The IntraLeft Dispute Disrupting A Progressive House Campaign

Five years ago, 28-year-old progressive Aaron Rezenberg won the governorship of Rhode Island by 2,000 votes. He would have been the current governor if he had won. Then-state Chief Executive Gina Raimondo resigned in 2021 to take over as President Biden's secretary of commerce, and she resigned in 2022 to seek re-election to Dan McKee.

Almost every governor is now eligible to serve as a representative in Congress. David Siciliano (D-Republican) resigned in June after representing the district for more than a decade. Rezenberg's campaign platform has a bold agenda for accelerating a green transition, reducing the influence of special interests in Congress and manning Sicilia as the House's leading anti-competitive advocate. Regenberg recently joined the deputy. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and a handful of House progressives have called for the ouster of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas after multiple reports revealed his repeated acceptance of unknown gifts.

"We have to deal with powerful corporate interests that bend the rules of the game," Rezenberg said in an interview with The Prospect . "That's why I'm running for Congress, because we need someone who has a record of making real change, even against long odds."

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Regenberg's road to victory is certainly long. The two-term state representative faces 14 candidates vying for a somewhat vacant seat on Rhode Island's congressional carousel. The candidates include incumbent Gov. Sabina Matos, former White House aide Gabi Amon, two local elected officials and renewable energy investor Don Carlson, who is financing the campaign himself. Many candidates are expected to make their mark.

The first race will be held in September, leaving several tracks for any bowler to clear. Lt. Governor Mattos unveiled a list of state allies and maintains a network of patriotic connections from his time in the Amo Biden administration.

Riesenberg has recently received the support of several left-wing organizations, including Our Revolution activist Nina Turners and the Working Families Party of Rhode Island. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) has accepted his 2018 nomination for governor, as have several state unions.

In a heavily fractured field for blue seats, Regenberg hopes to boost the progressive vote, enough to keep the voter turnout margin relatively small. But even if national reactions are muted, the stakes could be high. Democratic open-seat races have become a battleground between moderate and progressive forces in recent years. Rezenberg, the only candidate who has pledged not to take contributions from corporate PACs, already has progressive organizations behind him.

"We need Aaron in Congress to fight right-wing extremism and bring Democrats back to labor," said Georgia Hollister Eiseman, regional director of the New England Labor Party.

But some left-wing parties in Rhode Island oppose the congressional bid.

In April, six members of the Rhode Island Political Cooperative issued a wide-ranging statement condemning Risenberg's candidacy, saying it was not "true" progressive. Last week, the Providence chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America issued a statement of "no endorsement" in the race, which Rezenberg said he contested with many votes that ran counter to the organization's policy. They cited the former head of state council's support and votes in favor of austerity budget provisions and other issues.

The opposition can be confusing to anyone from out of state, even to residents who have followed Rhode Island politics in recent years.

Since Riesenberg took her seat in the state House in 2014, she has been part of a group of young progressive lawmakers who have pushed Democratic leadership to the left. He has a history of advocating for progressive causes, from Medicare for All to the Green New Deal.

In the State Assembly, Riesenberg helped win the first paid sick leave in Rhode Island history. He led successful efforts to raise the minimum wage and invest in renewable energy projects. The industry opposed each of these reforms and initially faced challenges from many conservative Democrats.

As the 2017 state budget negotiations approach, Riesenberg is standing with 25 lawmakers (representing enough votes to veto the budget bill) to pass an ambitious budget proposal called the Fair Shooting Agenda. The proposal prioritizes a $15 hourly minimum wage, funding for school reform and tax increases on the wealthy. Most of these initiatives were included in the final budget, although some were small (raising the minimum wage to only $10.50 an hour).

The Rhode Island Political Cooperative's attack on Rezenberg is part of a left-wing divide in the state that has emerged in recent years, and which many Democratic activists have questioned . The left coalition that emerged in New York's 2021 mayoral election has nuances in the well-known dynamics of left coalitions. The extent to which the emphasis should be on working within the political system and organizing outside it is under debate. And how hostile the left should be to the Democratic Party.

The co-op was first established in 2019 with the goal of taking a more hard-line approach to leadership and representation of candidates, sometimes progressive candidates. Despite the group's initial acclaim, its candidates have lost unanimously in past election cycles, both with anti-Rezenberg messages. Since then, several Rhode Island legislators affiliated with the cooperative have canceled their memberships.

Regenberg and other lawmakers affiliated with the Rhode Island Working Families Party often clashed over policy positions rather than political strategy. Taoun did not respond to requests for comment, nor did many of its members.

The feud originally began in the 2018 election, when Rezenberg ran for lieutenant governor and co-founder Matt Brown entered the gubernatorial race during the campaign season to challenge Raimondo. Although Raimondo did not fare well on the left in Rhode Island, many progressives saw the primary challenge as unwinnable and not worth the resources to devote.

Brown and Rezenberg disagreed on strategy and ran separate campaigns, but that didn't stop their opponents from pushing similar reforms as part of their ticket to rally supporters against them. Raimondo won the race by more than 20 points, and Rezenberg's challenger, Dan Mackey, may poll more than expected.

The tension resurfaced in 2021 when the Co-operative nominated a candidate to run against Rezenberg-backed Senator Don Ewer. During the race, Rezenberg wrote an op-ed for The Boston Globe that questioned the coalition's rationale for opposing another progressive and criticized its primary candidate, Jennifer Jackson, for her anti-vaccine stance and ban on corporal punishment of children. The Co-operative Society withdrew its support from Jackson.

Another point of contention between the two groups is whether to refuse to vote on the party leadership, which the Alliance for Social Democracy and Cooperative Statements criticized Rijsenberg for failing to do. Regenberg voted unanimously, although he did not always agree with previous speaker Nicholas Mattiello, who responded that he was under no obligation to promote it.

"What's more important? Is it really advancing a political agenda, or is it just a symbolic welfare vote?" asked Rezenberg in an interview with The Prospect .

Regenberg responded to criticism of the letter by highlighting a key conflict with the cooperative. As a lawmaker, he told The Prospectus , his main goal is to build coalitions that deliver real political success.

"In town halls, my constituents have always told me that the top priority of a progressive legislator is getting big things done, and that means working with people I don't agree with on every issue," Regenberg said.

Riesenberg welcomed the importance of external control, but stressed that legislative achievement was essential to establish a movement mechanism.

"It's a balancing act," Rezenberg says, "but removing too many people from your coalition can be detrimental."

In Congress, Rezenberg sees this collaborative work as even more important to push for ambitious reforms. Among them is a climate agenda that focuses on clean energy investments in the Inflation Reduction Act, which imposes stricter restrictions on fossil fuel use and ultimately phases out the industry. Rezenberg plans to continue Cecilia's work as Chair of Cecilia's Trust Subcommittee from 2019 to 2023, a thorn in the side of big corporations and a broad report on monopolies in the technology sector. Regenberg plans to push for new antitrust laws targeting big tech companies and expand antitrust policies to other sectors, such as health care. On the issue of corporate power, Rezenberg stressed his willingness to form an open coalition with Republicans to get things done.

It's unclear how much the internal left-wing rift will affect Riesenberg's campaign. The federation has yet to endorse another candidate in the contest, despite attacks on his predecessor. However, the group's position undermined Riesenberg's progressive voice and paved the way for a moderate candidate to win. Rezenberg's campaign has not ignored the situation and will increase its support in the coming months.

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