Karl Rove Warns Dem Socialists Will Be Far Worse ‘Problem’ for Democrats Than Tea Party Was for GOP

Veteran GOP operative Karl Rove warned Democrats that they are facing a far worse “problem” than Republicans did with the Tea Party movement when it comes to the rise of Democratic socialists.

Rove joined Fox News’ John Roberts on Thursday afternoon and broke down the numbers behind Democratic socialists, many of them members of the organization Democratic Socialists of America, winning Democratic Party primaries across the country.

Among the primary victories were Brad Lander, Darializa Avila Chevalier, and Claire Valdez — the latter two members of DSA while Lander is a former member — in New York districts. All three were backed by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D), who is also a Democratic socialist. Both Lander and Avila Chevalier beat incumbent Democrats.

Rove noted the New York wins, as well as a primary win against an incumbent Democrat by Melat Kiros in Colorado, were all in deep-blue areas where President Donald Trump did not perform well. The problem, however, could easily expand next to swing districts.

He argued:

We’re a narrowly divided country. Where are they winning these primaries by and large? Here’s New York. In New York, Donald Trump in the 7th district got 19.3% of the vote. In the 10th he got 14.1. In the New York 13 he got 11.1. This Colorado seat that they knocked off the long time incumbent, Donald Trump got 21% of vote. That’s a very, I mean that is the most liberal district in the state. They’re the most liberal parts of Denver. And my point is, is that what’s going to be a real test is they also nominated a DSA advocate in Colorado 8, which Donald Trump won by 2%. Swinging district. Republicans took it away from the Democrats and is a Democrat socialist gonna be able to appeal to the suburbs of Denver.

Rove warned Democrats they could be facing a problem far worse than the Republican Party has faced in its own internal party revolts, like the Tea Party movement, which was a conservative movement started in 2009 that led to the rise of multiple politicians, including Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), and targeted establishment Republicans as well as Democrats.

He said:

Can you imagine if the Democrats do take the House, they’re likely to do so only by a small margin, can you imagine having 20-some-odd of these people, 12 this year, plus [Alexandria Ocasio Cortez] and Ilhan Omar and et cetera, et cetera, what bedevilment they will have with Hakeem Jeffries if he becomes speaker? You think the Republicans had problems with the Freedom Caucus or before them the Tea Party, it’s gonna be nothing like what the Democratic Socialists are going to create inside the Democratic caucus.

Watch above via Fox News.

Jason Cohen contributed to this report.

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