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Another day, another issue to worry about when it comes to the Trump man. The orange man doing shenanigans. Because if he shenanigans once, he’s going to shenanigan. And somehow, from the people that voted for him the first time, I guess they was cool with the way he was shenan-againing. Thought they was gonna profit. Be rewarded.
The second time, he shenanigans again.
But here’s the thing. The more mainstream America commodifies our language, our culture—takes the very words born from our struggle and sells them back as proof of their American dream—the more they find themselves in a position of, Oh, you thought “f**k around and find out” was just a phrase?
We’re seeing it. A lot of conservatives, and unfortunately, a lot of us minorities, getting caught up in that noise.
We always talk about how politics matter most on the local level. We talk about how individuals who ascribe to handle the levers of power should have their feet held to the fire. This weekend, I had the chance to kick it with somebody actually trying to grab those levers: Salaam Bhatti, a public interest lawyer running for Congress in Virginia’s 1st District.
This ain’t a endorsement. This is a breakdown. A conversation. Because if we’re tired of the pump-fake, if we’re sick of the parasocial relationships with politicians who never deliver, then the primary is where we apply the pressure. That’s the semifinals. The general election is just the finals where you choose from the contenders you already let slide.
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Here’s what we got into.
On What Makes Him Different: “I’m not corporate PAC funded,” he states straight up. His campaign is built on people-powered donations. He frames the choice simply: do we want more of the bland, raisins-in-the-potato-salad Democrat the party machine pushes, or do we want flavor? His flavor is Medicare for All, taxing billionaires, and getting big money out of politics. He calls it going for the root cause, not just curing symptoms. “We’re not here to put new gears in the orphan-crushing machine. We’re here to turn it off.”
On Qualifications & Bipartisan Wins: His credentials come from the Virginia Poverty Law Center, where he lobbied—for poor people. His legacy? Uniting Democrats and Republicans to unanimously expand SNAP benefits to over 25,000 Virginia families. His method? He studied the subcommittee members, found their corporate donors, and brought those corporations into the coalition. When politicians saw their donors were on board, they listened.
But the skeptic in me had to ask: where’s the line? When does a “bipartisan win” become capitulation? He learned that lesson the hard way. When he tried the same tactic to fight national SNAP cuts, the corporations refused, fearing retribution from Trump. “That was a wake-up call,” he said. “Bump you. We don’t need you.” It’s why he swears off corporate money now.
On the Issues That Matter:
* Palestine: “Does Palestine have the right to exist? Heck yeah.” He’s not taking AIPAC money, wouldn’t fund more weapons for Israel, and calls the current actions a genocide.
* Healthcare: He draws a clear, vicious line. The Affordable Care Act is the “affordable” model—a system where insurance companies profit while our costs soar. Medicare for All is the “universal” model. He told a story about getting care in Scotland and pulling out his wallet, confused when they didn’t charge him. “We can have that,” he argues. “Yesterday’s centrism brought today’s fascism. We’re in a revolutionary time to do revolutionary things.”
* Reparations: This was the most revealing moment. He gave a politician’s answer: broadly in favor, wants to learn more, doesn’t want to speak for Black Americans as a non-Black person. I pushed back. If this is going to be a tangible topic, candidates need a formal, robust position. The conversation matters too much for “I don’t know.”
* ICE & Police Reform: “Abolish ICE.” He doesn’t mince words. He details how it’s a young, post-9/11 agency born from the Patriot Act, fundamentally unreformable. On local police brutality, he cited a conversation with a police trainer who said simply, “We don’t have the funding to train them better.” His solution involves funding real crisis response and community safety, not just more weapons.
* The Epstein Files: His answer was direct. “If you are in the files, there should be arrest warrants… You should be in prison as you wait for your day in court.” He called for a “Nuremberg-level” reckoning. “The whole world is watching.”
The Bottom Line & The Ask:Salaam’s final pitch wasn’t just for him. It was for the strategy. Voter turnout in primaries is catastrophically low—20,000 vs. 200,000 in a general in his district. The party doesn’t push you to vote in primaries; they want their pre-picked, bland candidate to slide through.
His ask is for you to find the “Salaam” in your district. The candidate not taking corporate PAC money. The one you can pressure now, in the primary, to adopt the policies you need. Donate $10. Sign a petition. Knock on doors. The gap in funding is real, and if we don’t fill it, the billionaires will.
CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO SALAAM NOW
My Final Take:We complain about politicians being compromised, then get skeptical when they ask us for money instead of corporations. That’s the tension. The Supreme Court said money is speech, and corporate money is a damn megaphone. Our only counter is to organize our voices and our dollars at the point where it matters most: before they get the nomination.
Stop with the bad analogies. This local primary is not the 2024 presidential replay. This is the ground floor. Democracy isn’t a brunch you get to enjoy after winning a general election with a mediocre candidate. It’s the gritty, uncomfortable work of shaping who that candidate even is.
Education is elevation. Research over me-search.And the primary is the pressure point.Don’t miss your chance to apply it.
Catch the full, unfiltered conversation on my Substack and podcast feeds.
5 Key Takeaways
* The Primary is the Real Election: General elections are just choosing from the candidates we allowed to win in primaries, where turnout is abysmally low. This is where our leverage is maximum.
* Follow the Money, Then Break Its Spine: Salaam’s story is a masterclass in how corporate donor influence works, and more importantly, how to break its hold by refusing their money and building people-powered campaigns.
* “Affordable Care” is a Trap, “Universal Healthcare” is the Goal: He made a vital distinction. The ACA model subsidizes insurance company profits. Medicare for All is the universal, cost-saving model that works everywhere else.
* Politicians Need Pressure, Not Parasocial Support: We must move beyond liking a politician’s personality and into rigorous questioning of their policy specifics—especially on complex, fraught issues like reparations.
* Abolition is a Policy Position: On ICE, he didn’t talk reform. He stated plainly that an agency born from the Patriot Act, engaged in kidnapping and killing, is unreformable and must be abolished. This is now on the table in mainstream races.
