Fetterman vs. the D.S.A.
He’s the only bare-knuckle brawler the Democrats have.
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Today in Free Expression, columnist Matthew Continetti names the four horsemen of presidential apocalypse; Masada Siegel sees a series of unfortunate antisemitic events; and Megan Pidcock falls for the Knicks.
But first, in the blue corner . . .
Dancing Days Are Here Again
—Matthew Hennessey
Establishment Democrats got their bells rung. Southpaw socialists in Sen. Chuck Schumer’s backyard swept the undercard Tuesday. At a victory celebration for one of the upstarts, the sight of Rep. Hakeem Jeffries on a TV prompted the crowd to chant, “You’re next!”
How did it come to this? A line in yesterday’s Journal editorial landed with me: One “reason for the socialist rise is that mainstream liberals put up so little resistance.”
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Democrats in Washington have been so busy shadow boxing with phantom fascism, they left themselves exposed. They misjudged the quality of the challenge from the Democratic Socialists of America. It wasn’t the fight they expected—or trained for.
Now the radicals have Democrats on the ropes and are working the body hard. If party stalwarts don’t start counterpunching soon, they won’t go the distance. They’ll be lucky to hear the man count 10.
Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman may be their best choice for a corner man. The hoodied, heavyweight, former mayor of Braddock, Pa., is the only brawler in their camp. “This has just become really the dancing days of the dirtbag left,” he said in an interview this week with Fox News host Sean Hannity.
Unlike many in his party, Mr. Fetterman sees where the fight is headed:
Some of these candidates are outrageous. You have candidates, they’ve said abolish ICE, abolish the police, abolish the border, and she even said f— Kamala Harris, and more of these outrageous kinds of things. And then you have, like, Mamdani. He was grieving a Hamas sniper who was killed by Israel just the other day. He was grieving that. These are emerging, the full pro-Hamas wing. A lot of these candidates that very likely are going to win tonight are just declaring a war on regular Democrats.
Devotees of the sweet science are familiar with the adage “styles make fights.” A boxer with a unique and specific style—an unorthodox stance or a crowd-pleasing energy—can vex an objectively stronger opponent and neutralize his on-paper advantages. The Democratic Party is being chased around the ring by a style of progressive politics that is culturally vulgar, economically populist, anti-Israel and anti-American.
Say what you want about the tenets of Democratic Socialism. At least it’s an ethos.
Regular Democrats need to develop an answer to that ethos. They’ll lose everything if they don’t start landing some blows. They may lose anyway, but the alternative is throwing in the towel. All that gets you is a one-way ticket to Palookaville.
There ain’t going to be a rematch.
Web-Flinger: In case you needed another reason to be scared of spiders, scientists have recently discovered an arachnid species of stone-cold killers. These creepy-crawlers are found, of course, in Australia, where nature wants you dead. These unofficially named “ballista spiders” spend their days hiding under leaves. When evening comes they spin long, vertical web traps and release a chemical trigger that attracts a certain kind of ant. Contact with the trap flings ants up at an acceleration rate of 1,367 meters per second squared, according to the New Scientist. That’s enough G-force to kill a human. Fortunately, we aren’t their target. Not yet, anyway. — Jack Butler
iCaramba!: Apple announced this week that it will be hiking prices on several devices. The MacBook Pro will now be sold for $1,999, a $300 increase, and the company’s cheapest laptop, the MacBook Neo, will now cost $100 more. Prices for iPads are also going up as A.I. data centers fuel a surge in demand for chips. “We have now reached a point where we need to begin raising prices,” the company said in a statement. “We have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly.” — Emma Camp
Read My Latest: Earlier this week we told you about recently discovered unknown works by Mozart and St. Augustine. Add Philodemus of Gadara to the list of long-dead dudes coming out with new stuff. Researchers using newfangled methods are finally tapping the secrets of ancient scrolls buried by ash from Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D. Philodemus may be the luckiest epicurean philosopher in 2,000 years. Before recent technological advances his works-published list was short. As artificial intelligence gets better and better at reading carbonized papyrus rolls containing his treatises, his reputation has nowhere to go but up. — M.H.
The ‘Four I’s’ That Can Wreck Presidencies
Matthew Continetti
Donald Trump’s challenges are partly inherited from Joe Biden, and partly the results of his lack of focus and unwillingness to escalate against Iran.
Jimmy Carter and Mr. Biden sought re-election; Mr. Trump wants the GOP to hold Congress and secure his legacy.
Read Matthew’s Column ⧁
A Series of Antisemitic Events
In Lemony Snicket’s world, the children ultimately realize they must save themselves. In a world where many school boards and university presidents lack the courage to act, the courtroom becomes the only place left to protect children.
By Masada Siegel
I Fell Hard for the Knicks
Though it may be true that a bandwagon fan only cares when the winning starts, there’s a special, effusive joy that comes when a whole city embraces its sports team.
The Radicals Inside the Tent
Democrats who hope far-left insurgents will settle down after arriving in Washington are in for an ugly surprise.
By James B. Meigs
Private Investigators Are Back on the Case
Once a prime-time staple, the gumshoe is taking on clients again.
By Christopher Scalia
‘Labyrinth’ Still Dances the Magic Dance
The film remains a wonderfully strange fantasy that lets its heroine grow up without growing up too fast.
When Does the World Cup Start?
The sidelines and subplots are more entertaining than the matches. At least so far.
By Matthew Hennessey
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Not sure he’s a Democrat any more. He sounds more and more like a Republican these days
In 2022 I perceived Fetterman as being aligned with the DSA wing. He turned out to be the only common sense Democrat in Congress.
The DSA takeover of Democratic Party will be the best thing that ever happened for Republicans.