PHILADELPHIA — Democratic Congressman Alan Grayson thinks leaders within his own party have created a “self-perpetuating oligarchy” that could damage Democratic candidates in the November election.
In an interview Monday evening, the Florida congressman praised progressive Democrats for “actually knowing how to win elections” less than 24 hours before two far-left organizations withdrew their endorsements of him over allegations of domestic abuse.
Grayson simultaneously railed against Democratic party leaders who he said have been meddling in primary races and “wasting party resources.” He specifically criticized Montana Sen. Jon Tester, chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, for having “unfairly chosen sides in primaries all over the country,” including in Florida, where Grayson is looking to defeat fellow Democratic Congressman Patrick Murphy to run against Sen. Marco Rubio, the likely Republican candidate.
“When you have completely ineffective, corrupt party leadership that wastes party resources playing power games and constantly beating down the progressive wing of the party, which is the wing that actually knows how to win elections, then of course we start with a tremendous disadvantage,” Grayson told the Washington Examiner at the end of a chaotic opening day at the Democratic National Convention.
“I well understand given the revelations this week by people are unhappy with the party,” he continued. “I’m unhappy with the party’s power structure and I’m at war with certain party bosses who I refer to as the ‘bullet bureau.'”
“The bullet bureau is playing its games and it’s to the detriment of the party,” said Grayson, who launched his Senate bid in early July after the DSCC had endorsed Murphy.
“They don’t seem to be able to defeat Republicans so instead what they do is they waste party resources defeating Democrats and that’s unfortunate. This is the party leadership that’s taken us down to 60 seats down to 46 seats in the Senate in the past 6 years,” he added.
Grayson said he was mistaken in figuring that party leaders would re-evaluate their tactics after the sweeping midterm losses they faced in 2014, saying: “It’s a self-perpetuating oligarchy within the party. They’re not accountable to anybody at this point.”
“Maybe the $3 million they wasted in Pennsylvania trying to defeat a Democrat they didn’t like, maybe that could have helped them in November,” he added, referring to the help party leaders lent to Democratic Senate candidate Katie McGinty in her primary against former Pennsylvania Congressman Joe Sestak.
Grayson faces an even tougher battle for a primary victory now that he’s being confronted with new allegations of spousal abuse. The Florida Democrat made matters worse for himself on Tuesday after threatening to call the police on a reporter who had asked him about new police reports related to his ex-wife’s accusations.
“After today’s revelations of years of police reports about allegations of domestic abuse involving Alan Grayson, we are no longer willing to support and are formally withdrawing our endorsement of him in the race for U.S. Senate,” Democracy for America and the Progressive Campaign Change Committee said in a joint statement on Tuesday.
