Although the spring recess of Congress is an opportunity for the two dominant political parties in the US to get close to their electoral base, the Democrats remain in a post-election “vertigo”. And not only that…
With its opening almost a day away and in a dramatic intra-party rift, ten Democratic senators – including their minority leader in the body, Chuck Schumer – joined Republicans in passing a bill to fund the federal government for six months, preventing a “lockdown” at the beginning of the Trump 2.0 era.
They defied Democrats in the House of Representatives, who almost unanimously opposed the measure, in a move that underscores deep disagreements over how to deal with President Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress.
And at a time when tech oligarch and the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, is “impoverishing” the federal government through spending cuts and mass layoffs, under the command of the “shady” Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which he directs.
The result?
For now, the “friendly fire” is mainly directed against Chuck Schumer.
His political nod in favor of paving the way to avoid a shutdown – that is, to continue funding the federal government – has caused a storm of reactions.
Democratic grassroots political groups are now openly demanding Schumer’s resignation and replacement as Senate minority leader.
They accuse him of raising the party’s “white flag of surrender” to Donald Trump’s omnipotence.
Democratic “hair tangles”
“I knew there would be a lot of protests, but I had to do it for the future of not only the Democratic Party, but the country,” counters 74-year-old Chuck Schumer, who, amid a congressional recess, is undauntedly touring to promote his book “Anti-Semitism in America.”
A “lockdown” of the federal government would be “ten times worse,” giving the Trump presidency and the DOGE free rein to determine what would remain open and what would be closed, he argues.
“Within two weeks, everyone would be screaming,” he told CBS.
Although “we have a lot of good people, I am the best,” he insisted, “at winning Senate seats” in the 2026 midterm elections.
But that time horizon seems very distant, after just two months of the tumultuous second presidential term of “road roller” Donald Trump.
“I still support Schumer,” said Democratic Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut, one of many who rushed to defend their leader in the legislature.
“But I think the only way we can be effective as a caucus is to change our tactics,” he stressed on NBC.
“We have to talk about it within the party and make sure we do it.”
But when?
Nearly five months after the November election, Democrats still seem to be moving as if they have no compass.
They have not yet recovered from the onslaught of the Trump 2.0 era, where Republicans – and especially Trump’s MAGA (*) – control the White House, the House of Representatives and the Senate, as well as the US Supreme Court, which is dominated by an ultraconservative majority.
To reinforce this, a Quinnipiac University poll showed that only 21% of Americans approve of the work of the Democratic opposition in Congress.
Another, by CNN, shows that only 29% of the public views the Democrats positively. Another historic low.
The Bernie Sanders Factor
In meetings with their base, Democratic lawmakers traveling through their constituencies took a line from the headquarters of the divided party to emphasize the Trump administration’s attack on the welfare state in the United States.
However, the fact that the cuts to social programs were made with the “blessings” of Chuck Schumer and the vote of nine other Democratic senators did not leave much room for philistines.
On the contrary, where there was pan-journalism in terms of participation and momentum was at the stops of the tour of the -independent, but essentially the leader of the left wing of the Democrats- senator from Vermont, Bernie Sanders.
With a central slogan of “Fighting Oligarchy,” the 83-year-old Bernie is magnetizing crowds of disillusioned Democratic voters.
His rallies are reminiscent of the campaign season, with the increased attendance catching even his close associates by surprise.
It’s not just his fiery rhetoric against Trump and Musk that’s drawing in the crowd.
Sanders is a reflection of the frustration of the Democratic base and their anxiety about the future.
He’s also paving the way for members of the Democratic left, who are now looking for direction and leadership. The timing is a critical juncture for the party.
Especially when aspiring Democratic candidates for the next presidential election, in 2028, are making relentless political swings to the right, aiming to win votes.
A typical example is the Democratic governor of California, Gavin Newsom.
“Burnt” by the recent devastating fires in Los Angeles, he is now attempting a political relaunch, starting his own podcast. However, he is not only addressing the younger generations.
It was very surprising that in one of the last episodes he had the well-known and not exceptional Steve Bannon, former Trump advisor and well-known far-right conspiracy theorist, as a guest….
Trump Against Everything
Deviations like Newsom’s are characterized by many voters and analysts as a “prescription for subservience” for Democrats in the Trump 2.0 era.
It is already happening a lot in the ranks of Republicans – even those who do not belong to the Trump MAGA movement – and in traditional media.
Like in the historic newspaper The Washington Post, which is now owned by the technology tycoon – and late Trump supporter – Jeff Bezos.
The only institutional pillar that seems to be maintaining a stance of resistance to the Trump onslaught for now is the judiciary.
With a series of decisions, district and federal judges have already put the brakes on decisions by the current US government, following many appeals from citizens and organizations.
They range from spending cuts and mass layoffs of federal employees to a freeze on U.S. foreign civilian and development aid.
To Trump’s surprise, even the ultraconservative-controlled Supreme Court has sided with his decisions, shattering the 47th president’s illusion that he can act as a quasi-emperor in a modern democracy.
He and his close associates are responding with attacks on judges, even calling for their removal.
“Two months into his second term, Trump is trying to consolidate control of the courts, Congress and, in some ways, American society and culture,” the New York Times comments bitterly.
“The expansive interpretation of presidential power has become the defining feature of his second term,” the American newspaper comments, “an aggressive effort on multiple fronts to claim executive power to reshape government, steer politics in new directions and uproot what he and his supporters see as a deep-rooted liberal bias.”
For the rest, Democrats are still searching for direction…
