Jeffries on Kat Abughazaleh's primary challenge of Jan Schakow: "I'm not familiar with who you are talking about."

[HereForTheParty]

Jeffries on Kat Abughazaleh's primary challenge of Jan Schakow: "I'm not familiar with who you are talking about. [Jan is] a longstanding member, obviously a longstanding stalwart progressive member. I'm unfamiliar with this particular challenge."

Jeffries on Kat Abughazaleh's primary challenge of Jan Schakow: "I'm not familiar with who you are talking about. [Jan is] a longstanding member, obviously a longstanding stalwart progressive member. I'm unfamiliar with this particular challenge."

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 2025-03-24T21:02:02.935Z

Yeah, let's give an endorsement to the 80 year old incumbent when we supposedly don't know the challenger.

[GreenWave]

1. Here you go Jeffries, courtesy of this newfangled thing called the Internet.

https://gizmodo.com/a-populist-influencer-is-running-for-congress-and-actually-understands-youtube-2000579826

Journalist and influencer Kat Abughazaleh announced she’s running for Congress in a YouTube video. In a video that looked more like a livestream than an announcement of a bid for office, Abughazaleh promised to run a transparent campaign, fight for affordable groceries, and stand up to authoritarians.

Abughazaleh is running in Illinois’ 9th district, which covers the north side of Chicago and some of its suburbs. She’ll attempt to unseat Democratic incumbent and party stalwart Jan Schakowsky, who is 81 and has held her seat since 1999.

[surrealAmerican]

2. This is my district.

I have a lot of faith in my neighbors to make this choice, regardless of what Jeffries says.

[HereForTheParty]

3. Hoping you are right

Good luck.

[tritsofme]

4. It is literally a core function of Jeffries' job to support incumbents, what a weird criticism.

[Cha]

6. Exactly right.. but Oh time

to pile on Rep Hakeem Jeffie's Again.

What he said about Jan Schakowsky is Exactly True.

[lapucelle]

10. Apparently the challenger has settled on a campaign slogan: "What if we didn't suck".

[Cha]

15. Which has nothing to do with Rep Jan Schakowsky.

I don't know if she's going to run again But if she does I'm Thinking her Constituents hold her in high regard... she's earned it.

Mahalo, lapucelle

[orleans]

18. i'm not in her district but it seems jan is loved, and can kick ass when needed. i think she's pretty great. i hear her

on wcpt's joan esposito show... i don't hear *my* dem congressional rep but i hear jan

[Cha]

25. Mahalo for that, orleans!

I’ve been reading Good things about JK for years.

🕯️🕊️💙🌈

[lapucelle]

20. She sounds dependable.

[Cha]

26. "lmao". Yeah it's hilarious 😴

🕯️🕊️💙🌈

[W_HAMILTON]

29. Oh, boy, that subset of the left is gonna try to stick us with another Sinema/Fetterman, aren't they?

[PunkinPi]

33. The horseshoe is a circle. nt

[mcar]

46. Well, that's just brilliant

[HereForTheParty]

8. Against primary challengers?

If that's true it's worse yet.

[lapucelle]

12. Yeah, it is true. I'm surprised that anyone involved in Democratic politics doesn't know that.

What's "worse" about it?

You do understand the role of Minority Leader/Speaker, right?

[HereForTheParty]

17. It's worse because *sometimes* the challenger is a better candidate

nm

[lapucelle]

19. So you don't understand the Minority Leader/ Speaker's role.

Good to know.

[writerJT]

36. Correct, but you'll get pushback

from folks who are more interested in being party lickspittles than advancing progressive policies. Notice you’re getting no substantive reasoning in response, but rather murky (but oddly confident) proclamations about roles.

[Walleye]

51. "party lickspittles"?One thing you can count on with us Democrats. We always hold our internal disputes and family fight

In public. I don’t know why, it just makes us look bad, so we want to call each other names now?

[mcar]

47. A. Leader Jeffries is not going to endorse a primary opponent

of a standing Congresswoman and it is ridiculous to think he would (or any Speaker or Minority Leader).

B. Who says this is a better candidate? I never heard of her until this OP and what I'm seeing doesn't indicate she is the better candidate.

