Members of the Democratic Socialists of America have called on DSA candidates and elected officials to cut ties with Morris Katz and his firm, Fight Agency. The organizing effort, captured in a public letter, targets Katz's work advising campaigns within the DSA network.
The complaint centers on Katz's role as a consultant to Graham Platner and his work advising Jabari Mamdani's campaign. DSA members view this as problematic, though the letter does not detail specific objections to Katz's strategic guidance or consulting practices.
This move reflects internal tensions within the DSA over consultant selection and campaign management standards. The organization has grown substantially in recent election cycles, with more candidates winning office at local and state levels. As the DSA professionalized its political operations, questions about which consultants align with the organization's values have become more fraught.
Morris Katz runs Fight Agency, a political consulting firm that works with progressive and left-leaning campaigns. The fact that DSA members organized against his continued engagement suggests disagreement over either his methods, his other clients, or his political approach.
The call to action asks campaigns to voluntarily drop Katz rather than asking the DSA central body to impose sanctions. This reflects how the organization operates. The DSA lacks formal enforcement mechanisms to bar members from working with specific consultants. Instead, peer pressure and public shaming campaigns serve as the primary tools for enforcing internal norms.
The controversy highlights a broader challenge facing left-aligned organizations as they scale up operations. Early activist-driven campaigns rely on volunteer labor and ideological commitment. As candidates win elections and field more sophisticated operations, they hire professional consultants who may work across multiple ideological circles. This creates friction between purists who view all professional consulting as compromising and pragmatists who see specialized expertise as necessary.
For DSA candidates facing primary challenges or