Why Some Concerned Democrats are Staying the Course
A lens on those for whom grief & even disgust have not yet translated to a decision to jump ship
I asked a few simple questions on Facebook. Not to Republicans. Not to Independents. Not to former Democrats or the “politically homeless.”
To Democrats.
Specifically, Democrats who remain concerned about antisemitism and the increasingly hostile antizionist movement.
These were the questions:
If Republicans have supposedly “hijacked” the pro-Israel vote, I asked, then why not hijack it back?
Why should Jewish voters feel confident in the Democratic Party’s response to these concerns?
And what specifically do Democratic leaders intend to do about it?
Truth be told, there weren’t all that many responses. But I also expected that given the history of silence we have witnessed.
I presented the post as a challenge and opportunity.
The answers I did receive, however, were thoughtful, emotional, and in some cases downright painful to read.
These were not Republicans piling on. (Although I had to shoo away a few of those as I clarified the challenge.)
They were lifelong Democrats. People who described voting Democratic almost reflexively for decades. People who once proudly called themselves progressives. People who spent years supporting causes they believed reflected their values.
The overriding feeling was abandonment.
And I’m not talking about abandonment by conservatives.
I’m talking about abandonment by people they once considered allies.
Their own.
One comment described watching antisemitism seep into spaces where he never expected to find it. Another expressed frustration with elected officials who he felt had remained silent. More than one wrote about no longer recognizing parts of a movement they once considered home.
One theme surfaced enough to jump out at me:
Disgust.
Not the outrage of political opponents, but the disgust of disappointed believers.
There is a difference. The disgust is akin to a feeling of acute betrayal of a family member.
But what struck me almost as much was what came next…
The heartbreak and disgust had not translated into walking away. Or, at least not yet.
One woman wrote about continuing to volunteer, donate, organize, and contact elected officials. Another talked about supporting candidates he believes can help change the direction of the party.
The message, as I heard it, was simple:
We are not leaving. We are staying. And we are fighting.
I found that remarkable. Because at a time when Americans seem increasingly inclined to retreat into political tribes, these respondents were describing something harder.
The decision to remain loyal to a political home while openly acknowledging its failures.
Whether they succeed remains to be seen. Especially with what appears to be the missing guideposts.
Answers are MIA
What was impossible to miss, to be clear, was the gap between recognizing the problem and offering solutions.
Those commenting readily did the former. No one attempted the latter other than to mention that there are still some Democratic leaders they can safely support and help get into office.
For Democratic leaders paying attention, here’s my main takeaway:
It is not that some of your critics are plain old unhappy. It’s that some of the party’s most loyal supporters sound utterly heartbroken.
And that they are still waiting for answers.
It is agonizing to watch the political ground dissolve beneath my feet.
On the Left, the abandonment is systemic. A top consultant signs with Ro Khanna, who demands a path to a phantom Palestinian state as a condition for aid. AOC openly opposes funding the Iron Dome, actively rejecting purely defensive, life-saving technology. Even my own Governor, Gavin Newsom, slipped and called Israel an "Apartheid State."
But by any definition, that accusation vanishes into thin air. South African apartheid was a legal system of total racial segregation designed to keep a minority in power. Israel is a diverse democracy where Arab citizens have full voting rights, serve as high-ranking judges, hold seats in the Knesset, parliament, and receive the exact same medical care in integrated hospitals. It is a complex national conflict over borders and security, not a system of racial supremacy. Newsom quickly recanted his comment, but the mask had already slipped.
Yet the Right offers no refuge. I oppose virtually everything Trump and the GOP stand for. Their reckless foreign policy, bombing Iranian nuclear sites and decapitating leadership, failed to break Tehran’s brutal, theocratic regime. Instead, the Trump, Netanyahu axis achieved something far more dangerous: it painted a bullseye on global Jewry.
Whether driven by the Left’s betrayal or the Right’s recklessness, the result is identical: Jews are targeted and murdered globally. I will not stop repeating that terrifying truth. Another masterful piece, Grace.