Democratic Party Growing Pains
“When @realDonaldTrump tells four American Congresswomen to go back to their countries, he reaffirms his plan to ‘Make America Great Again’ has always been about making America white again. Our diversity is our strength and our unity is our power.”
So read House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s tweet, a direct response to President Trump’s racist attack of four freshmen congresswomen of color, telling them that they should “go back” to their “broken and crime infested” countries. Her defense of Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY-14), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI-13), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA-7), and Ilhan Omar (D-MN-5)—more popularly known as the The Squad—seemingly quieted down weeks of what has been categorized as “infighting” within the Democratic Party.
On the one side, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, prioritizing the moderates who she argues are preserving the House’s Democrat majority, but are struggling to keep their seats in face of Republic pressure. In opposition, The Squad and their passionate, large following— unapologetically pushing their party left on issues ranging from instituting universal healthcare to combatting climate change as the national crisis that it is. Commentators have both praised Pelosi as pragmatic and dismissed as outdated, while criticizing her freshmen colleagues as overly idealistic or applauding them as revolutionary lightning rods.
Their feud escalated through The Squad voting “no” on Pelosi’s border humanitarian aid bill, arguing that it did not include enough protections for the migrants it was meant to serve. But President Trump’s racist tweet provided a moment for Democrats to come together in their shared condemnation of his words. It offered Pelosi a moment of unity, quelling tension between her and The Squad. But surely, this is just a lull in the storm. Trump’s words have reminded Democrats what they share (a low bar of decency at the very least), but they have not resolved their differences. The debate within the Party will continue, as it should.[su_pullquote]The debate within the Party will continue, as it should.[/su_pullquote]
Because while terms such as “infighting” paint a negative picture of disarray, the disagreement between Speaker Pelosi and some of the newest members of her Caucus is also a sign of an evolving, growing party. Right now, it may appear as weakness, but it will ultimately be the root of the Party’s strength. The first two years of Trump’s presidency have destabilized any norms of dignity previously expected of his office. That instability has also provided an opportunity for Democrats to assess and decide what they demand of their party, their leaders, and their country. The midterm elections that brought in The Squad has represented one answer to that question: a wave of young, progressive Democrats excited to create an America radically different not just than that of Trump, but also that of the Democratic Establishment.[su_pullquote align=”right”]Because while terms such as “infighting” paint a negative picture of disarray, the disagreement between Speaker Pelosi and some of the newest members of her Caucus is also a sign of an evolving, growing party.[/su_pullquote]
But whether or not the Squad’s vision of America aligns with yours, the conversation that they have planted within the Party—and yes, the accompanying disunity—should not be condemned. Our country is changing and the Democratic Party is changing with it, and that’s a good thing. While not always comfortable, the tensions between Pelosi and The Squad represent a healthy democracy, where there is space for difference in opinion and for free speech against your party’s leader. It’s growing pains—something to be embraced and encouraged. And it’s something that the Republican Party could learn from.[su_pullquote]But whether or not the Squad’s vision of America aligns with yours, the conversation that they have planted within the Party—and yes, the accompanying disunity— should not be condemned.[/su_pullquote]
While there are surely many Republicans privately loathing the direction that the President has taken their party, there has been relatively little “infighting” on that side of the aisle. His once outspoken critics present in the 2016 primaries have fallen quiet, as Trump successfully cultivates an atmosphere of fervent consensus through bullying. Indeed, beneath his tweet’s blatant racism there lies a deeper critique of dissent as itself un-American. While this may present an image of “unity” on the Right, it is at the cost of growth. It means that the day Trump leaves office, his party will be left on the shaky ground in which he planted blind allegiance.
The Democratic Party is nurturing that ground, now. While it may seem that the conflict between Pelosi and The Squad runs counter to the goal of cultivating a strong enough party to remove Trump from the presidency, making room for this debate is what makes the Democrats’ America fundamentally different than Trump’s. It’s an America where representative democracy means that the demands of a diverse range of constituencies are heard and debated by their elected officials, challenging us to be better. Hopefully, Speaker Nancy Pelosi will use this moment of solidarity with her freshman colleagues to remember that as Speaker, it is her job to embrace, rather than quiet, difference. If she does, her party will not be defined as simply the antithesis of Trump, but by its commitment to progress towards a better, fairer, and healthier America than we have yet known.
Hanna Khalil ‘20 studies in the College of Arts & Sciences. She can be reached at hannakhalil@wustl.edu.