Congressman Reveals What Made Him Abandon Democratic Socialists: 'At That Moment, I Decided to Renounce My Membership'
There is virtually nothing “good” or worthwhile to emerge from the bloody and protracted conflict happening in and near Israel right now.
When Hamas terrorists launched a brutal assault Saturday morning, the videos that emerged were horrific and disturbing on many levels. Children, the elderly and women were indiscriminately slaughtered or captured as most of the world recoiled in horror.
It’s all abjectly awful stuff, and things are assuredly going to get much worse and much bloodier before anything gets any better.
But if there was one microscopic, minuscule modicum of “good” to emerge from the ongoing horrors in the Middle East, it’s that far left in America genuinely appears to have no idea how to handle this.
And not unlike a deeply confused and doomed snake, it appears to be eating itself as it struggles to find a satisfactory line to parrot.
One of the clearest examples of this comes from the sphere of buffoonery surrounding the Democratic Socialists of America.
The group, which is as much of an oxymoron as it sounds, has had a particularly tumultuous time dealing with the fallout of the Hamas invasion due to a number of mitigating factors.
First and foremost, DSA’s general response on the social media platform X left quite a bit to be desired, and the group was rightly pilloried for it.
The organization effectively blamed Israel for Hamas’ brutal actions.
“DSA is steadfast in expressing our solidarity with Palestine,” it said.
“Today’s events are a direct result of Israel’s apartheid regime — a regime that receives billions in funding from the United States,” the group said.
“End the violence. End the Occupation. Free Palestine.”
DSA is steadfast in expressing our solidarity with Palestine.
Today’s events are a direct result of Israel’s apartheid regime—a regime that receives billions in funding from the United States.
End the violence. End the Occupation. Free Palestine. 1/5
— DSA (@DemSocialists) October 8, 2023
In subsequent posts, DSA attempted to distance itself from the horrific violence being committed by Hamas, but the damage was done. Far-left socialists had thrown their lot in with the soulless militants beheading infants.
But at least the group didn’t hem and haw over where its (twisted) allegiance lays.
The same can’t be said about most members of the progressive “squad” of lawmakers who largely tried to blame Israel without being as forthright as DSA.
(It’s “most members” because Rep. Rashida Tlaib has been relatively clear that she unequivocally supports the Palestinian cause — so much so that she’s even beginning to lose support from the leftist haven known as “The View.”)
All the above led Democratic Rep. Shri Thanedar of Michigan to vocally announce his departure from DSA in a Wednesday post on X.
I renounce my membership in the DSA pic.twitter.com/rtpxStKW2Q
— Congressman Shri Thanedar (@RepShriThanedar) October 11, 2023
Thanedar, despite his political and ideological affiliations, raised some sound, salient points when explaining how the group and its associates drove him away.
“Today, I am officially renouncing my membership in the Democratic Socialists of America,” the congressman began. “After the brutal terrorist attacks on Israel, which included the indiscriminate murder, rape, and kidnapping of innocent men, women, and children, I can no longer associate with an organization unwilling to call out terrorism in all its forms.
“Sunday’s hate-filled and antisemitic rally in New York City, promoted by the NYC-DSA, makes it impossible for me to continue my affiliation. I stand with Israel and its right to defend itself. There is no place for moral equivocation in the face of unadulterated evil as we have seen from Hamas.”
Hearkening back to that snake eating itself, Thanedar threw in some perfunctory, token leftist promises in his statement, showing that he and his ilk genuinely have no idea what to do right now.
As further proof that he wants his cake and to eat it too, the Democrat penned an opinion piece published Thursday by the far-left Daily Beast.
“The recent horrific terrorist attacks on Israel shattered my heart — the indiscriminate slaughter, heinous acts of rape, and cold-blooded kidnappings of innocent souls, men, women, and children alike,” he wrote.
“How can I possibly align myself with an organization that ‘unequivocally’ condemns killing civilians, but then blames the country where the victims were slaughtered?” Thanedar said. “This is terrorism in its darkest forms, and blaming Israel for the violence is not condemning the massacres ‘unequivocally.’
“The rally in New York City this past Sunday, filled with venom and antisemitism, and actively promoted by NYC-DSA, was the final blow. I can no longer, in good conscience, maintain any affiliation with the national organization. At that moment, I decided to renounce my membership in the DSA. As of the time of my resignation, I was a ‘member in good standing’ with the Detroit DSA, according to their website.”
You cannot separate socialism from socialists, as much as the congressman might hope for that to be the case. Socialism begets socialists and vice versa — if one side of that equation supports Hamas terrorism, you can’t extricate yourself simply by declaring, “I renounce my membership.”
To his minimal credit, Thanedar appears about a quarter of the way there.
Now, if he just realized how destructive, leeching and corrupt socialism is on matters beyond the Gaza Strip, he might be on to something.
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