During an interview with Rep. Greg Casar (D-TX) on Wednesday’s broadcast of NPR’s “Morning Edition,” co-host Steve Inskeep stated that it appears as though Democrats are “perhaps a little more willing to say, if you don’t have my view of race, social justice, policing, trans rights, a lot of other things,” then you don’t belong in the party.
Inskeep said, [relevant exchange begins around 3:10] “I wonder if there’s one way that Democrats did participate in culture wars in a way that harmed them politically, because we’re in a democracy and everybody who’s an adult — almost — has a vote. And it seems that Democrats were perhaps a little more willing to say, if you don’t have my view of race, social justice, policing, trans rights, a lot of other things, you’re out. I don’t want you.”
Casar responded, “The Democratic Party has to make sure, both in message and in substance, that, whether you agree with us on every issue or not, you are welcome to be in the party. We have to have a tent big enough that includes people across geography, across race, and across ideological views. I have, in my district, more conservative voters that voted for Donald Trump or Gov. Greg Abbott (R) and still even voted for me, as a very progressive Democrat. We’re here to add more people to our community, to our party. We can stand strong for our values, but realize that politics is a game of addition, not of subtraction.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
