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The far-left policies of the Squad are making the midterm election season even tougher for Democrats and putting swing-district moderates in peril, according to some Democrats.
A leader of a PAC designed to help moderates told Fox News Digital that the policies trumpeted by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and her progressive squad are too toxic for Democrats running in the competitive seats that will determine whether Democrats hold onto the majority.
“We have been kind of shouting this from the rooftops since the 2020 election,” said Matt Bennett, executive vice president of the center-left Third Way and co-founder of Shield PAC, which launched last year to defend moderate Democrats.
Representatives Ayanna Pressley, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez hold a press conference.
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He said the 2020 election was a wake-up call when Democrats lost 14 House seats and issues like “defund the police” were the center of GOP attacks. And the 2021 Virginia governor’s race was another example of far-left policies backfiring when Republicans put critical race theory and school covid policies center stage – propelling Republican Glenn Youngkin to victory.
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The Squad policies “do fine in Brooklyn,” Bennett told Fox News Digital. “But I would say that they are deeply problematic for Democrats running in competitive districts and states. They arm Republicans with very potent attacks, albeit, very misleading ones, but very politically impactful attacks.”
He urges the Squad to realize that their radical policies are hurting Democrats’ midterm chances: “My message would be, please understand that what works in your district does not work in western Iowa and that what you say has consequences for your Democratic colleagues that could profoundly impact the ability of the party to retain majorities,” Bennett said.
Demonstrators hold a sign reading “Defund the police” during a protest over the death of a Black man, Daniel Prude, after police put a spit hood over his head during an arrest on March 23, in Rochester, New York, on September 6, 2020. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
Republicans aim to paint all Democrats as left-wing Squad members, and the culture war touchstone issues are expected to factor high in the midterm campaign strategy.
“The radical views of The Squad are mainstream in today’s Democrat Party,” Republican National Committee spokesman Nathan Brand told Fox News Digital. He referred to a Rolling Stone Magazine cover with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., cozying up Ocasio-Cortez and fellow Squad member Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn.
“Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi have embraced their agenda, and as a result Democrats are staring down dismal poll numbers, discouraged voters, and defeat in November.”
The midterm elections are historically very difficult for the party in power and this year is expected to be especially challenging for Democrats with President Biden’s low approval ratings and inflation that has hit voters in their pocketbooks.
Further complicating things for moderate Democrats, prominent Squad members continue to advocate for defunding the police, abolishing ICE, phasing out federal prisons and more. Moderate Democrats who believe just the opposite need to be firm on distancing themselves from the Squad policies in their districts, Bennett said.
Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., is a moderate Democrat up for reelection in a swing district.
“Violent crime is up. And that’s why nobody wants the police defunded who live in places where there’s significant violent crime,” Bennett said.
So far, his Shield PAC is backing 11 swing district Democrats – all women: Reps. Cindy Axne of Iowa, Elaine Luria of Virginia, Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, Susie Lee of Nevada, Jennifer Wexton of Virginia, Sharice Davids of Kansas, Angie Craig of Minnesota, Susan Wild of Pennsylvania, Kim Schrier of Washington, Abigail Spanberger of Virginia and Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey.
“They have got to push back very hard on the notion that most Democrats share the ideas of the far left, and they’ve got to be very clear about it,” Bennett said. “No, I do not want to defund the police. In fact, I think the police should get more funding.”
After the 2020 election, when Democrats retained control of the House but suffered unexpected losses, moderates also blamed the Squad for trumpeting Medicare for All, socialized medicine, the Green New Deal and defunding the police.
But Ocasio-Cortez at the time pushed back against fellow Democrats blaming her policies, saying that there was no “compelling evidence” for that line of attack. She called out Democrats for failing to execute a digital campaign during the coronavirus pandemic and for underperforming in their races.
WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 12: Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO) attends The National Council for Incarcerated Women and Girls “100 Women for 100 Women” rally in Black Lives Matter Plaza near the White House on March 12, 2021. (Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images)
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Now, the Squad is blaming moderates, especially Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., for failing to pass Biden’s massive Build Back Better platform. The dissatisfaction among voters is because Democrats haven’t been able to fully deliver on their campaign promises.
Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., responded to an Axios report about moderates criticizing Squad politics and pointed out that moderates killed a permanent extension to Child Tax Credit.
“In case you hadn’t caught on by now, every time there’s a media push blaming progressives, there’s something conservative Democrats are trying to cover up,” Bush tweeted. “This time it’s that they sent 4 million kids into poverty because they killed the Child Tax Credit. Don’t get distracted.”
Ocasio-Cortez retweeted her fellow Squad member, responding: “100%”
