Full Mamdani
Greenhouse examines the DNC's cratering relationship with labor
To toot my own horn: I was bullish on Mamdani’s Mayoral campaign from the beginning, even before the disastrous November election results. DSA in New York had won too many races—a Congressional seat, three state Senate seats, two city council seats, and seven seats in the state Assembly to not be considered a major player. Public financing of elections and the absence of an incumbent on the ballot gave Mamdani a massive advantage that Cynthia Nixon had lacked in 2018. Bernie’s score of 42 percent against Hillary in 2016, who while like Cuomo has petty and vindictive tendencies was indescribably less hated among Democratic ward heelers than Cuomo was, showed a strong future for a citywide run for the left.
Mamdani’s victory is seismic. It sends a clear message that Democratic primary voters are done with the staid, anti-labor politics of the past. To whit: Cuomo’s Tier 6 pension betrayal, locking younger public sector workers in subpar pensions for life, his consistent championing of charter schools, the frequent cuts and threats to cuts to Medicaid, the failure to extend unemployment benefits to striking workers, the watering down of safe staffing legislation in hospitals, the failure to reign in Uber, Lyft, or Doordash, and the total breakdown of the MTA in 2017—that was Cuomo’s legacy.
Unfortunately, many unions stuck with Cuomo in the primary, prioritizing the transactional politics of the past over the a greater vision. As Eric Blanc notes today, they have an opportunity to rectify that by endorsing Mamdani as quickly as possible.
News and Views
Steven Greenhouse analyzes the departure of AFT President Randi Weingarten and AFSCME President Lee Saunders from DNC leadership. Weingarten has called on the DNC to lead a mass movement against the Big Ugly Bill—none appears to be forthcoming.
Judge James Donato in San Francisco, an Obama appointee, struck down Trump’s efforts to eliminate collective bargaining for federal workers at 21 agencies.