Progressives in Washington are facing an existential crisis like never before as they prepare for the recent Trump administration.
Not only are they at odds with their own party, with many Democrats trying to blame them for their November losses, but some on the left are also clearly afraid that an emboldened Republican might operate their influence against their flank.
“What can we do effectively when they control everything?” said Joseph Geevarghese, who leads the grassroots organizing group Our Revolution. “They will use their state power against us. I think they will target the progressives. … It’s a very challenging moment.”
Progressives received their first post-election rebuke last week when Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) missed out on a key leadership post on the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, a sign that many of them have lost influence . In addition to rejecting her policies, her Democrats favored an older male candidate — Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), whose profile is similar to that of the congressman she ousted, former Rep. Joe Crowley (DN.Y.). six years.
Republicans, including President-elect Trump, publicly ridiculed their efforts.
“It’s a real shame that AOC lost the fight for the leadership seat in the Democratic Party. She should keep trying. One day she will succeed!” wrote Trump in a post on his Truth Social platform.
The loss is emblematic of an evolving political landscape that has proven challenging for progressives in recent cycles. The surge of energy in 2018 that helped create the Squad has waned, and some Democrats are questioning its future.
Trump’s rise to victory over Vice President Harris has all but wiped out the momentum that progressives had hoped would carry them forward on Capitol Hill. The Democrats’ main strategy against Trump was ineffective and progressives failed to differentiate themselves from other anti-Trump voices in the party.
While Ocasio-Cortez and her mentor, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), each have broad national appeal — they are popular among newborn people and working-class voters. Democrats say they need the most support to win back — but there’s still an open question about what exactly they can do going forward.
Some allies who helped advance the political careers of progressive lawmakers say members of the left must now look beyond D.C. for recent influence.
“I think it’s all about organizing,” said a former Sanders campaign adviser. “The specific things that can be done are not just about legislation. It’s about building a grassroots network that can make a difference at all levels.”
“From the conversations I’ve had with people, I assume it could happen on its own,” the former adviser said.
Both Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez have long relied on using tiny donations to fund their bids, eschewing corporate donations and inspiring others to rally support from people who can donate just a few dollars at a time. Some now fear that Republicans are trying to operate this small-dollar model as a weapon against them, which would further stifle their rise.
“Elon Musk and [House Speaker] “Mike Johnson has his sights set on Act Blue,” Geevarghese said of the platform that progressives and other Democrats operate to raise money. “You know this is our source of money. … It’s a signal.”
Sanders has been critical of Democrats since Trump’s victory highlighted stark shortcomings in states with gigantic working-class voters. He has moved away from the unifying rhetoric that was most commonly used in the party immediately before the election and into introspection and even attack mode, pushing his own party to change its priorities and focus more on economic ones to focus on concerns.
The business-oriented approach is what initially got many progressives from non-traditional backgrounds elected to Capitol Hill. Ocasio-Cortez famously worked as a bartender before taking office, mirroring the careers of other “troop” members: Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.), for example, was a nurse, while Rep. Jamaal Bowman (DN.Y.) was a school principal . Both were defeated by more centrist opponents in November.
Facing a lack of traction, other leftists are trying a newer strategy that aims to combine some of their more palatable progressive goals with areas of populism favored by Trump. The few members who have attempted to make this case, including Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), drew interest from some on the opposing side.
Many progressives are beginning to adopt this tactic, perhaps because there are few good options. “We need to work with DOGE and point out what we believe are the inefficiencies in the system, such as: B. Fossil fuel subsidies,” Geevarghese said, referring to the “Department of Government Efficiency,” which is not a formal agency but a project conceived by Trump and Musk that has drawn a lot of attention from conservatives. “That’s going to be a big fight next year right before the Trump tax cuts expire.”
“Another example would be Pentagon spending,” he said. “I think we should get involved and have a real argument about whether we need to fund certain initiatives. The question is: Can we find common cause?”
Some say it’s a start to what could be a step forward for Democrats, who have expressed deep dissatisfaction with the functioning of their leadership, strategists and party apparatus.
“The party needs a reckoning with itself,” said Corryn Freeman, a progressive activist and executive director of Future Coalition, an organizing network. “They say it from their mouths, but their actions are fully consistent with the equality that has brought us to the place we are now, which is powerless.”
“People are dying for our own – I won’t say our own Donald Trump and our own Marjorie Taylor Greene, because those people are unhinged – but the Democrats are dying for people who are willing to stand up, act assertively and stand up demand.” “Things look the way they see them,” Freeman said.
Another progressive strategist encouraged party members to rethink their roots and reclaim relevant parts of their platform from the Republican Party.
“I don’t know exactly when Democrats lost their comfort with populism, but I don’t think it was because Trump embraced it,” the strategist said. “I think Trump picked it up because the Democrats gave up on it during the Obama years when they started chasing money out of Silicon Valley and Obama wanted to appeal to college-educated people who think populism is gross and uneducated.”
“We replaced it with really prominent condescension,” the strategist added.
