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How can Democrats best reply to the Trump agenda?

Since the rise of the tea party, the Democratic response that seems to have resonated most with voters has been to promise more stuff to more people.

You want to slow the growth of Social Security benefits for the upper income? Well increase Social Security. For everybody.

You want to abolish Obamacare? We will push Medicare for all.

Are people having trouble paying off their student loans? We will make college free for everyone, regardless of income.

It makes sense that these big ideas would appeal. You might think that self-styled progressives would target their programs to the needy, but the middle class feels put upon and wants help from government, too.

And when Republicans dont seem to care about deficits certainly, Donald Trump did not during his presidential campaign why should Democrats be the eat-your-spinach party?

Trump won, and Bernie Sanders nearly outflanked Hillary Clinton, with big and bold. No one wants to be caught being incremental or, heaven forbid, responsible.

Heres the problem: Even if More Stuff for More People might prove a winning slogan in 2020, it wont be a viable governing strategy in 2021 or 2022 or 2023 or 2024. As the Congressional Budget Office reiterated recently, the federal budget is on track to be consumed by interest on the debt and by older peoples entitlements, leaving less and less for schools, national parks, scientific research and a lot of other activities that Democrats favor.

So heres a question: Would it be possible to fashion a platform that is progressive in its values, big and bold in its appeal, and not entirely irresponsible?

Jason Furman, who was one of President Barack Obamas top economic advisers, says he worries that the path for the next election will just be lying more that the lesson from this election wont be so much moving left or right, but overpromising.

Thats especially so because much of what government should be doing in response to automation and other forms of economic dislocation are things Obama proposed but the Republican Congress wouldnt support education and training, infrastructure, research. Those arent sexy, but the fact that Obama proposed them year after year doesnt make them any less needed.

Still, I came away from a conversation with a freshman congressman last week with at least some hints that Democrats might be able to craft an appealing platform that does more than promise more benefits. Ro Khanna, an economics teacher and briefly an Obama administration official, was elected from the heart of Silicon Valley last year by defeating a longtime Democratic incumbent, Michael M. Honda.

Khanna supported Sanders in the presidential primary, and he told me he won by responding to peoples distrust of the system he took no PAC money, and has introduced legislation saying no other congressional candidates should either and to their desire for big policy advances. As a result, he said, his polls showed that, in Californias unusual two-Democrat November runoff, he led among both Trump voters and Sanders voters.

He didnt adopt either of their approaches wholesale, though. Where Trumps appeal is muscular and insular, Khanna said, he believes the United States has to remain open to the world to immigration and exchange across borders and to the potential benefits of technological advance.

And he is beginning to explore policy options, big but not pie in the sky, that he thinks could promote a more open America while still letting more people feel included. Where Sanders favored free college tuition for all, Khanna said he supports Robert Reichs plan for debt-free community college and career training. Students would pay no tuition and while in job training programs, theyd get paid. But once college grads went to work, they would repay some tuition with a fixed percentage of their income. In absolute dollars, schoolteachers might end up paying a lot less for their education than Silicon Valley engineers.

Which is only one way Khanna declines to coddle his high-tech constituency. He thinks it crucial that young people in Ohio or West Virginia feel as much chance to make it in the entrepreneurial world as people growing up in Palo Alto, Calif. That will take government programs a massive track of apprenticeship, rethinking education to encourage going in and out of school throughout a career but also deeper involvement from Silicon Valley companies themselves. He favors a vast (but paid-for) $1 trillion expansion of the earned income tax credit a variation on the newly fashionable universal basic income, but one that Khanna would keep tethered to work.

The hunger is still there for a politics of national identity, Khanna said, and he worries that such a vision may still win out. We have to articulate a bold, alternative economic vision, some entrepreneurial vision so people arent afraid of the future.

Maybe it can even be honest, too.

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How Democrats can be progressive without being irresponsible - Washington Post

The convention, which included Democratic students from Penn State University, Temple Universityand Villanova University, spanned April 7-9.

Penn Democrats has not historically kept a close relationship with the Pennsylvania College Democrats, a statewide body with 45 chapters. But this weekend, the two groups came together to make Penn's predominantly liberal campus even bluer.

The convention, whichincluded Democraticstudents from Penn State University, Temple Universityand Villanova University, spanned April 7-9.

It was a really engaging weekend, said Penn Dems President and College sophomore Rachel Pomerantz about the event, which bore the slogan Be the Future.

On Sunday, April 9,internal elections for the PACDexecutive board were held. No Penn students ran for positions.

Penn is not as close with the state organization, because we dont get any money from them, Penn Dems Political Director and Wharton freshman DylanMilligan explained. We dont get any money from them because we dont follow their bylaws. Their bylaws stipulate that you cant endorse a candidate in a Democratic primary that you have to stay neutral.

