Great article....and great ideas! I live in NY and I can't begin to tell you how much our two Senators have failed us. I would love to see some new blood challenge them but they use their positions to hand pick candidates. They are both pushing for Janet Mills for Senate...why???? They should just let it play out without interfering! The septuagenarians are running our party and it's time to stop. How I don't know...but it's killing us slowly.
On Mills, and the Democratic establishment’s penchant for wasting money on crap candidates; the end result of which is losing eminently winnable elections to GOP nimrods.
Corbin, my man, right on point as usual. Nuff said.
Is anybody listening? Pray for unity and leadership to make it happen now. No time to waste.
Our country is quickly spiraling into a deep dark anti-democratic hole at the hands of this administration and we may not be able to recover if leadership, fresh and tenured, don’t heed your clear warnings and unify, for the people, to take back our country right now.
I’m a 72yo mil pilot ret, then 20 yr OT, who worked my way through college on the back of a Carter era SETA program teaching welding to the under-employed in rural Pa. Without that leg up from the gov in the mid 70s none of that would have been possible. I’ve been a dem all my voting life, but when I saw Biden live in SC just before the Clyburne endorsement I knew I was looking at a political party that was a sputtering force. Recently I sent this idea directly to one of Clyburne’s aids (heard nothing back): the party needs to begin to exercise the atrophied muscles of popular unified resistance by announcing a Gandhi (nonviolent) style resistance program - announcing ‘no shopping Fridays’ to continue indefinitely. The semi boycott of spending would not include food and would not target any particular product or company. This idea came from sleepless nights worrying how to kickstart the kind of feedback loop for unity you talk about. Give the people SOMETHING to do!
I think you have your finger on the pulse of Americans, who are sick and tired of being used and tossed away like Kleenex. I don't think the system can be "reformed." We have elected people like Sanders and AOC, only to be disappointed time and time again. The people who make the decisions are not really in Congress, or the President. We need people who can stand up to these billionaire parasites.
I live in Loudon county and the resistance is growing - conditions on the ground are apparent. The problem, though, is as you state it. We need new, young, progressive leadership. We need to oust the dinosaurs of the party and reclaim (big D) democratic roots. We need a new New Deal, the populist resistance spark of Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie, the working class concern of Roosevelt, Perkins, Ickes, the religious leaders, Ryan and Haas, who spoke truth to the faithful and grass roots support from unions, universities.
The New Deal's "3 Rs" were Relief, Recovery, and Reform - more relevant in today's political, environmental and economic cesspools than ever before. But we will never get there if the bought and paid for politicians-for-life are not replaced. The talent is out there - you named them. But the party machine will buck them with funds, fear and falsehoods. The old order must be demolished to make way for the new. We are all empowered to bring that about if we support progressive candidates – not just with donations, but with our voices. Talk to your family, friends, neighbors, contact progressive groups and share the vision needed to unite and drive the change we must achieve. This country belongs to all of US and power belongs to the people – not entrenched politicians, billionaires or authoritarians.
Agree about new leadership, but in reality, the power doesn’t belong to the people, and it hasn’t since the national was founded. We can’t successfully reform what we don’t understand, and most Americans are clueless about the real levers of power. It’s all about tripartite governance, and the civics propaganda we got in school led us to think the tripartite was executive, legislative, and judicial (the Madisonian mythology); when in fact, the Madisonian element is the weakest leg on the three-legged stool. The other two legs, the Trumanist national security state, and the oligarchal deep state consisting of overworld (legacy and tech wealth) and underworld (organized crime) are far more powerful when it comes to policy implementation.
Hmm. This piece echos and better amplifies so much of what I’ve advocating; see my substatck where I expand on all this, per the vehicle of Jon Stewart’s interview with Ken Miller, and what you think of the Tyranny of the Binary (?). My thought’s thus far are certainly only semi coherent.. but its good to see a bunch of us concluding that the lack of ‘leaders’ per se is not the problem. Thanks and keep it up!
I agree with you, Corbin. What next? It seems to me the only way this enormous energy gets channeled in a positive way is for grassroots groups to engage in campaigns that focus on local needs. Real leadership -- and candidates -- will then emerge from unexpected places. That is what will exert pressure on the national party to back those candidates instead of primarying them with so-called centrists.
