As an avowed Skocpolian, it's definitely forcing me to do some thinking (tho I am not entirely sure abt the distinction btw "volunteers," big and small donors here).

It’s the focus on the challenge posed by small donors that’s striking here, given both how much criticism has been directed to big donor power over The Groups & attn to reinvigorating a membership ethos of prog civil society as opposed to checkbook participation aligned w professionalization of NPs.

The long quote is from Jared Abbott, director of the Center for Working-Class Politics, from his recent interview on the Ezra Klein podcast.

Legal historians: how novel is this claim?

Is there any evidence that those "panting about mutual aid" are in some way distracted from the need to restore (& increase) state welfare provision? Especially w/ civil society under attack, those Reagan-era dichotomies of pub vs. private don't hold & are themselves a distraction.