The Democratic Party: Beyond Redemption?

Dr. Cornel West offered a searing takedown of the Democratic party during a Tuesday appearance on The Hill’s “Rising,” where he accused the party of being complicit in the suffering of working class people and completely “beyond redemption.”

A Disappointing Endorsement

The 2024 third-party presidential candidate addressed Sen. Bernie Sanders’ recent endorsement of President Joe Biden, calling the self-described Democratic Socialist’s support for the presidential incumbent “consistent” but disappointing.

Consistency vs Persuasion

“Oh, no. I think that brother Bernie’s being consistent,” West said, referring to Sanders’ belief that Biden is the best way to stop Donald Trump from being elected for a second term.

“You know, he said that all along, and I can understand the argument. I think it’s a plausible argument,” West contended. “I just don’t think it’s a persuasive one.”

Ignoring the Needs of the People

To the progressive scholar, keeping the political status quo meant “there’s never any possibility for breaking from the corporate duopoly” or “any possibility of trying to speak to the needs of poor working people.”

West pointed to his recent campaign stop in Mississippi, where he said local leaders “are dealing with issues that the Democratic Party won’t touch, which is issues of poverty and intense police brutality. And we haven’t even got to the military adventurism abroad.”

“So I think in many ways brother Bernie is making a plausible argument, but I think deep down in his heart he knows that the Democratic Party has no fundamental intention of speaking to the needs of poor people and working people.”

The Corporate Wing and Militarism

The far-left candidate also accused Democrats of being “dominated by the corporate wing” and “militarist”-endorsed foreign policy, before describing Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) as progressive “window dressing” for an otherwise moderate party.

“The Democratic Party is beyond redemption at this point when it comes to seriously speaking to the needs of poor and working people,” West said.

Defending Biden

Over the weekend, Sanders defended himself against critiques from his friend Dr. West, telling CNN’s Dana Bash that Biden is the right politician to support during “these really very difficult times where there is a real question whether democracy is going to remain in the United States of America.”