Why Yes, "Establishment" *Is* a Slur
Hats off to "moderate" David Crowley for saying out loud what we've known forever. From The Wisconsin Examiner:
After getting back into the race, Crowley faced accusations of being the “establishment” candidate who was chosen to defeat the democratic socialist candidate, Francesca Hong. He called that accusation a “slur.”
As he accepted the nomination, Crowley thanked Evers “for his friendship, his leadership and his belief that Wisconsin works best when working people come together to solve problems.” He also sought to put to bed the narrative that had surrounded the race as he thanked his primary opponents. He said that Hong’s campaign “reminded people across Wisconsin that there are no long shots when it comes to believing in a better future and fighting to expand opportunities to every family” and said he looks forward to earning the support of Hong voters. The narrative that the primary was ”a battle between the left and the center, between progressive and the establishment, between insiders and outsiders” was inaccurate, Crowley said.
“When I traveled across Wisconsin, I didn’t meet people who introduced themselves that way. I met parents wondering how they afford childcare. I met workers who want wages that keep up with the costs of living. I met farmers trying to preserve family traditions. I met small business owners trying to keep their doors open, and I met seniors who deserve security and dignity after a lifetime of work. We may not agree on every policy, we may not use the same labels, but we all want safe communities, strong schools, affordable health care, good-paying jobs, and a brighter future for all of our children.”
Crowley said Democrats must now unite around keeping “MAGA extremism” out of Wisconsin and called Tiffany the “real threat.”
And just like that, David Crowley has given the Normie Democrats the blueprint for this election cycle.
Because as we all know, the media is out to get us. The love them their "Democrats in Disarray" narrative, especially as we approach the midterms. They would like nothing better to do than to ask a Congressional candidate in Arizona about his or her thoughts about a Democratic socialist candidate in New York City. They love pitting Democrats against each other. They love having Bernie Sanders and Always On Camera on their shows. They want each primary election to be a Battle for the Soul of the Democratic Party as a way for them to conveniently ignore reporting on the unprecedented abuses of the Trump Administration. For them, it doesn't matter that DSA is a fringe group that will make up roughly 3% of the new incoming Congress. All that matters to them is that there exists an opportunity to further divide the Democratic Party, making it easier for their GOP overlords to stay in power and give them the cash cow that they've been accustomed to since the Trump Administration returned to power in January of 2025.
Enter David Crowley, a man who is anything but The Establishment.
Crowley's background involved growing up in Milwaukee with parents struggling with addiction. His family lost their home when he was ten years old and his parents would divorce shortly thereafter. Crowley was evicted from two other homes but managed to graduate high school and enroll at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Crowley would drop out after one semester and would return intermittently in later years before finally graduating and being the commencement speaker in 2024. Shortly after his first unenrollment, he would become connected to Project RETURN, a local nonprofit working to prevent recidivism of formerly incarcerated individuals. Starting in 2010, Crowley became active in Democratic politics and he would work his way up to eventually run for the state assembly in 2016. After winning two consecutive terms, Crowley ran for an won the position of Milwaukee County Executive, where he would oversee an annual budget of $1.4 billion. Being thrust into the role during the pandemic, Crowley had to think creatively about public spending while prioritizing the health and wellbeing of the citizens. His work earned widespread praise, so much so that within his first year he had been named to the Milwaukee Business Journal's "40 Under 40" class of 2021. Crowley was overwhelming reelected to the position in 2024, winning 85% of the vote.
Shortly after being re-elected, Crowley's name was being mentioned as a potential successor to Democratic Governor Tony Evers. When Evers announced he would not be seeking a third term in the summer of 2025, Crowley immediately put his hat in the ring for the position and launched his campaign in September of that year. Despite positive name recognition, Crowley never got above 13% in the polls and with surging Democratic Socialist Francesca Hong polling well, Crowley decided to do the right thing and withdraw on July 8th in support of Lieutenant Governor Sara Rodriguez. However, within days Rodriguez was forced to fire her campaign manager after it was revealed that she had several hundred thousand dollars less than expected in her campaign war chest. She withdrew from the race on July 17th, throwing the state Democratic Party into chaos. With Evers' support, Crowley reentered the race the very next day and he had three weeks to unite the anti-DSA factions to avoid a likely loss for Wisconsin Democrats in November. Despite polls showing Hong with a 22-point lead, Crowley crisscrossed the state, fighting for each and every vote. As we saw with this past Tuesday's final election result, that fighting made all the difference with his razor-thin victory margin.
That friends, is not the story of an "Establishment" candidate.
Which is why Crowley's framing of it being a slur is exactly on point. In fact, it's a framing that more Democrats need to adopt. Truth be told, there is no such thing as the Establishment. It was only used as a boogeyman by Bernie Sanders and his ilk to try and create some mythical force preventing themselves from being elected. The idea is simply the latest in a series of excuses weak "Democrats" make when they lose elections. First, it was George Soros. Then it was the "Establishment." Today, it's AIPAC. These insurgent movements that try to undermine the Democratic Party refuse to acknowledge that their candidates have lost a free and fair election (sound familiar?). When someone says that a person is an "Establishment candidate" it's gotten to the point where that phrase has lost all meaning. It is a slur, and the more Democrats can say so to shut down divisive media asking them questions about it will only help their chances come November. David Crowley is simply setting the bar for Democrats moving forward.
There is no civil war among Democrats. DSA and its ilk are nothing more than the latest installment of fringe groups trying to divide and conquer the Democratic Party. But as we saw in Wisconsin, the "Establishment" candidate is frequently the one who matches up better against Republicans in the general election. That's why the far-left has adopted the slur. Because they know that Democrats in moderate districts are the ones who are central to flipping the House and Senate. They know that these candidates are backed by prominent Democrats because they get things done. When an outgoing governor like Tony Evers goes all-in for David Crowley against a Democratic socialist, it's because he knows what it takes to win a statewide election with a diverse statewide electorate. Despite what DSA believes, the vast majority of Democrats are more than happy to vote for someone who is endorsed by prominent members of the party because we respect our party elders. Where DSA sees government experience as a weakness and a liability (except for Bernie), the rest of us understand that when a senior statesman or stateswoman endorses a candidate, it's because they believe they can both win and govern effectively.
This isn't David Crowley's first rodeo. As Black man in government, he's used to hearing all kinds of whispers about how and why he ended up where he did. Being an "Establishment Democrat" was simply the latest in a series of insults hurled his way. But he overcame it, just as he has overcome so much in his life. Nothing was given to him in his life and insinuating that his recent victory in the Wisconsin gubernatorial primary was the result of some shadowy Democratic conspiracy is massively insulting to the man and his campaign that went all out in 24 days. Francesca Hong didn't lose this race; David Crowley won it. And he won it by owning his own personal story and rejecting the way in which DSA tried to label him. For the first time, the DSA-backed "Establishment" label backfired and it was thanks to a County Commissioner running for governor in Wisconsin of all places.
Not too bad for a struggling kid from the streets of Milwaukee.