Democrats worry they’ve been caught in an anger trap with Trump

Comments: by Amie Parnes - 05/23/26 6:00 AM ET Comments: Link copied by Amie Parnes - 05/23/26 6:00 AM ET Comments: Link copied NOW PLAYING Democrats have spent nearly a decade in fight mode against President Trump. And some in the party worry that they may remain trapped there. An autopsy released by the Democratic National Committee (DNC) on Thursday underscored the point, saying that Democrats relied too heavily on negative partisanship and became too dependent on attacks on Trump in their messaging to voters. The report also stated that anti-Trump sentiment has its limitations in terms of achieving electoral success. As they were hammering Trump in their anger, Democrats did not provide a vision to lure voters to their side or an argument for what they would do with power. This week at the 2026 IDEAS Conference hosted by the Center for American Progress, anger was also displayed by a series of Democratic speakers, including California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is a front-runner in the 2028 presidential race. He and others spoke mostly about fighting the president and his party, a message that Democrats caution will fire up the base but may not be enough to win over independents, and thus, elections. Trump is the best base mobilizer for Democrats right now. But I think there is a broad understanding that the clock is ticking on how much longer Democrats can rely on polarization because of Trump to galvanize our voters, said Democratic strategist Joel Payne, highlighting the problem. In a Substack post this week titled Can D s control their fury, Democratic strategist Dan Turrentine also wondered whether those in his party could move past the anger in the past few election cycles. After attending the IDEAS Conference this week, Turrentine said he was stunned by how consumed speakers and moderators were by raw fury against Donald Trump s administration. Time and again, they looked and sounded angry, no matter the topic, talked incessantly about losing our democracy and the country being genuinely destroyed, Turrentine wrote in the post. The danger I worry about for my party leadership is that post-Virginia Supreme Court, and post-Voting Rights Act, inside the Beltway and on BlueSky, we are becoming blinded again by our fury, he added. Those were references to two recent court decisions that handed the GOP major victories on redistricting while infuriating Democrats. The Virginia Supreme Court tossed out a new congressional map approved by Virginia voters, while the U.S. Supreme Court made it easier for GOP states in the South to create new districts built for Republicans in a major shot at the Voting Rights Act. All the focus on anger comes as Democrats wrestle with why they lost in 2024. Part of the problem is the party s reputation, which continues to be in the dumps with voters, according to polls. A CNN poll in April, for example, showed that just 28 percent of those surveyed had a positive view of the Democratic Party, while 56 percent viewed the party negatively. Democrats have recently sounded the alarm in saying that while they re expected to win the House and are competitive in Senate races, they need to offer voters a plan to lure not just their base, but also independents and Republicans. The DNC autopsy encouraged Democrats in future races to build affirmative cases for candidates to drive enthusiasm instead of relying on reductive messaging. Anti-Trump sentiment alone, the report stated, was insufficient to motivate voters. Democratic strategist Steve Schale, who ran former President Obama s Florida operation in 2008, said while anger is a motivator for the base of the party, Democratic candidates need to give that skeptical voter a reason to vote for you and it has to be more than Trump is a disaster. He makes it so easy to be negative because the content is just there, Schale said. But there has to be a turn-the-page kind of thing too. Schale said candidates could highlight what he called the absurdities of the moment, pointing to Trump s interest in projects like a proposed arch in Washington as a juxtaposition to the economic anxiety many Americans are feeling, including rising gas prices and food costs. The contrast is always important, he said. John Morgan, a Democratic megadonor, said Democrats incessant focus on Trump will pay off in the midterms. Obsession equals turnout, Morgan said, which could help the party win control of the House and Senate. He said such a result which would be the end of the [Trump] presidency as we know it. In the past year, potential 2028 candidates like Newsom have telegraphed what kind of messaging they re likely to use in a campaign. Newsom, for example, has leaned heavily into being the chief Democratic combatant, appealing to Democrats who feel frustrated and powerless. He has actively taken on Trump and Republicans on social media, launched a successful redistricting fight in California and has delivered a string of speeches slammi

Democrats worry they’ve been caught in an anger trap with Trump

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Democrats worry they’ve been caught in an anger trap with Trump

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