At a Crossroads: How Democrats Are Struggling to Find Their Voice Against Trump

[Social Media]

 

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Title: At a Crossroads: How Democrats Are Struggling to Find Their Voice Against Trump

 

Democrats across the United States are grappling with a fundamental question: what should they do next? Answers vary widely, and in the wake of President Donald Trump's early months back in office, the Democratic Party has struggled to project a unified message. Internal fractures are evident, both within Congress and among the party’s base, leaving many wondering how the party can regroup during such a challenging moment.

 

An unlikely setting, Bakersfield, California—a rural town dominated by agriculture and surrounded by a county that Trump carried by 20 points—became the backdrop for a striking show of Democratic energy. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Independent Senator Bernie Sanders recently rallied there as part of their Fighting Oligarchy tour, packing a local auditorium. The atmosphere resembled a 1960s sit-in, complete with renditions of Woody Guthrie's "This Land is Your Land" and thunderous boos whenever Sanders denounced Trump or tech billionaire Elon Musk.

 

 

For local Democrats and left-leaning independents, the rally was a much-needed spark. Many expressed frustration not only with Trump but also with their own party’s inability to mount an effective opposition. "The Democratic party should be doing more to try to protect everybody," said 26-year-old Karla Alcantar. "I feel like some of them have just folded over completely, and there are some that are trying to do the work of all."

 

Another attendee, Juan Dominguez, echoed the sentiment. "I understand that they don't have the power to, like, change like things drastically, but they do have the power to slow down like things even a little bit," he said. "It honestly feels like I'm not seeing any of that."

 

The discontent is widespread. A CNN/SSRS poll from mid-March revealed that 52% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents believe the party’s leadership is headed in the wrong direction. Meanwhile, 57% want Democrats in Congress to actively resist the Republican agenda, a stark contrast to 2017, when a large majority favored working across the aisle.

 

Former Pennsylvania Congressman Conor Lamb, who hosted a town hall in Pittsburgh, sensed this urgency. "I think they feel like the survival of the system we have all counted on is itself on the line, and they want us to act with that level of urgency," Lamb said. However, he cautioned, "it's important for us not to forget just to be advocates for things that are specific and concrete, and really affecting people."

 

Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez have kept their message tightly focused on economic struggles, pointing to soaring living costs and portraying Trump and billionaires like Musk as the true adversaries. Ocasio-Cortez framed the moment plainly: "Oligarchy or democracy?"

 

Still, the Fighting Oligarchy tour represents just one vision for the Democratic future. According to Professor Christian Grose from the University of Southern California, "It is completely normal when a party loses, especially the presidency, for there to be this period of soul searching and asking, 'What's next?'"

 

Some Democrats argue that the party has drifted too far from mainstream American values on cultural issues like transgender rights, while others insist the party needs to embrace a broader ideological range if it hopes to reclaim power.

 

California Governor Gavin Newsom has taken a different approach, seeking to rebrand Democrats toward the center. Though Newsom denies any presidential ambitions, he has made headlines by launching a podcast featuring conversations with political opponents, including a controversial interview with right-wing strategist Steve Bannon. "I think it's important to have difficult conversations or even have a civil conversation that may be difficult for people to listen to," Newsom explained at a press conference.

 

The Democratic Party's generational divide also looms large. David Hogg, a 25-year-old gun safety activist and vice chair of the Democratic National Committee, has publicly clashed with longtime strategist James Carville. Hogg pledged $20 million to fund primary challenges against entrenched Democratic incumbents, arguing, "We cannot win back the majority if we do not convince the American people that our party offers something that isn't just, not Donald Trump, but something substantially better."

 

Carville, however, dismissed Hogg’s plan as "insane," warning, "Aren't we supposed to run against Republicans?"

 

Despite these internal battles, Democrats at the Bakersfield rally made one thing clear: they want action, not endless debate. Lisa Richards, a 61-year-old who drove 230 miles from San Diego to attend, praised New Jersey Senator Cory Booker for his marathon 25-hour speech opposing Trump's policies. "Showing people in the country that they care," she said, is what matters most.

 

  Adpated by ASEAN Now from BBC  2025-04-28

 

 

[JimHuaHin]

Too many old Democrats "owned" by big business; time for a youthful revolution within the Democrat Party if it wishes to survive.

[nick supreme]

AOC should run for POTUS.  She is our only hope. 

[oxo1947]

2 minutes ago, nick supreme said:

AOC should run for POTUS.  She is our only hope. 

 

 

If she is your only hope---then your Def doomed...............

 

[novacova]

45 minutes ago, Social Media said:

How Democrats Are Struggling to Find Their Voice Against Trump

It should read “How Democrats Are Struggling to Find Their Way Out Of Their Abject Voice Against Trump”

Because that is what’s made then a dirt bag garbage heap.

[Chomper Higgot]

Sanders, AOC, Walz are speaking to sell out crowds, many of whom are Republicans.  Buttigieg is making regular appearances on rightwing TV shows speaking directly to Republican voters.

 

These are not gaining audiences on ‘not Trump’ they have a message voters want to hear.

 

Hence the ad hominem attacks on these people.

[impulse]

4 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

These are not gaining audiences on ‘not Trump’ they have a message voters want to hear.

 

Yeah.  You'll get free stuff if you vote for us.

 

[JonnyF]

15 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

These are not gaining audiences on ‘not Trump’ they have a message voters want to hear.

 

What's the message?

 

"Not Kamala"?

 

[Presnock]

42 minutes ago, JimHuaHin said:

Too many old Democrats "owned" by big business; time for a youthful revolution within the Democrat Party if it wishes to survive.

yes I agree - the superPACs donate to both parties' candidates and sitting congressfolks, there fore since these congressfolk want to remain in the congress hopefully to get rich as many do with insider trading basically legal for them as we have noted very recently and one can hang out in the Congress until retirement years away.  Now, those in the Congress speak loudly against the budget that they even helped pass after they claimed they wouldn't support it but then said oh had to do it to keep the govt running - no gonads at all.  Time to swap them out for some folks who will work for the citizens and the nation! IMHO anyway.

[hotsun]

Democrats have a shot in 2036

[novacova]

2 minutes ago, hotsun said:

Democrats have a shot in 2036

…if they can find a rudder and change course soon, otherwise that’s being a bit optimistic.

[impulse]

37 minutes ago, novacova said:

…if they can find a rudder and change course soon, otherwise that’s being a bit optimistic.

 

One of their problems (as I see it) is that any reasonable candidate that isn't on "the list" isn't going to make it through the primaries, if they even make it to the primaries. 

 

And right now, "the list" consists of a bunch of wackos that don't have anything beyond Orange Man Bad.  Harris was a perfect example.  AOC, too.  They gave away the 2024 election.  It was theirs to win if they had put up a decent candidate.  But the decent ones were primaried out.  In favor of a guy that everyone knew even then was cognitively incapable.

 

Instead of finding their voice AGAINST Trump, howza 'bout finding a voice FOR Americans?

 

 

 

 

[dinsdale]

1 hour ago, nick supreme said:

AOC should run for POTUS.  She is our only hope. 

She certainly would be a great candidate.......for the Republicans being reselected that is. Add Sanders to that and let's not forget Newsome another woke progressive leftist who now is saying he isn't. People are fed up with the progressive left lunacy which is where the Democratic Party leaders took the party. Low 20% popularity rating says it all.

[FlorC]

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Under Investigation Over Illegal Migrant Video - Newsweek

 

Hope she's found guilty. Democrats surely don't want a felon in the white house ?