Since their defeat in the presidential election of 2016, fragmented nature of the US Democrats have recently put together. Divided the party is, however, the question of what role the President has played.
Melissa Byrne is a democratic activist who last year was arrested during a protest in New York’s Trump Tower. She lives in Philadelphia.
Justin Talbot Zorn is a progressive Democrat who has worked as chief of staff for three members of Congress. He lives in Santa Fe.
Robert Shrum is a moderate Democrat who has worked as a strategist in the presidential election campaigns of Al Gore and John Kerry. He lives in Los Angeles.
Byrne, Talbot, wrath and Shrum represent different bearings of the Democratic party, different generations and different regions of the US. On one thing they agree: The party has recently put together. Differences of opinion are to be found with regard to the question of whether Donald Trump had something to do with the new-found cohesion.
Trump mobilize even Democrats, says Robert Shrum
“Donald Trump has United the Democratic party unintentionally,” said Shrum, who now heads the Center for the Political Future and the Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics at the University of California, in an Interview. To keep Donald Trump in the game of chess in the eyes of many voters, “the first, what the democratic party stands for”.
A democratic party that was divided after the bitter defeat in the election of 2016, a Hillary Clinton represented temperate and a of your Challenger Bernie Sanders represented progressive camp, is no small merit.
Donald Trump but I have achieved exactly that – unintentionally, simply because he is President, said Talbot-Zorn of the German wave. “He creates. I would not go so far as to say that the democratic party has at the present time, a common philosophical point of view. But there is so much convergence as at any other time in recent history.”
“Bolder and stronger”
The Democrats would have found without Trump a common course, is Melissa Byrne sure
Melissa Byrne agreed that the democratic party last month, despite ongoing disagreements on certain issues. Trump wants to you are, however, no role in the unification process. “After The Occupy Movement [Anm. d. Red.: In 2011, launched a protest movement Occupy Wall Street] have organized the people in the Democratic party and those who felt connected to her, braver and stronger,” writes Byrne via SMS. “I think our work would be accelerated, regardless of the presidency. Therefore, I refuse to give the white nationalists in the White house recognition for it.”
Evidence for the Cohesion within the party, all three in the Unity of the party, when it comes to a universal health care system and a Reform of tuition fees, two important domestic issues, which have previously rode integrity, destruction reigned.
Health and education
In the field of healthcare, the Democrats want to care first of all, the most well-known domestic policy achievement of President Barack Obama, the Affordable Care Act – Obamacare-called strengths. This law had, until then, uninsured Americans with a health insurance company. As a second step, you want to introduce a General health insurance for all Americans – something most of the USA is comparable to that of countries already for a long time.
The intra-party consensus in relation to the General health, still a very young development, welfare services Talbot-Zorn, who has worked in Congress to the of the former members John Conyers introduced the law, “Medicare for All” [editor’s note says. d. Red.: Medicare provides health insurance for Americans over 65 years of age].
“It was more of a niche topic,” says Talbot-Zorn. “There were a couple of dozen Co-sponsors. Their number has think in the last year – I, since Trump in the office is extremely increased.”
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What relates to a Reform of tuition fees, are the Democrats now agree that the costs for the visit of American Colleges and universities are a social Problem that must be addressed; many students have to pay off after graduating from a US Uni many years of high debt. Yet they may have no common solution is found, but the fact that the Problem of the entire party is recognised as such, is already a significant development.
“In the Democratic party a much greater consensus now that the state needs to do something about the high cost of College and the associated debt,” says Shrum.
New attitude towards Saudi Arabia
Even with a view on the war of Saudi Arabia against Yemen, and the relationship of the US with the country – an important and topical foreign policy issue – developing a new consensus, says Talbot-Zorn. Until recently, there were only a few progressive Democrats and libertarian Republicans in Congress, who urged that the Trump government to the support of the Saudi to end to Yemen war.
“Now – and this has developed only in the past two months to support all the leading figures of the Democratic party, at least in the house of representatives, a joint resolution, any support for military actions in Yemen zurückzuzienen,” said Talbot-Zorn. “This is a big change that just happened.”
The murder of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was also a U.S. citizen, may have played in this transformation an important role, but that is not the whole story, Talbot-Zorn. “Trump’s Actions and his government to more and more ideological cohesion among the Democrats.”
The very existence of the Trump government to lead to a rapprochement between the democratic Camps, says Justin Talbot Zorn
Shrum agrees that Trump is a genuine choice advertising for Democrats. “Trump is sending every day a message that mobilized the Democrats, and driving voters to the Democrats.”
The Unity to survive the presidential campaign?
But how long the new-found Unity to continue within the party?
This is a matter of perspective. Should win the Democrats control of the house of representatives – a realistic prospect, chances are good that they create a coherent political platform and a single deal with Trump to develop.
However, begins shortly after the elections the electoral campaign for the presidential election in 2020, when most of the democratic candidates are trying to sharpen their individual Profile and from their counterparties to delineate. This will be the stage, to the ongoing disagreements over the course of the party to be swept back to the surface, believes Shrum. “These internal disputes will be held in 2020 and not 2018.”