Dems are failing in Washington. Maybe it's time to concentrate on the states.
With national-level Democrats stymied in their efforts to pass social welfare and voting rights bills, what's next? Maybe they should try looking to the states.
Alexander Sammon never uses the word "federalism" in a new piece at The American Prospect. But he does argue that state-level Democrats like California Gov. Gavin Newsom and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul should take federal gridlock as a sign that it's time to "think big" about what they can accomplish — on issues like health care, education, and affordable housing — and hope that the political benefits trickle up.
Sammon writes that "the big, ambitious projects side of governing has effectively fallen to state-level Democrats, especially those in populous states without meaningful Republican obstruction. From here out, statehouse work in Sacramento, Albany, and elsewhere is the party's best bet to accomplish what might otherwise be expected from Democrats in Washington, D.C. They're going to have to do Joe Biden's job for him."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
State and local organizing aren't exactly new to Democrats and progressives. That's where efforts to raise the minimum wage and legalize marijuana have had their most success. But liberals are less likely to talk romantically about states as "laboratories of democracy" than their conservative counterparts. Left-of-center rhetoric embracing state power usually peaks only when Republicans control the government, and then Democrats see it as a form of resistance to conservative federal authority. When the GOP is running Washington, one activist said in 2017, "progressives are likely to respond by going local, where there's more latitude to make progress."
They certainly have an opportunity to take big swings at the state level. As Bloomberg's Amanda Albright points out, states are currently awash in billions of dollars in federal pandemic aid, which gives Democratic governors the resources to try big new things. "We can do it all," New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) said this week.
That's more than Washington can do right now. With the filibuster still firmly in place in the U.S. Senate, lefty activists may decide it's time to treat the government run by President Joe Biden as functionally under the control of Republicans.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Joel Mathis is a writer with 30 years of newspaper and online journalism experience. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic and The Kansas City Star. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.
-
Ukraine: Donald Trump pivots againIn the Spotlight US president apparently warned Volodymyr Zelenskyy to accept Vladimir Putin’s terms or face destruction during fractious face-to-face
-
Autumn Budget: will Rachel Reeves raid the rich?Talking Point To fill Britain’s financial black hole, the Chancellor will have to consider everything – except an income tax rise
-
Sudoku medium: October 25, 2025The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
-
Will Republicans kill the filibuster to end the shutdown?Talking Points GOP officials contemplate the ‘nuclear option’
-
Millions turn out for anti-Trump ‘No Kings’ ralliesSpeed Read An estimated 7 million people participated, 2 million more than at the first ‘No Kings’ protest in June
-
Are inflatable costumes and naked bike rides helping or hurting ICE protests?Talking Points Trump administration efforts to portray Portland and Chicago as dystopian war zones have been met with dancing frogs, bare butts and a growing movement to mock MAGA doomsaying
-
Shutdown: Are Democrats fighting the right battle?Feature Democrats are holding firm on health insurance subsidies as Trump ramps up the pain by freezing funding and vowing to cut more jobs
-
Could Democrats lose the New Jersey governor’s race?Today’s Big Question Democrat Mikie Sherrill stumbles against Republican Jack Ciattarelli
-
Gaza peace deal: why did Trump succeed where Biden failed?Today's Big Question As the first stage of a ceasefire begins, Trump’s unique ‘just-get-it-done’ attitude may have proven pivotal to negotiations
-
‘Every argument has a rational, emotional and rhetorical component’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Why is this government shutdown so consequential?Today's Big Question Federal employee layoffs could be in the thousands
