Over the course of the bitter 2024 presidential election, the Democratic Party regularly labeled Trump a fascist whose bid for a second term represented an existential crisis for democracy itself. Now, many members of that same party are preparing their finest for his second inauguration in Washington on January 20th.
“For me, it's about basically fulfilling kind of my obligation of supporting a peaceful transfer of power," said Congressman Jim McGovern of Massachusetts’ 2nd district, who plans on attending. "Look, when Joe Biden won and Donald Trump boycotted the inauguration and a big chunk of my Republican colleagues boycotted the inauguration, I criticized them quite loudly. I thought it was a terrible, classless thing to do, to be honest with you, and so I- I'm sick to my stomach that Donald Trump is going to be the next president of the United States, but I do think, out of respect for the office, not necessarily not him, but for the office, that it's the right thing to do. And I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't show up, given the fact that I complained four years ago when the Republicans didn't show up.”
Congressman Richard Neal of the neighboring 1st district will also be there to see Trump sworn in for a second four-year term.
“I'm there to stand in for 753,000 people, and that doesn't mean I have to agree or like the result of the last election, but unlike what Trump did four years ago, I've acknowledged the result of the election, and I'm there to hear what he has to say," he told WAMC. "I was there when Bill Clinton won, I was there when George Bush won, and I was there when George Bush Jr won, but I was also there the day that Joe Biden won and Barack Obama won. And I think that witnessing those events is important. And again, you don't have to agree, or, I should say, you don't have to like the result of the election to understand that I'm going to be part of it.”
The party is not in lockstep on the issue, though far fewer Democrats are expected to boycott this time than the dozens who did so at his first ceremony in 2017. Fellow Massachusetts Democrat Ayanna Pressley of Boston will not be attending.
Speaking with WAMC in North Adams Friday, Neal offered his assessment of why Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris failed in her bid against Trump.
“We need to move away from arguments like open borders, defund the police," said the congressman. "I think that those were very, very harmful in terms of public perception."
Prodded by reporters, Neal admitted Harris had not campaigned on defunding the police or open borders.
“I thought the vice president ran a pretty decent campaign," he said. "But I also think it's fair to say that some of these national issues leaned against her, even when she had not been a participant in making those decisions. And if you start a campaign when you're on the back foot with a defensive posture, it becomes hard to lay out your prescription program for the nation. So, if you're answering 'what if' questions all of the time, I think that it you come up on the short end of things.”
WAMC pointed out to Neal that Harris had tacked to the right on key issues since her 2020 run, including abandoning her support for a fracking ban, single-payer healthcare, and mandatory government buybacks for assault weapons.
“I think a real fair analysis is that she was a former prosecutor, and by all accounts, she had done a pretty good job," said the congressman. "She was a pretty good senator, she'd been an effective attorney general, and I think that she lined up with many of the positions I would have taken over the course of a career. And at the same time, she was not in favor of defunding the police- I'm not in favor of defunding the police. She was not in favor of open borders- I'm not in favor of open borders. And I think that there's always the problem in politics- The three words that will always get you in trouble in politics are 'let me explain.' Because when you're explaining, you're on the back foot.”
McGovern, who spoke on WAMC’s Congressional Corner Monday, says despite his dismay with Trump’s victory, his party can’t despair.
“We'll see what the next four years bring, but again, it is dire as some are saying," he said. "[Whatever] predictions may be, we have to remain hopeful, and we have to fight. We can't give up. We all love this country. It's worth fighting for. This is about our future and the future for our kids and our grandkids.”
