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Democrats’ panic over what they stand for and whether they can credibly compete beyond the bluest states is already erupting in the rush to
recruit Senate candidates across the country for next year — a desperate effort to dig out from years of losses that have them far from power at
a moment they need it most.

Will Democrats, indeed, compete everywhere in 2026? Will leaders
allocate money even in tough races, or will they consolidate
conservatively around their best bets? How will they handle what could
be candidates who range from being aligned with Bernie Sanders to
occasionally voting with Donald Trump?

Even this early out from the 2026 elections, these questions are all
playing out against the toughest set of Senate races Democrats have
faced in decades.

“On its face, the Senate map does not look great, but if this is a wave election, Democrats can compete in places they normally can’t,” said
Jaime Harrison, who before his recently completed term as Democratic
National Committee chair ran for Senate in South Carolina in 2020. “The
goal has to be: recruit a Democrat for every damn seat.”

Harrison failed in his attempt to turn a red state blue. While he raised
$130 million, he still lost to Sen. Lindsey Graham by 15 points.

But hopes of a major backlash to Trump, fed by internal poll numbers
that operatives say show his popularity dropping, has Harrison and two
dozen other Democratic operatives and candidates across the country who
spoke with CNN arguing that next year’s elections could be more in line
with the Democratic wave of 2006.

Democrats have three incumbent senators who announced they won’t run
again next year and anticipate at least one more will follow. They also
have to defend a senator in Georgia, where Republicans keep running
strong. Their most obvious opportunities to put Republicans on defense
are in Maine and North Carolina, the two states that have crushed
Democrats’ dreams of winning Senate races cycle after cycle.

And even if they manage to win those three races, that won’t be enough
to get them the majority.

That leaves operatives looking beyond prime Democratic territory in
states such as Alaska and even Kentucky and Mississippi, or nursing
fantasies of revivals in once-competitive states like Ohio, where local
leaders are waiting for Sherrod Brown to decide whether he’ll try a
comeback from his 2024 loss to run for the state’s other Senate seat, or
go for governor instead.

And across the country, voters have doubts about what Democrats even
stand for. “That’s a question I’m getting a lot,” said Wiley Nickel, a former congressman now running for Senate in North Carolina — even as
many Democrats push for former Gov. Roy Cooper to enter the race against
Sen. Thom Tillis.

More than on ideology, voters are pushing Democratic candidates on what they’re doing to push back against Trump and whether they’d support
Chuck Schumer to remain the party’s Senate leader.

‘A huge opportunity for us to write a new Democratic Party’
While strategists draft preliminary plans to blast Trump on the economy
and thrash Republicans as rolling over for him no matter what, Schumer
and fellow New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, chair of the Senate
Democrats’ campaign arm, have been feeling out the strength of
prospective candidates and working with local leaders to find more.

But the Senate leadership is not alone in recruitment efforts. Abdul
El-Sayed, who last week launched his campaign for the Democratic primary
for the open Senate seat in Michigan with the immediate endorsement of
Sanders, is just one of the prospective candidates around the country
whom the progressive icon has encouraged into running. Smaller groups of operatives and activists are forming quiet partnerships to boost their
own candidates, eager to blow past whatever decisions come out of
Washington.

Comparing what he’s hearing from voters to the cynicism that takes root
in chronic pain patients he has worked with, El-Sayed told CNN, “It’s
the morass of, ‘Everything kind of sucks,’ and our job is to take it
down to its key elements.”

“For too many voters in Michigan who narrowly elected Donald Trump, they didn’t know what the Democratic Party stands for,” said Mallory
McMorrow, a Michigan state senator also running in the primary for the
US Senate seat.

McMorrow said her campaign is about “success, safety and sanity” rather than the status quo.

HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA!
HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA!

“This is a huge opportunity for us to write a new Democratic Party and
really put a stake in the ground, show through our race this is what the
new party can look like and sound like and act like,” she said.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/20/politics/democrat-crisis-recruitment-campa igns/index.html?iid=cnn_buildContentRecirc_end_recirc

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XPost: alt.fan.rush-limbaugh, alt.society.liberalism, sac.politics
XPost: alt.politics.republicans, talk.politics.guns

U.S. economy will collapse by 2026 on Trump�s tariffs, says Morgan Stanley



Trump�s planned tariffs, including up to 100% on Chinese goods, will
spike inflation and slow U.S. economic growth by 2026, says Morgan Stanley.
Key industries like cars, electronics, and retail will see costs
skyrocket, with companies passing those costs to consumers.
China�s President Xi Jinping is rallying global leaders against Trump�s tariffs, warning they could destabilize global trade and deepen China�s economic struggles.

