Tervuren, Belgium—The following opinion piece is authored by Thomas K. Murphy, Ph.D., a long-time Department of Defense civilian with significant experience, having worked on several U.S. military locations overseas. A writer and educator, his piece below touches on the “spark” Democrats must ignite to successfully defend Democratic seats and defeat MAGA candidates in the 2026 midterm elections. Dr. Murphy is a Maryland UOCAVA voter, resident of Belgium, and member of the Democrats Abroad Global Veterans and Military Families (VMF) Caucus.

There is much talk today about a meltdown in Donald Trump’s approval ratings on a whole host of issues, ranging from immigration and ICE to the rising cost of living, drastic changes to U.S. foreign policy, and more. The Cook Report, a major American polling agency, has recently shifted 18 House seats into play, favoring Democrats. Further, even the Senate appears to now be in play, with Democrats running strong candidates in Alaska, North Carolina, Ohio, Iowa, Maine, and elsewhere. Opportunity currently abounds for Democrats.   

BUT - it has long been a complaint of voters on the left and center left – not to mention others – that when it comes to messaging that resonates with voters, there’s massive room for improvement; that they at times tend to be restrained, cautious, unemotive or passive, while their right-wing adversaries run wild with conspiracy theories, lies, and exaggerations. The first year of the second Trump Administration has certainly vindicated outrageous tactics that have become normalized; a theater of spectacle replacing sober policy with intolerance, fear mongering, chaos (flooding the zone with distractions), lying, police brutality, upward income mobility for the hyper rich, the suffocation of human rights, the rolling back of gender, race and sexual norms, general misdirection of messaging, and the new push towards turning the office of the presidency into an international grift apparatus.

This begs the question: Why are some Democratic officeholders (and Democratic candidates) bold in criticizing the MAGA agenda while others are hesitant to “rock the boat”?  I offer three theories. 

The first is rationalism. The Democratic Party is highly educated – especially so in some jurisdictions - and its members are so committed to the calmness of logical, thoughtful reflection and empiricism that they cannot imagine an irrational or illiberal order. Democrats would consider it absurd to take actions similar to Republicans, such as repeating the Big Lie regarding unproven claims of “mass voter fraud” in the 2020 presidential election, for instance. 

In their lifetimes, disputes were settled by lawsuits, policy differences by elections, and systemic threats to the Union by appeals to the Constitution. They are the party of professionals – and professionals face problems using dispassionate analytical tools, not with their fists.  For most citizens, fascism is a distant memory, an ideology of a place unknown to America. The emotional and the psychological are downplayed in political discussion. Rather, the pragmatic and the sensible are focused upon. Adam Smith, John Maynard Keynes, and Milton Friedman trump Sigmund Freud, Frederick Nietzsche, and the local palm reader.

Sadly, most U.S. media outlets exhibit differing sentiments. Nuanced, thoughtful discussion often falls prey to sensationalism, the grotesque, and emotion. Truth in news appears to fall by the wayside to clickbait, sales, and not wanting to be put in the crosshairs by an administration that won’t hesitate to target the messengers of the First Amendment’s free press.

This adherence to reason and pluralism among Democrats is no match for the emotive, angry, conspiratorial rants that emanate on a daily basis from the Trump regime. The smart kid with the glasses gets thumped by the hulking, angry, dull-minded bully. 

The second theory is about careerism. From 1930–1980, Congressional Democrats dominated the Republicans for all but a handful of years. Democratic ascendancy became the norm for half a century. Now, some 4+ decades after the end of the supposed “ascendancy,” the mindset of Democrats remains that, “once the temporary upset of conservative/right wing unpleasantness has subsided, the regular order will be restored.” It seems that the Democratic “normalcy of majority” lasted so long that its inevitability has been passed down generationally to contemporary Dems. Thus, a congressional political strategy of fierce policy opposition makes no sense, as it might burn bridges that maintain the (“inevitable and historical”) Democratic resurgence and majority. Inevitable rebirth and reclaimed ascendancy is built into the Democratic DNA. Some may argue that Democrats are victims of their own historical successes.

Here's my third theory: Congressional Research Service scholar Walter Kravitz, a professor of mine in the 1980s and an expert in parliamentary procedure, weighed in decades ago on the same issue. To summarize Walter’s description of parliamentary effectiveness, Congressional Democrats should more deeply study the processes and procedures, because Republicans like Newt Gingrich and Jesse Helms often won the floor battle during legislative debates by knowing how to apply the mechanics of House and Senate rules. The Speaker of the House at the time was Tip O’Neill: an excellent long-time politician, yet a leader who cared less about parliamentary procedure and “regular order.”

Thus, Democrats in safe blue districts often warn constituents about the Republican barbarians at the gate, but when it comes to taking action on the floor of Congress, many Democratic lawmakers rely on morals, ethics, logic, and reasoning to win the legislative battles and have not yet realized that MAGA extremism has changed the game where more must be done to combat the tiresome lies and falsehoods.

There is yet a final issue tied up in the Democratic Party's strategy that we must ask ourselves. If you fight for issues, who are you willing to fight for? In my personal view, rhetoric aside, too many Democrats have abandoned large portions of the American working class—and we are long overdue in reengaging with these important voters and fellow citizens. Aside from a few notable champions of the working class (such as Howard Dean, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Bernie Sanders, for example), there has been a lack of serious discussion about fighting harder for America’s working class—this is despite “working families” being mentioned 15 times in the Democratic Party’s Platform. Moreover, the white working class, the South in particular, has been totally abandoned by the Republicans since the 1970s. If Democrats are serious about retaking the White House and Congress, it would be a monumental error to not push for a major outreach to this voting constituency by actually addressing the issues pertinent to this electoral bloc – affordability of food on the table and lowering health insurance costs, empowering labor unions, etc. (Note: When running for the Democratic nomination for President in 1984, Jesse Jackson, an African American, visited white, working class communities throughout the country and gained significant support among these groups.)

 As a result of Democrats having left working families to fend for themselves in recent decades, many Americans hear political language about wages, cost of living, health care, opioids or housing, but at times it seems almost disingenuous today, and many, if not most, voters feel that conversations aimed at the upper middle class are ones they are not invited to. As we begin the new year, there’s no better time for the Democratic National Committee and Democratic candidates for office to champion the issues prioritized by America’s working families, and Democrats Abroad’s voters have a unique opportunity to be part of the equation.

SO - speaking as a U.S. voter residing abroad and having watched this administration take a wrecking ball to our democracy during the past year in the White House, I would encourage Democratic candidates, both incumbents and newcomers, to adopt a new language, a new message, and a new vigor. They will have a unique opportunity in November 2026. If only they are up to the task.

U.S. citizens living abroad, both civilian and military, are highly encouraged to check your voter registration status and request your ballot for any upcoming elections in your home voting state that you are eligible to vote in.

The Global VMF Caucus has over 1,400 members in dozens of countries and proudly consists of veterans, military family members, Department of Defense civilians, other national security professionals, and strong allies of veterans and military family causes. 

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