This is an extremely important event with real possibilities to change the Democratic Congress. While the Responsible Caucus is composed of prospective members of Congress rather than current members, it also distinguishes itself from the other caucuses by having a wider range, and longer list, of specific legislation it endorses. In fact, 17 pieces of legislation are listed in Appendix A of the plan. So, while its members are prospective rather than current, it actually already includes numerous current members of the House. Further, the sheer amount of specific legislation makes it a much more coherent caucus in terms of policy than most, or all, of the other ideological caucuses. Yet further, the ranks of the Responsible continue to grow, with forty new members joining in the last month alone.
Something very big is happening with The Responsible Plan. It might be happening somewhat under the radar, and it might not be directly related to the presidential primary, but this could be the most important development in the Democratic Party over the last two months. Large numbers of Democratic congressional challengers are organizing themselves around specific legislation without guidance or supervision of existing party committees or leadership. Effective, progressive leadership is emerging, and that is a very welcome development.
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