No Labels present themselves as a legitimate, centrist third party option, but the truth is much darker.
The "No Labels" party is not what it claims to be, John.
They’ve been a hot topic lately as Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia considers a third party presidential bid. And while they present themselves as a legitimate, centrist option — the Goldilocks party that’s not too hot and not too cold, but just right — the truth is much darker.
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Here are three key facts that explain why No Labels is not a centrist party, why no third party can win the White House, and who's really behind these efforts.
First, the group's basic premise doesn't comport with reality. They claim that Trump and Biden represent equally extreme ends of the political spectrum, ignoring the fact that Trump openly sought the end of American democracy and is now promising his base "retribution" over the election he falsely claims was stolen. An equivalent extreme simply does not exist on the American left.
Second, the Electoral College makes a third party victory virtually impossible. In 1912, 1992, 2000, and 2016, third party candidates siphoned enough votes to tip the scales in favor of one of the major party candidates.
And in 2024, Trump’s core base will support him no matter what — a third party candidate would only serve to siphon traditionally conservative voters concerned with the state of our democracy away from President Biden.
Third, No Labels is a dark money group financed by far-right donors. Although they've repeatedly refused to disclose their major donors, Politico, Mother Jones, and the Lincoln Project have reported that they include:
- Harlan Crow, the right-wing billionaire who has lavished Justice Clarence Thomas with gifts and free vacations.
- Michael Smith, a fossil fuel billionaire who has backed a Mitch McConnell super PAC and Virginia’s Republican governor Glenn Youngkin.
- Allan Keen, a Florida real estate mogul and longtime Republican donor who spent at least $135,000 to elect Trump in 2020.
These donors and others have spent huge sums to launder their talking points through a purportedly “centrist” organization, but a little digging reveals exactly what No Labels really is: just another cog in the right-wing disinformation machine.
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Thank you,
The Courier Newsroom Team
