Hakeem Jeffries is refusing to take a side in the Central Brooklyn primary battle. The House Democratic Leader is watching the proxy fight from a distance. He is waiting for the dust to settle before he commits his support. It is a calculated move to preserve his own power within the hierarchy.

The signs of this political decay are clear.

• Local leadership avoids any form of accountability.
• Primary battles function as theater for party elites.
• The needs of the voters are secondary to the survival of the machine.