Democrats struggle to pick their message against Trump’s shock-and-awe campaign
NEW YORK (AP) — Democrats knew this was coming.
President Donald Trump promised a shock-and-awe campaign to deliver major policy victories immediately after he took office. Much of it was outlined in the Project 2025 document that Democrats predicted he would adopt.
But in the hours since Trump’s inauguration, Democrats are struggling to confront the sheer volume of executive orders, pardons, personnel changes and controversial relationships taking shape in the new administration.
In less than two days, the Republican president has moved to end diversity and inclusion programs across the federal government, withdrawn the U.S. from the Paris climate accords, blocked a federal law banning TikTok, and sought to end the constitutional guarantee of birthright citizenship. He has also pardoned the rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and granted unprecedented access to some of the world’s richest men, raising questions about his commitment to the working-class voters who enabled his election.
Each of those actions enrages part of the Democratic base. Together, they make it difficult to formulate a response by an already fractured party.
“It is a fire hose right now. That’s what he does. He creates a ton of chaos so it’s hard to keep up with it,” said Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, who instructed her staff to track Trump’s executive orders, so her constituents could keep up. “Everything is overload.”
Democrats warn of Trump’s ‘plans to screw over America’
The Democratic National Committee, under the direction of retiring chair Jaime Harrison, has been running an active rapid response this week, issuing press releases and social media posts to push back against Trump’s actions. That stands in contrast to the party’s operation following Trump’s 2017 inauguration, which was largely dark as a far more active protest movement became the focal point of the Democratic resistance.
For now, the Democratic establishment is largely focused on the prominent role of billionaires in Trump’s nascent presidency, which follows Biden’s farewell warning about the rise of oligarchs.
The DNC shared talking points with its allies on Tuesday, encouraging them to focus on “Trump’s plans to screw over America.” Specifically, the talking points focus on the new president’s move to rescind a Biden order designed to limit the cost of prescription drugs.
The DNC guidance also seizes on ultra-wealthy tech executives like Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and Space X, and Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon and Blue Origin, who were seated in front of some of Trump’s Cabinet picks during his inauguration. On Musk, the talking points accuse him of giving multiple Nazi salutes during Trump’s inauguration parade.
Right-wing extremists are celebrating Musk’s straight-arm gesture during a speech Monday, although his intention wasn’t totally clear and some hate watchdogs are saying not to read too much into it.
The seating for some of the world’s richest men at the inauguration — with big-state governors and major allies relegated to an overflow area — initially offered Democrats an issue to rally around. Beyond the tech leaders featured at the inauguration, the Republican president has tapped more than a dozen billionaires for prominent roles.
Democratic strategist Andrew Bates, who left his job as a White House spokesman on Friday, attacked Trump’s GOP for “partying with rightwing billionaires” on their first day in control of Washington and “plotting tax welfare for the super rich” on Day 2.
“Republicans have revealed their establishment-bought true colors and are selling out every American except their well-connected donors,” Bates said.
The party remains fractured
Crockett, who has become one of her party’s most visible messengers on Capitol Hill, is concerned that the focus on billionaires might not resonate with average voters, who likely didn’t recognize Bezos or other tech executives at the inauguration.
“I’m not sure average people know that’s not normal,” Crockett said of the seating arrangement. “The brilliance of Trump, if I had to give him accolades, is that he understands how much people don’t understand.”
Even under normal circumstances, a transition to a new presidential administration would bring a flurry of executive orders and personnel changes that would be difficult to track. But little is normal about the second incarnation of President Trump, a 78-year-old term-limited outsider at the height of his political power with little regard for political norms or legal consequences.
“Everyone’s reeling and trying to process the information coming at them,” said Joseph Geevarghese, executive director of the progressive advocacy group Our Revolution. “People are not confident that the Democratic Party knows what to do in this moment.”
Some prominent allies of the Democratic Party aren’t especially engaged either.
Billionaire businessman Mark Cuban, who was among Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris’ most visible surrogates last fall, downplayed the impact of Trump’s early moves when asked to weigh in.
“He hasn’t really done anything yet,” Cuban told The Associated Press. “I’ll pay attention to what he does. But my focus is figuring out healthcare rather than getting mad about what he does.”
“Just getting angry,” Cuban continued, “is not the way to go.”
Faiz Shakir, a candidate for DNC chair and a longtime ally of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, said he was shocked by the prominent placement of the billionaires in the nationally televised event, which he said threatened to undermine Trump’s popularity with working-class voters.
“He has given people a window into how he’s going to govern,” Shakir said.
Still, he acknowledged that Democrats must confront “fatigue and exhaustion” within their own ranks that lingers two months after Trump’s victory: “There’s a creeping hopelessness that needs to be fought against.”
Crockett encouraged her party to adopt a much more organized campaign to educate the public about Trump’s three most egregious moves. What are they? She’s not sure yet.
“But in my opinion, we can’t fight it all,” she said.
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By STEVE PEOPLES
AP National Political Writer
