So much for a potential breakthrough to end a building fight between House Democrats’ official campaign committee and a number of members furious over their attempts to freeze out strategists who back primary candidates against incumbents.
A Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spokesman poured cold water on a possible compromise that Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) floated earlier on Monday that the campaign committee could limit its new rule blackballing vendors who work for primary opponents of their members to only swing districts as a possible compromise.
“We’re not going to put in place a policy that treats some members of our caucus differently than other members of our caucus,” the DCCC spokesman told TPM.
That staffer argued it would unfairly treat different incumbents differently, and claimed the new rule would do as much to help someone facing a challenge from the right as from the left.
“There’s not an ideological test of where we’re standing,” the staffer said. “We are implementing this, and there’s no plan to change. This would benefit someone like Omar, Tlaib or Ocasio Cortez as much as anyone else inside the caucus.”
Those members fiercely disagree — and Ocasio Cortez called on donors to stop giving to the DCCC. The ongoing fight risks hurting Democrats’ fundraising and deepening schisms within the caucus as members look to hold onto the House.
Also, the Tooth Fairy is real.
AOC is right. Election to Congress is for a 2 year term. If a Congressperson is doing a bang up job opposing him or her would be futile, but if a Congressperson isn’t doing his or her job opponents shouldn’t be frozen out. This rule is all about rich people wanting to protect their investments in Congress Critters.
I have no problem not donating to them again while they feel the need run a protection racket. I’m with AOC on donating directly to the candidates.
All things being equal, I’d agree that this is a bad proposal. But all things are not equal and having to defend Congressional seats in contentious primaries is really not where I think the party should be putting its resources right now. AOC’s, Tlaib’s and Pressley’s election show that this provision has not real practical effect. Too bad. I miss the fact that the caucus no longer has a tax expert like Capuano.
My issue is not with the DCCC trying to protect incumbents – that’s ostensibly why they were formed. It’s when they try to put a thumb on the scale in races where the seat is open that I get ticked off. If the DCCC had been successful here in Texas, John Culberson would still be a sitting Congressman – and not Lizzie Pannil Fletcher… I’ll take her winning back a seat that’s been held by Republicans since 1967 to AOC beating out an incumbent from a super-safe Democratic seat that phoned it in during the election.
AOC & company trying to Tea-Party people that aren’t progressively pure enough isn’t just stupid – it’s reckless. Super-polarized government doesn’t govern: it stalls & fails. And the surest way for us to lose the House and not pick up the Senate is to keep on this path.