Dollars to Donuts – The American Mind

Edward Durr, a truck driver for a furniture company in southern New Jersey, was denied a concealed carry permit despite having a clean record. He decided to run for the state senate, challenging long-time Senate President Democrat Steve Sweeney, famous for running record-setting expensive races. Sweeney, the second-most powerful official in New Jersey, spent about $600,000 on his 2021 campaign; Durr spent about $2,300, a substantial amount of which went, allegedly, to donuts for campaign volunteers. And Durr won, by 2,000 votes out of about 65,000 cast.  

It is a beautiful thing about America that one can act on one s resentments so productively. George Washington s alienation from the British began with being denied a commission in the regular British army despite his distinguished service in the French and Indian War; Ben Franklin s began with certain business complaints. Ed Durr wanted to carry a gun, and found it annoying that New Jersey s elites made it so hard for him to do so. 

Sweeney s loss is hardly the only case of a powerful legislative leader being defeated in a populist upswell. House Speaker Tom Foley lost his seat in the 1994 Republican Revolution election. Democratic Caucus Chairman Joe Crowley was famously defeated by newcomer Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in the 2018 Democratic primary, and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor lost his primary election to David Brat in 2014. 

Durr may not last more than four years as a state senator, but his victory does more than repeat a quintessential American political story. It reflects one of the basic elements of our Constitutional order that representatives are responsible not to the entire body politic, but to the voters who elected them. 

via americanmind.org

Sometimes you almost lose your faith in local democracy, and then something like this happens. Mass democracy — that’s always a bad idea.