People don't rebel because they have hate or anger at the system or because they've been introduced to new ideas that they've never heard before that open up something in their heart that they never knew existed.
They rebel because they have no other choice. They are not radical people naturally. They rebel because they literally have nothing left to lose. No hope, no future, and no redeeming value left in their lives. That's why so many get sucked into false hope and/or false hate. A new world is possible.
Until all of us become politically active (as much as we can, even just calling your reps and senators once a week) to advocate for the policies we want, nothing happens and it’s business as usual. Donate what you can to progressive candidates, not the DNC. Volunteer locally, attend town council meetings, local Dem Party meetings. Speak up for what you want. The right wing of the Republicans did this for years, building power from the bottom up. They took over because we forgot that it’s only a Republic if we can keep it.
So if not now - when??? That is the problem that I have been highlighting to Corbin over the last few weeks but like the DNC .... silence and inaction. Pathetic, no leadership but lot's of Political Pimps!
That is exactly what will happen unless we take the time to sort through them & choose wisely. I think the idea of a Dem shadow cabinet (like the Brits do) would make sense.
I agree that what's missing is Unity and working together. There is talent and vision but no coordinating the development. Our system is built on competition. Right now we need more cooperation.
I agree with you but am not as pessimistic about the growing force of the resistance. Every day Trump and MAGA become more unhinged and people are becoming more and more angry. I believe as we get closer to midterms and ‘28 the leaders will emerge and the “centrist” Dems are not going to cut it. Schumer and Jeffries are proving their incompetence with their big donor, establishment approach. Cooperation has already begun with East and West states on healthcare and more will be coming. Most people dismiss the idea but I believe AOC will take the mantle for ‘28. She is right on the issues and will be our best antidote to Trumpism. We’ll see what happens. Long way to go.
She’s not really showing a willingness to go up against the party. I think that’s the critical distinction that I’m waiting to see. A reformer must begin with the reform of the opposition party by making it able to fight for transformation. Dems are less popular that even Trump and Republicans at this point. That’s a bad sign.
Yes but….Dems are historically unpopular largely because their own base is pissed at their lack of fight. That will change when it counts and they’re finally starting to show some fight.
I think the labor unions can be the bridge for us. They have the right solidarity mindset. They have the logistical organization tools and they have the concrete, specific economic examples for people. I went to a fundraiser for a Texas Senate candidate named Taylor Rehmet. He's very young and a first-time politician. He is a veteran, a machinist and a labor union leader running as a Democrat.
During the party, the doorbell rang. Kevin Burge, another young veteran who is a labor union member and is running for Congress as a Democrat showed up. He stood up to speak. The first words out of his mouth were, I'm not here to take anything from Taylor. I don't want your donations (yet). I am here in solidarity with my brother union member.
Watched it and was disappointed. Both dodged many questions with canned talking points. It's insulting to hear pols of all stripes do this. It shows a lack of respect for the public asking the question and their submission (don't say anything bad about the leadership in public) to the corrupted system that needs to be dismantled.
Third party now or we and the planet are doomed. The democrats are irreformable genocidal corporate imperialists and do not deserve working people’s support. No kings marches (they are not protests) are sponsored by such monsters (the very hypocrites who have bypassed democracy in the last THREE primaries). Until we build a party not beholden to corporate rulers, with true representatives of the working people (Butch Ware, etc), nothing will change. No plan that involves reforming the dems from within should be given serious consideration.
Great article, Corbin! We went to San Mateo, California's NO KINGS yesterday and had a great time! I will share your article on my FB and Bluesky pages!
Great article....and great ideas! I live in NY and I can't begin to tell you how much our two Senators have failed us. I would love to see some new blood challenge them but they use their positions to hand pick candidates. They are both pushing for Janet Mills for Senate...why???? They should just let it play out without interfering! The septuagenarians are running our party and it's time to stop. How I don't know...but it's killing us slowly.
On Mills, and the Democratic establishment’s penchant for wasting money on crap candidates; the end result of which is losing eminently winnable elections to GOP nimrods.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tg1MSQ4A0uI&t=889s
Corbin, my man, right on point as usual. Nuff said.
Is anybody listening? Pray for unity and leadership to make it happen now. No time to waste.
