By Ray DiLorenzo ——Bio and Archives--November 9, 2024

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MSNBC reported that the election marked the end of progressivism. It may or may not be true, but there is no denying that the Democrat Party was hijacked by the extreme progressives and took a hard turn to the left.

The early Progressive era was originally a movement born of the excesses of the early 20th century: social activism, low wages, women's suffrage, unsafe working conditions, child labor, food safety, and the environment. Its objectives were to eliminate the problems caused by industrialization, immigration, and political corruption. It had nothing to do with modern Democrat Progressivism.

It did well, but with some bumps in the road. In 1901, the Socialist Party was established, now known as the Social Democrats. The party sought a sort of political realignment to organize labor unions, civil rights organizations, and other entities into a coalition. Sound familiar? That idea merged into your modern Democrat Party. Social Democrats as a political party don't have much of a voice today because most of them are now rank and file Democrats, making the Social Democrats more of an organization than a political party.

Theodore Roosevelt (R-NY), 26th president, was a staunch progressive when the movement was one of reform of working conditions, women's rights, and political corruption. He believed that combining progressivism with conservatism was the most effective approach.

Despite being progressive less the conservative approach, Woodrow Wilson (D-NJ), 28th president, and his wife, Edith, held a radical stance on race. They fired all of the Black staff in the White House, and subsequent policies of resegregation sent race relations back decades. I say........

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