As political pundits closely watch former President Donald Trump’s maneuvers ahead of the 2024 presidential election, an equally compelling narrative is unfolding on the Democratic side of the aisle. Talks of a Democratic trifecta return in 2025 are heating up, spurred by the pending retirements of Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin, two prominent centrists who have often acted as a brake on the party’s more ambitious legislative goals.
If the Democrats can pull off sweeping wins in the 2024 general elections, they may again control the White House, the Senate, and the House of Representatives. Such a prospect is not without precedent; during the first two years of President Joe Biden’s tenure, the party utilized its unified control to pass significant legislation including a massive infrastructure bill and historic climate initiatives.
The stakes are high and the Senate poses a particular challenge. With Manchin’s retirement, a loss of at least one Democratic seat is likely. The Democrats’ razor-thin margin means every race is critical, and they must defend seats in battleground states while also capitalizing on nearly 20 House Republican incumbents in districts won by Biden in 2020.
Democrats may have a viable path to codifying abortion protections nationwide, as seen in their previous attempts to pass the Women’s Health Protection Act. The act aims to override state-level abortion bans that proliferated following the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade. Despite House Democrats’ support, the bill stalled in the Senate due to the filibuster rule requiring a 60-vote supermajority, and Manchin’s outright opposition.
The Congressional Progressive Caucus’s “Progressive Proposition Agenda” is particularly telling, featuring priorities that were part of the initial “Build Back Better” bill, such as the expanded child tax credit, investing $250 billion in affordable housing, pro-union legislation, marijuana legalization, DC statehood, and tuition-free public college.
This rhetoric has raised concerns among former members of Congress, with 84% expressing anxiety over election-related violence in 2024, a concern shared across the political spectrum.
Relevant articles:
– Democrats could go even further than before if they sweep the White House, Senate, and House again, Business Insider, 05/01/2024
– Trump won’t rule out election violence if he loses to Biden in November: ‘It depends’, Business Insider India, 04/30/2024