Is the Democrat Party Breaking Apart?

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   Readmikenowposted 2 weeks ago

   Chris Murphy says caucus needs hard conversation after Democrats break ranks on shutdown vote
   
   CONCORD, N.H. — Amid heated calls by some House Democrats and others in the party to remove Sen. Chuck Schumer from his longtime role as Senate Democratic leader, a top Democrat in the chamber is calling for "more effective leadership."
   
   Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut told Fox News Digital that Schumer needs to lead a conversation to "stop having a group of members cross over and support Donald Trump's agenda."
   
   Murphy was interviewed on Wednesday, two days after seven Senate Democrats and independent Sen. Angus King of Maine, who caucuses with the party, bucked Senate Democratic leaders and voted with the majority Republicans to end the longest federal government shutdown in history.
   
   Plenty of progressives and center-left Democrats have pilloried the deal to end the shutdown, which didn't include the Democrats' top priority, an agreement to extend expiring subsidies that make health insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act, known as the ACA or Obamacare, more affordable to millions of Americans.
   
   And even though he opposed the agreement, Schumer, the top Democrat in the chamber, has faced calls from some House Democrats and others in the party to step down due to his inability to keep Senate Democrats unified.
   
   But to date, no Senate Democrat has joined those calls for Schumer to step down.
   
   Asked if Schumer was still up to the task of steering Senate Democrats, Murphy said, "I think his job is really, really hard. He obviously did not want this outcome. He wanted the caucus to stay together. He was not successful in that endeavor."
   
   "We've got to have a hard conversation as a caucus about what we all need to do, what kind of leadership we need in order to make sure that we don't continue to break apart," added Murphy, who as Deputy Democratic Conference Secretary is a member of the party's leadership in the chamber.
   
   And he noted that "this is the fourth major moment this year where a handful of Democrats have crossed over and voted with Donald Trump."
   
   "That means we need more effective leadership. That also means that the caucus has to decide for itself that we're not going to continue to break apart like this," he emphasized.
   
   And pointing to Schumer, he added, "That's a conversation that, yes, the leader of the caucus has to head up, but it's a conversation all of us have to have. We all have to hold each other accountable."
   
   Murphy was interviewed after headlining an event in New Hampshire's capital city with the Merrimack County Democrats. New Hampshire's two senators — Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan — were among the Democrats who supported the deal with Republicans.
   
   https://www.foxnews.com/politics/democr … g-pressure

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      Sharlee01posted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

      Honestly, yes, I do think the Democratic Party is breaking apart, and this article pretty much proves it. When you have your own senators openly saying the caucus needs “hard conversations” and “more effective leadership,” that tells me the fractures are real, not imagined.
      
      Democrats can’t keep their members unified anymore because the party itself has split into too many competing factions: the far-left activists, the old-school establishment, the moderates trying to survive in purple states, and the elites who want completely different priorities from working Americans.
      
      They can’t even agree on something as basic as how to handle a shutdown or how much influence Trump’s agenda should have.
      From my perspective, the Democratic Party is failing because it’s lost its identity. They used to claim they were the party of the working class, but now they’re so focused on ideological purity, social issues, and internal power struggles that they can’t hold their caucus together.
      
      When seven Democrats break ranks on a major vote, and it’s the fourth time this year, that’s not “discipline slipping.” That’s a party coming apart at the seams. Add the calls to remove Schumer, the constant infighting between progressives and moderates, and their inability to pass anything without breaking into camps, and it’s hard not to see a party that’s unraveling. They’re trying to hold together a coalition that no longer agrees on what the party even stands for, and it shows more with every vote.

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         Readmikenowposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

         Shar,
         
         What gets me is I've shared this article with some people who are on the left and they don't see that there is a problem.  I was stunned.  I got, "Even the Republicans have battles within their party."  That is true, but not at this level and certainly not to promote socialism. 
         
         I believe too many elements of the democrat party simply do not value American ideals and beliefs.  To me, that is the bottom line.

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         Joel Steinnposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

         And every single one of these arguments could be applied to Republicans also? I think yes.  Particularly in light of Marjorie Taylor Greene's recent actions.

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            Readmikenowposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

            I think not considering there were 8 democrat senators who broke ranks with their leadership and voted to end the Schumer Shutdown.  Republicans held firm.  MTG is throwing a hissy fit because she wanted to run for Senator and she didn't have the polling to support her run.  She was told this by the Republican leadership.  She became infuriated and has been on the war path ever since.

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               Joel Steinnposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

               It is clear that Marjorie Taylor Green is and has stayed true to the Maga agenda.  The spirit of Maga.  And Trump?  Not so much. Therein lies the reason for the split.

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                  Readmikenowposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

                  I appreciate your comments.  You provide good perspective.
                  
                  I don't see it as a split.  I see it as a disgruntled person who didn't get what she wants and is throwing a hissy fit.  She has no real following in the Republican party.
                  
                  The democrats on the other hand.  They have conflict between the socialist democrats and the moderate democrats.  The left leaning and the middle of the road.
                  
                  I think the 8 democrat senators defying their leadership and voting to end the shut down speaks volumes.

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            Sharlee01posted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

            Republicans today often appear more unified than their history suggests. I don’t really recognize the Republican Party anymore. Sure, every party has members who go against the majority; that was very clear in what I’d call the Old Republican Party. For example, Senator John McCain frequently opposed party lines on campaign finance reform and immigration, and Senator Susan Collins often broke ranks on Supreme Court nominations. Even President Eisenhower clashed with conservative Republicans on domestic spending and civil rights. But this new  Republican Version 2.5 of the party feels very different to me. They are united, more than I have ever witnessed. They are showing strength to replace past weakness.
            
            Modern Republicans now seem to align closely with the very values the party was originally built upon. In contrast, Democrats have often shifted with the political winds, adopting ideologies that feel foreign to many Americans. Historically, Democrats have been a tightly controlled party, voting largely in line with leadership. But even here, I’m beginning to see cracks in that mindset.

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      abwilliamsposted 2 weeks agoin reply to this

      Hi Mike, I believe that this was the moment that many Dems have been waiting for!
      There are lifelong Democrats that never signed up for this radical Marxist takeover. They aren't on board, and were never on board!
      This coming together of the eight, is common sense making a return, in order to salvage a Party.
      Whether it does, whether it has an impact... remains to be seen.

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