Vice President JD Vance said Friday on “Special Report with Bret Baier” that the new leader of the Democratic Party is none other than President Donald Trump, pointing to the party’s continuous pushback against him.
Since Trump’s November win, Democrats have struggled with their favorability among voters and appear to lack a clear party leader or central message to constituents. During an interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier, the host asked Vance whether he believes Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez could be the new face of the party.
“President AOC, the stuff of nightmares, Bret, thank you. You’ve ruined my sleep for this evening,” Vance teased. “I don’t know.”
Baier asked the vice president whether he thinks about the Democrat Party at all and who could be its new leader, following Trump’s defeat of former Vice President Kamala Harris and failed Democrat vice presidential nominee Tim Walz.
“I think to the extent the Democrats have a leader, Donald J. Trump is the leader of the Democratic Party,” Vance said. “Because they’re just against everything that he does. Who could possibly disagree with rebuilding American manufacturing and ensuring these steelworkers have higher wages and better jobs?”
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“But any time Donald Trump does anything, they have this emotional response, they have to be against. Who could disagree with deporting millions of illegal aliens, many of whom are violent criminals? But they do, they have,” Vance added.
In March, a CNN/SSRS poll said the Democrat Party had dropped to a 29% approval rating— its lowest on record — marking a 20-point decline since January 2021. Among respondents, over 30% said they could not name a Democrat leader who “best reflects the core values” of the party. Of those who did, 10% named Ocasio-Cortez, 9% selected Harris, 8% chose Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, and 6% wrote in House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
“Whenever Donald J. Trump does something, they react negatively to it. They don’t have real leadership,” Vance said. “I think it’s why I’m not too concerned about 2028 because if I wake up in a fantasy world where the Democrats actually have constructive ideas about how to govern this country, that’ll actually be a good thing. But in the world that we actually live in, where they’re just anti-Trump about everything, the politics of 2028 will take care of themselves.”
With the 2026 midterms approaching and the 2028 general election on the horizon, speculation has swirled that Democrat California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are both eyeing their party’s presidential nomination.
(Featured Image Media Credit: Screenshot/Fox News/”Special Report With Bret Baier”)
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