Donald Trump has turned politics into a dystopian reality show that he loves to organize, but Democratic leaders Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries are playing with the old rules, and the mismatch can make the Democrats beaten by a government closure.
This is not because they are dumb (not) or incompetent (such as the main Senate Democrats and the Chamber and as representatives of New York, both have increased to positions that require a skill of Lyndon Baines Johnson, most of us could not sustain for a single PTA meeting).
You can see it playing at the closure of the government. Schumer and Jeffries seem almost neurologically unable to operate in the world that Trump has created, one in which politics is less about governing or even persuasion, and more than staying offensive and generating shows.
Schumer exudes to the former background policy and internal treatment, which is another way of saying that it is guided, sweating and forced. It is not that it is bad to speak; It is that the type of speech that has dominated, the methodical and surveyed style that once captivated donors and editorial joints, is the equivalent of trying to send something in 2025.
Jeffries, on the contrary, is calm and disciplined. He speaks slowly, often channeling a rhythmic pattern that reminds of a preacher or litigator. In a different era, the type of time in which there was still “normal policy”, this feature could have worked brilliantly. Today, he feels tired. It is supposed to be the hip, once marketed as a “Brooklyn bad and brilliant brother. “But their recent communication attempts feel more like a corporate incorporation seminar.
And it is not as if this deficiency was compensating when electrifying the progressive base. Recent praise of Jeffries by New York Mayor Eric Adams (calling him a man who “served bravely and authentically for decades“) It was a bit like praising Nickelback for artistic innovation. It is not just inaccurate; it is strangely deaf tone so far.
To be fair, compete with Trump's megaphone requires a set of skills that is closer to professional struggle than twentieth century politics. Trump is already chaotic of often incoherent to the point of parody. But, and this is key, he never It sounds like a normal politician.
In a game where authenticity, by badly defined and cynically constructed, is the only real currency, the indinianic duo of the Democrats is presented as high functioning androids.
Counteracting Trump's superpower demands from Democrats who can compete in the economy of attention: leaders who feel authentic, really enjoy choosing constant political struggles and understand that “becoming viral” is the new “cited in the New York Times.”
In fact, the only Democrats who have demonstrated any ability to survive at this time have been the representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in New York and the governor of California Gavin Newsom.
Schumer and Jeffries do not have these skills, despite having a lot of material to work.
Case in question: Republicans are about to make medical care more expensive for millions of Americans. In theory, that is a devastating conversation issue. In practice, it is difficult to imagine that Schumer and Jeffries deliver it in a way that can compete with Trump's false statement that the Democrats are closing the government because they want Free medical care for illegal immigrants and “Transgender for all“Whatever that means.
Faced with these bad and the anemic response we receive from Schumer and Jeffries, the best scenario may be that Republicans, under the “antigubernamental” party, assume some guilt for a government closure. But that is not a strategy. That expects partisan inertia to still be on your side.
Anyway, the closure is simply the last example of Democrats fighting to compete with Maga. The biggest problem is that the Democratic party really does not have a communicator at this time. He has not had one since Barack Obama left the stage.
It is probably not fair to compare a congress leader with a presidential candidate. But even for the standards of the modern leaders of Congress, Schumer and Jeffries are poorly equipped for the task in question.
Democrats need someone with the manic energy of Newt Giningrich, the revolutionary zeal and the theatrical touch, along with the most pragmatic hardness of Nancy Pelosi and the ruthless discipline. This means that someone who understands that politics is now a form of entertainment, but still has moral seriousness to prevent it from becoming totally nihilism.
Instead, they have two men who could also be radio presenters trying to broadcast live on Twitch.
Ultimately, the democratic communications crisis will not be resolved until they have a presidential candidate who can really speak the language of the moment. Until they can find one, the Democrats are trapped with two types that are not rival against a man who has turned political chaos into the art of performance.
And if the Democrats do not find one, and soon! – They will not only lose the narrative: they will lose the country that depends on it.
Matt K. Lewis is the author of “Dirty rich politicians” and “Too dumb to fail. “
