YOU DECIDE: Next Steps for the Democrats?

Last Tuesday, Democrats gained control of the House of Representatives for the first time in eight years. But now that they hold a majority of seats, how should they focus their efforts and newfound momentum? According to some Democrats, the priority should be stopping Trump’s agenda. Others, however, feel that efforts would be better spent pushing forward the Democratic Party’s more liberal political agenda. Based on what you’ve heard and seen in the news . . . You Decide: Should House Democrats focus on stopping Trump?

YES

• Though they have control of the House, Democrats’ power to enact legislation is limited by a Republican Senate and the Republican president. One thing Democrats do have power over, however, is oversight of the investigation of the president and the current administration. They also have control of the committee that could obtain Trump’s tax returns, which he has refused to release.
• Many of the Democrats who won did so by campaigning on an anti-Trump platform. Now that they are in power, they owe it to their constituents to try to derail the president.
• Democrats in the House have said that while they don’t want to waste time on retribution, they owe it to the American people to try to halt some of the president’s most damaging policies, such as “zero tolerance” immigration and limiting access to health care.

NO

• Attacking Trump might alienate moderate Republicans and Democrats alike, and jeopardize the re-election of Democratic legislators. This could cause the Democrats to lose control of the House once again after the next election cycle.
• The last time Democrats had control of the House, in 2006, they were too cautious with their agenda and wound up not accomplishing a lot of their goals before losing control again in 2010. As a result, important concerns such as carbon emissions, union support, and election reform were abandoned. They can’t afford to make that mistake again.
• It is unproductive for Democrats to look backward at past corruption; instead, they should focus on the future.

So, think about these two arguments and then vote below.