Matt Bennett

Well, look, it was three weeks into the Trump administration, so the vibe was pretty downbeat. I think everybody there was fairly grim and clear-eyed about the depth of the hole that Democrats find ourselves in at the moment. So we did a lot of hard thinking about what we're saying to voters on cultural issues like immigration and crime and other things and on the economy.

Well, look, it was three weeks into the Trump administration, so the vibe was pretty downbeat. I think everybody there was fairly grim and clear-eyed about the depth of the hole that Democrats find ourselves in at the moment. So we did a lot of hard thinking about what we're saying to voters on cultural issues like immigration and crime and other things and on the economy.

And I think we all agreed that we have work to do in both areas.

And I think we all agreed that we have work to do in both areas.

And I think we all agreed that we have work to do in both areas.

Well, I think one thing that we concluded was voters felt like, first of all, that we had lost that battle for reasonableness. That somehow Donald Trump, who in my view at least is the most unreasonable national figure maybe in the history of American politics, beat us and was able to argue that he would restore order where the Democrats were offering chaos.

Well, I think one thing that we concluded was voters felt like, first of all, that we had lost that battle for reasonableness. That somehow Donald Trump, who in my view at least is the most unreasonable national figure maybe in the history of American politics, beat us and was able to argue that he would restore order where the Democrats were offering chaos.

Well, I think one thing that we concluded was voters felt like, first of all, that we had lost that battle for reasonableness. That somehow Donald Trump, who in my view at least is the most unreasonable national figure maybe in the history of American politics, beat us and was able to argue that he would restore order where the Democrats were offering chaos.

the border, in the grocery store, on the streets. Now, we have a huge opportunity because he is not restoring order. He is bringing chaos of his own. But we can't rely on that to win. We've got to make sure that voters don't think that we're completely out of touch with how they live their lives, with their values, and what they believe is important.

the border, in the grocery store, on the streets. Now, we have a huge opportunity because he is not restoring order. He is bringing chaos of his own. But we can't rely on that to win. We've got to make sure that voters don't think that we're completely out of touch with how they live their lives, with their values, and what they believe is important.

the border, in the grocery store, on the streets. Now, we have a huge opportunity because he is not restoring order. He is bringing chaos of his own. But we can't rely on that to win. We've got to make sure that voters don't think that we're completely out of touch with how they live their lives, with their values, and what they believe is important.

So we can't simply minimize their fears about immigration or about crime. And we can't talk to them about the economy and just say, look, the macroeconomic numbers are great when many people are living right close to the edge and just trying to keep body and soul together. And I think that is where Democrats fell short as a party, not individual candidates, but as a party.

So we can't simply minimize their fears about immigration or about crime. And we can't talk to them about the economy and just say, look, the macroeconomic numbers are great when many people are living right close to the edge and just trying to keep body and soul together. And I think that is where Democrats fell short as a party, not individual candidates, but as a party.

So we can't simply minimize their fears about immigration or about crime. And we can't talk to them about the economy and just say, look, the macroeconomic numbers are great when many people are living right close to the edge and just trying to keep body and soul together. And I think that is where Democrats fell short as a party, not individual candidates, but as a party.

And that's where we must improve.

And that's where we must improve.

And that's where we must improve.

Well, some of that is contrast. And I think what we must do is make clear that what Trump is doing now is deeply unreasonable. And as Senator Slotkin pointed out last night, I think very effectively. the kinds of reforms that he promised might be good, but the kinds of cuts that he's bringing are not.

Well, some of that is contrast. And I think what we must do is make clear that what Trump is doing now is deeply unreasonable. And as Senator Slotkin pointed out last night, I think very effectively. the kinds of reforms that he promised might be good, but the kinds of cuts that he's bringing are not.

Well, some of that is contrast. And I think what we must do is make clear that what Trump is doing now is deeply unreasonable. And as Senator Slotkin pointed out last night, I think very effectively. the kinds of reforms that he promised might be good, but the kinds of cuts that he's bringing are not.