Democrats are putting aside their criticisms of President-elect Donald Trump now that he’s returning to the White House and they want to deliver wins for their voters.
After slamming Trump as a “dangerous fascist” and “wannabe dictator,” some Democrats are looking to find “common ground” with Trump on issues they think he might be soft on.
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House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), for example, expressed interest in “working with the incoming administration whenever and wherever possible to find bipartisan common ground to solve problems for the American people.”
Jeffries previously called Trump “a pro-Putin conspiracy-peddling, election-denying extremist” who “lies for a living.”
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) wants to work with Trump on implementing caps on credit card interest rates, something the self-professed “Democratic socialist” has called “a very good idea.”
Sanders has called Trump a “threat to democracy” and a “pathological liar,” with “strong authoritarian tendencies.”
Gov. Phil Murphy (D-NJ) compared Trump to Nazi leaders during his first administration. Now, he has promised to “aggressively” work together to find common ground on several issues, including completing the Portal North Bridge Project.
Using one of Trump’s signature phrases, Murphy declared after speaking with the president-elect that the bridge will be completed “on time and under budget.”
Gov. Wes Moore (D-MD) attacked Trump as no “friend of the military” and suggested Trump’s “extremist Republicans” want to “take away our freedoms.”
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After the election, Moore vowed to find “common ground” and engage in “partnership” with Trump after the former president cut the Democrats’ winning margin in the state by 5.3 points in the 2024 presidential election. This will include rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, which collapsed in March.
Centrist Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) identified foreign relations with China and Israel, as well as policy on “emerging technologies” like “semiconductors, AI, quantum computing and biotech” as opportunities for bipartisan collaboration with Trump.
He previously called Trump “sinful,” “radioactive,” and a “criminal suspect” who has approval ratings “lower than that of lead and arsenic.”
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) praised Trump’s promise to restore state and local tax deductions, and said he is “prepared to work” alongside the president-elect on border security.
He previously suggested relying on “the second amendment” as a means of protesting Trump’s policies. National Republican Campaign Committee spokesman Chris Martin responded that it is “disturbing” for Suozzi to “suggest that his constituents should take up arms against” Trump, who would later go on to survive two assassination attempts.
Rep.-elect George Latimer (D-NY) has also said he wants to work alongside the 45th and 47th president to bring back SALT deductions, as well as on infrastructure. Latimer previously said “Trump emboldens Putin” and that “Trump’s extremism is a threat to democracy everywhere.”
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Former House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said she “want[s] the president to succeed” after his electoral victory. She has called Trump “a threat to our democracy of the kind that we have not seen.”
Even some non-politicians on the Left are offering suggestions to the incoming Trump administration, despite their harsh rhetoric in opposing him.
Cenk Uygur of The Young Turks offered to spearhead the cutting of wasteful Pentagon spending. When Elon Musk asked him for suggestions on X, he proposed banning generals from working for defense contractors for 10 years after they leave the military. Donald Trump Jr. called this “a great idea that has been discussed.”
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Uygur believes he “probably” dislikes Trump “more than anyone else on the left.”
Mark Cuban, who attacked Trump for never surrounding himself with “strong, intelligent women,” also made a suggestion to the incoming administration: End Citizens United.
