Democrats see Trump’s big bill as key to their comeback. It may not be so easy

WINDSOR HEIGHTS Iowa AP It is big and it is beautiful President Donald Trump says But for multiple Democratic leaders the tax break and spending cut package passed by Trump s Republican allies in Congress on Thursday represents the key to the Democratic Party s resurgence Even before the final vote Democratic authorities were finalizing ambitious plans for rallies voter registration drives attack ads bus tours and even a multiday vigil all intended to highlight the the greater part controversial elements of Trump s big beautiful bill deep cuts to the nation s safety net that will leave nearly million more people without wellbeing coverage and millions of others without food assistance according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office In political battlegrounds across Alaska and Iowa Pennsylvania and California Democrats have begun to use the bill against Republicans Democrats are promising that the Republican president s domestic protocol achievement to date will be the defining issue of every major polling between now and next fall s midterms One thing is abundantly clear Republicans own this mess and it s an albatross around their necks heading into the midterms Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin described The Associated Press This is the least popular provision in modern history and the more voters learn about it the more they hate it That s a clear directive for Democrats we re going to make sure every single voter knows who is responsible Even with early general opinion on their side however it s far from certain that the bill will be the political winner Democrats hope The Democratic brand remains deeply unpopular the party has no clear leader its message is muddled and core elements of the Democratic base are frustrated and drifting Various of the bill s provisions will not take effect until after the electoral contest so voters may not have felt the full impact by the time they vote At the same time it s unclear how multiple voters are paying attention to the Washington-based debate The Democratic super political action committee Priorities USA warned this week that Democrats must work harder if they want their message to break through We can t just assume that because we re angry that the voters that we need to communicate with are angry Everyone necessities to step up and realize the enormous challenge that s in front of us executive director Danielle Butterfield mentioned We re nowhere near a good starting place The bill provides for trillion in tax breaks that were enacted in Trump s first term and would have expired if Congress failed to act New breaks will allow workers to deduct tips and overtime pay There are trillion in cuts to Medicaid and food stamps and a major rollback of green vigor investments The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates the package will add trillion to the deficit over the decade Democrats challenge on display Privately certain Democrats conceded that Republicans were smart to pass the bill on the eve of a holiday weekend when fewer voters would be paying attention As certain Democrats in Washington predicted a political backlash across America the response was somewhat muted Thursday at a Democratic event in Iowa barely miles from the State Fairgrounds where Trump later drew thousands for an evening rally An audience of roughly people listened as local Democratic bureaucrats railed against the ordinance and called on voters to oust Republican Rep Zach Nunn the local congressman for supporting it Audience member Michael Rieck declared Iowa Democrats left him a message about the rally but when he went online to learn more there was nothing I texted back to them that I didn t see any advertisement he announced They slowly corrected that I m still not impressed with what they did to advertise this event Rieck explained he wants to see different factions of the party better coordinate their message Progressive activists were moving through Minnesota in a big green bus as part of Fair Share America s -stop stop the billionaire giveaway tour The group is focused on Republican-led congressional districts where elected personnel have largely stopped having in-person town halls with constituents We know we re fighting upstream mentioned Fair Share s executive director Kristen Crowell But when people hear exactly what s in this bill they re adamantly opposed What the polls say The bill is generally unpopular according to polling conducted throughout the month of June although selected individual provisions are popular For example a Washington Post Ipsos poll uncovered that majorities of U S adults aid increasing the annual child tax credit and eliminating taxes on earnings from tips and about half help work requirements for specific adults who receive Medicaid On the other hand the poll detected that majorities oppose reducing federal funding for food assistance to low-income families and spending about billion to build and maintain migrant detention centers The price tag could be a sticking point About in U S adults in the poll commented it was unacceptable that the bill is expected to increase the U S national debt currently at trillion by about trillion over the next decade But polling indicates that majority Americans aren t paying attention to the nuances of the bill either The Washington Post Ipsos poll revealed that only about one-third of U S adults have heard a great deal or a good amount about it Democrats are planning a summer of organizing The Democratic National Committee and its allies plan an organizing summer that will feature town halls training and voter registration drives in at least competitive congressional districts The message will be focused heavily on Trump s bill Kansas Gov Laura Kelly who leads the Democratic Governors Association explained her party must keep the bill s contents at the forefront of people s minds to ensure it s an issue in the midterms and even the next presidential voting process in We ll just have to keep that on the radar she commented Progressive groups are planning a Families First day of action for July in all states They will highlight people hurt by the new Medicaid cuts and will hold a -hour vigil at the U S Capitol We have made a promise to each other and to future generations that there will be a safety net in place when we need it And this is what s being ripped away And people will not stand for it commented one of the Families First organizers Ai-jen Poo president of the National Domestic Workers Alliance Peoples informed from New York Associated Press writers Amelia Thomson DeVeaux in Washington John Hanna in Topeka Kansas and Marc Levy in Harrisburg Pennsylvania contributed to this document This story has been corrected to reflect that the day of action planned by progressive groups for July is being promoted as Families First not Family First Source