DEMOCRATIC URBAN REVOLT SPREADS TO CHICAGO?

But there are echoes of a broader trend underway. We might be seeing the end of an era of relatively moderate, centrist politics in major American cities, as teacher unions, minorities and more left wing activists flex their muscles in places like New York, Newark and now Chicago.

This poses questions for the Democratic party nationally. If highly-visible urban Democratic centers are moving sharply to the left while the rest of the country looks on in displeasure, it will be harder for national leaders to straddle the divide between left urban grassroots and the suburban and centrist voters (not to mention the Wall Street money) needed to prevail in national contests.

There’s not enough money to buy them off any more, and they want to flex their muscles while they still can.