests of the people I was elected to represent," Bains said in a statement on Thursday. "I look forward to continuing to work with the Speaker and my colleagues to expand access to health care, provide good-paying jobs, and ensure our communities are safe." Bains represents parts of Kern County, an epicenter of California's oil industry. KCRA 3 reached out to Rendon Thursday afternoon to ask why Bains had been stripped of the committee. Rendon's office had not yet responded to the request for comment as of Thursday night. The development comes days after lawmakers in the Assembly gave the final stamp of approval on Newsom's measure that pushes oil refiners to be more transparent about their business practices and empowers state regulators to punish the companies when they make too much money off California drivers. Bains, who was the only Democratic Party lawmaker to vote no on the bill, tweeted that evening. Newsom's chief of staff, Dana Williamson, replied. When asked for comment, Newsom's office noted it has no role in deciding Assembly committee assignments. "It looks like political hard ball," said NBC Political Director, Chuck Todd. "I think there's a danger when you start to punish people like that, you could end up alienating swing voters." Todd said he anticipates seeing more public divides within California's democratic party, which holds a super majority in state government. "I think you'll see more tension like this as you get more business interests who decide the Republican party is useless in California," Todd said. "In this case, they found someone in oil who represents someone who may be impacted by it job wise."Todd said he's curious to see if party leaders will continue to be aggressive in creating a party machine that forces members to fall in line. "It's a slippery slope and usually leads to more problems than solutions," he said. Bains serves on other committees in the Assembly. She is the leader of the Aging and Long-Term Care Committee and is a member of the Accountability and Administrative Review Committee and the Revenue and Taxation Committee.

The only Democratic Party state lawmaker who voted against Gov. Gavin Newsom's bill that could punish oil refiners for making too much money has been stripped of a key legislative committee.

Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains confirmed in a statement to KCRA 3 on Thursday night that Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon removed her from the Assembly's Business and Professions Committee.

"While I am disappointed, I remain firm in my commitment to serve the interests of the people I was elected to represent," Bains said in a statement on Thursday. "I look forward to continuing to work with the Speaker and my colleagues to expand access to health care, provide good-paying jobs, and ensure our communities are safe."

Bains represents parts of Kern County, an epicenter of California's oil industry.

KCRA 3 reached out to Rendon Thursday afternoon to ask why Bains had been stripped of the committee. Rendon's office had not yet responded to the request for comment as of Thursday night.

The development comes days after lawmakers in the Assembly gave the final stamp of approval on Newsom's measure that pushes oil refiners to be more transparent about their business practices and empowers state regulators to punish the companies when they make too much money off California drivers.

Bains, who was the only Democratic Party lawmaker to vote no on the bill, tweeted that evening.

Newsom's chief of staff, Dana Williamson, replied.

When asked for comment, Newsom's office noted it has no role in deciding Assembly committee assignments.

"It looks like political hard ball," said NBC Political Director, Chuck Todd. "I think there's a danger when you start to punish people like that, you could end up alienating swing voters."

Todd said he anticipates seeing more public divides within California's democratic party, which holds a super majority in state government.

"I think you'll see more tension like this as you get more business interests who decide the Republican party is useless in California," Todd said. "In this case, they found someone in oil who represents someone who may be impacted by it job wise."

Todd said he's curious to see if party leaders will continue to be aggressive in creating a party machine that forces members to fall in line. "It's a slippery slope and usually leads to more problems than solutions," he said.

Bains serves on other committees in the Assembly. She is the leader of the Aging and Long-Term Care Committee and is a member of the Accountability and Administrative Review Committee and the Revenue and Taxation Committee.

See the original post here:
Lone Democrat who rejected Newsom's oil bill stripped of key committee - KCRA Sacramento

The governor of Michigan is considered one of her partys brightest stars. Her states Democratic-controlled Legislature is rapidly approving a raft of ambitious priorities. The Democratic Party is planning to host one of its earliest presidential primaries in Michigan, while the states Republican Party is in chaos.

