Former President Barack Obama said on Saturday he is concerned about the Left wing of the Democratic Party creating a “circular firing squad” hurting more moderate members.
“The way we structure democracy requires you to take into account people who don’t agree with you,” Obama said at an Obama Foundation event in Berlin, Germany. “And that by definition means you’re not going to get 100 percent of what you want.”
“One of the things I do worry about sometimes among progressives in the United States — maybe it’s true here as well — is a certain kind of rigidity, where we say, ‘Oh, I’m sorry. This is how it’s going to be,’” Obama said, adding that Democrats have in some cases created “what’s called a ‘circular firing squad,’ where you start shooting at your allies because one of them is straying from purity on the issues.”
When this happens, Obama said “typically the overall effort and movement weakens.”
The remarks come at a time when 17 candidates are vying for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, many of whom have voiced support for liberal platforms such as government-run healthcare, reparations, the Green New Deal, and free college.
The Democratic Party surged in the 2018 midterm elections, taking control of the House, charged in part by an energetic progressive movement that saw the emergence of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.
Obama said nothing of his former vice president, Joe Biden, who is leaning into a run for president and is also facing a growing controversy in which several women accused him of touching them inappropriately.
Nor did Obama mention his successor, President Trump, although he did take some rhetorical shots, harping on climate change and “tolerance and respect.”
Obama also touched on nationalism, which has become a hotly contested subject in the U.S. under Trump and in Europe where far-right parties have made gains in recent years.
“Nationalism, particularly on the far right, is re-emerging,” Obama said. “We know where that leads. Europe knows better than anyone where that leads.”
He added: “It leads to conflict, bloodshed and catastrophe.”