Donald Trump�s proposed tariffs will throw the U.S. economy into chaos by
2026. Morgan Stanley�s chief global economist, Seth Carpenter, says these tariffs are a surefire way to drive up inflation and tank growth.

The plan is to slap a 10% to 20% tariff on all imports and hike up to 100%
on goods coming in from China. Trump says it�s all about �extracting funds� from other countries. Economists say it�s more like slashing your own tires
and calling it a shortcut.

Carpenter predicts a �big negative shock� if these tariffs hit all at once. Speaking at Morgan Stanley�s Asia Pacific Summit, he warned that even a
gradual rollout would choke the economy over time.

�Tariffs are a drag on growth for the U.S., not just the countries
targeted.� According to Carpenter, 2025 will see the start of the fallout,
but by 2026, the damage will be impossible to reverse.
How the tariffs will wreck everything

If Trump adds his tariffs to the ones Joe Biden already has in place, the
U.S. economy will be hit on multiple fronts. Industries like cars, consumer electronics, machinery, construction, and retail will see prices surge. And
no, companies won�t eat the extra costs�they�ll hand those right to the consumer.

Take Trump�s proposed 60% tariff on Chinese goods. Pair that with Biden�s
100% tariff on electric vehicles from China, and you�ve got a recipe for disaster in the auto industry.

Higher import costs will bleed into companies like Apple and Microsoft,
which depend on global supply chains. The ripple effect? Price hikes on
phones, computers, and pretty much everything else you buy.

The consumer price index ticked up 2.6% in October from the previous year, slightly more than September�s 2.4%. Inflation is slowing after years of
chaos, but if Trump�s tariffs land, say goodbye to that progress.
See also Trump says "If I want Jerome Powell out of the Federal Reserve,
he'll be out"

The Federal Reserve has been cutting rates to keep the economy alive.
Tariffs could undo all that work, warns Ben Emons, founder of FedWatch Advisors. Markets might even price out rate cuts entirely in 2025 if
inflation spikes again. Growth will slow, interest rates will freeze, and
the economy could spiral.
China�s next move

Trump�s tariff hammer has left China scrambling. At back-to-back global summits, Chinese President Xi Jinping has been on a mission to save what�s
left of international trade.

His message? Don�t follow Trump down this path. Xi wants to rally global leaders around free trade, claiming Trump�s tariffs will wreck not just U.S.-China relations but the entire global economy.

At the G-20 and APEC summits, Xi repeated one thing: stop building walls,
start tearing them down. He�s desperate to prevent other countries from
jumping on Trump�s protectionist bandwagon. The man is playing the long
game, trying to position himself as the adult in the room while making
Trump�s administration look reckless.

Xi�s also been meeting leaders nonstop, from German Chancellor Olaf Scholz
to French President Emmanuel Macron. The goal? Stop trade wars before they start. Xi even pleaded with Europe to drop its tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles.

Meanwhile, in South America, Xi is building alliances left and right. He
opened a $1.3 billion port in Peru and talked trade with Mexico and
Argentina. Leaders there seem eager to cozy up to China, especially if
Trump�s tariffs cut off U.S. trade opportunities.

China�s economy isn�t exactly thriving though. Manufacturing growth is at
its highest since World War II, but the country�s facing a real estate
crisis and deflation. Trump�s tariffs could shave several percentage points
off China�s GDP, pushing an already struggling economy closer to the edge.
See also China orders officials to halt all Boeing orders, next trade war weapon

Goldman Sachs says this might force China to focus on domestic consumption, something its leaders have resisted for decades.
What�s next for the U.S. and its allies?

While Xi�s on a charm offensive, America�s allies are in a tough spot.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has already voiced concerns about Chinese investments in Mexico. He�s hinted that Canada might tariff Chinese goods too, especially in the electric vehicle space.

Australia�s Anthony Albanese also emphasized that his country�s loyalty
lies with the U.S., not China. Then there�s the U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer. He�s trying to smooth things over with China while tackling tough topics like Taiwan, Hong Kong�s democracy movement, and human rights
abuses.

In one heated meeting, Chinese officials even kicked British journalists
out of the room after Starmer hit a nerve. It�s clear that tensions aren�t easing anytime soon.

Domestically, Trump�s tariffs could backfire politically. While his base
might cheer the �America First� rhetoric, industries and workers will bear
the brunt. Higher prices on cars, electronics, and everyday goods could
turn supporters against him, especially in swing states.

Manufacturers relying on imports will have to cut costs somewhere, and that usually means layoffs. Xi, meanwhile, is playing both sides. On one hand,
he�s pushing back against U.S. aggression.

On the other, he�s trying to calm the room, insisting China doesn�t want conflict. During a meeting with Biden, Xi said China wouldn�t sit by if its strategic interests were threatened.

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