Playbook: “We have movement. After 40 days and 40 nights of a truly biblical government shutdown, the Senate last night moved forward with a procedural vote that should mean this record-breaking crisis is finally coming to an end. What replaces it this morning is the eruption of an ugly Democratic civil war, as the party rips itself to shreds for dealing across the aisle…”

“Liberal social media is on fire this morning, with activists, pressure groups and wannabe Democratic senators and presidents falling over one another to condemn the deal in ever-louder terms. Panelists on MSNBC were banging the drum against it last night, some calling for Schumer to face the heat. Instantly, it feels like a purity test — nobody hoping to get anywhere in Democratic circles right now is permitted to be anything other than outraged.”

“The victories this past week of a democratic socialist in the New York mayor’s race and two moderate Democrats in the governors’ races in Virginia and New Jersey represented only the beginning of the battle over the future of the Democratic Party,” the New York Times reports.

“Now the stage is set to test those dueling visions in the 2026 midterm elections, which will feature a staggering number of consequential Democratic primary races, especially in contests for the Senate.”

“When Gavin Newsom needed to hype his redistricting ballot measure, he did it not through MSNBC hits, but livestreamed sit-downs with Substack sensation Heather Cox Richardson, YouTube star Brian Tyler Cohen and TikTok celebrity Mrs. Frazzled,” Politico reports.

“The Prop 50 campaign was the purest distillation of Newsom’s self-proclaimed obsession with the changing media landscape, an unabashed embrace of the burgeoning liberal influencer ecosystem that is burgeoning at the same time Newsom’s political prospects are on the rise.”

“A half-dozen scattered elections did overnight what President Trump himself couldn’t do in 10 months: revitalized the Democratic resistance, instantly and profoundly,” Axios reports.

“Democrats are more likely to fight harder in Congress, donate more generously, protest more loudly, resist Trump’s policies more vigorously. They believe, for the first time since Trump won, they can stand up to the president and beat him.”

“This is an astonishing mood swing for a party seen as historically unpopular and ineffective heading into a small set of various elections scattered across the country.”

Wired: “After losing big in 2024, Democrats promised a digital reckoning.”

“But 12 months out from that devastating slate of losses, Democratic digital programs are still plagued by the same issues that doomed them last year. Despite millions of dollars in influencer investments and “lessons learned” memos, party insiders say Democrats are still stuck running social media programs that strive for authenticity, but often clash with the party’s unrelenting desire to maintain control.”

Said one Democratic digital strategist: “I can’t, for the life of me, figure out why we are still so rigid and moderating everything when we have nothing to lose for the first time. All of the threats of fascism and right wing takeover. It’s all here.”

New York Magazine asked Democratic strategists to identify the party’s rising stars, beyond the most famous names.

They came up with a next-generation list of 25 Democrats to watch, from prominent members of Congress to attention-grabbing state representatives.

Democrats are increasingly losing faith in their party and its leaders — far outpacing Republicans who have doubts about the GOP, a new Pew Research poll finds.

Key finding: 67% of Democrats say they’re frustrated with their party, up from about half in Pew polls from 2021 and 2019.

James Carville went off on former White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, saying she needs to conclude book tour and then “shut the fuck up” because she is too frequently invoking her race and sexual identity, Mediaite reports.

DNC Chair Ken Martin projected confidence about next week’s elections, telling Semafor that he sees a solid path forward for the Democrats.

He also dismissed the prospect of Republicans making an issue of Democrats for calling Trump a fascist: “This not only has the hallmarks of a fascist regime, it is a fascist regime.”

“Democrats have badly weakened their party with left-leaning ideas and rhetoric, growing only with self-described ‘white liberals’ while losing ground with other voters, according to a new center-left group’s report,” Semafor reports.

“The group, called Welcome, consulted hundreds of thousands of voters over six months for its broad findings, including that 70% of voters think the Democratic Party is ‘out of touch.’ Most voters, the group found, believe the party over-prioritizes issues like ‘protecting the rights of LGBTQ+ Americans,’ and ‘fighting climate change’ while not caring about ‘securing the border’ or ‘lowering the rate of crime.'”

You can read the report here.

Jonathan Martin: “It goes something like this: Political outsider or mostly new name mounts statewide campaign with online video that leans heavily on compelling biography or powerful oratory, out-of-state liberal hobbyists quickly fall in love and fork over money, and journalists rush to profile the latest heartthrob before inevitable disappointment when the candidate loses or, well, becomes John Fetterman.”

“Platner is the latest example. A military veteran turned oysterman who looked the hirsute part, the Mainer’s populist candidacy seemed to be an immaculate conception. The contributions piled up, the profiles were published and then suddenly there was a disruption to the formula. Or maybe it was more of an acceleration.”

“Once his Democratic rival, Maine Gov. Janet Mills, entered the race, Platner was hit with a nor’easter of oppo research that had the added value of being his own damning words.”

“The Democratic National Committee paid $1.6 million in September to cover debt from Kamala Harris’ 2024 campaign — bringing the DNC’s total payout to the campaign to more than $20 million, and counting,” Axios reports.