The mainstream Democrats, who have raged against the defectors at great and ineffectual length, are also eyeing the 2018 races. He said he had not known about the Independent Democrats’ “quid pro quo” with Republicans until getting involved in anti-Trump organizing efforts. “For the first time in a very long time, people are paying attention,” Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins, the leader of the mainstream Democrats, said on Monday. Ms. Alcantara has said that she joined the conference after it offered support that was not coming from the mainstream Democrats. Over the weekend, she called the backlash racist: She and Mr. Peralta are Hispanic, and Mr. Hamilton is black.

Source: New York Times February 07, 2017 02:02 UTC