[writerJT]

31. Is that in the caucus rules?

I don’t see it here: https://www.dems.gov/imo/media/doc/DEM_CAUCUS_RULES_117TH_April_2021.pdf

Or is it more just tradition?

[lapucelle]

32. Why would anyone be looking for a rule about this in a document about parliamentary procedure from two Congresses ago?

The Minority Leader or Speaker provides campaign support to incumbents or Democratic candidates challenging Republicans. The goal is to protect and grow the size of the caucus.

Hakeem Jeffries (like Nancy Pelosi before him) understands the assignment.

[writerJT]

34. That's on the Democrats' official website.

So it’s not in the rules, it’s just “understands the assignment”? There’s no official requirement, and not even a tradition, but rather (according to you) what holds them to the alleged responsibility to which you refer is just some fatuous, worn-out, unoriginal internet lingo about understanding the assignment.

Yes, I copied the wrong link. Guess what? Can’t find it here, either. https://www.dems.gov/rules-of-the-democratic-caucus

[lapucelle]

37. That's still a link to parliamentary procedural rules.

Why would campaign strategy be governed by parliamentary procedure?

[writerJT]

38. So you can't cite anything.

Any idea how your theory works when, for various reasons, the party hasn’t stood by incumbents? Some instances are obvious (corruption or the presence of allegations) but others involve electoral liabilities.

How do you think that happens when you’re confidently spouting here about some apparent obligation to support incumbents? Got anything?

[lapucelle]

40. For anyone who does not know the assignment (much less understand it)

my advice is to pay attention during class.

Class occurs every two years during congressional primaries and general elections. The folks who pay attention know that the Democratic Speaker / Leader endorses every congressional Democrat, from the Blue Dogs to the Squad.

Anyone interested in extra credit on the assignment should work hard every year to ensure that Democrats are either elected to or remain in office.

[writerJT]

41. Once again, no substance.

Is class still in session?



Let’s examine your statement:

“The folks who pay attention know that the Speaker Leader endorses every congressional Democrat, from the Blue Dogs to the Squad.”

In 2020 Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-IL) was the Incumbent seen as a Conservative Democrat (anti-abortion, anti-ACA expansion). Challenged by Marie Newman (a true progressive). The DCCC removed Lipinski from its "Red to Blue" program, effectively signaling he wasn’t their preferred candidate.
Pelosi endorsed and visited the districts of other less progressive incumbents but didn’t do the same for Lipinski. AOC endorsed Newman, to no pushback from leadership. Fellow incumbent Dems cancelled events with Lipinski, to no pushback from leadership. How does any of this fit with your claim that “The folks who pay attention know that the Speaker Leader endorses every congressional Democrat, from the Blue Dogs to the Squad.”

Let’s look at Rep. Carolyn Maloney vs. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) – 2022. Two Democrats forced into the same district. Pelosi, Schumer, and Hakeem Jeffries refused to endorse either, despite Maloney’s seniority.
The DCCC stayed neutral. How does any of this fit with your claim that “The folks who pay attention know that the Speaker Leader endorses every congressional Democrat, from the Blue Dogs to the Squad.”

2018, incumbent Rep. Michael Capuano vs. challenger Ayanna Pressley. The DCCC and Pelosi stayed completely neutral, refusing to spend resources to defend Capuano. How does any of this fit with your claim that “The folks who pay attention know that the Speaker Leader endorses every congressional Democrat, from the Blue Dogs to the Squad.”

We could also talk about the race with Jamaal Bowman, or the one with Cori Bush, or the one with…ah, never mind. Other people will get the point.

[lapucelle]

42. Jeffries endorsed both Bowman and Bush in their primaries last year. N/T

You know that, right?

[writerJT]

43. LOL

Obviously I’m referring to their initial races as challengers (in 2020) and what leadership and the DCCC didn’t do for the incumbents they unseated.

And of course you have no comment on the other examples.

You treated people in this thread like they didn’t know anything about this topic. The condescension was astounding, hence my replies. I think I’ve done enough to expose the truth here. Carry on.

