The Democrats Rolled Over and Played Dead — And It Worked

Democrat Strategist and Commentator, James Carville's legendary advice, paid off for the establishment but not the American people.

In February 2025, James Carville advised Democrats to “roll over and play dead” — to lay low, avoid overreaching, and let the political winds shift back in their favor. On Election Day this past November 4th, that strategy appeared to pay off. Across the country, Democrats notched significant victories, flipping key governorships, and even breaking the Republican supermajority in Mississippi.

The much-hyped “Democratic Tea Party” moment did arrive, but not in the form many progressives had imagined. Instead of a left-wing wave, it was a centrist resurgence. After a year of political stagnation, Democratic voters — fatigued by ten months of the Trump administration’s chaos — rewarded the party simply for not being the GOP. Trump’s policies over the past year, ranging from sweeping DOGE federal job cuts, proposed SNAP and aid cuts, to aggressive ICE raids in major cities, on top of daily flooding of the news cycle, alienated vast swaths of the electorate. Democrats, by doing little more than waiting, reaped the benefits of that exhaustion.

Carville’s prediction proved prescient: Democrats did nothing, and they won big.

The Myth of a Progressive Democrat “Tea Party”

Throughout 2025, many Progressives online and political commentators had speculated about a coming “Democratic Tea Party” — a grassroots left insurgency that would reshape the party much like the conservative Tea Party did to Republicans in 2010. Much of that optimism centered on figures like Zohran Mamdani in New York City, whose campaign drew energy from DSA organizers, working class New Yorkers and younger voters.

But as the results came in, the limits of that vision became clear. While Mamdani secured a historic victory, progressives were routinely ignored by establishment Democrats and mainstream media. In Minneapolis, DSA-backed Omar Fateh lost to unpopular, two-term incumbent Jacob Frey. In Seattle , outsider candidate Katie Wilson , won in a nail biter against centrist Bruce Harrell . Nationwide, few progressive victories emerged: Mamdani’s in New York , Wilson in Seattle and DSA candidate’s city council wins in Atlanta and Detroit.

The so-called “Democratic Tea Party” wave led by Progressives, in other words, never materialized. The actual wave belonged to centrists.

The Rise of the “Mod Squad”

Perhaps no group better represents this centrist ascendancy than the self-styled “Mod Squad” — a trio of moderate Democratic women who rose from the House to higher office. The Mod Squad organized in response to the rise of The Squad. In 2025, Virginia elected former CIA officer Abigail Spanberger as governor, while New Jersey chose former Navy helicopter pilot Mikie Sherrill. Their colleague Elissa Slotkin, another founding Mod Squad member, now serves as a senator from Michigan.

Together, Spanberger, Sherrill, and Slotkin symbolize the Democratic establishment’s preferred archetype: pragmatic, national security-minded, and reliably centrist. They are the latest inheritors of the “girlboss” lineage stretching from Hillary Clinton to Amy Klobuchar to Kamala Harris — establishment figures who blend competence, patriotism, and a cautious brand of feminism that reassures business interests and suburban voters alike.

While progressives like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, and Rashid Tlaib continue to command cultural influence amidst their losing Squad members in the House, the Mod Squad’s political success underscores where the party’s real investment lies. The Democratic establishment consistently backs candidates who are pro-business, pro-military, and institutionally aligned — not those pushing for structural change.

Who the Party Chose to Celebrate

The contrast in how Democratic leaders responded to these victories speaks volumes. National figures such as Barack Obama, Cory Booker, and Pete Buttigieg publicly congratulated Spanberger and Sherrill in speeches and on social media. Meanwhile, Mamdani’s groundbreaking win in New York drew silence from nearly every major party leader.

Even New York Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, withheld endorsements from Mamdani, Jeffries endorsed during the final days of the race. Governor Hochul, who endorsed Mamdani, only to keep up with the endorsement from her gubernatorial challenger from the Left, has already begun this week undercutting Zohran’s efforts to raise taxes on NYC’s wealthiest. This selective enthusiasm reveals the party’s priorities: reward the centrists, marginalize the left.

Obama’s decision to campaign personally for Spanberger and Sherrill in the closing days — while ignoring Mamdani — further highlights the establishment’s comfort zone. The party’s power brokers have little appetite for the kind of anti-corporate, anti-imperialist message that animates the socialist left.

The Broader Pattern: Centrism Reaffirmed

Beyond the headline races, centrist Democrats continued to consolidate control in major cities. In Atlanta, Mayor Andre Dickens cruised to reelection despite fierce criticism from progressives over his support for the controversial “Cop City” police training complex. In Detroit, moderate city council member Mary Sheffield became the city’s new mayor.

These results form a coherent pattern: from governors’ mansions to city halls, centrist Democrats prevailed — often easily.

For the socialist left, this election cycle serves as a sobering reality check. The long-awaited “Democratic Tea Party” has not arrived, and it may never. Carville’s “roll over and play dead” doctrine has instead reaffirmed the strength of establishment centrism. Democratic voters, disillusioned but pragmatic, returned to the fold in large numbers rather than defect to Republicans or help build third parties.

The Democratic Party’s message in 2025 is clear: stability over transformation, moderation over movement politics. And until progressives build power outside the Democrat party’s current structure, invest in the Green Party, PSL and new political entities, the center will continue to hold.