Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) named who he believes to be the most powerful Democrat: Zohran Mamdani.
Speaking at an energy summit this week, Cruz stated, “It is not the case that every Senate Democrat is a Marxist or Islamist. What is the case is that every Senate Democrat is terrified of the Marxists and Islamists. Because that’s where the energy is in their party, that’s where the power is, that’s where the money is; it’s where the young people are. I think Mamdani is the single most powerful Democrat in the country.”
The senator drew attention to the rising tide of progressives and suggested Republicans are hesitant to engage. “That dynamic is dangerous right now because they are terrified of the extreme left. Finding a middle ground on ideological issues right now is … the prospects for success, particularly between now and election day, are not high,” Cruz added, noting that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is “truly terrified right now.”
Meanwhile, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says the rise of socialism within the Democratic Party is “healthy.”
Speaking with the Hamptons Institute, Clinton said, “The Democratic Party right now is, I think, going through a kind of experiment, like who can actually respond particularly to young people’s very real concerns about where they are at this point in their lives and what kind of future do they have for themselves? I think that is healthy.”
“I get very amused when I hear Trump and his people talking about socialism and communism. The way he’s behaving is socialism for the rich,” she added. “It is the most ridiculous administration when it comes to doing everything possible to avoid risks and loss for people who are already doing them and to use the power of the government to benefit himself and his cronies and his allies.”
Former Clinton administration strategists, however, have condemned the rise of socialism, specifically calling out Mamdani. “Now many will recall that persecutions frequently begin with a list — a list that can be used by the authorities and that is where Mamdani started — and he published it to boot. And smiled about it as though those high-value owners deserve what’s coming to them,” former Clinton adviser Mark Penn explained on social media, discussing Mamdani’s housing policy. He noted, “But with a million people on his tax hit list, welcome to the lie of socialism – it starts with the idea that only ‘they’ are going to get it — a small group of 30,000 homeowners — and before you know it you are on the list.”
This story has been corrected.
