The hardest thing for old people to do is let go and accept that the job requires younger more energetic and dynamic people. It is the scurge of politics everywhere. AOC is the right person for the job, telling her "one day" is just not good enough.
(1) She isn't "far left" (or, if she's YOUR idea of far left, then you're on the right)
(2) The Dem leadership has been fine with being a center-right party on the global scale for decades. There's a lot of us here who want more for the people as a whole, not just stock portfolios.
@aoc.bsky.social is not why millions of ppl didn't vote last month. Dems have a decades-old communication/strategy/ego/chutzpah problem. Dems would be smart to capitalize on AOC's and Pete Buttigieg's skills. Biden's losing the 2020 Iowa Dem primary to Buttigieg should've been the turning point.
I get shit for saying this, but I think anybody over the age of 70 deserves retirement and everyone of these representatives who fit into this category need to ride off into the sunset and enjoy their golden years.
No disrespect meant. In fact, I find it more respectful.
I think an underdiscussed aspect of this is democrats constantly tell people that “representation matters.” That mantra seems to apply to every except for younger people. I broke the population into quarters by size all being around 25% of the population. Young people are massively underrepresented.
First, let me say that I truly appreciate and enjoy your writing. I am just a simple man who sees things in a simple way. Do you think that Nancy Pelosi may hold some resentment towards AOC for being part of The Squad? She was a small thorn in her side when she had such a small majority as Speaker.
Like too many pols, they don’t want to leave the stage, forsake the limelight, and cede whatever power they may have. Their ‘shtick’ isn’t working very well in today’s world. It would be better if they graciously bugged off. They had a good run. Savor it!
I would like to see some of the middle-rung Democrats move ahead in strength. I love AOC, but she's not the only one who should be calling the shots. I'd put my money on people like Jim McGovern (MA-2).
The reason AOC lost to Connolly is because she does not cater to the pro Israeli donors. They do not want her anywhere near a leadership position. I don't know why this doesn't get more attention.
sorry but i gotta firmly disagree that they had a good run.
so much of the situation we're in is because of the fecklessness of dem leadership, they've done an objectively awful job for years and keep rewarding themselves.
Your points are well taken. But I think it is an AOC problem in particular. I would love to see Rep.Crockett in that role. But she hasn't been there long enough. I am, however, not sure why Schumer is still there. And frankly Raskin is awesome.
What exactly is their issue with Aoc? Inexperience?
Pelosi was once in those shoes.
I think any way forward in 28 has got to have younger ideas and the mental and physical strength to persevere.
Not her inexperience. Her attitude and her stance on the Middle East. IMO, they still see her as the newbie who tried to cross Nancy the first day in Congress.
Thus she can never advance?
And quite honestly Pelosi has had misteps in her own career.
She [Aoc] was not elected by her constituents to be meek and obedient. She may rub some folks the wrong way but I like her.
Unlike Fetterman who I voted for and has been a disappointment so far.
She can, and she has. I'm just giving an explanation of why this happened now. And I agree about Fetterman. He has really become a disappointment. And that very well may be due to the stroke he had.
4. Pelosi is no longer the speaker, but she still acts like she is. She advocated openly for Virginia Congressman Gerry Connolly, 74, to be the next ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, after Maryland’s Jamie Raskin left it.
6. They could have picked New York’s Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, 35, who would have come to the leadership with her “far-reaching public platform, her ability to communicate and her energetic support for colleagues in recent congressional elections,” Axios reported.
Such a slap in the face for those of us who voted. Losing Kamala was bad but to have Pelosi throw her ‘past sell by date’ choice out and screw AOC is unforgivable. We must get rid of the old farts. I do believe that the accumulated experience is valuable but they need to b the mentors.
i agree. this was a geezer power play.
im sick of it. im 70 i have seen the elderly tear up this country over and over. term limts 4 years no salary no stock options
Two years later, in 2022, the times called for a careful, purposeful, and scalable transition to innovative and populist policy making, media driven messaging strategies, and more aggressive tactics in Congress, as well as more generally throughout the political landscape.
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In 2024, the times have called for the completion of that transition to coherent and purposeful politics, spearheaded by media savvy communicators and aggressive political fighters, who will develop and lead an effective opposition to the GOP and the oligarchs.
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My only quibble as an old guy myself, is that the current problems confronting the Democratic Party are not a direct result of the age of its leadership, but rather intransigence in the face of radical changes to how politics is conducted and utter lack of political imagination at a crucial time.
