Are Senate Democrats—now led by Chuck Schumer—rolling over for Donald Trump, or are they trying to get close enough to drive a wedge between him and congressional Republicans?
On infrastructure spending, child tax credits, paid maternity leave and dismantling trade agreements, Democrats are looking for ways they can work with Mr. Trump and force Republican leaders to choose between their new president and their small-government, free-market principles. Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, elected Wednesday as the new Democratic minority leader, has spoken with Mr. Trump several times, and Democrats in coming weeks plan to announce populist economic and ethics initiatives they think Mr. Trump might like.
Trying to work with Trump on issues like infrastructure and trade where Trump is at least rhetorically at odds with congressional Republicans could also open up the chance for Democrats to get some media attention—not much, but maybe more than the traditional nothing—for their proposals. But there are serious dangers to this plan, too. Democrats risk becoming complicit in bad bills with nice-sounding names. Signs are that Trump's infrastructure plan will be terrible, for instance, despite infrastructure being a top Democratic priority.
But while Democrats say they will stand firm against things like Trump’s choice of white nationalist Steve Bannon as his top adviser, how much might the effort to work with him blunt that opposition, either in reality or perception? And will Schumer be up for a real fight? His history is mixed, to say the least.
With Elizabeth Warren, Sherrod Brown, and Bernie Sanders on board the effort to reach out to Trump on issues where he has claimed to embrace some version of Democratic priorities (while being firm in their condemnation of bigotry), Senate Democrats get some trust. But this is a tricky game, and they need to be very careful.