DNC Meeting 2025

Are you familiar with progressive differentiation? In case you’re not: Imagine an internet forum, where the dominant group looks down on a subgroup. The minority feels unwelcome, and eventually splits off and starts their own discussion, hoping to be free from judgement. The process may repeat within both groups. But because each/every group only talks amongst “their own,” they become biased to think their way is the “only way” or the “right way.”

When the country’s politics were more evenly mixed, I doubt this was a problem. However, “the big sort”—the tendency for Republicans to move to “red” states, while “Democrats” move to blue ones—means Democrats now face a similar problem. The party does well in urban states, where voters lean progressive. But when it comes to the presidential election and less-urban states, Democrats have struggled to connect with moderate and right-leaning, rural areas. When someone from our splinter is presented to the mainstream, they’re not connecting well anymore. That needs fixing.

That is to say, the DNC chair’s role is typically described as “uniting the Democratic Party.” It’s a worthy and important goal, but as the leader that sets the organization’s direction, it needs to be balanced with “uniting the American people” because some contests can’t be won by purifying our ranks, instead only by collaborating with independents and moderates.

To that end, we need leadership unencumbered by connections to Wall Street and K Street. Both those streets bring money and, to a degree, power. But those come with strings, limiting how a candidate can speak out against wealth and income inequality. With a huge portion of America is struggling to make ends meet, if candidates can’t or won’t speak out about these issues, why would anyone vote for them?

With the right leadership, one that weaned the Democrats off big money, Democratic candidates would be able to talk about the problems of monopolies, about the power of unions to help the people, and how Democrats' policies will help the people and the country. Talk about rights is great, and shouldn’t be forgotten entirely; but right now and for the foreseeable future, the foremost issue on most people’s mind is the economy, inequality, and how they’re going to feed their family and keep the roof overhead this month.

If the Democrats are to succeed, the party needs to be out from under the thumb of the oligarchs. At the upcoming DNC meeting, I hope the not-well-publicized delegates do their part to ensure that the DNC chair and officers chosen, and policies set—and thus the Democrat’s future direction—represent and relate to the interests of Main Street America, rather than Wall Street and K street.