Americans love a fighter. It is in our blood. There is a reason “Rocky” such became a cultural phenomenon.
We may be the big fish in the world now, but our culture has always an underdog who fights, especially against tremendous odds. It started with our revolution and continues to this day. It’s why we scream with joy when an American wins a medal in some random sport in the Olympics. And why we love it when a dominant sports team gets upset by the underdog.
This applies to politics as well. Those politicians revered over the two centuries of our history usually end up mentioned more in history books because they fought for what they believed in. Abraham Lincoln fought to preserve the Union, whereas James Buchanan had phoned it in. Teddy Roosevelt used the bully pulpit to fight political machines and monopolies, something his predecessors refused to risk doing. Herbert Hoover was hands off on the Great Depression, while Franklin Roosevelt fought for the New Deal.
And today, President Trump has endeared himself to millions of loyal voters because they believe that he fights for them.
Democrats lately seem to be content with not fighting. While Trump enacts his agenda and moves at a rapid pace, the Democrats are missing in action. They have no defined leader, no path forward, no cohesion and most damningly, no fighters.
Recently, Democratic operative and guru James Carville opined that maybe that was a good thing. Carville called for the Democrats to “roll over and play dead.”
He is right that there is little politically the party can do to stop Republicans right now. And there is a feeling that maybe people need to “learn their lesson” on how destructive Trump will be.
But I am a bit surprised by Carville. He is a Marine veteran like myself and a known fighter. And he invoked the military term “tactical pause” to let the country fall apart.
This is the worst time for that. Democrats sold the story that Trump’s second term would be the end of democracy. They sold that this was the end game, and it was only a matter of time before the damage was irreparable — that it would be the death of America.
So why in heaven’s name do you roll over and play dead now? If Trump truly will cause Americans (even those who voted for him) to suffer and you sit around and do nothing, that makes you look weak. And Americans despise weakness. And it seems like the Democrats’ position is, we are losing this battle so let’s just stand here and get punched in the face repeatedly.
You cannot try to sell to Americans that we need to care about veterans, immigrants, Black Americans, gay and transgender Americans and others — and now sit back and watch Trump, Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency target them and say, “Let us play the long game.” Americans need protection now. You do not wait for the train wreck to happen to tell people “I told you so.”
Democrats may not be able to do anything politically, but there are plenty of opportunities to fight. The first is the most obvious: town halls. We have seen over the last week how Republicans are being blasted in town halls by their constituents. Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) fled when being asked about the treatment of veterans. Why aren’t the Democrats holding shadow town halls with angry Republicans voters in Republican districts to say, we are here for you?
Carville is a veteran and has done a lot to advocate for all veterans. But to play dead when Trump has fired more veterans than any president in history would be a colossal blunder. If there ever was a time to break the support of one of Trump’s most loyal demographics, it is now when they are being mistreated by Trump, Musk and DOGE.
Carville brings up Muhammad Ali and his famous upset of George Foreman. Yes, Ali employed the rope-a-dope and absorbed a litany of Foreman’s devastating punches before countering in the 8th round and scoring a knockout to win the title. There is a problem with his analogy though. Yes, Ali was an underdog and took a lot of punishment. But he had to get into the ring first.
Democrats are the underdogs. They need to get walloped and beat and lose while trying to defend everyone from veterans to transgender kids. They need to let the Republicans throw everything at them, knowing they will get knocked down. But they have to get in the ring first. They have to fight.
Jos Joseph is a master’s candidate at the Harvard Extension School at Harvard University. He is a Marine veteran who served in Iraq and lives in Anaheim, Calif.
