Ok, I’m as progressive as it gets, but Bowman was done after the fire alarm stunt. Voters in his district didn’t forget about that bullshit. Worse than that, he revealed that he was kind of an idiot in his attempts to explain his behavior.
Yes, all of the things about his opponent are troubling. The DNC is not on our side, and we need more progressives at every level of government. But we also need better politicians at every level of government. I’d rather have progressive morons than centrist who is competent, but either is better than a conservative, and the moron might not win a general election.
Yes. It he also said he was confronted by a locked door he thought was normally not locked, which kinda made him look an idiot.
He probably would have had it play better if he just came out and said why he did it
(Although, I’ve seen it happen enough times as a security guard. Fire pulls shouldn’t be immediately next to a door- those should be emergency releases. But those shouldn’t be on the locked side of the door, and fire code would suggest an ability to always get out is kinda sorta important.)
He pulled it because he locked himself out of the room. He went the wrong way, and couldn’t get back in to the vote in time. The Republicans were trying to pull a fast one, and he did manage to delay it, but the ends don’t justify the means.
It was a stupid thing to do, but the real damage to his image was in trying to lie about it and coverit up. If he had said, from the beginning, “the Republicans were trying some bullshit and it was the only way I could stop them” then you could plausibly make that argument. I would still disagree, but I could respect that he did what he thought he had to do.
He didn’t pull it to be a child, but he did pull it to be a dumbass, and people remember. His reasoning was idiotic from the start, and it will and should bite him. I’d still take him over any Republican, but I’d almost take any other competent Democrat.
Also didn’t help being so adamant dismissing claims of all sexual violence on oct 7. He didn’t understand his constituents which changed slightly in redistricting, and for some reason the Bernie and AOC rallies occurred like 10 miles outside of his district which was most at risk for primary. Probably doesn’t help referring to all people with any sympathy towards Israel as being part of a Zionist regime. Probably should have focused more on domestic issues that got him elected instead of focusing heavily on foreign policy that was divisive in his district.
He doesn’t strike me as a particularly thoughtful or talented politician, but the situation in Gaza is particularly fraught. Nuance doesn’t fit into a campaign slogan, and you’d have to be better at this to thread the needle between Zionism and anti-Semitism. I’m certain he would have preferred to make the primary about domestic issues, but his opponent wanted to make it about Israel/Palestine.
I didn’t really follow the campaign, but you’d think “my opponent wants to talk about Israel and Palestine, but I want to talk about you, our community and its needs” would be an easy way to get out of that.
Maybe, but there is a significant Jewish population in New York for whom no other issues matter. So you’d have to be an excellent politician to sell that line after you’ve already used the “Z” word. Bowman is not an excellent politician. He seems like a decent human being, in over his head and unprepared to defend his positions from all sides. I wish he was better, because we need more progressives in leadership positions, and the centrists will use this to continue to sell the line that progressives can’t win elections.
Ok, I’m as progressive as it gets, but Bowman was done after the fire alarm stunt. Voters in his district didn’t forget about that bullshit. Worse than that, he revealed that he was kind of an idiot in his attempts to explain his behavior.
Yes, all of the things about his opponent are troubling. The DNC is not on our side, and we need more progressives at every level of government. But we also need better politicians at every level of government. I’d rather have progressive morons than centrist who is competent, but either is better than a conservative, and the moron might not win a general election.
Didn’t he pull it so that there was time to read the Republican stop gap spending bill for the government shutdown?
Not that I agree with the tactic, but it’s not like he just pulled it to be a child.
Now him lying about “accidentally” pulling it is dumb AF. Own that shit. But still.
Yes. It he also said he was confronted by a locked door he thought was normally not locked, which kinda made him look an idiot.
He probably would have had it play better if he just came out and said why he did it
(Although, I’ve seen it happen enough times as a security guard. Fire pulls shouldn’t be immediately next to a door- those should be emergency releases. But those shouldn’t be on the locked side of the door, and fire code would suggest an ability to always get out is kinda sorta important.)
He pulled it because he locked himself out of the room. He went the wrong way, and couldn’t get back in to the vote in time. The Republicans were trying to pull a fast one, and he did manage to delay it, but the ends don’t justify the means.
It was a stupid thing to do, but the real damage to his image was in trying to lie about it and coverit up. If he had said, from the beginning, “the Republicans were trying some bullshit and it was the only way I could stop them” then you could plausibly make that argument. I would still disagree, but I could respect that he did what he thought he had to do.
He didn’t pull it to be a child, but he did pull it to be a dumbass, and people remember. His reasoning was idiotic from the start, and it will and should bite him. I’d still take him over any Republican, but I’d almost take any other competent Democrat.
Really? That made me like him more. Finally a Congressmen didn’t take the Republican’s shit lying down.
Also didn’t help being so adamant dismissing claims of all sexual violence on oct 7. He didn’t understand his constituents which changed slightly in redistricting, and for some reason the Bernie and AOC rallies occurred like 10 miles outside of his district which was most at risk for primary. Probably doesn’t help referring to all people with any sympathy towards Israel as being part of a Zionist regime. Probably should have focused more on domestic issues that got him elected instead of focusing heavily on foreign policy that was divisive in his district.
He doesn’t strike me as a particularly thoughtful or talented politician, but the situation in Gaza is particularly fraught. Nuance doesn’t fit into a campaign slogan, and you’d have to be better at this to thread the needle between Zionism and anti-Semitism. I’m certain he would have preferred to make the primary about domestic issues, but his opponent wanted to make it about Israel/Palestine.
I didn’t really follow the campaign, but you’d think “my opponent wants to talk about Israel and Palestine, but I want to talk about you, our community and its needs” would be an easy way to get out of that.
Maybe, but there is a significant Jewish population in New York for whom no other issues matter. So you’d have to be an excellent politician to sell that line after you’ve already used the “Z” word. Bowman is not an excellent politician. He seems like a decent human being, in over his head and unprepared to defend his positions from all sides. I wish he was better, because we need more progressives in leadership positions, and the centrists will use this to continue to sell the line that progressives can’t win elections.