is likely true. There really are two types of Democrats, and I think the “shotgun wedding” of the two is inherently unstable in even the medium-term.
Yes, they have been able to “patch things up” so far, but I wonder how long those patches will hold. A little rough terrain may well jar those two sides apart.
The Democratic merger between the corporate Left and traditional Leftism is clearly unnatural. The old Leftists like Sanders, and publications like The Nation, have become alarmed by the growing power of the oligarchic elites within the party as well as the accelerating movement of working class voters to the GOP. Given that all ten of the nation’s wealthiest congressional districts are now solidly Democratic, they have a point. As the radical publication Jacobin complained: “The Democratic base is getting richer and whiter.”
In fact, we are already seeing instances of “super-woke” (mainly younger) people attack entrenched Democrats. Manchin is having a dickens of a time holding things together and Sinema has declared as an Independent (though she still caucuses with Democrats).
Because if one is neither hot nor cold, one gets spit out of the mouth. A politician can’t just “ride the fence” for much longer. One must eventually stand for something.
But if one is wise, one sees obvious fissures.
Although Joe Biden is likely to hold much of this coalition together, particularly against Trump, the radicalisation of younger voters cannot bode well for Schultz, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg and similar corporate lords. Issues like January 6th, gender, race and climate may not be enough to hold the gentry Left and the progressives together but, soon enough, this alliance will not withstand the rising issues of class and labour that will define the future of politics throughout the West.
