Now What? Americans Give Their Trust to Democrats

With a major shift in power and generational change, uncertainty ahead

What a night.

I had a feeling Democrats would perform strongly. Polling suggested as much and so did the feeling on the ground, if that mattered. Last week, when I was in Kansas, I wrote about a sense of momentum for Democrats that felt decidedly different.

On Tuesday night, though, it was clear early that change was afoot. States that didn’t seem remotely competitive — like Florida — were more competitive. Some states, like South Carolina, that weren’t even on most people’s map when the day began, showed upsets brewing. By about 5 p.m. PT, it wasn’t just a good night for Democrats, it was a potentially generational one.

The only comp in my lifetime was 2008, when I stood backstage with President-elect Barack Obama. The same sense that Democrats could win anywhere.

The question then, and the question now, is the same: Now what?

The trust Americans placed in Democrats, in so many different personalities, from Kansas to (evidently) maybe even Mississippi and Alaska should truly humble Democrats. It’s a repudiation of President Trump and his party, to be sure, but the sheer breadth of the victory is something to behold. States like Texas that haven’t elected Democrats for decades will have a largely Democratic controlled government. States like Georgia, where race and politics are deeply complex, elected a Black woman Governor for the first time.

I don’t want to gloss over the hard work of all of these candidates. The campaigns they ran in many ways reflected the “respect, empower, include” ethos that drove the Obama campaign. Maintaining that standard is hard and it’s amazing to see it rewarded.

But I’m afraid to say: the work has just begun. The same voters who powered a revolution can take it away.

New Kids on the Block

Here’s what I know about this time: The Democrats going to Washington are truly different.

A friend sent this to me on Wednesday, celebrating Kansas’ election results.

Some are new to politics. Analyzing the election with USC Students on Tuesday night, I compared Senator-Elect Adam Hamilton in Kansas to Ted Lasso. A positive, humble personality, going into a body he truly hasn’t had much experience with. (The pulpit is decidedly different from Congress.)

Some have a new power to use their voice.

Senator-Elect Abdul El-Sayed worked in Michigan state government before running for Senate. He brings a more aggressive approach to journalists and the media, often turning traditional Washington questions on their head. He is also the first Muslim to serve in the Senate.

And some are simply new to the bigger spotlight. Dr. Annie Andrews is a pediatrician and mom. The campaign got ugly. Even Sen. Tim Scott, someone who wears his Christianity on his sleeve, started calling her “Tranny Annie” for no apparent reason other than the President used the slur (Side note: my 14-year old son asked me how a President of the United States got away with that kind of name calling, it’s a good question.)

But Senator-Elect Andrews won on positivity and competence. Andrews now has a major platform, bringing something totally different, the approach of a pediatrician and a first-time female Senator from South Carolina.

There are more stories of firsts in the ranks of a historic election. My hope for all of them is that they don’t assimilate to Washington and don’t fit the boxes the body asks of them. Instead, they should embrace what brought them to Washington and do the work the people of their state asked them to do.

I also hope this new class uses media in new ways. Show voters what they’re working on, even if, as President Trump has promised, they can’t get it passed because he plans to be Mr. Veto.

And I hope they pass legislation Americans care about: Vote to end the war in Iran. Vote for a Medicare public option. Vote to shore up Social Security for generations to come. Vote for AI regulation. Vote to get money out of political campaigns. Relentlessly focus on the cost of living in this country.

And please while talking about tariffs, first talk about the importance of protecting American manufacturing, something critical to our national security, and be willing to deploy strategic tariffs instead of President Trump’s whim-changing tariffs that raised costs for Americans and hurt planning for our businesses.

On all of the above, we shouldn’t expect the Democrats to sing from the same hymnal. Expect them to represent the interests of their state. And honestly I would love it if they started forming different coalitions, working with Congressional Republicans when interests overlap.

Pressure to Impeach

I see a lot of Democrats being asked if impeachment should be on the table and sometimes they struggle with it.

Here’s what I would say: Impeachment should absolutely be on the table. It shouldn’t be our default expectation, though.

Here’s why it’s on the table: Americans were warned by Republicans that they were handing the gavel over Democrats. They were warned that could end in impeachment. And overwhelmingly they said yes.

But Americans want oversight, not impeachment for impeachment sake. This President needs to know he can’t do whatever he wants. The voters are demanding, screaming, for checks on his power and his behaviors. He can’t simultaneously sue the IRS for $10 billion for himself, while cutting Americans’ SNAP benefits and medicaid. If he goes down the wrong path there need to be consequences. Everyone elected on Tuesday should feel this responsibility.

And Republicans can lean in, I guess? Evidently Vice President JD Vance believes the Iran war should take the fall. He wrote a long, rambling post on X that felt remarkably out of touch talking about consultants and their advice, and seemed to dissociate himself, as Vice President, from many key decisions this administration has made. (It felt almost as out of touch as the White House eating cheesecake in their gilded West Wing Tuesday night). But if Republicans, who are still in power, want to hear the voters, and end the war, they could end it.

I was kind of hoping that by the time I wrote this column that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth would be out.

It would seem the smart thing to do, both because he’s been an abject failure in his duties (from sharing secrets on Signal to purging senior military leaders) and because President Trump needs Senate confirmation for a new Defense Secretary. It is easier for him to get one confirmed while Republicans are still in charge during the lame duck. Republican Thomas Massie said on X impeachment could come as early as next week. Hegseth — Mr. Machismo — has plenty of Republican foes.

As of writing this he’s still in his role. I don’t expect that to last long.

Best Case Scenario

So, what’s the best case scenario?

Honestly I was pleasantly surprised by some of the reactions Tuesday night. A pledge to work with Democrats (we’ll see). A hint of pragmatism from some Republicans. I’ve been waiting for the proverbial fever to break since President Trump’s first election. I hope it comes true.

There certainly are some new members of Congress who could get some different work done, and President Trump has a pragmatic (if vain) streak that Democrats could tap into. For example, President Trump has talked about term limits since his first campaign. That’s not really a partisan issue. Plenty of the new class have pledged to work across the aisle. In his first term, President Trump did get sentencing reform passed with the help of many Democrats. There is some precedent here.

Divided government has resulted in some significant legislation in the past, too. President Clinton signed a balanced budget deal with Republicans and President Reagan dealt with changes to major programs like Social Security, (not all changes that I like, but proof major changes happen under divided government).

So, action is possible. President Trump would need to be willing to listen; this hasn’t always been his strong suit. There’s that saying about old dogs. So I won’t be overly optimistic, but let’s see.

Whether our government leaders work together, I’m already seeing Americans who can be kind to one another. After the stomping on Tuesday my Republican dad told me congratulations to our Democratic family members. Republicans voted for Democrats throughout this country, hoping for things to be different.

So what I’ll say about this election — pendulums swing, kindness can go a long way, and the American people are begging for a government that actually represents and benefits them. Here’s one vote for that actually happening.