Former Democratic megadonor John Morgan told NewsNation host Chris Cuomo on Thursday that Sen. Bernie Sanders’ anti-oligarchy tour, featuring Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, is likely to backfire—arguing that both figures energize President Donald Trump’s base.
Sanders, an independent from Vermont, kicked off his “Fighting Oligarchy” tour in February, with Ocasio-Cortez slated to appear at several rallies. Morgan, who was sharply critical of former Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2024 campaign, said during his appearance on CUOMO that Democrats would be better off stepping aside rather than openly opposing the Trump administration.
“It’s a mistake … I agree with [Democratic strategist James] Carville,” Morgan said when the host asked if he likes the two left-wing politicians targeting “the oligarchs.” In a February 25 opinion essay for The New York Times, James Carville argued that Democrats should “roll over and play dead,” predicting that Republicans would ultimately self-destruct without any need for active opposition.
“Look, the new [Democratic National Committee] says this to me: They learned nothing from the last election. What they need to do, Chris, is they need to do nothing,” Morgan added. “They need to let the dumpster fire rage. Let everybody suffer, fight back, push back, be against it, but at the end of the day, Carville is right. Let the dumpster burn, get a lawn chair, get some popcorn, watch it. That will do more.”
“See, AOC and Bernie [galvanize] MAGA because MAGA hates them and the thing MAGA loves the most other than what they love, they love watching them twisting and turning,” he claimed. “They liked to tear the wing off the fly and watch the flower walk around in a circle on the table. They enjoy that as much as they enjoy destroying the Department of Education.”
Recent polls from CNN/SSRS and NBC News, released on Sunday, showed Democratic favorability dropping to around 27 percent. Also, former Clinton pollster Mark Penn also issued a warning Thursday, saying that a potential 2028 primary challenge by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez against Democratic New York Sen. Chuck Schumer could be disastrous for the party.
“I don’t think she’s going to challenge Schumer, but if she does, I mean, already the Democratic ratings are down to 29%. I’ve never seen anything like it,” Penn said. “That means the left base is with the Democratic Party and the moderates are all leaving the party. So AOC taking off Schumer, wow, that could finish this party off. This could put it into the wilderness the way the Labour Party was for a decade.”
His comments come as Trump is still enjoying high favorability ratings for this term, even hitting a high mark for him at any juncture over his first and now second term of around 48 percent.