On Monday, the House Progressive Caucus delivered a letter to President Joe Biden urging a change of course on Ukraine. On Tuesday, they completely withdrew it. Was this confusing chain of events another case of “Democrats in Disarray,” one of the most frequently diagnosed illnesses in American politics?
The answer lies in what happened between Monday and Tuesday. The rapid closing of a potential schism within party’s ranks on foreign policy is actually a story of organizational efficiency and cohesion. It shows the unity of congressional Democrats, and the ability of the party currently in power to work out differences. The House’s top Republican, meanwhile, recently folded when faced with similar pressure. Call it “Democrats in Array,” complete with a mea culpa from the Representative Pramila Jayapal of Washington. “As Chair of the Caucus, I accept responsibility for this,” she said.
And it stands in sharp contrast to how dysfunctional congressional Republicans have become, and how fringe Republicans can bully the bulk of the party into going along with them.