Seven years after Michigan helped cement Donald J. Trumps presidential victory, the state has transformed into a new if fragile focal point of Democratic power, testing the promise and pitfalls of complete Democratic governance in one of the nations pre-eminent political battlegrounds.

Michigans Democratic leaders, however, recoil at the idea that their state once a reliable stronghold for the party in presidential years is turning blue once more.

No! Michigans not a blue state, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer insisted in an interview last week in Bay City, nestled in a windy, working-class county near Saginaw Bay that Mr. Trump won twice. Ms. Whitmer captured it too, prevailing there and across the state in Democrats November sweep.

It would be a mistake for anyone to look at that and think Michigan is not still a tossup, very competitive, very diverse state thats going to decide the outcome of the next national election again, she said.

Everybody thinks, Oh, Michigans done, its a blue state, added Representative Debbie Dingell, a Michigan Democrat. Tenuous is the operative word.

Against that backdrop significant victories last fall, in a state that is still closely divided state Democrats are pursuing a flood of liberal legislation, while measuring the durability of an unwieldy coalition that defeated Republicans in the last three elections.

Democratic triumphs were fueled by both moderate suburbanites and liberal city dwellers, left-wing college students and even some onetime Trump voters who thought their party had gone too far.

The state Republican Party is not reflective of the average Republican in Michigan, Ms. Whitmer said, nodding to the hard-right turn of the Michigan G.O.P. I dont think that everyones all of a sudden become Democrats.

Ms. Whitmer has cautioned against claiming political mandates.

But Democrats have moved assertively to act on their power, which includes full control of the Legislature and governors mansion for the first time in 40 years, focusing on both pocketbook priorities and cultural issues.

The race begins. Four years after a historically large number of candidates ran for president, the field for the 2024 campaignis starting out small and is likely to be headlined by the same two men who ran last time: President Biden and Donald Trump. Heres who has entered the race so far, and who else might run:

Donald Trump. The former president is running to retake the office he lost in 2020. Though somewhat diminished in influencewithin the Republican Party and facing several legal investigations he retains a large and committed base of supporters, and he could be aided in the primary by multiple challengers splitting a limited anti-Trump vote.

President Biden. While Biden has not formally declared his candidacy for a second term, and there has been much hand-wringing among Democratsover whether he should seek re-election givenhis age, he is widely expected to run. If he does, Bidens strategyis to frame the race as a contest between a seasoned leader and a conspiracy-minded opposition.

Marianne Williamson. The self-help author and former spiritual adviser to Oprah Winfrey is the first Democrat to formally enter the race. Kicking off her second presidential campaign, Williamson called Biden a weak choice and said the party shouldnt fear a primary. Few in Democratic politics are taking her entry into the race seriously.

They have shepherded through a major tax package, and, to the consternation of some in the business community, made Michigan the first state in nearly 60 years to repeal right-to-work rules, which had weakened organized labor. They have expanded L.G.B.T.Q. protections and pursued anti-gun violence measures, and have moved to repeal a now-unenforceable abortion ban from 1931.

Ms. Whitmer has also signed a measure moving up Michigans presidential primary, a move blessed by national Democrats, though it is unclear how Republicans will proceed.

If that calendar change takes hold, voters around the country who were once made intimately familiar with the Iowa State Fair may soon become acquainted with the Posen Potato Festival and a Michigan cheeseburger festival, as the state moves into a position of greater prominence in the Democratic nominating process.

Ms. Whitmers victory margin of nearly 11 percentage points on par or ahead of governors in several more liberal states has only encouraged a perception among many Democrats that she is possible presidential material.

But she insisted she would not run for president in 2024, regardless of President Bidens re-election plans. He is expected to run and would have strong support from party leaders including Ms. Whitmer, but has not yet announced a bid.

I have made a commitment to the people of Michigan, Im going to do this job till the end of this term, Ms. Whitmer said. Pressed on whether there was anything about the presidency that appealed down the road, she first demurred no, not at the moment before allowing, I think that this country is long overdue for a strong female chief executive.

