Democrats for Demagoguery

Democrats for Demagoguery

I think it’s time to start a new political party: Democrats for Demagoguery.

I’ll give you three examples of why.

First there was the Dubai ports scandal. Sure, the uproar was bipartisan, but did any Democrat really believe that an Arab company couldn’t run a US port as badly as an American one?

Copy Link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
Bluesky
Pocket
Email

I think it’s time to start a new political party: Democrats for Demagoguery.

I’ll give you three examples of why.

First there was the Dubai ports scandal. Sure, the uproar was bipartisan, but did any Democrat really believe that an Arab company couldn’t run a US port as badly as an American one?

Then there was the furor over Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki offering so-called “amnesty” for insurgents who’ve killed American soldiers. It’s a disgusting proposition, but bringing insurgents into the political process is a critical step towards ending the violence. Democrats who favor a speedy withdrawal from Iraq should’ve known that.

And finally Democrats went off the rocker this week about Maliki’s denunciation of Israel’s bombing of Lebanon. Howard Dean, the man who once rightly noted that the US should be more “evenhanded” in the Middle East, yesterday called Maliki an “anti-Semite.” I’m sorry, but what do Democrats expect from a man whose government might get overthrown by Moqtada al-Sadr?

Our president is obtuse enough. He doesn’t need an assist from the opposition.

Support The Nation’s June Fundraising Campaign

With the midterm elections now firmly upon us, the question is whether Democratic candidates will do more than merely occupy ballot lines as mild alternatives to the red-hot crisis that is Donald Trump.

As Trump spends over $1 billion a day on a globally destabilizing war on Iran and admits that he doesn’t “think about Americans’ financial situation,” millions across the country are struggling with the surging costs of essentials. Democrats must seize this moment and advance bold, small-“d” populist ideas—not settle for cynical caution that once again snatches defeat from the jaws of victory.

The Nation elevates progressive ideas, movements, and elected officials achieving real change across the country into the national conversation. At the same time, our journalists are exposing how crypto and AI-funded super PACs are spending hundreds of millions of dollars to knock out candidates they oppose, reporting on the devastating impact of the Supreme Court’s evisceration of the Voting Rights Act, and sounding the alarm on attempts by red states to quickly redraw electoral maps, disenfranchising Southern Black voters.

We can play this critical role because of support from readers like you. This June, we’re raising $20,000 to power The Nation’s independent journalism in the run-up to November’s immensely consequential elections.

It’s in our power to build a more just society, and your support at this critical moment brings us closer to that bold vision. I hope you’ll donate today.

Onward,

Katrina vanden Heuvel
Editor and Publisher, The Nation

Ad Policy
x