Build a real Working Class Socialist Party or this shit will keep happening.
So I decided to go ahead and look into this, since I voted for the guy. Some important things not mentioned in this post:
The two main reasons Mamdani has opposed OssΓ©'s run to replace Jeffries are concerns about the viability of his campaign, and concerns about compromising the support Mamdani will need from Gov Hochul.
I know it seems like he's opposing someone doing the exact thing he just managed to do: win against an established centrist Democrat. The issue is that Mamdani won against Cuomo, who has had multiple scandals, and who was not connected with his constituents. Jeffries has had a significantly cleaner career, and lots of folks in his district know him and like him, and will be very difficult to sway. Mamdani getting elected over Cuomo was kind of a long shot, and OssΓ© unseating Jeffries is even longer.
Gov Hochul also likes Jeffries, and was reluctant to support Mamdani during the election. Replacing Jeffries could mean that she vetoes the state funding Mamdani will need to fulfill his campaign promises.
Additionally, OssΓ© is new to the DSA this year, and some longer-standing members have apparently expressed skepticism about his commitment. I honestly doubt that skepticism is well-founded, but he did not necessarily otherwise have DSA endorsement in the bag.
This NY Mag piece and this NY Daily News piece are my main sources here.
For the record, I'm in favor of OssΓ© running against Jeffries, and I will vote for him if I get the chance. I think it's worthwhile to fight for more progressive policies and push for more progressive candidates to get elected. I also understand Mamdani's pragmatic approach to this situation. If the governor blocks him from fulfilling his promises, that's going to end up reflecting very poorly on the DSA in the public eye, and we are going to end up with fewer progressives in office long-term because people will absolutely buy into the idea that his promises were never feasible. That is, of course, incorrect, as this would be a coordinated sabotage from centrists. But the American public is incorrect very often, and they still decide who wins.
Nobody is saying that Mamdani is tricking people (per your tags), but rather that he was forced to make concessions, which is typical of bourgeois democracies. For example, we've already seen Mamdani cozying up to Zionists and allowing Police commissioner Tish to keep her job, despite her history of zionism and repression of student protests against genocide, an issue Mamdani had sworn to deal with. Is it his fault? who knows, was it naive to expect him to establish some kinda socialist reform in NYC, yes. Thus, people are simply criticizing the liberal democratic system for what it does, because you are always bound to make concessions to the opposition. This was a predictable outcome as has been the case with various DSA figures, such as Sanders and AOC. People were simply applying a material analysis of the political situation, and as always, were right. Democratic socialism is simply not a viable political position.