Republicans, for their part, who as recently as 2018 controlled the state levers of power, are now adrift and divided. Ahead of what should be a marquee Senate race to succeed Senator Debbie Stabenow, a Democrat who is retiring, the challenge of nominating someone who would both survive a primary contest and thrive in a general election is growing more apparent by the week.

The state Republican Party is now helmed by an election denier, Kristina Karamo, who lost her November race for secretary of state by 14 points and has stoked doubts about her ability to run a serious operation.

People have concerns that the incumbent will have trouble raising money when she openly maligns the same donors she needs to bring in to help win the Senate race, said Gustavo Portela, a former spokesman for the Michigan Republican Party. Shell have a challenge being able to balance the grass roots and donors.

Ms. Karamo did not respond to requests for comment.

Just last week, the Michigan G.O.P. promoted an image on social media that compared efforts to curb gun violence with the Nazis theft of wedding rings from Holocaust victims, then defended the posts amid a backlash.

The Republican Party in Michigan is dead for the foreseeable future, said former Representative Dave Trott, who represented a suburban Detroit district as a Republican but now considers himself an independent, supporting Mr. Biden in 2020. Even if the right people were in charge, the MAGA movement is such that any candidate that would be more acceptable to a general electorate cant win the primary.

If Im Elissa Slotkin, he added, Im already trying to figure out which Senate building I want my office in.

The primary and the general elections for Senate are political lifetimes away, but Ms. Slotkin, a Democratic congresswoman from a competitive district, is currently in a commanding position in the race.

Several of the states highest-profile Democrats have passed on a Senate run, giving her running room in the primary, though a number of other Democrats hoping to see more representation of Black voters, Detroit voters, or both in the race could still get in.

Among Republicans, former Representative Peter Meijer, who voted to impeach Mr. Trump, is perhaps the best-known potential candidate. Kevin Rinke, who ran a largely self-funded Republican primary campaign for governor, has also been seen as a possible contender, among others. Both men lost primaries last year to far-right candidates who were then defeated in general elections.

Maggie Abboud, a spokeswoman for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said the committee had seen a number of strong potential candidates reach out.

Certainly, it is difficult to predict how the Democratic strength on display last fall will translate in 2024. The contests were defined in part by an extraordinary backlash to the overturning of Roe v. Wade and a major, successful initiative to enshrine abortion protections in the State Constitution and it is far too early to say what issues will be galvanizing next year.

Democrats benefited from a redistricting process. And party leaders freely acknowledge how quickly the political environment in the state can shift.

We were looking into the brink and decided to work our backsides off, Ms. Slotkin said. The minute you sleep on Michigan, it can go the other direction.

There were also warning signs in Wayne County, which is home to Detroit and the states largest population of Black Americans. Turnout was lower in 2022 than it was in the 2018 midterms.

We have an opportunity to do more, said Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II, himself a Detroiter. I certainly spent a lot of time with Black voters and particularly our younger voters and our Black male voters who weve got to make sure are deeply engaged, and that we invest in that engagement.

Still, the partys gains were significant, including signs of new inroads in white working-class territory that has become exceedingly difficult for Democrats around the country.

In my district, folks were outraged by Jan. 6, but if thats all you talk to them about, youre not going to win their vote, said State Senator Kristen McDonald Rivet, a Democrat whose seat includes parts of Bay County, and who emphasized both kitchen-table economic issues and abortion rights in her race.

By demonstrating that we are moving on real issues that people care about and doing it very aggressively with Democratic power, she said, she hoped Michiganders would believe that voting for a Democrat means things are going to get better.

Democrats were really demoralized after the Trump victory, and suddenly we are seeing people coming to party meetings again, she added. The Democratic trifecta in Michigan has mobilized Democrats in a way that I havent seen in a really long time.

But Ms. Dingell, the Democratic congresswoman, remains keenly focused on pro-Trump sentiment in the state, and she is already warning of another challenging election cycle, arguing that races up and down the ballot will be highly competitive.

We will be ground zero for every race, she said.

Originally posted here:
Michigan Democrats Rise, and Try to Turn a Battleground Blue - The New York Times