Democratic Socialists Wrestle with Their Next Moves

New York Times: “Hundreds of members of the group, the country’s largest socialist organization, gathered here at a moment of surging political influence, some wearing bright red shirts, swapping labor-strike tips with their ‘comrades,’ sharing voter turnout strategies and admiring far-left merchandise (guillotine earrings, ‘Land Lords Suck’ pins and red roses, a symbol of the group). Many dismissed the notion that their positions could be a political problem and said they felt no need to moderate them. Electoral wins were proof, they reasoned, that Democratic voters were moving closer to them.”

“As an ardent socialist movement has encroached more deeply into the Democratic Party, with DSA-backed candidates ousting incumbent Democrats from New York to Colorado and notching other victories this year, the challenges associated with that often-fraught cohabitation are coming into sharper focus. Those include questions on each side about the utility of working with the other.”