Jamaal Bowman’s loss is about him — but it’s also about the Squad

On a Friday in November 2021, members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus huddled for hours, agonizing about whether to vote to pass the bipartisan infrastructure bill without simultaneously passing President Joe Biden’s ambitious social spending and climate bill, Build Back Better. Members cycled in and out and progressive House members left their phones on the table so nobody could leak.

In the end, the progressive caucus chose to pass the bipartisan bill and all but six members voted against it: Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Cori Bush of Missouri, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Jamaal Bowman of New York.

A few weeks later, Bowman spoke to The Independent about how events looked to vindicate him. Senator Joe Manchin, the conservative Democrat from West Virginia who had hemmed and hawed for months, seemed wobbly in his support for the bill and a few days later, he announced his opposition to Build Back Better. Bowman and the Squad as a whole were right — passing the infrastructure bill gave away an important bargaining chip to pass a piece of historic legislation.

Other events would ultimately further prove Bowman and the Squad correct. Manchin and fellow traveler Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona quit the Democratic Party to become independents. Both of them would then announce their retirements, after spending much of Biden’s presidency obstructing his agenda.

But rather than Manchin or Sinema facing repercussions, Bowman lost his primary in New York’s 16th district on Tuesday evening. His loss comes largely in response to his opposition to Israel’s war against Hamas and his support for a ceasefire in Gaza.

Bowman came to Congress after