Friday on PBS’s “NewsHour,” New York Times columnist David Brooks said presumptive Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) was correct to show a willingness to work with President-elect Donald Trump initially, adding that it would be a better strategy than what the Republicans used against President Barack Obama.
Partial transcript as follows:
JUDY WOODRUFF: All right, just a quick minute-and-a-half on the Democrats. We are going to reserve just a moment for them.
David, we’re seeing Chuck Schumer, the incoming Democratic leader in the Senate, saying, we, the Democrats, need to look at ways possibly to work with Donald Trump. And then, on the other hand, we’re seeing Congressman Keith Ellison, who is up for running for head of the Democratic Party, the Democratic National Committee say, Mark, say, no, we’re not going to be working with him, and I don’t want to hear about it.
David, are the Democrats making the right kind of noises right now? Or do we just wait and see what happens?
DAVID BROOKS: I think Schumer is right to keep the possibility open that Trump is movable on some issues, which is clearly what Obama believes, and that they can work with him on some issues, like infrastructure or something like that.
So, I think, if they could have a good six months where they work together, there will be plenty of time for fighting later on.
(LAUGHTER)
MARK SHIELDS: David is right. And I think the worst thing the Democrats could do is to follow the playbook that Mitch McConnell and the Republicans adopted in 2009 against Barack Obama. And that’s just total, all-out obstructionism.
JUDY WOODRUFF: To say on day one or day two…
MARK SHIELDS: Yes, that’s right, the most important thing is to defeat him for reelection.
I think that America has had enough of it. It doesn’t work. And it’s not the best of the Democratic tradition.
Follow Jeff Poor on Twitter @jeff_poor
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