{"id":43117,"date":"2025-08-07T12:39:53","date_gmt":"2025-08-07T19:39:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=43117"},"modified":"2025-08-07T13:02:37","modified_gmt":"2025-08-07T20:02:37","slug":"saikat-chakrabarti-sf-is-a-canary-in-the-coal-mine-for-the-nations-problems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2025\/08\/07\/saikat-chakrabarti-sf-is-a-canary-in-the-coal-mine-for-the-nations-problems\/","title":{"rendered":"Saikat Chakrabarti: SF is \u2018a canary in the coal mine\u2019 for the nation\u2019s problems"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sfexaminer.com\/users\/profile\/Adam%20Shanks\">By Adam Shanks | Examiner staff writer<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Aug 6, 2025&nbsp;Updated&nbsp;Aug 6, 2025 (SFExamner.com)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com\/sfexaminer.com\/content\/tncms\/assets\/v3\/editorial\/8\/09\/8097e04a-bc35-4ab2-ac34-7e6455b09b68\/689263002a210.image.jpg?resize=400%2C267\" alt=\"Congressional candidate Saikat Chakrabarti at his campaign headquarters\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Congressional candidate Saikat Chakrabarti, seen at his campaign headquarters: \u201cAll these problems I\u2019m talking about &#8230; they are happening worst in our city.\u201dCraig Lee\/The Examiner<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Saikat Chakrabarti\u2019s bid for Congress is setting down roots in San Francisco.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The progressive Democrat, who opened a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/sfstandard.com\/2025\/07\/30\/saikat-chakrabarti-nancy-pelosi-zohran-mamdani-election\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">new campaign headquarters<\/a>&nbsp;last week, said he\u2019s hoping to build a movement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u2018\u201cWe do need to do a huge voter-contact operation, and a big part of our strength is going to be our grassroots volunteer army,\u201d Chakrabarti said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>An early engineer at San Francisco-based financial-technology company Stripe, Chakrabarti is hoping to win the seat held for more than 30 years by Rep. Nancy Pelosi, who twice held the role of speaker of the House of Representatives during that time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Though he got his professional start in tech, Chakrabarti is no stranger to politics. He joined Vermont U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders\u2019 upstart 2016 presidential campaign, then managed New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez\u2019s shocking 2018 bid for Congress before serving as her first chief of staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"4\" height=\"3\" src=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/image-25.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-43123\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">In this Wednesday June 27, 2018, file photo, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, left, the winner of New York&#8217;s Democratic Congressional primary, greets supporters following her victory, along with Saikat Chakrabarti, founder of Justice Democrats and senior adviser for her campaign.&nbsp;Mark Lennihan\/Associated Press, file<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Since then, he has&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.newconsensus.com\/project\/about\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">co-founded New Consensus<\/a>, a think tank that develops and promotes progressive public-policy ideas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite years in and around politics, Chakrabarti never imagined himself as a candidate until relatively recently. Chakbrarti said he was motivated to run by Democrats\u2019 failure to \u201creckon with the fact that they lost so many working-class voters to [President] Donald Trump.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He pointed to a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=O9fSK2AR594\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">New York Times podcast interview<\/a>&nbsp;with Pelosi shortly after the November election in which she said she did not see Trump\u2019s victory and other election results \u201cas an outright rejection of the Democratic Party.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI do have a discomfort level with some Democrats [who] right now are saying, \u2018Oh, we abandoned the working class,\u2019\u201d Pelosi said at the time. \u201cNo we didn&#8217;t. That&#8217;s who we are \u2014 we are the kitchen table, working-class party of America.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chakrabarti said he believes his policy positions \u2014 such as embracing Medicare for All, congressional term limits and a Green New Deal \u2014 are more popular than Pelosi\u2019s with voters across the nation and in San Francisco.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Though he came to San Francisco to work in tech amid its boom in the late 2000s and early 2010s, Chakrabarti said he grew disillusioned with the industry, even if not all of its ideas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI still think there&#8217;s of course a role for tech and I think a lot of innovation that comes out of the tech world has led to incredible improvements in our lives,\u201d Chakrabarti said. \u201cI just don&#8217;t think tech is the answer for sort of the big structural problems that are facing most Americans.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Coincidentally, Chakrabarti\u2019s new Inner Sunset campaign headquarters is in the former office of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sfexaminer.com\/news\/politics\/2024-sf-election-results-daniel-lurie-relishes-mayoral-win\/article_736efdb2-9d52-11ef-91c1-c77c3b3a1260.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Mayor Daniel Lurie<\/a>, the last candidate to run a successful outsider campaign in The City. The campaign was thrilled by the solid turnout at a celebration of the new headquarters\u2019 opening last week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite years of speculation about her retirement, Pelosi has not indicated whether or not she has any plans to do so in the near future. She has set up a campaign account to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/sfstandard.com\/2024\/11\/14\/nancy-pelosi-congress-election-donald-trump-2026\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">run for reelection in 2026<\/a>, though she could change course.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now serving her 20th term in office, Pelosi has not faced a competitive challenge since she first won election in 1987. Chakrabarti is looking to change that, and he\u2019s already counting small victories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"4\" height=\"3\" src=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/image-22.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-43120\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) arrives for an intelligence briefing for members of the House on the U.S. strikes in Iran on Capitol Hill in Washington, on Friday, June 27, 2025.Haiyun Jiang \u00a9 2025 The New York Times Company<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Last week, Pelosi&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2022\/02\/09\/congress-moves-towards-banning-members-from-trading-stocks.