Penn Dems has not stayed neutral in recent elections.

The organizationendorsed Hillary Clinton in February 2016 and, according to Milligan, will endorse a candidate for Philadelphia DA at some point next week.

These procedural differencesinspired the club to host the convention.

We wanted to host this convention to reassert the fact that we appreciate [PACD] and we like to get along, Milligan said. But were not involved enough to have people running for their executive board.

Outside of the elections, the conference consisted of panels on topicssuch as managinga college Democrats chapter, jumpstartingpolitical careers and tacklingissues such as the economy, health care and LGBTQ rights.

About 150 students registered for the weekend event.

Student politics weren't the only focus at the convention, which featured a debate for the Democratic candidates running for Philadelphia District Attorney.The debate included five out of the seven candidates running for the nomination.

[The]District Attorney is incredibly important for a lot of issues that Democrats, progressives and a lot of college students care about, Pomerantz said. Mass incarceration that starts with how its prosecuted. Police brutality and community relations that starts with how the DAs office conducts itself with the police. Its easy to forget about these things, cause its not sexy compared to a Senate race.

Milligan said the debate swung his allegiance for the election; he had previously supportedLawrence Krasner but is now torn between John O'Neill and Joe Khan, a Penn Law School lecturer.

Despite the event ostensibly featuring like-minded students, Pomerantz and Milligan agreed that the convention still featured a productive diversity in opinion.

The experience of a Penn Dem who is from the Philadelphia area or a big city is really different from a Democrat who goes to a rural college, the Penn Democrats president added.

It was really promising to hear the dialogue that went on, she said.

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Penn Democrats welcome other chapters across Pa. for weekend convention - The Daily Pennsylvanian

President Trump has become the gift that keeps on giving, according to Avon Township Democrats at their regular meeting in the Round Lake Area Public Library Saturday.

"Our best recruiting tool has been Donald Trump," said Hal Sloan, 59, of Grayslake, chairman of the Avon Township Democrats.

"And I've heard other people say that he's the reason they keep going. We used to have six to 12 people at a meeting, and now we have 20 to 25," he said, with just over 20 people meeting in the activity room of the library on a sunny Saturday morning.

He said after the Women's March in Chicago, he wondered how to keep the momentum going forward.

"When I was there, the energy was phenomenal and I thought, 'How do I keep this going,'" he said.

"It was peaceful and respectful. There were a couple of Trump supporters with signs," he said, but things never turned nasty.

On Saturday, they discussed ways to use social media better, from Google Groups to Facebook and Twitter. They already have a Facebook page, website, http://www.avondems.com, and Twitter account @avontwpdems.

"Someone had suggested that we have a private Facebook page too, but I think it's redundant," he said.

"And remember when you respond in Google Groups, your message goes to everyone in the group," Sloan added.

Under new business, those present discussed having more social gatherings, like once a quarter, said Patrick Duby, 41, of Round Lake, who organized the first social evening recently at Taco El Norte's in Round Lake Beach.

"It's so we can reach out to the community and other townships. We had five other township Democrat organizations show up that night," he said.

"We talked about doing this every quarter and I want to do another one in May at another local venue. It's just a way to socialize and get to know other groups," Duby said.

Another member suggested the group recognize World Autism Month this month by providing more resources for families with autistic children because therapy is expensive and the earlier the little kids get therapy they better they socialize.

"We have a significant amount of families in our community and a lot of action in Springfield is geared toward cutting special education resources," said the woman who did not want to be identified.

Someone else suggested the group post bills on its website to alert people to those bills that would cut special needs funding.

Sloan said another community outreach effort is highway clean-up, where the group plans to pick up trash along Rollins Road, from Cedar Lake Road to Lotus Drive, on May 13

"It's a good workout," he joked, "and there is always the contest to see who finds the craziest thing along the roadway."

At one point, Tyler Sadonis, a field organizer for the Democrat Party, asked members to be volunteers for a telephone calling effort for the special election April 18 in Georgia. He explained they would be calling other Democrats in that state to make sure they go out and vote.

"We can show that the Democrats have momentum and win a congressional seat back," he said as he took out a sign-up sheet for people to use after the meeting.

Duby echoed the chairman's comments about Trump generating more interest.

"Our best recruitment tool has just been people listening to the news. People are more interested and engaged. Our membership tripled," he said.

Floyd John Trexler, 70, of Grayslake, became visibly irritated when the subject of President Donald Trump was brought up after the meeting.

