Democrats see Trump’s big bill as key to their comeback. It may not be so easy

By STEVE PEOPLES and HANNAH FINGERHUT
Associated Press

WINDSOR HEIGHTS, Iowa (AP) — It is big and it is beautiful, President Donald Trump says.

But for many Democratic leaders, the tax break and spending cut package passed by Trump’s Republican allies in Congress on Thursday represents the key to the Democratic Party’s resurgence.

Even before the final vote, Democratic officials were finalizing ambitious plans for rallies, voter registration drives, attack ads, bus tours and even a multiday vigil, all intended to highlight the most controversial elements of Trump’s “big beautiful” bill: deep cuts to the nation’s safety net that will leave nearly 12 million more people without health coverage and millions of others without food assistance, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

In political battlegrounds across Alaska and Iowa, Pennsylvania and California, Democrats have begun to use the bill against Republicans. Democrats are promising that the Republican president’s domestic policy achievement to date will be the defining issue of every major election between now and next fall’s midterms.

“One thing is abundantly clear: Republicans own this mess and it’s an albatross around their necks heading into the midterms,” Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin told The Associated Press. “This is the least popular legislation in modern history, and the more voters learn about it, the more they hate it. That’s a clear directive for Democrats — we’re going to make sure every single voter knows who is responsible.”

Even with early public opinion on their side, however, it’s far from certain that the legislation will be the political winner Democrats hope.

The Democratic brand remains deeply unpopular, the party has no clear leader, its message is muddled and core elements of the Democratic base are frustrated and drifting. Some of the bill’s provisions will not take effect until after the 2026 election, so voters may not have felt the full impact by the time they vote. At the same time, it’s unclear how many voters are paying attention to the Washington-based debate.

The Democratic super political action committee Priorities USA warned this week that Democrats must work harder if they want their message to break through.

“We can’t just assume that because we’re angry that the voters that we need to communicate with are angry. Everyone needs to step up and realize the enormous challenge that’s in front of us,” executive director Danielle Butterfield said. “We’re nowhere near a good starting place.”

The bill provides for $4.5 trillion in tax breaks that were enacted in Trump’s first term and would have expired if Congress failed to act. New breaks will allow workers to deduct tips and overtime pay. There are $1.2 trillion in cuts to Medicaid and food stamps and a major rollback of green energy investments. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates the package will add $3.3 trillion to the deficit over the decade.

Democrats’ challenge on display

Privately, some Democrats conceded that Republicans were smart to pass the bill on the eve of a holiday weekend when fewer voters would be paying attention.

As some Democrats in Washington predicted a political backlash across America, the response was somewhat muted Thursday at a Democratic event in Iowa, barely 10 miles from the State Fairgrounds where Trump later drew thousands for an evening rally.

An audience of roughly 100 people listened as local Democratic officials railed against the legislation and called on voters to oust Republican Rep. Zach Nunn, the local congressman, for supporting it.

Audience member Michael Rieck, 69, said Iowa Democrats left him a message about the rally, but when he went online to learn more, “there was nothing.”

“I texted back to them that I didn’t see any advertisement,” he said. “They slowly corrected that. I’m still not impressed with what they did to advertise this event.”

Rieck said he wants to see different factions of the party better coordinate their message.

Progressive activists were moving through Minnesota in a big green bus as part of Fair Share America’s 29-stop “stop the billionaire giveaway” tour. The group is focused on Republican-led congressional districts where elected officials have largely stopped having in-person town halls with constituents.

“We know we’re fighting upstream,” said Fair Share’s executive director, Kristen Crowell. “But when people hear exactly what’s in this bill, they’re adamantly opposed.”

What the polls say

The bill is generally unpopular, according to polling conducted throughout the month of June, although some individual provisions are popular.

For example, a Washington Post/Ipsos poll found that majorities of U.S. adults support increasing the annual child tax credit and eliminating taxes on earnings from tips, and about half support work requirements for some adults who receive Medicaid.

On the other hand, the poll found that majorities oppose reducing federal funding for food assistance to low-income families and spending about $45 billion to build and maintain migrant detention centers.

The price tag could be a sticking point. About 6 in 10 U.S. adults in the poll said it was “unacceptable” that the bill is expected to increase the U.S. national debt, currently at $36 trillion, by about $3 trillion over the next decade.

But polling indicates that most Americans aren’t paying attention to the nuances of the bill, either.

The Washington Post/Ipsos poll found that only about one-third of U.S. adults have heard “a great deal” or “a good amount” about it.

Democrats are planning a summer of organizing

The Democratic National Committee and its allies plan an “organizing summer” that will feature town halls, training and voter registration drives in at least 35 competitive congressional districts. The message will be focused heavily on Trump’s bill.

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly, who leads the Democratic Governors Association, said her party must keep the bill’s contents at the forefront of people’s minds to ensure it’s an issue in the midterms and even the next presidential election in 2028.

“We’ll just have to keep that on the radar,” she said.

Progressive groups are planning a “Families First” day of action for July 26 in all 50 states. They will highlight people hurt by the new Medicaid cuts and will hold a 60-hour vigil at the U.S. Capitol.

“We have made a promise to each other and to future generations that there will be a safety net in place when we need it. And this is what’s being ripped away. And people will not stand for it,” said one of the Families First organizers, Ai-jen Poo, president of the National Domestic Workers Alliance.

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Peoples reported from New York. Associated Press writers Amelia Thomson DeVeaux in Washington, John Hanna in Topeka, Kansas, and Marc Levy in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, contributed to this report.

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This story has been corrected to reflect that the day of action planned by progressive groups for July 26 is being promoted as “Families First,” not “Family First.”