6 hours Ago By Natasha Korecki
Activist David Hogg set off a firestorm among Democrats last week when he said his political action committee would fund a $20 million effort to challenge “ineffective” incumbents in primaries. As a vice chair of the Democratic National Committee, his comments reverberated through party circles, prompting a throng of angered Democrats to complain — including to DNC officials — that Hogg shouldn’t put his thumb on the scale as an officer of the committee. Since last week, Hogg has appeared on just about every cable news show and digital outlet, advocating for a party reset of sorts — not just because it lost the White House to Donald Trump, but because, he said, it lost faith among voters.
Now the party is grappling with what to do with him. At 25, Hogg has emerged as a potential disruptor to a party still trying to find its way forward after a bitter loss last November. Since former Vice President Kamala Harris' defeat, the party has struggled to find its footing against a Republican trifecta in Washington, D.
C., and it still searching for a leader and a message. On Thursday, Hogg is expected to be a topic of discussion on a pre-scheduled call with DNC officials and the media.
It's not clear if Hogg will be on the call. "We are rolling out historic investments into state parties. And I’m sure Chair [Ken] Martin will discuss reforms he’s pushing and that he ran on.
One of which is our party and our officers being neutral in primaries," said Jane Kleeb, a DNC vice chair and the president of the Association of State Democratic Committees. Kleeb noted that enshrining DNC neutrality was something that progressive Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.
, "and many other Dems across the ideological spectrum have repeatedly asked us to codify into our bylaws." Hogg, a survivor of the 2018 mass shooting at his high school in Parkland, Florida, and now a national anti-violence activist, is advocating to oust what he calls ineffective candidates from solid-blue districts. He wants to usher in fresh blood and generally younger candidates as part of a new effort from his PAC, Leaders We Deserve.
“There are old people who are great, there are young people who suck and vice versa. And I’m trying to explain to people that this is not an ax. We’re not just saying, ‘Screw all of them, let’s run against everybody,’” Hogg said.
“We’re trying to be a scalpel here. And it’s not just it’s not about being out with the old and in with the new. It’s about being out with the ineffective and in with the effective.
” Hogg often points to Democrats losing ground with voters. Last month, a CNN poll showed Democrats hitting a record low 29% voter approval. A Harvard Youth poll this week showed congressional Democrats held a 23% approval rating among young voters, a 19-point drop since 2017.
Hogg hasn’t hesitated to hit back at the incoming vitriol, including swiping at some sacred cows in the Democratic Party, including veteran strategist James Carville, who last week called him a “twerp.” Hogg has dismissed many of the criticisms, pointing to the presidential loss as evidence that perhaps a new approach should be welcomed. When Scripps asked Hogg about Carville’s insult, he responded that Carville — who made his name as a key strategist for Bill Clinton's 1992 campaign — hadn’t won an election since before Hogg was born.
Hogg argues that the fallout over his proposal proves his points. The internal hubbub is a sign of a party in need of a jolt and indeed, an effort to place a requirement for neutrality into the DNC bylaws illustrates that it isn’t there now — and therefore he hasn’t gone against rules dictating his duties, he said. “It’s certainly a possibility, I’m sure,” Hogg told NBC News Wednesday before news emerged that the DNC would be discussing neutrality on Thursday.
“But that goes to the point that I’m saying how this is not a violation of the bylaws.” “What I see here is that I am not in violation of the bylaws, and there is precedent for vice chairs being involved in primaries previously,” Hogg said, arguing that former vice chairs have backed incumbents in the past. Rep.
Ro Khanna, D-Calif., has voiced strong backing for Hogg, including on X, where he recently said Hogg was doing “incredible work. He is supporting every frontline Dem & dems for state rep while also giving new candidates a chance to run in safe seats where we need change.
Dems should embrace a new generation of leadership & competition!” Another DNC member, labor leader Randi Weingarten, has also been outspoken about Hogg’s intent on challenging incumbents in safe areas. “I support David’s efforts,” Weingarten said in a text on Wednesday. Hogg said since all the attention last week, he’s heard from hundreds of potential candidates who are interested in running.
And he’s seen an uptick in donations, though he did not specify amounts. For his part, Carville says Hogg's disparaging of the Democratic brand is overblown, noting that party's rank and file aren't happy with the direction of the last campaign. "Of course people don't like the Democratic Party, because we lost an election.
I don't like the Democratic Party — and I'm a Democrat — because I don't like parties that lose elections," Carville said. Though he and Hogg have gone back and forth, mostly on TV, Carville notes that the two of them probably do align on many issues. Carville though said for all of Hogg's talk, he would be impressed if Hogg's efforts gained traction in battleground areas, like Virginia.
"See if they invite you to come in or invite you to send out fundraising appeals," Carville said. "Don't wait by the phone.".
