Biden returns to spotlight as Democrats try to counter Trump

WASHINGTON (TNND) — Former President Joe Biden’s reemergence from a post-presidential step-back from the spotlight has renewed questions about the future of the Democratic Party as its leaders figure out what direction to move in after the 2024 elections saw the party get swept out of power amid slumping approval ratings and discontent about the direction of the country from voters.

Democrats have struggled to find a message that resonates in the early days of the second Trump administration as the party tries to find its footing amid a rush of executive orders, slashing of the federal workforce and a dizzying trade agenda that has left the party scrambling to respond to multiple issues at once.

Biden stepped back into the spotlight to rally around what his party sees as threats to Social Security benefits as Trump’s administration weighs cuts to various parts of the government that Democrats see as a danger to the popular program.

Biden made a rare public appearance in his few months since leaving office, delivering a speech focused on potential cuts to Social Security that accused President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans of working together to tear down.

“They’re shooting first and aiming later,” Biden said. “They want to wreck it so they can rob it. Why do they want to rob it? In order to give tax cuts to billionaires and big corporations.”

It was a rare moment back in the spotlight since leaving the White House on Jan. 20, with only a handful of public appearances since returning to his home state of Delaware. It was also an awkward moment for Biden and the party less than 100 days after he left office with Democrats still trying to figure out how to counter Trump’s swift and aggressive actions to remake the federal government and nation’s economy in his image.

Biden left office with approval ratings below 40% amid backlash to inflation and an influx of crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border along with a controversy surrounding his age and mental fitness. The Democratic Party’s reputation has not fared much better in the months since, hovering around all-time lows in public opinion polling since Trump took office.

Frustration toward the party is also bubbling among its voters and parts of its aggressive base with irritation about its inability to stand up to Trump and Republicans in the congressional minority with little power to shape policy or stand in their way.

“As the Democrats are finding a voice, as institutions are starting to fight back, I think that what is abundantly clear is that the politics writ large have shifted so much. What worked a decade ago does not work now and that means that the leaders from a decade ago cannot work now,” said Alison Dagnes, a political science professor at Shippensburg University. “Part of that is finding someone who has the ability to meet the moment, and that moment is that you just can't operate with the old set of tools.”

There is no consensus on how to stand up to Trump for Democrats either with some lawmakers pushing for an organized and restrained approach while others want to see the party be more confrontational with the president and his administration.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris is also weighing the next steps of her political career after being thrust into the presidential race for a sprint of a campaign that saw her lose all seven swing states in a decisive loss for the party. She is reportedly weighing a run to be California’s governor and wants to remain in the political fight but whether that will be an effective path back into being a leadership figure for the party remains to be seen.

Lawmakers and Democratic voters have not yet rallied around a central figure to lead its resistance to the Trump administration and out of the remnants of the 2024 losses.

Another question facing the party is what direction to move its policy ahead of the 2026 midterms and 2028 presidential race. There is an internal divide over whether to take a more centrist approach to court some of the party’s voters that flipped to Trump and Republicans or to lean into progressive ideas to inspire their base to turn out.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent who has campaigned twice for the Democratic presidential nomination, has been on a nationwide tour with high-profile progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York to energize voters and spur the party to move in a new direction. The two have traveled to places around the country, including ruby red states and cities, drawing big crowds as they try to corral resistance to Trump.

It is still early in the second Trump administration, with his Jan. 20 inauguration only 86 days ago, leaving Democrats with a long time in political terms to focus in on a message and

The narratives surrounding both parties could quickly shift ahead of the 2026 midterms, especially if economists’ predictions of a slumping economy due to tariffs come to fruition. Midterm elections have also historically been a revolt against the party in power, which could provide Democrats with opportunities to pick up seats or a majority in the House or Senate.

“If past is prologue, and if things continue to be as wobbly and bad as they are right now, then the Democrats have the opportunity to pick up,” Dagnes said. “The midterms are going to be very, very illustrative for the Democrats, one way or another.”