Why Progressives Need To Have Ro Khanna's Back-- RIGHT NOW

As you probably know, Ro Khanna (D-CA) was one of the scores of Democrats in Congress who won a seat in an incumbent-safe blue district by primarying an incumbent. More recently we saw Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) do the same thing. All three have been among the most consequential new members in Congress and each is a living testament to the importance of primaries, particularly in districts where one party vastly outnumbers the other so that primaries are the only source of accountability.

The Democratic establishment reacted with another piece of their incumbent protection scheme, this time threatening to put any operative and consultants out of business if they do any work for Democratic primary challengers. Outrageous? That's the heart and soul of the DCCC, particularly now under the command of Rahm Emanuel protégée Cheri Bustos, a grotesquely corrupt and reactionary Blue Dog/New Dem.

Over the weekend, in response to her new policy, Ro Khanna did something no sitting Democrat-- to my knowledge-- has ever done before-- NOT EVER! He directly went after the chair of the DCCC. He wrote two letters that were sent out by DFA and then Our Revolution, slamming Bustos by name, an unprecedented and courageous move that is sure to cost him dearly.

"I'm asking for your help to stop a horrible DCCC decision," he wrote in the DFA letter. "The DCCC has announced a new policy to penalize vendors and consultants who work with primary challengers. It amounts to a blacklist that significantly weakens the Democratic Party and it's a slap in the face to voters who are sick of the status quo."

Representatives Pramila Jayapal, Mark Pocan, and I met with the DCCC Chair Rep. Cheri Bustos earlier this week to express our outrage and get the decision overturned, but it's clear she needs to hear directly from the grassroots.

The DCCC is paying close attention to the reaction on social media. Will you send a message on Twitter to DCCC Chair Rep. Cheri Bustos calling on her to end this new anti-democratic practice?

...The truth is that Beto O'Rourke, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley or I may not have made it to Congress if the DCCC had these rules in place in previous cycles.

We all won competitive primaries helping to create the most progressive and diverse Democratic caucus in history.

This new DCCC policy would have a chilling effect on new ideas and make it harder to elect new leaders. It would also put us out of step with voters who are tired of D.C. politicians holding on to power at any cost.

The DCCC needs to hear from you! Will you send them a message today?

Thank you for taking action. You have my word that I'll keep working with progressives in Congress to overturn the DCCC decision and prioritize voters and the grassroots.

After the establishment's Crowley debacle last cycle-- and with Pelosi's top lieutenant, Steny Hoyer, facing a primary from progressive activist Mckayla Wilkes-- halting primaries became a top priority for the corrupt, careerist establishment of the party. Bustos would never, never have done this without the explicit approval of Nancy Pelosi (who is also facing a 2020 primary-- this one from Shahid Buttar). Khanna's throwing down the gauntlet is nothing short of breathtaking. No Democrat has ever done anything like this before, at least not in living memory.

Saturday he fired off his second salvo: "The DCCC is trying to keep people like me out of Congress."

There is a dangerous new policy designed to keep progressives out of Congress. The worst part? It's coming from within the Democratic Party.

Cheri Bustos, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's chair for the 2020 election, just enacted a policy to blacklist anyone who works with candidates like me who will challenge an incumbent Democratic to win a seat in Congress. This new plan will strongarm progressive primary challengers out of running for office.

Tell DCCC Chair Cheri Bustos that this anti-democratic policy sends the wrong message to voters across the country. It's designed to protect the Washington establishment and runs contrary to everything the Democratic Party should be fighting for – representing working people.

If the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee had its way, I wouldn't be in Congress today. Neither would members like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley, Rashida Talib, Ilhan Omar or any other Democrat who had the guts to take on the party establishment and fight for the working people of their district. If we're being honest, this is the kind of policy protecting the Washington establishment that plays directly into Trump's hands-- which is why we need you to speak up and strongly reject it.

Voters are sick of the status quo, and this slap in the face to grassroots candidates needs to be met by all of us raising our voices and demanding the DCCC reverse this tone-deaf policy. The good news is that we have a strong Congressional Progressive Caucus that is fighting to open up the Democratic Party, but change isn't going to happen if it's just us working from the inside. The DCCC needs to hear your voice too.

Sign the petition telling Cheri Bustos to stop protecting the Washington establishment and let grassroots candidates fight for working people without the fear of backlash. Anything less is a betrayal of our democratic values.

We cannot allow these divisive tactics when we need to be building a unified progressive movement that can bring the political revolution our country so desperately needs. Thank you for taking action.

I'd like to add one further request. Blue America has a page devoted to supporting progressive primary challengers to Blue Dogs, New Dems and other corrupt conservatives. We'll be adding some new candidates very soon but we have a couple of great ones already. Please consider contributing what you can to their campaigns, which are under attack from Cheri Bustos and the DCCC. You can do so by clicking on the ActBlue thermometer on the right. Any amount helps, although I like to recommend $20.20.