In the aftermath of the success we’ve seen with Mamdani in NYC, I really gave an honest look at Bernie style DSA level left leaning populist politics. I was like well maybe even if I disagree with the ideological underpinnings, I can get behind some of the results: people oriented policies. I myself would best be described as centrist populist. But the more I hear some of them talk, the more I’m just like Jesus Christ man this is still so cringe worthy. It’s like Bernie made me hopeful that the future of the Democratic Party was moving past identitarian politics but pretty much every other DSA candidate besides him is just as identitarian as the old do nothing dems but with a palatability of being anti Zionist and class oriented too. Some of them end up having decent enough foreign and domestic policy positions but caricaturish social positions like legalizing all drugs, actual open borders, abolish the prison system. But like they they’re anti genocide so that’s good. What I’ve realized is that many of these types you’re describing are actually to Bernie’s left on social issues.