Some thoughts from me on how deeply grassroots women loved Elizabeth Warren: & why they let her go prospect.org/politics/resis…
Grassroots groups are disproportionately full of the demographic among which Warren was most popular: women with college & post college degrees. & many saw & loved in her the combination of pragmatism+idealism—the conviction democracy is flawed but fixable—they themselves embrace
But unlike many highly educated white liberals—who as @eitanhersh has shown are disproportionately likely to consume politics as fandom from within bubbles— theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/…
—the women who have created & powered post 2016 pop-up groups have been out there trying to win elections. In place after place that's been a crash course in the very different lenses through which most normal human beings (& hence voters) view politics vox.com/first-person/2… 
Indeed the folks on the ground doing this work—& yes they are still there & still doing—are *way* more pragmatic & ideologically diverse than the national leaders who are often taken as representative of/spokespersons for "The Resistance" democracyjournal.org/arguments/iowa…
Liz Warren was widely popular among grassroots women but for some good number that was *despite* a policy platform to their left, rather than *because* of it. No simple Left vs Liberal divide is reflected in stats like these👇
For groups in swing states or groups that had experience trying to flip seats in swing districts (which is, many!) reporting like this carried weight bc it resonated with views grassroots stalwarts had heard at the doors, canvassing in downballot races nytimes.com/2019/11/04/ups…
Meanwhile as Warren's profile rose so did push-back against her: some from the (relatively scarce) Sanders supporters within groups themselves, or from other activists who had become allies. Navigating divides & maintaining capacity was front of mind—& endorsement a non-starter
Would it have made a difference if "Resistance" groups where Warren had lots of personal support had thrown weight into campaigning on her behalf? Really unclear. This primary cycle has provided lots of evidence of the limits of "ground game." 👇not wrong?
So maybe the dog-that-didn't-bark wouldn't have mattered if it did
But the evidence that political volunteering impacts *those who volunteer* is much stronger. The one prediction I'm willing to make re Campaign2020 is that the volunteers the Warren campaign nurtured are going to be a transformative presence: not just in 2024 but in 2021, 2022...
Meanwhile, statements like these remind me how little recognized the transformation underway in the local-level Democratic Party has been. No one told middle-aged and retired grassroots women that they should "occupy the party": but they've already done so nytimes.com/2020/03/05/opi…
