Sen Chris Murphy was on Meet The Press Sunday morning when the subject of the big wins by the New York Democratic Socialists came up. Murphy put things into perspective and offered a message from a unified front:
It's no secret. Voters aren't super happy with establishment Democrats or establishment Republicans these days. I will say, though, what binds together, I think, every Democratic candidate that is running, including the ones in New York, is that they are standing up to protect American democracy. And right now, the biggest threat to this country is, are not a handful of House candidates in New York. It is the president of the United States that is trying to destroy American democracy, and the Democratic Party - left, right, and center - is united around the fact that we need to protect this nation from Donald Trump's attacks on the rule of law.
Similarly, Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez pointed out that the Democratic Socialists and establishment Democrats need each other if they are to form a majority and that they need to work it out.
What strikes me as ironic is that if you go strictly by the Democratic platform - expanded healthcare, support of the working class, strengthening democracy - the actions of the Democratic Socialists are closely aligned, whereas the establishment Democrats seem to have lost their way. If the establishment Dems spent more time remembering their roots and less time worrying about purity tests, the Democratic Party would be much more powerful.