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">endorsed the concept<\/a>&nbsp;of banning members of Congress from trading stocks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIf legislation is advanced to help restore trust in government and ensure that those in power are held to the highest ethical standards, then I am proud to support it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chakrabarti took credit for pushing Pelosi on the issue, which he supported from the start, and said he sees it as fundamental to the democratic process for incumbents to face challengers. (Pelosi has publicly embraced the concept since at least 2022, when party leaders faced pressure from members to do so.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt doesn\u2019t work very well unless there are constant challenges, and people in power have to actually reckon with their positions and update them,\u201d Chakrabarti said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2025\/08\/04\/moderate-democrats-israel-support-tone-ritchie-torres-00491554\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Democratic Party has also started to shift<\/a>&nbsp;when it comes to Israel and Palestine. Chakrabarti has openly referred to Israel\u2019s prosecution of the conflict as a genocide, marking a clear distinction from Pelosi. Chakrabarti said that if elected, he would not vote for funding of military aid to Israel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt&#8217;s one of the worst things happening in the world right now, and it&#8217;s completely unconscionable it\u2019s happening with our taxpayer money,\u201d Chakrabarti said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Though she has not used the word \u201cgenocide,\u201d Pelosi recently called for a ceasefire that allows for aid delivery to Palestinians and called the starvation in Gaza a \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/speakerpelosi\/status\/1949603896764121132?s=46\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">catastrophic moral emergency<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s time for the Democrats to embrace major, structural reforms, Chakrabarti said, and the Democratic Party will have to change in order for that to happen. He pointed to a recent poll that showed the party\u2019s approval rating is&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2025\/07\/26\/democrats-approval-rating-poll-00478141?utm_source=firefox-newtab-en-us\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">below that of President Trump<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If it doesn\u2019t address pressing issues like the rising cost of living, Chakrabarti said, the Democratic Party risks entering a period similiar to the one that existed after it failed to rein in inflation during the 1970s, which ushered in Republican President Ronald Reagan\u2019s rise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cHe created the next 40 years of politics because Democrats failed to respond to that correctly, and so that\u2019s where I think we\u2019re at right now,\u201d Chakrabarti said. \u201cI don&#8217;t want to have a 40-year era of MAGA authoritarianism where every Democrat has to govern in that frame.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"4\" height=\"3\" src=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/image-24.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-43122\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">FILE &#8212; Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and her then-chief of staff, Saikat Chakrabarti, center, in Washington, in a Feb. 7, 2019 file photo.&nbsp;Pete Marovich \u00a9 2019 The New York Times Company<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Chakbrabarti said the country needs the universal health care of a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthline.com\/health\/what-medicare-for-all-would-look-like-in-america\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cMedicare for All\u201d system<\/a>, calling it the rational option that will actually be cheaper in the long run given what people pay now in insurance premiums. Chakrabarti also endorses universal child care on similar grounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The country should be proactively investing in its economy, particularly in the transition to green energy, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s this global green transition happening right now that\u2019s this huge opportunity for the U.S. to build broad-based wealth for a whole lot of people, and we\u2019re just kind of missing the boat,\u201d Chakrabarti said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As for revenue streams that would help fund his ambitious agenda, Chakrabarti endorses a wealth tax on assets over $50 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chakrabarti wants to make housing more affordable by using the federal government \u2014 and its purse strings \u2014 to incentivize local and state governments to cut red tape and allow for more housing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The country also needs a robust social-housing program at the federal level, he said. Though not prescriptive in how it should be addressed, Chakrabarti wants to limit the role of private equity and speculation in raising housing prices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Trump \u2014 and the power of his veto \u2014 would almost certainly stymie most of Chakrabarti\u2019s agenda even if Democrats were to regain control of congress in 2026. He said that\u2019s why he\u2019d focus in his initial term on establishing strong constituent services in his district.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the early days of Ocasio-Cortez\u2019s office,&nbsp;during the first Trump administration, Chakrabarti said he learned that \u201cyou can kind of use the bureaucratic morass to your benefit by just having the gumption wherewithal to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Born in Fort Worth, Texas, to parents who had immigrated from India, Chakrabarti moved to San Francisco in 2009 and is now raising a child here. He said he has ridden almost every Muni bus line and lived in several neighborhoods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cA big motivation for me for running on this stuff is that I do think San Francisco is sort of like a canary in the coal mine for the rest of the country,\u201d Chakrabarti said. \u201cAll these problems I&#8217;m talking about \u2014 affordability, inequality \u2014 they\u2019re happening across the country, but they are happening worst in our city. We\u2019re at a place where unless we solve it for the nation, San Francisco\u2019s in trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Saikat Chakrabarti\u2019s bid for Congress is setting down roots in San Francisco. The progressive Democrat, who opened a&nbsp;new campaign headquarters&nbsp;last week, said he\u2019s hoping to build a movement. \u2018\u201cWe do need to do a huge voter-contact operation, and a big part of our strength is going to be our grassroots&#8230; <a class=\"continue-reading-link\" href=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2025\/08\/07\/saikat-chakrabarti-sf-is-a-canary-in-the-coal-mine-for-the-nations-problems\/\"> Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr; <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43117"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43117"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43117\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43125,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43117\/revisions\/43125"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43117"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43117"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43117"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}