Democrats Aren’t Weak or Spineless; They’re Just Donor Class Courtesans

In the wake of Roe v. Wade’s overturning, it’s time voters abandon the notion that Democrats care about rank and file Americans

The Democratic party rarely fails to disappoint voters. They’ve had almost two months to formulate a response to the leaked Justice Alito memo, foreshadowing the end of a constitutional protection of reproductive rights. They have not only failed to live up to their reproductive choice advocacy bona fides, they have failed to uphold the legacy as the party of FDR. The very reason why owes to the eclipsing influence of money in politics, that voters cannot risk ignoring any longer.

Here are key moments over the last 13 years when Democrats sided with the donor class over voters (not an exhaustive list):

2009 —When newly sworn-in President Obama announced he was sidelining the Freedom of Choice Act.

2010 — When President Obama pulled the Public Option (would have allowed Americans to pay into Medicare for health coverage) out of the Affordable Care Act.

2013 — When the Obama Department of Justice refused to pursue prosecutions of the Wall Street executives who crashed the economy in 2008.

2016 — When presidential candidate Hillary Clinton chose Sen. Tim Kaine (notably unreliable pro-choice politician) as her running mate.

2017 — When Nancy Pelosi told reporters that “[abortion] is fading as an issue.”

2022 — Speaker Nancy Pelosi endorsed pro-life Democratic incumbent, Henry Cuellar running in a primary for Texas’s 38th congressional district (after the Justice Alito memo leak presaging the overturning of Roe v. Wade!).

2022 — On the very day Roe v. Wade was terminated by the Supreme Court, Speaker Nancy Pelosi stood up at a press conference and read a poem.

Now that the Supreme Court has terminated Roe v. Wade, no one expects the Democrats to do anything more than grandstand their disbelief and urgently ask voters for campaign donations.

They could be taking legislative action to pack the Supreme Court and dismantle the Senate filibuster rule. They will take neither course of action.

The reason why is the same rationale that informed all the aforementioned policy or political decisions Democrats have made over the last 13 years: deference to the donor class.

If there was any doubt about the Democratic party’s commitment to reproductive choice, allow the party’s reaction to the Dobbs decision to remove all doubt (the Cuellar endorsement, along with Nancy Pelosi’s condescending statement on reproductive rights and Hillary Clinton’s selection of Tim Kaine as a running mate — all taken together).

A very reliable way to discern if a policy or political decision reflects donor class whims, works like this: if it benefits rank and file voters, the policy or political decision in question fails to deliver — in favor of the donor class. It’s that simple.

What every single policy or political decision I’ve listed represents is a party in thrall to wealthy, elite check writers.

Contrary to the opinion of a few outraged party loyalists, Democrats aren’t spineless, feckless or weak. They know which side their bread is buttered on — the side toasted by donor class largesse. To get elected Democrats accomplish the bare minimum, policy-wise, to convince voters to keep pulling the lever for the party. Vote Blue, No Matter Who is the party mantra that is finally showing some wear and tear.

If the last 13 years have not singed Democrats’ donor class-loyalty into the retinas of voters, then what will? There aren’t many remaining policy issues for Democrats to burn a bridge over to please the captains of industry from health insurance, pharma, defense, fossil fuel and financial services.

While voters’ awareness of prevailing political corruption grows, it’s just as important for them to understand there is a slate of small donor-funded candidates for Congress who will be far better positioned to represent rank and file voters.

When he ran for president in 2016 and 2020, Sen. Bernie Sanders illustrated that a candidate could focus their fund raising on small donors and still accumulate competitive loads of campaign funds. The small donor campaigns will be the bridge to campaign finance accountability that forces Congress to legislate the public financing of elections.

And accompanying that development, we hope to see the end of the Age of Donor Class Influence.