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Donald Trump just had the worst week of his terrible, cruel, dangerous presidency. So, what does James Carville do? He pens an oped that says Democrats are headed towards their own civil war.
Facing Trump’s clear attack on the rule of law, what does Rahm Emanuel do? He says Democrats are less popular than Elon Musk. In a moment when the GOP is weak, having used its political power to pass the most unpopular and dangerous legislation anyone can remember, what does Andrew Cuomo do? He says he will move to Ron DeSantis’ Florida if another Democrat wins New York’s mayoral race.
Guys … not helpful.
First, Democrats are not at risk of civil war. Democratic enthusiasm is on the rise in every poll. People attending anti-Trump rallies come from ideologically different parts of the coalition. In a dynamic and changing world, Democrats are not insisting on dogma. They are grappling with new information and testing new ways to make progress. By the way, that’s exactly what Democrats at our best have always done. FDR did it. So did Bill Clinton. Is it painful, and do we argue? Of course. Are we confused about the real threats and the need to work in broad coalitions? We are not.
Second, if you think Democrats are less popular than Elon Musk, I suggest you revisit the last state Supreme Court race in Wisconsin. That was as simple a head-to-head test of that claim as there can be. Musk showed up. He spent millions. He faced a good candidate and a united Democratic Party in the state. He lost. It wasn’t even close.
Third, New York is not going to fall apart. It is a vibrant, complicated, wonderful American city. As our biggest city, it’s where you might expect a number of complicated issues and novel solutions to arise. The city has a long history of rent-controlled apartments. Now the Democratic mayoral nominee, Zohran Mamdani, proposes to open government-funded grocery stores in neighborhoods that the private market does not serve. Suddenly that’s a cause for panic?
Democrats around the country believe we are in a before-it’s-too-late moment. But our concern is the rule of law and the institutions of democracy, not whether there’s an effort to lower the cost of groceries in the five boroughs.
Democrats looking to distinguish themselves in this moment by trashing each other rather than by leading and mobilizing in the effort to save our nation from the very real attacks coming daily from President Trump, from his bootlicking Congress, and his corrupt and captured Supreme Court should, kindly, step aside. To be clear, I’m not saying incumbents should get a pass, or that candidates should pull punches. Far from it.
But haven’t we learned that everyone loses when fight for the bottom?
No matter the battle, we are all in a bigger fight. And to win that one, we must stand shoulder to shoulder with those whose views are not identical to our own. That’s what Americans do when things get tough. We come together. This is one of those tough times.
The attacks coming our way are not just about health care. They are not just about tax policy. They are not about the prerogatives of the Presidency. All of these and more have become issues because Trump and his MAGA crowd are going after our foundational beliefs. Are we a nation of universal ideals or is our nation based on racial and religious identities? Are we a nation of laws or a nation of men? Do people have inalienable rights, or is our government empowered to do as it pleases? Are the people sovereign, or can a party rule by selecting who gets to vote?
I know where I stand on these big questions. It’s where the great majority of Americans have long stood. It’s what our soldiers have fought and died for.
These questions define the fight we are in, and they make our time far more like the late 1770 than the mid 1990s. Anyone looking to distinguish himself via a “Sister Souljah” moment need not apply for a leadership position.
Edwin Eisendrath hosts "The Big Picture" on WCPT820 AM/ Heartland Signal. [ [link removed] ] He's the former CEO of the Chicago Sun-Times, a long-time management consultant, a former Chicago Alderman, HUD Regional Administrator and teacher in Chicago's public schools. You can follow him on BlueSky at eisendrath.net [ [link removed] ] and Substack at “It’s the Democracy, Stupid.” [ [link removed] ] Read the original column here [ [link removed] ].
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