Our country is quickly spiraling into a deep dark anti-democratic hole at the hands of this administration and we may not be able to recover if leadership, fresh and tenured, don’t heed your clear warnings and unify, for the people, to take back our country right now.
Thanks Corbin.
Thanks for saying so. I’m working to expand the volume of my voice and add others to chorus.
I’m a 72yo mil pilot ret, then 20 yr OT, who worked my way through college on the back of a Carter era SETA program teaching welding to the under-employed in rural Pa. Without that leg up from the gov in the mid 70s none of that would have been possible. I’ve been a dem all my voting life, but when I saw Biden live in SC just before the Clyburne endorsement I knew I was looking at a political party that was a sputtering force. Recently I sent this idea directly to one of Clyburne’s aids (heard nothing back): the party needs to begin to exercise the atrophied muscles of popular unified resistance by announcing a Gandhi (nonviolent) style resistance program - announcing ‘no shopping Fridays’ to continue indefinitely. The semi boycott of spending would not include food and would not target any particular product or company. This idea came from sleepless nights worrying how to kickstart the kind of feedback loop for unity you talk about. Give the people SOMETHING to do!
Please read From Dictatorship to Democracy by Dr Gene Sharp and share it.
Hello Becky... DJT is the Anti-Christ, Pray for Divine Intervention...
I think you have your finger on the pulse of Americans, who are sick and tired of being used and tossed away like Kleenex. I don't think the system can be "reformed." We have elected people like Sanders and AOC, only to be disappointed time and time again. The people who make the decisions are not really in Congress, or the President. We need people who can stand up to these billionaire parasites.
Maybe Corbin is wetting our whistles, seeing if we have the gumption to support his campaign. Ill be your Huckleberry boss, let's do this.
I live in Loudon county and the resistance is growing - conditions on the ground are apparent. The problem, though, is as you state it. We need new, young, progressive leadership. We need to oust the dinosaurs of the party and reclaim (big D) democratic roots. We need a new New Deal, the populist resistance spark of Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie, the working class concern of Roosevelt, Perkins, Ickes, the religious leaders, Ryan and Haas, who spoke truth to the faithful and grass roots support from unions, universities.
The New Deal's "3 Rs" were Relief, Recovery, and Reform - more relevant in today's political, environmental and economic cesspools than ever before. But we will never get there if the bought and paid for politicians-for-life are not replaced. The talent is out there - you named them. But the party machine will buck them with funds, fear and falsehoods. The old order must be demolished to make way for the new. We are all empowered to bring that about if we support progressive candidates – not just with donations, but with our voices. Talk to your family, friends, neighbors, contact progressive groups and share the vision needed to unite and drive the change we must achieve. This country belongs to all of US and power belongs to the people – not entrenched politicians, billionaires or authoritarians.
Agree about new leadership, but in reality, the power doesn’t belong to the people, and it hasn’t since the national was founded. We can’t successfully reform what we don’t understand, and most Americans are clueless about the real levers of power. It’s all about tripartite governance, and the civics propaganda we got in school led us to think the tripartite was executive, legislative, and judicial (the Madisonian mythology); when in fact, the Madisonian element is the weakest leg on the three-legged stool. The other two legs, the Trumanist national security state, and the oligarchal deep state consisting of overworld (legacy and tech wealth) and underworld (organized crime) are far more powerful when it comes to policy implementation.
https://substack.com/inbox/post/176216221?utm_source=podcast-email&publication_id=4149341&post_id=176216221&play_audio=true&utm_campaign=email-play-on-substack&utm_content=watch_now_button&r=eov1&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email
Hmm. This piece echos and better amplifies so much of what I’ve advocating; see my substatck where I expand on all this, per the vehicle of Jon Stewart’s interview with Ken Miller, and what you think of the Tyranny of the Binary (?). My thought’s thus far are certainly only semi coherent.. but its good to see a bunch of us concluding that the lack of ‘leaders’ per se is not the problem. Thanks and keep it up!
I agree with you, Corbin. What next? It seems to me the only way this enormous energy gets channeled in a positive way is for grassroots groups to engage in campaigns that focus on local needs. Real leadership -- and candidates -- will then emerge from unexpected places. That is what will exert pressure on the national party to back those candidates instead of primarying them with so-called centrists.
