New York Democratic Representative Ritchie Torres has voiced his concerns over the party's inclination towards the far left, arguing that this shift was a significant factor in their defeat in the November 2024 elections.
Torres expressed these views during a recent "Politic War Room" podcast, challenging the popular narrative within his party.
According to the Daily Caller, following President Donald Trump's triumph, Vermont Independent Senator Bernie Sanders and New York Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez launched a "Fighting Oligarchy" tour in February.
They rallied large crowds, discussing strategies to counter the "Oligarchs and corporate interests who have so much power" in the U.S. However, Torres believes that the Democrats' 2024 loss was largely due to their catering to the "far left," and that persisting with this approach would not yield success.
Torres stated, I felt the main reasons we lost were inflation and immigration when it comes to inflation, we as Democrats were victims of circumstance. Where we do, I think, bear more responsibility is on immigration. He pointed out that since 2022, there has been a significant influx of migrants at the border, which has had a profound impact on cities like New York. The city's shelter system, social safety net, and finances were completely overwhelmed.
Torres further noted, There was a poll in December of 2023 showing that 85% of New Yorkers, in a blue city, were concerned about the impact of the migrant crisis on New York City. He criticized the Biden administration for its delayed response to the migrant crisis, arguing that by the time action was taken, it was too late, and the Republicans had successfully used the issue against the Democrats.
In June 2024, former President Joe Biden finally introduced an immigration executive order after months of claiming that there was no action he could take to alleviate the border crisis. The executive action put a halt to new asylum requests once the number of migrants entering the U.S. reached a daily average of 2,500 over a week.
Torres argued that Biden's delay in addressing the crisis was due to his pandering to the far left. He said, Why did he wait so long before acting? And the answer is simple: He was pandering to the far left, like the far left has outsized power over the messaging and policymaking of the Democratic Party. And that has made us less viable in general elections.
Torres also questioned the logic behind the argument that embracing the far left could reverse the results of the 2024 election, stating, It just doesnt make sense to me.
James Carville, a Democratic strategist and host of Politics War Room, also argued on March 7 that the Democratic Party's loss on immigration in the 2024 election was due to Biden heeding advice from the idiotic far left.
During the Biden administration, migrant encounters surpassed 2.4 million and 2.1 million in fiscal years 2023 and 2024, respectively, with a record of over 300,000 migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in December 2023, as per Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data.
A CNN/SSRS poll published on March 16 revealed that when asked to identify the Democratic figurehead they think best reflects the core values of the party, 10% of Democrats selected Ocasio-Cortez, while 8% chose Sanders.
John Morgan, a former Democrat megadonor, argued on March 20 that the left-wing politicians anti-oligarchy tour will backfire, as it motivates Trumps supporters. He said, See, AOC and Bernie [galvanize] MAGA because MAGA hates them and the thing MAGA loves the most other than what they love, they love watching them twisting and turning.
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