Former DSA member warns of radicalization as group denies white powder letter ties 

Though the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) denies any involvement with the letters fouled with white powder sent to lawmakers across the nation, one former member told Heartlander News that he is concerned about radicalized factions of the group.

“People inside DSA do hold extremist views, and it should frighten all of us,” Jake Altman, a DSA member from 2013 to 2022, told Heartlander News. “The reality is, they are quite radical. They are quite extreme. They look to the French Revolution and they look to the Bolshevik Revolution as models.”

More than 100 suspicious letters are circulating in the U.S. mail system, according to preliminary information shared with ABC News. Preliminary information also found that the white powder was not hazardous, according to NBC News.

More than three dozen congressional offices were sent the letters, including those of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, a Republican, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Michigan Rep. Hillary Scholten, a Democrat. Scholten wrote in a statement Friday that the letter she received claimed to be from the DSA and referenced a “civil war” following the election.

The DSA said in a statement Saturday that it was not behind the letters and was glad no one was harmed, according to Newsweek. “Needless to say, we are not involved with these letters, and we were glad to learn no one was harmed,” DSA spokesperson Priscilla Yeverino said.

The FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Capitol Police are investigating the matter, according to multiple reports.

Concern about ‘radicalized members’

Altman emphasized that he is withholding judgment on the letter incidents pending the investigation. He said he finally quit the DSA after the group’s statement attributing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to American “imperialist expansionism,” though his concerns about the organization’s direction had been growing for years.

“The statement that came out is appreciated, but why isn’t it on DSA’s website and socials?” Altman asked.

The most recent DSA statement featured on its website is from Sept. 29. The organization has made recent statements about Secretary of State Marco Rubio purportedly committing genocide against Cubans, as well as the organization’s commitment to “trans liberation.”

The DSA did not respond to Heartlander News’ multiple requests for comment for this story, though a member of its National Political Committee previously discussed the group’s platform at length in an interview. In the interview, which included his personal views, Andrew Thompson explained that he is “not necessarily concerned” about being labeled a communist and that he welcomes the conversation about the issue.

The DSA is the largest socialist organization in America, and its new platform seeks to dismantle the Senate and replace both the Supreme Court and the presidency with a judiciary and executive that answer to Congress. DSA members have been gaining ground across America in recent months, and seven House candidates backed by the group are likely headed to Congress after the November midterms, according to the organization.

“The real concern is radicalized members and the permission structure that rhetoric from some parts of DSA creates,” Altman said.

There is at least one example of a DSA caucus supporting political violence, though the national platform has continually condemned it. After Elias Rodriguez allegedly killed two Israeli Embassy staffers outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington in May 2025, the Liberation Caucus – a DSA faction that describes itself as a “Marxist-Leninist-Maoist Caucus” – signed onto a statement calling the killings justified and posted, “Free Elias Rodriguez and all political prisoners.”

Without naming the caucus, DSA’s national organization disavowed that position on X, saying, “We condemn the murder of Israeli embassy workers. Any statement otherwise is not the stance of DSA.”

DSA members were reportedly split over condemning the killings, with some revolting on an internal message board after the New York City chapter denounced the violence, according to The Free Press.

According to A User’s Guide to DSA, a 2025 book written by DSA members, some National Political Committee members opposed issuing a statement condemning the killings. While they believed vigilante violence was wrong, they reportedly argued that a statement would fuel a right-wing frenzy, according to the book.

The staffers killed were Yaron Lischinsky, 30, and Sarah Milgrim, 26. Lischinsky and Milgrim both attended an Episcopal church in D.C., which posted a tribute to the couple, noting that they were new members and soon to be engaged.

“Drawn to Christ, their spiritual journeys of faith led them to our parish, where they had been faithfully participating for several months, beautiful lights in our midst,” the tribute reads.