[lapucelle]

44. What are you talking about? N/T

[lapucelle]

50. What do you think that leadership and the DCCC didn't do for incumbents 1n 2020?

The Bush-Clay rematch in Missouri’s 1st District is already enmeshed in a party fight over the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s controversial decision to support incumbents, like Clay, over challengers like Bush.

https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/illinois/wagner-and-clay-aggressively-fundraising-in-anticipation-of-2020-election-challenges/article_b12472a7-5b2c-5998-b42d-f063bcdd4602.html

Pelosi backs Engel ahead of tight New York primary

https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/04/pelosi-engel-new-york-primary-301507

----------------------------------------

So to review,

- campaign strategy is not governed by parliamentary rules of procedure
- the Democratic Leader/Speaker endorses incumbents as policy to protect and grow the caucus
- incumbents in 2020, 2022, and 2024 were all endorsed by House leadership

This must be really important to you for some reason, seeing that you've made so comments.

I read profiles.

[tritsofme]

13. Jeffries is the elected leader of House Democratic members, not their opponents.

[writerJT]

35. You're good. It's not true.

There’s nothing in the caucus rules about it.

https://www.dems.gov/rules-of-the-democratic-caucus

And our enthusiastic resident parliamentarian here isn’t able to cite anything. Oh well.

[HereForTheParty]

45. I guess the "everybody knows that" citation isn't terribly reliable

Thank you for hashing that out.

[Torchlight]

5. Schakowsi is graded as a top progressive, in both votes as well as intent.

I'm not going to criticize anyone simply for not knowing who an up-and-comer who has only annoucned today. I certainly ain't gonna get into the useless jibber-jabber of age-talk, 'cause in that repect, they both represent opposite ends of the same damn coin.

[lapucelle]

7. The Democratic Speaker/Minority Leader's endorsement always goes to the incumbent. Everybody knows that. N/T

[Renew Deal]

9. He might really be unfamiliar

[lapucelle]

14. Not as unfamiliar as some are with the role of the Speaker/Minority Leader. N/T

[JI7]

11. What's wrong with being 80 ? Is there an issue with how she votes ?

and where she stands in issues ?

[lapucelle]

16. Jan Schakowsky's record speaks for itself.

Jan Schakowsky is a Hard-Core Liberal

https://bit.ly/4bZq2x5

[W_HAMILTON]

28. The worrying part isn't Jeffries not knowing an internet celeb the day they declare they are running...

...the worrying part is some of those on the left willing to toss aside one of the strongest progressives in Congress because they don't know who Jan Schakowsky is.

[mcar]

48. It's obviously ageism

and the usual far left kneejerk response to Democratic incumbents.

[lapucelle]

21. This reminds me of the time when Olivia Nuzzi thought President Biden was supposed to know who she was.

And when PJB asked her for her name, the former minor/currently disgraced and unemployed reporter cited it as evidence of Biden's "mental decline" in a hit piece for New York Magazine.

[BlueTsunami2018]

22. I'm not surprised he doesn't know who she is.

No one does.

I only know now because of this story.

[mcar]

23. Do you really think the Leader

Should be endorsing challengers?

[muriel_volestrangler]

24. He didn't endorse, he said he wasn't aware of this challenge (launched today, it seems).

This would seem to be about Jan Schakowsky, not "Jan Schakow", so I'm not that keen on threads that supposedly don't know the incumbent.

[greatauntoftriplets]

27. Jan Schakowsky was my representative for a long time.

She has a sterling record in the House, and if I still lived in that district, I'd vote for her again.

[HereForTheParty]

30. KAT has raised $150k in less than 12 hours

nm

[betsuni]

39. *lights hair on fire, screaming* THAT'S IT I'M NEVAR VOTING FOR A DEMOCRAT AGAIN IN PERPETUITY FOREVAR!!!11!!

Sarcasm Sarcasm

I guess that's supposed to be the expected reaction. Really rooting around the bottom of an empty dry old salted herring barrel to come up with anything to bash Democrats.

[mcar]

49. Why the ageism?

The Congresswoman is a solid progressive Democrat. The challenger is an "influencer" who just announced her candidacy.

Why should Jeffries know anything about her?