People don't rebel because they have hate or anger at the system or because they've been introduced to new ideas that they've never heard before that open up something in their heart that they never knew existed.
They rebel because they have no other choice. They are not radical people naturally. They rebel because they literally have nothing left to lose. No hope, no future, and no redeeming value left in their lives. That's why so many get sucked into false hope and/or false hate. A new world is possible.
I think we’re in the process of sorting out leadership. It’s premature (and a bit authoritarian-adjacent) to jump to one leader prematurely.
What makes you think such a thing?
Until all of us become politically active (as much as we can, even just calling your reps and senators once a week) to advocate for the policies we want, nothing happens and it’s business as usual. Donate what you can to progressive candidates, not the DNC. Volunteer locally, attend town council meetings, local Dem Party meetings. Speak up for what you want. The right wing of the Republicans did this for years, building power from the bottom up. They took over because we forgot that it’s only a Republic if we can keep it.
So if not now - when??? That is the problem that I have been highlighting to Corbin over the last few weeks but like the DNC .... silence and inaction. Pathetic, no leadership but lot's of Political Pimps!
How well did that work with Harris?
No one jumped to Harris. She was pushed on us and that was the problem. She was the old guard defending itself
That is exactly what will happen unless we take the time to sort through them & choose wisely. I think the idea of a Dem shadow cabinet (like the Brits do) would make sense.
I agree that what's missing is Unity and working together. There is talent and vision but no coordinating the development. Our system is built on competition. Right now we need more cooperation.
You are exactly right. Capturing the energy and directing it to create a better government is the challenge. We must meet it.
I agree with you but am not as pessimistic about the growing force of the resistance. Every day Trump and MAGA become more unhinged and people are becoming more and more angry. I believe as we get closer to midterms and ‘28 the leaders will emerge and the “centrist” Dems are not going to cut it. Schumer and Jeffries are proving their incompetence with their big donor, establishment approach. Cooperation has already begun with East and West states on healthcare and more will be coming. Most people dismiss the idea but I believe AOC will take the mantle for ‘28. She is right on the issues and will be our best antidote to Trumpism. We’ll see what happens. Long way to go.
She’s not really showing a willingness to go up against the party. I think that’s the critical distinction that I’m waiting to see. A reformer must begin with the reform of the opposition party by making it able to fight for transformation. Dems are less popular that even Trump and Republicans at this point. That’s a bad sign.
Yes but….Dems are historically unpopular largely because their own base is pissed at their lack of fight. That will change when it counts and they’re finally starting to show some fight.
I think the labor unions can be the bridge for us. They have the right solidarity mindset. They have the logistical organization tools and they have the concrete, specific economic examples for people. I went to a fundraiser for a Texas Senate candidate named Taylor Rehmet. He's very young and a first-time politician. He is a veteran, a machinist and a labor union leader running as a Democrat.
During the party, the doorbell rang. Kevin Burge, another young veteran who is a labor union member and is running for Congress as a Democrat showed up. He stood up to speak. The first words out of his mouth were, I'm not here to take anything from Taylor. I don't want your donations (yet). I am here in solidarity with my brother union member.
Someone mused if AOC was “smart”enough…seems like she is to me. And willing so far (which is huge). Your thoughts?
Not that one leader would be enough to take on huge out-of-the-box change. Bernie is so repetitive. And she’s his understudy.
Did you watch their town hall on CNN this week. So damn inspiring, I wouldn’t underestimate or dismiss their appeal.
Watched it and was disappointed. Both dodged many questions with canned talking points. It's insulting to hear pols of all stripes do this. It shows a lack of respect for the public asking the question and their submission (don't say anything bad about the leadership in public) to the corrupted system that needs to be dismantled.
Disagree
Third party now or we and the planet are doomed. The democrats are irreformable genocidal corporate imperialists and do not deserve working people’s support. No kings marches (they are not protests) are sponsored by such monsters (the very hypocrites who have bypassed democracy in the last THREE primaries). Until we build a party not beholden to corporate rulers, with true representatives of the working people (Butch Ware, etc), nothing will change. No plan that involves reforming the dems from within should be given serious consideration.
Great article, Corbin! We went to San Mateo, California's NO KINGS yesterday and had a great time! I will share your article on my FB and Bluesky pages!