Perhaps Democratic lawmakers have learned nothing
Democratic lawmakers’ reaction to Donald Trump’s incoming administration has been decidedly more subdued this time around. In 2017, Democrats spearheaded a resistance movement, boycotted Trump’s inauguration, and ripped into him whenever they could, but now some members of the minority party just aren’t putting up a fight.
For instance, on Thursday, the Senate voted to advance the GOP-crafted Laken Riley Act, which gives the Department of Homeland Security the authority to detain and potentially deport undocumented immigrants who have merely been charged—not yet convicted—of nonviolent crimes, like burglary, shoplifting, or theft. It also greatly expands the power of state attorneys general, allowing them to sue the federal government if they think immigration policies have harmed their states or its residents.
Thirty-one Democrats voted in favor of advancing the bill, joining all voting Republicans. Only nine voted against it. The bill is scheduled to proceed, likely to a final vote, on Monday.
Since the House passed the bill this past Tuesday (with some Democratic support), it’s all but sure to get approved under Trump, who has promised to enact mass deportations after his inauguration on Jan. 20.
And it doesn’t stop there. Some Democratic lawmakers are champing at the bit to work the MAGA movement, such as Rep. Jared Moskowitz, who joined the “DOGE Caucus.” At least one former progressive darling, Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, has essentially surrendered to Trump, saying he’ll back the president-elect’s far-right Cabinet picks and plans to visit him at Mar-a-Lago soon. And other usually reasonable lawmakers are readily backing some of Trump’s viciously anti-immigrant platform.
On the one hand, some Democrats are strategically moving toward voters’ preferences, particularly regarding a stricter stance on immigration. Many have decided that the reasonable answer to losing the presidency and Senate is to find compromises with Republicans to achieve progress where they can.
But there’s one major flaw in this strategy: Helping Trump succeed only enforces his power. An embrace of Trumpism will only further embed it in our fragile political system and collective psyche. Some in the party are becoming accomplices in a fait accompli they ostensibly oppose.