Letters to the Editor: The Democratic Party is having healthy discussions, not a ‘struggle’

To the editor: What the Los Angeles Times characterizes as a “struggle” I view as a healthy and natural discussion over the many issues that face Americans today (“Michigan Senate victory boosts progressives as Democrats wrestle with party’s direction,” Aug. 5). Simply defining candidates as progressive or not ignores the many issues that need examination and resolution today.

All of us in the party want better treatment of the poor and of immigrants. We all want an end to wars, to have better healthcare and to see accountability for the corruption in the current administration. How we get there is worthy of debate and action.

We are far better undertaking this renewal of our priorities than those in the Republican Party who sheepishly follow the whimsical actions of a cruel and lying leader who wants only to aggrandize himself and punish those who disagree with him.

Patricia Koch, Long Beach

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To the editor: In the wake of Abdul El-Sayed’s victory in the Michigan primary, two things have become clear to me. The first is that if the Democrats abandon Israel, many Jews will be forced to abandon the party, as Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman has spoken about. But that is not truly the central issue here, as vital as the U.S.-Israel partnership is to the national security interests of each. The central issue is the defeat of socialism on these shores.

The emerging popularity of the progressive wing of the Democratic Party is long overdue, a reaction to the marginalization of the middle and lower classes by the Republican Party over the last 40 years — in other words, “let them eat cake.” But “cake” will only serve so long as a main course. The dawn of a more varied menu is at hand.

There is only one party that can combat the growing creep of socialism and that is the Republican Party. It will not do so by shouting “communism.” That ship has long since sailed. It will do so by becoming more centrist, delivering healthcare reform, fixing Social Security, strengthening workers’ rights and responding to the massive accumulation of wealth by the few. This way, the Republicans may be able to win the centrists of the Democratic Party, thereby countering the appeal of socialism to the masses.

Paul Hauser, Wellington, Fla.

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To the editor: Progressive politicians such as Michigan’s El-Sayed must be a bellwether for the Democratic Party going forward. Past presidents that would have been considered progressive, i.e. Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, reflected the true character of the Democratic Party, one that embraced the “working folks” and poor people. They proudly advocated for an activist government that made America more livable and fair. They fought for everything from Social Security to Medicare to aid for dependent children, as well as regulatory agencies to constrain the greed and indifference of the corporate titans of the U.S.

The milquetoast, centrist, pro-business echelons that control the oldest party in America must now step aside. These nominal “Democrats” cannot even publicly support universal healthcare in 2026 while nearly all other nations in the developed world have enjoyed those benefits for half a century now. It’s long overdue for candidates such as El-Sayed to move this country into the 21st century.

Bob Teigan, Santa Susana