Politics Unusual: What is the Democrats' game plan?
NEW YORK (FOX 5 NEWS) - The Democratic Party is still trying to rebuild itself, after Hillary Clinton's defeat on election night. But without control of the white house or either house of Congress, the party doesn't have an obvious leader.
Washington is disorganized and some anti-Trump sentiment is on the streets. So, what is the Democrats' plan going forward?
"Republicans look disheveled because they don't know what to do with their president," said Hank Sheinkopf, a Democratic strategist and political consultant. "Democrats look disheveled because they don't know what to do with their party."
Sheinkopf said the Democrats need one unified voice and message. They'll be looking to accomplish that after the party votes this Saturday to elect a new chair of the Democratic National Committee. He said the choice will be problematic if it is too far left or in the center like the Clintons. But if the new chair is someone that blacks, Latinos, and women can get behind then the party is in good shape
Basil Smikle, the executive director of the New York State Democratic Party, said that Democrats must present Americans with an alternative that is clear and specific. For starters, Smikle said the party must re-engage its relationships with organized labor and speak to the issue that every American is concerned about: jobs. It is what helped Donald Trump win the presidency. He also warned that Democrats cannot be viewed as stonewalling every initiative presented by President Trump or it will backfire.
"We can't be a party of obstructionists," he said. "That's what we said the Republicans were doing for these last 8 years. We have to be able to resist with an alternative, We have to be able to put our plan on the table."
Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer said the Democrats can and will work with President Trump in areas of common ground like rebuilding the country's infrastructure.
"When we disagree with Trump on our values, we'll oppose him," Schumer said. "But because the name Trump is on it doesn't necessarily mean we'll oppose it."
Smikle recommended that Democrats need to spend more time in America's heartland and not just the East and West coasts. And local elections are also critical. Democrats must start winning more governor's races and seats in state legislatures, he said.
"Republicans did it for over eight years and the Democrats lost almost a thousand seats nationally," Smikle said.
The Democratic Party is also focused on the midterm elections in 2018 in the hopes of winning more House and Senate seats in the U.S. Congress. And that all ties in with what is happening with political races at the local and state level.
"Even if we get the Senate back and even if there's a Democratic president in 2020, those policies don't get moved to the local level if a Republican governor and legislature block that from happening," Smikle said.