After suffering a crushing defeat in the election, the Democratic Party’s next big campaign begins: From the Politics Desk

Welcome to the online edition of From the Politics Desk, our evening newsletter that brings you the latest reporting and analysis from the NBC News political team from the White House, Capitol Hill and the campaign trail.

In today’s issue, senior national reporters Natasha Koreki and Alex Seitz-Wald provide an in-depth look at the early stages of the race to become the next Democratic National Committee chair. Plus, Chief Political Analyst Chuck Todd explores how Donald Trump is rapidly depleting his political capital.

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After painful election loss, DNC leadership battle begins

Written by Natasha Koreki and Alex Seitz-Wald

Two weeks after another heartbreaking loss to Donald Trump, Democrats are struggling to analyze what went wrong and figure out a path forward.

And the first concrete steps to begin the next chapter have already begun. It is to elect a new chairman of the party committee.

The post will be crucial for a defeated party without a clear leader, especially in the run-up to the 2028 presidential election. That’s because the new chair must oversee the party’s primaries and a controversial new schedule imposed by President Joe Biden.

In the past 48 hours, a group of candidates interested in replacing Jamie Harrison as Democratic National Committee chairman have officially entered the race or have their names surfaced as potential candidates. I’m doing it.

The campaign began on Monday when former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, a former presidential candidate and head of the Social Security Administration, entered the fray. Minnesota Democratic Party Chairman Ken Martin, DNC vice chairman and leader of the state Democratic Committee Association, subsequently formally announced his candidacy on Tuesday.

Both Martin and O’Malley emphasized continued investment in States Parties as key to their vision moving the DNC forward.

Also on Tuesday, Latino Democratic strategist Chuck Rocha confirmed he is running for X. As Politico reported, so far the only woman who has emerged as a candidate is Michigan Sen. Mallory McMorrow. She gained national acclaim as a leftist in 2022 after giving a speech in defiance of Republicans who had appointed her a “groomer” in a fundraising appeal, which led to her speaking at the Democratic National Convention this summer. connected to the frame.

Still looming over there is Wisconsin Democratic Party Chairman Ben Wikler, who has established a reputation as an incredible fundraiser and on-the-ground organizer.

“Ben is seriously considering running,” a person familiar with Wikler’s thinking told NBC News on Monday.

That’s in addition to the chatter surrounding U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel, a former Chicago mayor and then-President Barack Obama’s chief of staff. Two people close to Emanuel said he asked other DNC members to test the water.

The post of DNC vice chairman is also attracting attention. Adam Parkhomenko, a Democratic Party operative who worked on Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, ran unsuccessfully in 2017 but is considering running for the post.

“I am seriously considering returning to the race,” Parkhomenko said in an obtained message to supporters. “I am seriously considering returning to the race. With dedication to the party and values ​​I have always held, I promise to carefully consider this decision.” NBC News.

James Zogby, founder of the Arab American Association and longtime former member of the DNC and critic of the party from the left, is also eyeing a run for vice chair.

It’s still too early to know exactly what the fault lines will be that will determine the DNC’s leadership race, but the 50-state strategy could be one of them. It’s a vision that invests in red states, blue states, and swing states alike, and Martin, in particular, fully embraces it. If Emanuel were to enter the race, it would be a strategy he famously opposed, arguing publicly with Howard Dean that the party should focus on battleground states. There was even a fight.

This campaign also harkened back to the old days of embracing Obama (who significantly reduced the role of the Democratic National Committee and state parties by creating Organization for America) and the new faces who brought fresh ideas to the party. could expose the division between In search of a way forward.

Trump is burning through his political capital quickly

Written by Chuck Todd

This is the political problem Donald Trump is creating for himself regarding selections to Cabinet and other positions. He now has complete ownership of the entire bureaucracy. There is no fantasy or mythical “deep state” to blame for not fulfilling his promises. He has appointed people who share his vision, so he has no excuse to be sabotaged by the old establishment wing of the Republican Party (as happened during his first term).

This time, he has to carry out a policy, and the ability to do so means that he not only carries out his own orders, but somehow fulfills his promises to a whole new group of voters who are “trying” It depends on whether stable political actors can be mobilized to achieve this goal. “Out” Trumpism was realized for the first time.

If the next six months at the Pentagon are to focus on which restrooms the public can and cannot use, and who can and cannot protect the country, Mr. Trump will be the controversial secretary of defense. I’m sure I’ll have to put more effort into the selection process myself. Who he actually chose for the post.

There are many potential landmines that President Trump and the newly empowered Republican Party will need to avoid. One is that we misunderstand their cultural mission.

Many voters seem to be saying in their polls that culturally they don’t like being told how to behave. The country has a fiercely libertarian bent, and can look either “left” or “right” depending on which party is in power. What if the Republicans went from preaching against “DEI” to essentially imposing their own culture, forcing Bible study in public schools (see Oklahoma), or whether someone belonged on the front lines of a battle? They will if they start using gender stereotypes rather than pure merit to make decisions. They would be committing the same crime they accused the coastal elites of “imposing their culture” on masses who disagree with all their beliefs.

And this is the very risk President Trump is already incurring by his decision to choose the most controversial people who could fill some of these key positions. If his choices cause instability, the people will reject this government sooner than he thinks.

One of the things Trump and the Republican Party already misunderstand about his so-called mandate is that he was elected despite his personal unpopularity. In other words, he was not actively elected by the voters who supported him. He was chosen because of who he is.

This is not a decision voters made because they like Trump. On the contrary, they made this decision because they believed the Biden-Harris administration did not understand their way of life. Does Trump understand that? Maybe he doesn’t think so, but he certainly knew how to turn their grievances into a vote-getting message, and he certainly knew how to turn their grievances into a vote-getting message, and what Democrats were saying about how the working class was faring in this economy. He certainly revealed that he had no clue.

However, this peak of political capital is fleeting, and when it passes, it disappears. Just ask Biden.

Read more about Chuck →

➡️Trump administration transition monitoring

Members of the House Ethics Committee met behind closed doors Wednesday but reached an agreement on whether to release a report detailing a thorough investigation into former Rep. Matt Gaetz, President Trump’s nominee for attorney general. There wasn’t. Outgoing Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said in an exclusive interview. In an interview with NBC News, she said women are essential to the strength of the military. The comments came after Pete Hegseth, President Trump’s pick to lead the Pentagon, questioned the idea of ​​allowing women to serve in combat roles. The president-elect has nominated Linda McMahon, a former World Wrestling Entertainment executive during the first Trump administration, to be secretary of the Department of Education. Trump has chosen former acting attorney general Matt Whitaker to be his next ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty. An organization that is a key ally that President Trump has long derided.

That’s all from the political desk. If you have any feedback, love it or hate it, email us at politicsnewsletter@nbcuni.com.

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