A Democratic campaign activist said she was leaving the party after becoming “disillusioned” with Democratic leadership after volunteering at last month's Democratic National Convention.
In an op-ed published in Newsweek magazine on Tuesday, Evan Barker explained how she went from raising “tens of millions of dollars” for the Democratic Party to now distancing herself from a party she believes is “totally out of touch with ordinary Americans.”
Barker said he was initially “thrilled” that Vice President Kamala Harris accepted the presidential nomination at the Democratic National Convention.
“But once I got there, wandering amid the glitz and glamour, soaking up all the gloss and sweetness, I couldn't escape a sinking feeling. I felt like I was sinking in an empty room whose mottos were 'Saucy Summer' and 'Joy.' Totally out of touch with ordinary Americans and their urgent needs. Instead, I found the world's most elite shouting in unison, 'We're not going back.'” Barker wrote:.
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United States Vice President Kamala Harris greets United States President Joe Biden as First Lady Jill Biden and Vice President and Representative Doug Emhoff look on during the conclusion of the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 19, 2024. (Andrew Harnick/Getty Images)
“I was feeling disillusioned, lost, sad and alone. As someone who had dedicated my life to Democratic politics, it was devastating. But, to be honest, it wasn't at all surprising,” she continued.
Barker said he grew up in a family of blue-collar union Democrats near Kansas City, “far from the glitz, glamour and ostentatious wealth that I was used to seeing in Democratic politics.”
“Time has passed, and now many of those same families are no longer Democrats. They feel the party has changed and they've been left behind,” she wrote. “At the Democratic National Convention, I couldn't help thinking about my family. Every time the elites yelled, 'We're not going back to the way things were,' what I heard was, 'We're not going back to the party that union families once voted for.'”
Barker's dissatisfaction with the Democratic Party had been growing over time, but the convention marked a turning point, she wrote.
Oprah Winfrey takes the stage during day three of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, USA on August 21, 2024. (Reuters/Mike Seeger)
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“When I went to the Democratic National Convention last month, I had hoped with all my heart that I would be re-inspired and feel the same love for party that I felt when I walked the streets as a teenager for Barack Obama. I can still remember the overwhelming joy I felt when I ran into the streets with hundreds of people dancing to Thriller after he won,” she wrote. “But far from regaining that feeling, the DNC finally dawned on me: It's impossible to forget what you've seen. You just have to move on.”
Barker said he got an inside look at campaigns as a Democratic fundraising consultant to Senate and House candidates, learning how to cajole big-name donors into accepting big checks and gain influence in government in exchange for money.
“When it comes to donors, the policy issues they care about are niche and rarely reflect the needs of people back home. Democrats love to blame money in politics when it comes to the Koch brothers and Elon Musk, but the billionaires who support Democrats are completely ignored, and have a huge influence on policy.”
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“At first I naively thought the system was broken, but now I realise that it's not broken, it's just serving the purpose it was meant to, which is to deny working class people real representation. And that's the point: it's a feature, not a flaw,” she continued.
She said Republicans are probably guilty of the same thing, but “Democrats are the bigger hypocrites about it.”
“Perhaps most shocking is that the Democratic Party has embraced the foreign policy of the Bush era and become the party of war. Instead of rebuilding the working-class communities hardest hit by neoliberal trade policies, they have spent $175 billion on the Ukraine war,” Barker writes. “The cherry on top was Vice President Kamala Harris proudly touting her endorsement from Dick Cheney. Dick Cheney!”
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“The sad truth is, Democratic Party “They have completely lost their way. They speak primarily to the college-educated, urban, and affluent in their language. Their tone is condescending and paternalistic,” she concluded. “They peddle benefits to the college-educated, like student loan forgiveness plans, disproportionately helping their base, ignoring the vast majority of the country who do not have a four-year degree, and offering no concrete plan for real reform.”
Neither the DNC nor the Harris campaign responded to Fox News Digital's requests for comment.
