Keith Ellison

The Democratic establishment has never looked more vulnerable to progressive upheaval; Biden's supposed leadership bridge to a new generation leads nowhere. "Moderate" darling transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg has seen his slim national prospects dwindle with every near-miss in the air and toxic train derailment on the ground. Vice President Kamala Harris has been about as visible as Biden was on the 2020 campaign trail — and a geriatric Capitol Hill leadership class appears on its last legs. The scene is set for the party’s progressives to strike. And yet there is little relief in sight for the party’s left wing as its own geriatric champion rides off into the sunset.

I was in my hotel room in London when the second wave of riots in Ferguson broke out. The clashes began on November 24, 2014 after a grand jury decided, rightly, not to indict police officer Darren Wilson for the death of Michael Brown, a black man who, according to black eyewitnesses, was shot to death by Wilson after charging at him. As a filmmaker who often travels to hotspots around the world to document the absurdity of the human condition, I wrestled with whether I should cut short my London trip, fly directly to the St Louis suburb and risk myself and my crew by documenting the chaos breaking out there. Arriving in Ferguson, I witnessed heart-wrenching scenes of an American city in flames.

This article is in The Spectator’s March 2020 US edition. Subscribe here. ‘Today, I’m reflecting on the three years we’ve spent preparing for this moment, the changes we’ve made to make sure we are ready.’ That was Tom Perez, chair of the Democratic National Committee, on February 3, as Iowa Democrats prepared to state their choices in their state’s now infamous caucuses. Proclaiming that the Democratic party is ‘at its strongest when we empower the grassroots’, he expressed pride in ‘the historic reforms we passed to increase transparency and accessibility, and that the power is where it belongs: with our voters’.

Al Franken must be livid. After all, the failed screenwriter and former senator found himself chased out of office for far less serious allegations. He was accused of merely groping a few unsuspecting – and in one case, sleeping – women. Despite Good Feminist Gloria Steinem’s 90s declaration that Bill Clinton got a pass for one free grope from progressives, the DNC got their folks in line to force Franken’s resignation as allegation after allegation of lewd, forceful behavior unfolded. Yet somehow, Keith Ellison has dodged the bullet of some serious allegations of domestic abuse without so much as spilling his tea. For over 48 hours, the DNC remained silent as their Deputy Chair continued to campaign in the primary race for Minnesota’s Attorney General.