"He hasn't done anything for me. All he's done is take things away," he said.

fabderholden@tribpub.com

Twitter @abderholden

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Democrats see Trump's action boosting their membership - Chicago Tribune

Extreme partisanship is rampant on Capitol Hill, but a glimmer of hope for cooperation is emerging from a dark place the prescription painkiller and heroin crisis thats ravaging the country.

Its an issue where all sides have said they want to act, though getting agreement hasnt always been smooth.

Sen. Rob Portman, an Ohio Republican who has taken the lead on the issue, was only able to get five fellow Republicans last year to sign onto his bill to root out synthetic opioids pouring into the U.S. through postal packages from China. This year, hes already gotten several Democrats to join him.

The most recent co-sponsors from either party Sen. David Perdue, a Georgia Republican who is staunchly pro-life and anti-gun control, and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat and hero to the progressive left highlight the political breadth of the problem and eagerness to deal with it.

Another bill, the Stop OD Act of 2017, would authorize grants to highlight the dangers of opioids and expand the use of overdose-reversing drugs. It has more than 20 House co-sponsors, scattered from Hawaii to New Hampshire, and roughly split between Republicans and Democrats.

Drug abuse is a problem that afflicts many parts of the country and therefore is something that unites red and blue state legislators. If members can address that issue, it offers some hope of progress in other areas as well, said Darrell West, director of governance studies at the Brookings Institution.

The prescription drug and heroin epidemic stands out because it is affecting Americans of all ages with little regard for race, income or other social factors. The crisis resulted in more than 30,000 overdose deaths in 2015 alone.

The epidemics wide reach prompted Congress to pass bipartisan legislation last year the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act that bolstered treatment and the availability of overdose-reversing drugs.

But Congress struggled to pony up funds. After months of feuding, lawmakers agreed to dedicate $500 million per year for fiscal years 2017 and 2018. It passed just weeks after the contentious November election, giving lawmakers hope that bipartisanship is still possible.

With President Trump calling for belt-tightening in domestic spending, members of Congress are warning the administration not to fiddle with the funding.

Democrats said efforts to repeal Obamacare and proposed spending cuts in Mr. Trumps budget for the National Institutes of Health or Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were particularly troubling.

During the campaign I was pleased to hear President Trump talk about the need to address [the epidemic]. Its been disappointing to see him try and take away health care, said Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire Democrat, noting Obamacares expansion of Medicaid had been a vital conduit to treatment for addicts in her state.

For now, lawmakers are reaching for common ground wherever they can find it.

Sen. Claire McCaskill, Missouri Democrat, reached out to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican, after Mr. Trump tapped him to lead the national fight against opioid addiction, saying we need all hands on deck, including administration officials to thwart the epidemic.

I hope we can take some lessons from this. It is a public health crisis in all of our states in every community, rural and urban, Ms. McCaskill said Friday.

Ms. McCaskill made her comments to a reporter just moments after shed cast a vote against Mr. Trumps Supreme Court nominee, Judge Neil Gorsuch.

That court fight which saw Democrats mount the first ever partisan filibuster of a high court nominee and the GOP trigger the nuclear option to change the rules and curtail the use of the filibuster threatened to send the Senate to new lows of bipartisanship.

But Mr. Portman said even in the midst of that, bipartisanship is alive and well.

Literally during the vote, two Democrats came over, and we talked about other legislation, he said Friday. Were going to continue to work together across party lines. We have to. Thats our job, and we have lots to do.

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Opioid policy unites Democrats, Republicans on Capitol Hill - Washington Times

In lengthy article published by the Washington Post on Sunday, reporter Ben Terris revealed Emmy-winning Hollywood actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus has said shes been approached by top Democrats who wanted her to run for office.

According to Terris, Louis-Dreyfus said she has been approached by top Democrats and asked to run for office. (Not in a million years, she said she told them.)

Louis-Dreyfus didnt tell Terris what the Democrats had in mind or who the top Democrats are.

Louis-Dreyfus stars in HBOs hit comedy Veep, where she has for several seasons played a disgruntled, often ignored vice president thats always stumbling her way through a sea of scandals and political escapades.

Louis-Dreyfus likely isnt the first celebrity Democrats have approached about running for office. Many high-profile people with connections to the Democratic Party have been rumored to be interested in a 2020 White House run or for some other high-level political office.

According to the Financial Times, Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook; Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks NBA team and reality-television star; and Bob Iger, the chief executive of Walt Disney, have all expressed interest in running for office since the start of 2017.

In an interview on The David Rubenstein Show, which aired in March 2017, Oprah Winfrey told host Rubenstein she has thought about since Donald Trump surprised the world in November 2016.

I thought, Oh, gee, I dont have the experience, Winfrey said. I dont know enough. And now Im thinking, Oh. Oh.

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Report: Top Democrats tried to convince Emmy-winning actress to run for office - TheBlaze.com