By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2025-03-22 16:16:26 | Updated at 2025-04-05 00:08:59
1 week ago
MSNBC's Symone Sanders-Townsend pushed back against co-host Michael Steele's criticism of Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's 'Fight Oligarchy' tour.
The tour, which began in Las Vegas and includes stops in several major cities, made its way to Denver on Friday.
While Steele acknowledged the lawmakers' efforts, he questioned whether the term 'oligarchy' truly resonates with everyday Americans.
'The oligarchy tour, I think, kind of misses middle America because, again, Democrats, in my view, being tone deaf from what the American people are saying, you know, folks sitting at the local pub aren't using the term oligarchy,' Steele said on The Weekend.
Sanders-Townsend quickly pushed back. 'OK, wait, but I'm sorry, they're in middle America. He launched a tour in Omaha. They were in Denver,' she countered.
Steele held firm, arguing that the issue wasn't where the tour took place but how its message was framed.
'It doesn't matter where you launch it. It's what you say when you launch it. And if you're using terms and phraseology that is not directly connecting people, then that becomes a concern in the process,' he explained.
Eugene Daniels added that his conversations with Democrats largely echoed Steele's concerns.
MSNBC's Symone Sanders-Townsend pushed back against co-host Michael Steele's criticism of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez 's (D-NY) 'Fight Oligarchy' tour, after Steele argued that the messaging was out of touch with middle America
While Steele acknowledged the lawmakers' efforts, he questioned whether the term 'oligarchy' truly resonates with everyday Americans
'I think, you know, I talked to a bunch of Democrats this week who are happy this tour is happening, just like you, but they agree, they think that the word oligarchy is maybe one that they should skip and go with something like corruption or something like that. Something that's clear, and there's a connection there,' Daniels said.
Meanwhile, Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), a former House representative, took aim at Ocasio-Cortez during a town hall as she faced questions about her approach to Donald Trump.
Slotkin pushed back against calls for her to take a more aggressive stance, distancing herself from progressives. 'Things require me to be more than just an AOC,' she told the crowd.
'I can't do what she does because we live in a purple state and I'm a pragmatist.'
In another exchange, when a constituent referenced Sanders, Ocasio-Cortez, and Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX), Slotkin delivered another jab at progressives.
'Everyone you mentioned has a lot of words, but what have they actually done to change the situation with Donald Trump?' she asked.
At the same time, a new poll suggests that former Vice President Kamala Harris is the Democratic Party's clear frontrunner for 2028—despite her crushing loss to Donald Trump just months ago.
According to a Morning Consult poll, Harris leads the early Democratic primary field by 26 points, with 36 percent of Democratic and Democratic-leaning independent voters supporting her.
'The oligarchy tour, I think, kind of misses middle America because, again, Democrats , in my view, being tone deaf from what the American people are saying, you know, folks sitting at the local pub aren't using the term oligarchy,' Steele said on The Weekend
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speaks to the crowd at the 'Fighting Oligarchy: Where Do We Go From Here' tour to Arizona State University's Mullet Arena on March 20
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., speaks during a 'Fighting Oligarchy: Where We Go From Here' event Saturday, March 8, 2025 at Lincoln High School in Warren, Michigan
Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg lags behind at 10 percent.
Harris has kept a low profile since her defeat in November, but the poll results raise questions about whether Democrats have truly reckoned with their 2024 loss — or if they even have an alternative.
Once seen as the future of the party, Harris watched her presidential bid collapse as Trump reclaimed the White House. Despite raising nearly $1.8 billion — outpacing even Joe Biden — she failed to convert that funding into momentum in key battleground states.
