The Democrats Need a Wartime Consigliere

People want to support candidates and a party that are willing to fight, not ones who back down in the face of a bully.

One of my favorite movies is The Godfather (Parts I and II—we don’t talk about III). When Michael Corleone takes over the family business from his father, Don Vito Corleone, he replaces his father’s consigliere (senior advisor), Tom Hagen. Michael tells Tom that he is not a "wartime consigliere… [because] things may get rough." Tom was capable and had served honorably, but he was not suited for the battles ahead. Today, the Democratic Party finds itself in need of wartime consiglieres—individuals who are willing to confront Republicans head-on and who are unafraid to champion Democratic ideals.

Democratic Weakness in the Face of Republican Extremism

The current Democratic Party is listless. As a lifelong Democrat and someone who believes that government can be used to improve people’s lives, it is frustrating to watch the party I love shrink in the face of Trump and radical Republicans instead of fighting for democracy and Democratic values.

After an election loss, every political party takes time to regroup and strategize a way forward. However, the Democrats’ postmortem of the 2024 election focused more on finger-pointing than on acknowledging the historical challenges stacked against Vice President Kamala Harris, particularly the racial and gender biases she faced. Many within the party concluded that the lesson to be learned was to move to the right, attempting to attract Republican voters—voters who had demonstrated they would rather support a man they likened to Adolf Hitler than a Democrat.

Democratic leadership has failed to grasp that the Republican Party is no longer the party of fiscal responsibility (if it ever was), compassionate conservatism, or democracy. The modern Republican Party is fueled by grievance, cruelty, hatred, and racism. It is singularly focused on gaining and wielding power. Republicans are not good-faith actors and have no interest in maintaining a multiracial democracy. In fact, one could argue that they do not believe in democracy at all, as evidenced by their voter suppression laws, the January 6th insurrection, and the attempted election theft of a state Supreme Court justice seat in North Carolina. Yet, Democrats continue to pretend that there is a way to work with a party that has long abandoned compromise.

Trump’s National Address: A Missed Opportunity for Resistance

Consider the Democratic strategy regarding Trump’s cabinet confirmations. Instead of painting these extremists as unfit and dangerous for the offices they were nominated for, Democrats joined Republicans in confirming Trump’s early cabinet picks, hoping that some Republicans would later vote against the more extreme nominees. Spoiler alert: that strategy failed. Now, we have an unqualified Secretary of Defense whose own mother called him an “Abuser of Women”, a Russian sympathizer overseeing national intelligence, an anti-vaxxer in charge of Health and Human Services, and a weak and ineffective bootlicker as Secretary of State. Meanwhile, Republicans have already stated they will not work with Democrats on immigration, even though Democrats voted for the Laken Riley Act, which facilitates discrimination against migrants.

I thought Democratic fecklessness had reached rock bottom during the confirmation hearings, but I was wrong. The lowest point came during Trump’s national address—an address riddled with lies and hatred. Instead of boycotting the speech, Democratic leadership encouraged members to maintain decorum, even as Trump and Republicans continue to shred the Constitution. Only Representative Al Green demonstrated any real resistance to Trump’s address before being escorted out of the chamber. Then, 10 House Democrats joined all House Republicans in voting to censure Green—yet another display of Democratic spinelessness.

While some Democrats walked out and a handful skipped Trump’s address altogether, the majority remained, lending legitimacy to a lawless president. To make matters worse, in their official Democratic response to Trump’s address, Senator Elissa Slotkin invoked Ronald Reagan to try to shame Republicans, as if anyone today truly cares about Reagan—the very man who laid the groundwork for the destruction we are witnessing now.

A Bold Democratic Agenda

As corporations, insurers, and the Trump administration exploit more and more Americans, Democrats should be running on a care economy—an economy where Americans have access to universal childcare, free school meals, paid family leave, an expanded child tax credit, free community college, affordable at-home care for seniors, and Medicare for All.

Democrats should also champion federal judicial reform, including advocating for expanding the Supreme Court with term limits, implementing an ethics code for justices, and calling out bad actors who stand idly by as their constituents lose jobs and services due to the decisions of unelected bureaucrats.

Democrats must stand firmly for democracy at home and abroad—supporting our NATO allies and Ukraine, advocating for the regulation of big tech, and pushing for higher taxes on the ultra-wealthy. They should not collaborate with Republicans on legislation in the House and must filibuster every bill in the Senate even if it leads to a government shutdown (unless Republicans are willing to negotiate in good faith). Legal action against this administration should continue wherever possible, alongside strong support for independent journalists and platforms like Meidas Touch and Democracy Docket, as well as grassroots organizations like Indivisible.

Democrats need to be bold, build from the ground up, and stand for something—unapologetically and consistently—just as Republicans do, regardless of criticism from detractors or the compromised mainstream media.

A Call to Action

People want to support candidates and a party that are willing to fight, not ones who back down in the face of a bully. Some Democrats, like Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Representative Maxwell Frost, Representative Jasmine Crockett, Senator Chris Murphy, and Senator Elizabeth Warren have risen to the occasion. However, far too many—including House and Senate leadership—have shrunk in this moment.

Democrats, it’s time to step up. Prove that you’re ready for the fight ahead. Energize the base, inspire freedom-loving Americans, and act. If you don’t, this country will be sleeping with the fishes.