Ruben Gallego often embodies the worst tendencies of Democrats. In one of his first acts as a U.S. senator, the Arizonan endorsed the Trump-backed Laken Riley Act, which makes it easier for the government to detain undocumented immigrants if they are accused (but not yet convicted) of fairly minor crimes. Having the newly elected Latino from a key swing state back that terrible legislation opened the floodgates for other Democrats to support it and virtually ensured its passage. In his public comments, Gallego constantly suggests fellow Democrats are too liberal and out of touch with regular Americans—doing the Republicans’ work for them.
But over the last week, Gallego has been a voice of moral clarity. The former Marine blasted President Trump’s decision to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro almost immediately after it happened and hasn’t let up, using blunt words like “dumb” and “idiots” when referring to administration officials. And he’s not alone. Center-left Democrats who sometimes diss the party’s left or try to tout their bipartisan credentials, such as Senators Tim Kaine and Mark Kelly and Representative Seth Moulton, are also loudly condemning the administration’s policy in Venezuela and demanding that the administration not invade Greenland or any other nation.
The Democratic Party is unified in opposing Trump’s invasion of Venezuela. That’s a sign of two important and positive developments. The party isn’t as scared as it used to be of being portrayed by Republicans as “soft” on national security. And congressional Democrats, after spending the early part of 2025 being wary of criticizing Trump and voting for many of his Cabinet nominees, are bringing the fighting spirit they showed during the government shutdown into 2026.
You might be thinking that it should be easy and expected for the Democrats to oppose an ill-conceived, unauthorized overthrow of another country’s government by a fascist president. And well, yes, it should be. But the party has repeatedly blundered on foreign policy out of a desperate desire to seem tough and strong. Dozens of Democrats voting for the Iraq War, the overly expansive use of drone strikes by the Obama administration, Obama’s troop surge in Afghanistan, the Biden administration aligning with Israel as it bombed not only Gaza but countries throughout the Middle East in 2024, and the party’s wariness about opposing Trump’s Caribbean basin boat strikes last year were all rooted in part in a desire to not be portrayed as a party of peaceniks. I was worried that Democrats would be unwilling to criticize Trump’s actions and therefore be portrayed as on the side of Maduro, no one’s idea of a hero.
Instead, Democrats have been loud, angry, and combative. They are scolding the administration for lying to them about its plans in Venezuela and invading another country without even briefing Congress. They’re forcing a debate on a War Powers resolution in the Senate—and even brought five Republican senators to their side on Thursday. They are pushing legislation to prevent invasions of Greenland or any other place. House Republicans will almost certainly block anything to rein in Trump. But Democrats are making a clear case to the public, the media, and the countries around the world that most Americans understand that Trump’s moves in Venezuela were radical and crazy even for him. That’s important and valuable.
And it’s great to see that Democrats are remaining combative against Trump—and not just on fairly politically safe issues like health care and food stamps. It’s a huge contrast from last year. It wasn’t just that Gallego and numerous other congressional Democrats backed the Laken Riley provision. Democrats kept pledging to work with Trump. They were voting for many of Trump’s nominees, even though it was obvious they would make terrible decisions. Remember that Secretary of State Marco Rubio, one of the key architects of Maduro’s overthrow and Trump’s imperialist foreign policy, was confirmed 99–0. Even Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren voted for him!
Congressional Democrats finally seem to have gotten over the view that Trump deserves deference and respect because he was elected a second time. It took them far too long, but I’m glad they’re finally there.
But there’s still one problem with the party’s posture. Democrats are trying too hard to tie Trump’s Venezuela moves to domestic policy and the midterm elections. “The White House is laser focused on threatening a military takeover of Greenland. Where’s the same focus on lowering costs?” was the Bluesky post from Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar. Similarly, “Never has a President wagged a dog harder than Trump and MAGA now. To distract from Epstein, the explosion of health and homeowners insurance costs, and the tariffs that are decimating small businesses, Trump is plunging this country into a war and using our soldiers as pawns,” Illinois Governor JB Pritzker said on X.
I understand that Democrats view the Jeffrey Epstein scandal and affordability as political weaknesses of the president that will hurt Republicans in November. And perhaps the Venezuela invasion and the administration’s threats about Greenland are part of some brilliant electoral strategy. (I doubt it. Trump and his team just seem obsessed with these ideas, and they actually poll quite badly.) But we are 10 months from the midterms. Democrats can and should spend at least a few days explaining why it’s so horrible that the American president is unilaterally invading countries, without connecting this to Epstein or domestic politics. This is a time for statesmanship and moral clarity, not consultant-approved electoral talking points.
The Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency’s shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis and the administration’s fervent defense of that killing is another atrocity from this administration. I hope to see Democrats unify against that too, while still keeping focus on Venezuela, Greenland, and the broader problems of Trump’s foreign policy. There has never been a more urgent time for Democrats to be not just the alternative party but the opposition party. And if the party is willing to consistently take on Trump’s radical, undemocratic actions, even when the polls aren’t conclusive, they will actually be that party.
