CULTURE CLASH

Why the DNC’s David Hogg Experiment Was a Total Disaster

The news that a vice chair of the DNC was also working to beat longtime Democratic incumbents went down about as well as you might expect. Here’s what that means.

Opinion

The David Hogg experiment appears to be almost over at the Democratic National Committee. It has been—and this is a technical term—an utter debacle. Hogg, a 25-year-old activist who grew to political prominence in the wake of a mass shooting at his high school in Parkland, Florida, has roiled the party with talk of primary challenges and a broader desire to shake up the status quo since he became an official spokesperson for it four months ago. And this week, the DNC’s credential committees—committees within committees!—approved a resolution challenging his election. This is a story about a party that knows it has to change but isn’t sure that it actually wants to; about an activist wing—and a youth movement—that has little interest in following the rules. Hogg was always an uneasy fit within the Democratic establishment. The bet the DNC clearly made was that while he was, at times, controversial, Hogg also brought much-needed post-millennial energy to the party infrastructure—and that Democrats were better off with him inside the tent rather than trying to pull up its stakes from the outside. The question moving forward, then, is what happens now they’re likely rescinding their invitation.

Want more ball and strike calling—no matter what uniform the batter at the plate is wearing? Check out Chris Cillizza’s Substack and YouTube channel.