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It's ageist to suggest (as many commenters have done and as the thread itself implies) thatngetting rid of older officials will automatically fix the Party.
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Age is one factor, institutional inertia, poor succession rules within the Party, and complacency mixed with fear being far more toxic that Pelosi's birthdate.
Age alone isn't the cause, but more a symptom of the complex set of problems that Democrats are failing to adequately address.
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It's definitely time for some of these senior citizen Democrats to go enjoy their well-earned retirement and pass the torch to the younger generation. There was a time and place and they played their part. It's time to move on and take the fight to the GOP. Playing nice doesn't win now.
What you've done is make a great case for why Connolly doesn't deserve this role. Well done. What you've not done is make a case for why AOC does. AOC and the Squad voted *against* Biden's infrastructure bill, and *against* asset seizure of Rus. oligarchs for UKR reconstruction.
He wouldn’t budge so she accommodated him. She couldn’t do anything about the Senate filibuster. You can blame Pelosi. That’s fair. I blame Lieberman more.
I am so done with Pelosi. Like RBG, Pelosi has destroyed her legacy by letting her hubris and need for power take precedence over what is good for the country. A sad and destructive end to an otherwise illustrious career
I totally agree!! It's time for younger people like AOC. We are fighting a war here, it's us against the rich. The Dems have held our country together so far but, look where we are now, we are on very shaky ground!!
Been done. Unless and until the Dems make huge reform I’ll be voting Socialist, Green or even not at all…. Finished with all the stays qua, center right, neoliberal, corporate bullshit.
All politicians, whether there’s a D or an R after their name, accepts bribes. Our owners wouldn’t allow them to represent a national party if they didn’t.
If you need proof, look no further than 2015. Democratic leadership would rather have Trump as president than Bernie as candidate.
Thank you for this Thread. It is the TRUTH that needed to be said and Dems are afraid of saying. If we are going win back our Democracy there needs to be BIG changes with the Democrats. They are just as much at fault to getting Trump elected as the MAGA & Musk.
Comments
(2) The Dem leadership has been fine with being a center-right party on the global scale for decades. There's a lot of us here who want more for the people as a whole, not just stock portfolios.
No disrespect meant. In fact, I find it more respectful.
Pelosi is like the Denver Broncos or Washington State Cougars.
They get to the championship round, and then they fumble.
That's what her legacy will be.
In sabotaging Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s bid for leadership of the Oversight Committee, party elders have doubled down on a failed strategy. Time for a change! https://newrepublic.com/article/189500/pelosi-aoc-oversight-committee-democrats
Right now is the time for Democratic activists to point the way forward. Not by blaming "The" Democrats but by "We" Democrats showing the way forward.
Pelosi has been wonderful with a lot of great accomplishments to her credit.
She is now just the "historical knowledge base" that has some value.
PASS THE BATON
so much of the situation we're in is because of the fecklessness of dem leadership, they've done an objectively awful job for years and keep rewarding themselves.
Pelosi was once in those shoes.
I think any way forward in 28 has got to have younger ideas and the mental and physical strength to persevere.
And quite honestly Pelosi has had misteps in her own career.
She [Aoc] was not elected by her constituents to be meek and obedient. She may rub some folks the wrong way but I like her.
Unlike Fetterman who I voted for and has been a disappointment so far.
"Editorial Board" of what? There are only a few hundred thousand editorial boards in this country alone. Are you pretending to be one of them?
This is now.
I am done.
https://www.axios.com/2024/12/17/aoc-loses-gerry-connolly-democrats-oversight
im sick of it. im 70 i have seen the elderly tear up this country over and over. term limts 4 years no salary no stock options
I wholeheartedly agree that different points in time and different situations call for different approaches.
2020 called for stability and experience, which Pelosi, Biden, and Schumer brought by the boatload.
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Age alone isn't the cause, but more a symptom of the complex set of problems that Democrats are failing to adequately address.
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It's definitely time for some of these senior citizen Democrats to go enjoy their well-earned retirement and pass the torch to the younger generation. There was a time and place and they played their part. It's time to move on and take the fight to the GOP. Playing nice doesn't win now.
She lost me years ago when she killed the public option for the ACA.
All politicians, whether there’s a D or an R after their name, accepts bribes. Our owners wouldn’t allow them to represent a national party if they didn’t.
If you need proof, look no further than 2015. Democratic leadership would rather have Trump as president than Bernie as candidate.