Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Ken Martin defended New York City’s far-left mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani’s refusal to denounce the controversial slogan “globalize the intifada.”
He told PBS that the key to winning elections is embracing all wings of the party, even the extreme ones.
Martin, who previously chaired the Minnesota DNC and now leads the national committee, celebrated the party’s “big tent” approach:
“There’s no candidate in this party that I agree 100% of the time with, to be honest with you,” Martin told PBS.
“I always believe … that you win through addition.
“We have conservative‑Democrats, we have centrist‑Democrats, we have labor‑progressives like me, and we have this new brand of Democrat which is the leftists. …
“We win by bringing people into that coalition and at the end of the day, for me, that’s the type of party we’re going to lead.
“We are a big tent party.”
Despite widespread backlash over Mamdani’s repeated unwillingness to explicitly disavow a slogan interpreted by many as calling for violence against Israel and Jews, Martin brushed it off as “dissent and debate,” an inevitable hallmark of a diverse coalition.
Mamdani, fresh off his upset victory in the Democrat primary over former Governor Andrew Cuomo, doubled down when pressed by NBC:
When asked by Kristen Welker if he would “actually condemn” the slogan, Mamdani pivoted:
“That’s not language that I use … the language that I will continue to use to lead this city is that which speaks clearly to my intent, which is an intent grounded in a belief in universal human rights.”
And when Welker probed further:
“Why not just condemn it?” she asked.
Mamdani responded:
“My concern is to start to walk down the line of language, and making clear what language I believe is permissible or impermissible, takes me into a place similar to that of the president who is looking to do those very kinds of things, putting people in jail for writing an Op‑Ed, putting them in jail for protesting …
“Ultimately, it’s not language that I use, it’s language I understand there are concerns about, and what I will do is showcase my vision for this city through my words and my actions.”
When pressed on measures to combat anti-Semitism, Mamdani claimed:
“I have spoken with numerous Jewish New Yorkers about their fears … and said he would be committing to increasing ‘anti‑hate crime programming’ in the city by 800%.”
Rather than drawing boundaries, Democrats like Martin and Mamdani are ushering in a new era of political correctness, where slogans advocating extremist violence are merely “language I understand there are concerns about.”
For conservative voters, this is a stark reminder that the Democratic Party is increasingly willing to tolerate radical views if it means shoring up its electoral base.
However, this isn’t diversity of thought; it’s ideological appeasement.
And as moderate Democrats watch from the sidelines, it’s turning a once‑mainstream party into a safe harbor for the most extreme left-wing rhetoric.
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