WASHINGTON — When Donald Trump took the presidential oath of office in 2017, he was met by angry protests from more than 4 million people across the country, an ongoing movement dedicated to opposing his administration in the name of women’s rights and civil rights.
When he is sworn in for his second term on Monday, Trump will see no such mass demonstrations or vocal opposition on the streets of the nation’s capital or elsewhere. The massive 2017 Women’s March protest, now renamed the People’s March, is still expected to draw thousands of people to downtown Washington on Saturday, but the number of demonstrators is unlikely to match the historic turnout eight years ago .
The lack of a new Trump resistance movement is a reflection of the fatigue felt by many on the left in the wake of his victory in the 2024 presidential election, as well as a new strategy by Democrats and activists that moves away from knee-jerk hostility and outrage toward Trump . a more toned-down approach aimed at understanding the effects of his policies on the working class.
“People in 2017 were deeply unsure of what a Trump presidency would mean and wanted to raise their voices to influence them,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) explained to HuffPost. “This time around, Trump and his tight-knit group of billionaires have made it pretty clear what the fights will be, and it’s less about protests in the streets and more about the tough, inch-by-inch battles over tax policy, environmental regulations and building permits. .”
Democrats are already warning the public about Trump’s plans to cut social safety net programs to pay for another round of tax cuts, his proposed across-the-board tariffs that could seriously hit the pocketbook, and the many conflicts of interest in his billionaire cabinet . and among wealthy allies such as Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
They see drawing attention to bread-and-butter issues that directly affect voters as a more effective way to tackle Trump’s second term than, say, shouting about his proposal to acquire Greenland or his latest outburst online.
“It’s mid-December, and I’m getting ready to get in the elevator, and oh, Donald Trump just said he wants, you know, he could invade Greenland,” said Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) recalled hearing last month about the president-elect’s idea to buy the Arctic from Denmark. “And I could feel like I was starting to spin again, like, OK, what should I respond to? What should I say about this?”
“I think that outrage machine is something that he runs, hoping that we’re all going to get on it, and we’re just not going to get on that machine anymore,” she added. “We still actively fight them when they do things that we think will hurt people. [but] we will no longer allow ourselves to be drawn into that machine. We need to focus on what they are doing that will hurt people.”
Shown at a Senate hearing in September 2019, Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) predicts people will become more involved when they see what actions are coming from the White House. Susan Walsh/Associated Press
The Minnesota Democrat said “people are exhausted” by the daily Trump news cycle, but she predicted they will tune back in once Trump starts implementing his agenda.
Reportedly, the president-elect is planning to issue about 100 executive orders on Day 1 of his presidency, including a flurry of immigration policy changes such as mass deportations. He is also expected to soon pardon hundreds of people convicted of participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, including possibly violent Trump supporters who attacked police officers that day.
“I think if they start doing the things we’re afraid they’re going to do, you’re going to see us fight,” Smith said.
In a sign of the Democrats’ changed attitude toward Trump, the Senate decided on Friday advanced a major immigration bill aimed at cracking down on immigrants without permanent legal status who commit crimes, paving the way for Trump to sign the law as early as next week. Ten Democrats in the Senate supported the measure, helping Trump win what was expected to be his first legislative victory.
But Democrats do not plan to help Trump in every area. And they hope that the public will eventually reengage and turn against the Republicans’ agenda, starting with questioning his Cabinet nominees. (A nonprofit affiliated with House Democrats has already begun running ads attacking Health Secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for “increasing the cost of meat and products.”)
“It’s just going to take some time for all of their positions to be fully understood,” Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) said of Trump’s top administration choices. “The [confirmation] hearings are the education that the American people receive, which will then lead to activation.”
“Each of these actions that are going to unfold is going to draw people’s attention to get active, to do something political,” Markey added. “The more it becomes clear what impact this has on everyday people, the more activation you will see.”