Vulnerable Dems Make Their Peace With Trump

Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore | Flickr

Following Joe Biden’s debate debacle, some vulnerable Democrats are now doing the unthinkable – acknowledging the reality that former President Donald Trump might well win back the White House this November, and that it won’t be the end of the world if he does.

As soon as Trump announced his 2024 campaign two years ago, the media and the Democrat Party kicked into high gear, claiming that a second Trump term would be “the end of democracy.” However, with Biden in an apparently terminal political decline and Democrats in utter disarray, many members of the liberal party are slowly beginning to start the conversation about how they might work with Trump rather than hysterically insisting he will become a fascist dictator.

The first bombshell came from Maine Democrat Jared Golden, who released an op-ed entitled, “Donald Trump is going to win the election and democracy will be just fine.”

“Unlike Biden and many others, I refuse to participate in a campaign to scare voters with the idea that Trump will end our democratic system,” Golden wrote. “In 2025, I believe Trump is going to be in the White House. Maine’s representatives will need to work with him when it benefits Mainers, hold him accountable when it does not, and work independently across the aisle no matter what.”

In an interview with a local TV station, Democrat Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington also predicted a Trump victory.

“About 50 million Americans tuned in and watched that debate,” she told KATU News. “The truth, I think, is that Biden will lose to Trump. I know it’s difficult, but I think the damage has been done.”

Notably, both Golden and Gluesenkamp Perez represent solidly red districts. In 2020, Trump won Golden’s district by about seven points, and he won Gluesenkamp Perez’s district by four points. Gluesenkamp Perez won her seat by just under 3,000 votes in 2022, while Golden won by a more substantial 20,000 votes two years ago.

With Trump on the ballot again, these two Democrats are some of the most endangered House members in the country. They undoubtedly recognize that the historically unpopular Biden will only act as a political anchor in their own re-election bids, and are trying their best to distance themselves from the president.

But in doing so, Golden and Gluesenkamp Perez may have unintentionally shattered the central 2024 left-wing narrative; namely, that Democrats must defeat Trump at all costs because a Trump victory would be the end of America as we know it.

With no major policy wins to speak of and Americans deeply unhappy with the direction of the country under Biden’s leadership, Democrats’ best argument for a second Biden term appears to be that the alternative – a second Trump term – represents an existential threat to the republic. But now that some Democrats are acknowledging, even implicitly, how absurd that narrative is, the left’s entire house of cards is collapsing.

In the weeks ahead, more Democrats, especially those from battleground districts, may publicly express a similar sentiment, attempting to save their own political skin – dooming Biden in the process. If Biden stays in the race, these vulnerable members will likely start moderating their attacks on Trump and instead focusing on what issues they can work with Trump on to deliver wins for their constituents. Like Golden, they will surely make it clear that they are not voting for Trump but concede that the best their party can hope for is working with the GOP when he wins in 2024.

A growing number of congressional Democrats – some from deep blue districts – already privately appear to be having such conversations. As one House Democrat told CNN, “There’s a large and increasing group of House Democrats concerned about the president’s candidacy, representing a broad swath of the caucus. We are deeply concerned about his trajectory and his ability to win.”

Six House Democrats have publicly called on Biden to withdraw from the race, in effect acknowledging that the president stands little chance of beating Trump this November. Lloyd Doggett of Texas became the first earlier this month, saying that he hopes other Democrat members “will be calling the White House and voicing their private concerns if they can’t join me publicly.” Four other House Democrat leaders have also reportedly had private discussions about publicly urging Biden to drop out of the race, citing his slim chances of victory.

It seems clear that pressure on Biden to drop out will only continue in the coming days and weeks. But even if Democrats do replace Biden as their nominee, Trump still holds an edge over every one of the most likely candidates to replace him.

Democrats may then already be stuck looking at a second Trump term no matter whose name is at the top of the ticket come November 5. The only thing left to do is make peace with that reality.

Andrew Shirley is a veteran speechwriter and AMAC Newsline columnist. His commentary can be found on X at @AA_Shirley.