LEE CARTER: Why I believe collapsing trust, not ideology, is reshaping American politics

After every recent election in which a democratic socialist or self-described progressive outsider scores an upset victory, the same debate erupts: Is America really moving that far to the left?

Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s rise in New York reignited the question. Before his campaign collapsed, Graham Platner’s meteoric rise in Maine sparked similar headlines. And now, as Democrats look to replace him, many are rallying around Troy Jackson, a self-described "pickup truck progressive."

The...