Strange Bedfellows: Congressional Progressives Give Biden Critical Backup In Hour Of Need

Left-wing members of Congress are hardly afraid to break publicly with Joe Biden. They were the only Democrats to vote against the president’s bipartisan infrastructure bill in November 2021, insisting on a concurrent vote for a bigger social and climate policy bill. They have been outspoken in their demands for Biden to withhold additional aid to Israel until it ends its war in Gaza. And they were among the first voices blasting Biden for adopting a more centrist, enforcement-focused approach to the surge in migrants arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border.

But since Biden’s calamitous June 27 debate performance, Congress’ most prominent progressives have largely stayed in the background of the fight to get Biden, a mainstream Democrat, to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race. In fact, Congress’ two most influential progressive members, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), have reiterated their support for Biden.

It’s a stance that has frustrated some ideological allies, while eliciting praise from others for the strategic discipline it reflects.

“I’m actually somewhat pleasantly surprised that progressives aren’t trying to score quick media victories” by crusading for Biden’s exit, said Bhaskar Sunkara, the president of The Nation, a progressive magazine.

These lawmakers’ support for, or neutrality toward, Biden staying in the race is especially notable because of how consistently the progressive left has pushed his administration in recent months to change how it is handling Israel’s invasion of Gaza. While lawmakers themselves have often been measured, a significant portion of their constituencies have been sharply critical of Biden on the issue, and it has been an albatross around