Are they doing it IN CONGRESS? Some of them talk a big game, and yes, do sometimes put themselves in harm’s way. But then the vote in the halls of Congress goes like they didn’t do a damn thing.
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Did you actually look up the voting record for this session? I did.
In the house the only bills that passed with more than a handful of Democratic Yea votes were obvious shit like “Antisemitism is bad” and “Kittens are cute.” In the Senate, the first week of confirmations had disappointing numbers of Dems voting to confirm, but zero bills have received more than 2-3 Dem Yeas and after that first week, the bulk of the confirmations have been 45-47 No votes from Democrats. Gabbard, RFK, Jr, etc. didn’t get their support.
So, yeah, that’s what they are in fact doing in congress.
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You got to admire the moxie. Everyone’s always stealing an election from the Democrats. In 2016, it was the Russians. In 2024, it was the very candidate they were supporting. This whole discourse is like the ne plus ultra of a party that loses and loses yet can always find someone else to blame. Including the leader they put into power and then nominated again.
Meanwhile, here are just some of the Democrats in Congress who are planning on running for reelection in 2026.
Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), age 86
Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), 82
John Garamendi (D-Calif.), 80
Doris Matsui (D-Calif.), 80
Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.), 80
Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas), 78
Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), 78
Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), 77
Al Green (D-Texas), 77
Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), 77
Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), 77
Kweisi Mfume (D-Md.), 76
Richard Neal (D-Mass.), 76
Lois Frankel (D-Fla.), 76
Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.), 75
Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), 75And as Axios reports tonight:
“Rep. David Scott (D-Ga.), 79, who was ousted as the Agriculture Committee ranking member last year over concerns about his health, is running. So is Rep. Dwight Evans (D-Pa.), 70, who suffered a stroke last May that forced him to miss House votes the rest of the year. Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.), 76, who froze up during a House floor speech in February due to a partial seizure, “does intend to run for reelection,” his spokesperson said. House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), 85, declined to say what she will do in 2026, as did former Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), 85, and Reps. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.), 82, and Alma Adams (D-N.C.), 78. Rep. Danny Davis (D-Ill.), 83, told Axios he will decide in “maybe a month” whether he plans to run again. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.), 80, is also undecided.”
We really are the oldest democracy in the world.
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The largest group in the House is Gen X.
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Congress did actually get very slightly younger this year. The median age in the House is 57.5, down from 57.9 at the start of the previous Congress. The median age in the Senate is 64.7, down from 65.3. However, Boomers and the Silent Generation make up a supermajority in the Senate. 66 members are from those two generations. Normally I hate both sides arguments, but this really is an issue that exists in both parties. I do not understand why these people aren’t stepping aside to make room for the next generation. They could help mentor and develop them, but instead they’re hanging onto their seats like they’ll die the second they’re out of office. And this problem perpetuates itself, because some of these people didn’t end up in Congress until their 60s or 70s because the people before them wouldn’t step aside. On the other hand, you do have people like Chris Smith of New Jersey, who was elected to the House when he was 27 and he’s now 72. It’s insane.
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Pelosi, Hoyer and Clyburn all gave up their leadership positions. They helped develop their replacements who did take those positions.
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They’re still in Congress. And Pelosi still has a huge influence, even though she’s not officially in a Congressional leadership role. When I say “these people aren’t stepping aside to make room for the next generation”, I don’t just mean in formal leadership roles. That’s a small percentage of House members. The median age in Congress has been rising steadily since about 1980. I know people are living longer, and living healthier longer, but this is still a problem. We need to normalize primary challenges to incumbents, and we need to normalize people saying, “You know what? I’ve served long enough. It’s time for me to step aside and assume a mentorship role in the party.”
And this is a different issue, but they also need to figure out what to do when it becomes obvious that a member is no longer capable of serving due to health issues. We’re seeing a repeat of what happened with Diane Feinstein with John Fetterman right now, except worse apparently. And no one is doing anything. And no one is doing anything because losing one seat in either the House or the Senate right now can have huge negative consequences for both parties. But it’s not good. A House Republican just disappeared last year and then it was discovered that she was in a nursing home with severe cognitive impairment. And no one told anyone!
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You just noted that the average age dropped.
The most over represented group in the House is GenX. 19% of the population vs 42% of the seats.
Calling for one group to step aside because of their age is ageism. By definition. If people want to say they dislike the over representation of some groups - apply it equally.
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Fetterman is my Senator. Dwight Evan’s is my Rep. both had strokes. Both needed time off. Fetterman had overwhelming support. Evan’s did not. Who turned out to be the more problematic?
But Evan’s shouldn’t continue to serve?
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It dropped by a tiny amount. I am not in favor of age limits. I don’t want mandatory retirement. I want people to recognize that it would be better and healthier for our democracy if they would voluntarily step aside and help the next generation of elected servants to develop and grow. Right now, too many are hanging on until they drop dead in office.
I have no idea. Has he recovered from the stroke and able to do his job? If so, he should stay. I’m not calling for automatic ejection for any and all health issues. I’m asking for Congress to do what they should do and eject a member who is no longer able to do the job.
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Hmm, maybe. But we do use all sorts of other demographic criteria for saying this or that sort of candidate is less likely to appeal to voters.
But then, people who bother to vote do seem to trend older, so maybe in that sense at least it is a good thing that Congress is disproportionately loaded with oldsters.
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He was one of the people in your quote about who should step down.
He’s returned to work.
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I never mentioned Evans. I’m not even familiar with him.
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Sorry. That was another person.
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Maybe in some cases, but more often than not the leadership positions on committees were given to the most senior members more or less automatically.
Case in point: AOC tried for the top spot on the House Oversight Committee. It’s an important job that requires good public communication skills to do effectively. She had a lot of support but, thanks in part to folks like Pelosi (whose influence was extremely instrumental) the job ended up going to the ranking committee member Gerry Connolly, a 75 year old man suffering from esophageal cancer who was much less well-known. Just a few months later, he announced that his cancer was getting worse and that he’d be taking a leave of absence from Congress and not running for reelection.
https://www.axios.com/2024/12/17/aoc-loses-gerry-connolly-democrats-oversight
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Do you think she’ll try again?
If someone in their 20’s runs against her; should she step aside?
Should people over a certain age not have opinions on who should serve in some positions?
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I don’t think that anyone here has suggested that the younger candidate should always get the leadership position. But I think it’s quite fair to say that the older candidate shouldn’t be given a leadership position by default, which is what’s often happening now. Some of the people who voted for Connolly explicitly said that they supported him because they “respected the seniority system.” It shouldn’t be controversial to say that a committee leadership job should go to the person who is best prepared to meet the needs of the moment.
Representative Crocket talked about this system after the vote:
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AOC is no longer a member of that committee, so that’s probably not an option. Jasmine Crockett is, though, and she’s currently the Vice Ranking Member. I’d love to see her assume the role of Ranking Member.
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