The “Democratic” Party And The Michigan Undecided Campaign

"Negotiating" by Nancy Ohanian

As many here may’ve heard, there is an organized effort to have Michigan Primary voters choose “Uncommitted” on Tuesday as a form of tangible protest against the Biden Administration’s resolute support for Israel’s ongoing ethnic cleansing in Gaza. Current Member of Congress Rashida Tlaib and former Member Andy Levin openly support this effort. So does Our Revolution, which backed Bernie Sanders during his 2 presidential campaigns (Bernie is not involved in this effort).

Unsurprisingly, this effort is not well-received by party loyalists. The likes of John Fetterman, various MSNBC regulars, and others have all roundly condemned it. Fetterman, in particular, said of Biden’s public critics: “You might as well just get your MAGA hat.”

Intraparty dissent is not exactly welcomed by the donkey. In 2004, a relatively moderate insurgent Vermont governor was openly opposed by the party mandarins and their media acolytes.  Those of us who supported Dean were told that Kerry was more “electable.” We all recall what happened to an openly left-leaning insurgent Vermont senator in 2016 and 2020.  

It’s not worth re-opening old wounds, but I will never forget my son and I knocking on doors for Bernie on the March 2020 Sunday that the party establishment rallied ‘round Biden after he won a primary in a state that the party hasn’t contested in years. Biden was an also-ran in 2008 and in the 2020 primaries before South Carolina, but one win led to candidates who actually had more delegates than him dropping out and endorsing him. It remains one of the odder political phenomena that I have ever seen.

In the video contained in this link, Jon Stewart has said everything that needs to be said about Biden’s (and Trump’s) cognitive capabilities (or lack thereof).

There’s little to add to the fact that Biden’s approval ratings have been stuck in the upper 30’s for months.

There is, however, something to be said about Biden & Blinken Backing Bibi’s Bombings. The Gaza Strip is roughly the size of Philadelphia, with roughly ½ million more people.

Biden has spent most of his life as a resident of Wilmington, Delaware, a few miles from Philly, so he should easily be able to relate to these comparisons. Reported deaths in Gaza since 10/7 are approaching the 30,000 mark. Imagine for a moment 30,000 Philadelphians getting killed in 4 ½ months. Imagine every hospital being degraded, if not destroyed. Imagine Penn, Villanova, and the other “Big 5” local universities being reduced to rubble.  Imagine Philly looking like this:

I’m barely old enough to recall Curtis LeMay running as VP with George Wallace in 1968. I am familiar with his comments about bombing North Vietnam “back to the stone age”:

In his 1968 memoir he suggested that rather than negotiating with Hanoi, the United States should “bomb them back to the stone age,” by taking out factories, harbors, and bridges “until we have destroyed every work of man in North Vietnam.”

The IDF is, in essence, in the process of “destroying every work of man” in Gaza. The Biden Administration is, from top to bottom, providing essential financial, military, and diplomatic support to the IDF as it does so. Given these circumstances, it is unsurprising that this protest effort has been mounted in a state with such large Arab and Muslim populations. The “Genocide Joe” chants are equally unsurprising. As someone who personally witnessed antiwar protesters chanting “Dump the Hump” in Chicago’s Grant Park (during daylight hours, when things were still peaceful) on August 28, 1968, what we’re seeing now is tame by comparison.  The underlying theme (Democrats opposed to the carnage of war not being heard) is the same in both occasions.

The “Uncommitted” effort in Michigan is a natural reaction to a horrific situation. Its adherents are not advocating staying at home this November, much less saying anything positive about Trump. Those adherents are merely trying to use one of the few avenues left for them to dissent against policies that are causing untold suffering by hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians. A party that openly discourages such limited dissent is a party that has lost its capacity for reasoned intraparty debate.

While a strong showing for “Uncommitted” may have limited tangible impact on Biden Administration policies, at least people are trying to influence them via entirely peaceful means. We can all agree that a Trump II White House would lead to the ruthless crushing of dissenting voices. The Democrats attempting to crush internal dissent now, however, is no means of countering the visibly manifest Trump threat.

The (large D) Democratic Party desperately needs to allow some (small d) democracy before it imperils its already iffy chances against a past insurrectionist who aspires to future dictatorial power.