‘I Have the Ability to Lead This Party Out of the Darkness’
Former Maryland governor running to lead the Democratic National Committee
A former governor of Maryland and one-time mayor of Baltimore believes he is the one best positioned to rebuild and lead the Democratic Party through the years of Donald Trump ahead.
Martin O’Malley is one of several candidates who are vying to succeed Jaime Harrison as chairman of the Democratic National Committee (DNC).
Democrats face significant challenges as they regroup from the disastrous results for the party from last month’s elections and confront the authoritarianism, austerity and reduction of rights promised by Trump in his coming term.
Asked why he wants to lead the DNC, O’Malley said that the Democratic Party could well be all that stands to protect the future of the nation.
“Because I love my country. And right now I think we all have to recognize that the Democratic Party is actually the only thing that stands between the Republic we carry in our hearts and whether or not that republic is going to survive much longer,” he said. “So we have to turn our party around. We have to change to win. We have to do it quickly. And I’m probably about the best operational turnaround leader in our party today. So that’s why I’m offering my candidacy.
“I know we’re up for this, talking to people out here, I know they’re up for this battle. So it’s time to pick ourselves up off the mat and recover and defend the country we carry in our hearts,” added O’Malley.
O’Malley, who recently concluded a stint heading the Social Security Administration for the outgoing Biden administration, faces several opponents in his bid for DNC chair.
State party chairs Ken Martin of Minnesota and Ben Wikler of Wisconsin, New York state Sen. James Skoufis and former Maryland Senate candidate Robert Houton have all announced bids to be the next DNC chair.
Martin has consolidated support, reportedly receiving at least 100 endorsements from the 448 DNC members. He has close to half of the 225 votes needed to win the majority of the vote.
In a recent interview with NBC News, O’Malley elaborated why he should win.
“Well, we clearly need new blood, and you know what? We have a lot of great candidates all across the country who are running and winning elections even though the top of the ticket was not, you know, wasn’t a help to them in a lot of the places where they were running,” he said. “For the last year, I’ve been — was asked by President Biden to go turn around Social Security, which was in danger of heading into a customer service meltdown. He didn’t ask me to go there because it was an easy job. He asked me to go there because it was a tough job and because I have the ability to turn around organizations fast and that’s what we need to do.
“I have the experience and it’s experience that my party has given to me. I have run for election and re-election, as you pointed out, and whenever I did, I always made sure the message was connected to the family’s kitchen table economic realities,” he added. “That’s the most important place in our country. And the good news is, this change we need to win is really a return to our true selves as a party.
“But it’s going to require not only messaging that’s connected to every family’s economic reality, it’s going to require an operational turnaround and I have the ability to lead this party out of the darkness.”
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