The Democrats' Anti-Corruption Message Is Breaking Through
By: Alex Shephard (The New Republic)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Last Friday, when Democratic Representative Haley Stevens's last-ditch efforts to undermine Abdul El-Sayed's campaign had yet to escalate from merely annoying to "despicable," El-Sayed treated the sideshow as yet another opportunity to showcase his impressive message discipline and reiterate his closing argument to Michiganders. "Stevens seems intent on relitigating a primary that ended three months ago," El-Sayed, who defeated Stevens for the Democratic nomination for Senate, wrote in a statement. "Let's all focus on the task at hand: that's beating [Republican nominee] Mike Rogers, holding Trump accountable, and getting money out of politics, putting money in pockets, and passing Medicare for All."
Accountability, affordability, a dash of health care—those have been the core pillars of the Democrats' message this year. But the overarching story they've been telling voters can be summed up in one word: corruption.
This corruption comes in many forms. There's President Trump's massive wealth, which has increased exponentially since he returned to office last January. In an ad for Troy Jackson, the Democratic nominee for Senate in Maine, a former supporter of GOP Senator Susan Collins accused her of "enriching herself while voting with Trump to raise our costs," a reference to an FBI bribery probe of Collins that Trump shut down. Texas state Representative Gina Hinojosa, the Democratic nominee for governor, blamed skyrocketing costs on Governor Greg Abbott's support for data centers and no-bid contracts for his donors. "It's the Greg Abbott corruption tax," she said at a recent event, "and we all pay it." In Georgia, Jon Ossoff has campaigned on reining in Trump and what he calls the "Mar-a-Lago mafia," an inner circle including Trump's adult children, their spouses, and the cabal of aides and enablers that surround him.
More than 500 ads this cycle have focused on the president's connections to Jeffrey Epstein, including one in which James Talarico, Texas's Democratic nominee for Senate, asks why his opponent, Republican Ken Paxton, is ignoring Epstein survivors. "When did pedophilia become a partisan issue?" Talarico asks, appearing alongside one of those survivors. "When did holding sexual abusers accountable become controversial?"
Corruption may also play a crucial role in turning deep-red districts blue. It's an issue that allows some Democrats to hit back against Republicans without invoking Trump himself in areas he won by as many as 20 points just two years ago. "They don't want to look kind of like overt partisans, just framing this issue around Trump," Democratic strategist Sawyer Hackett said on MS NOW in September. "In a Trump plus-15, Trump plus-20 district, that may look like taking on corruption across the board. In a plus-one seat, that may just look like taking on Trump directly and calling out his corruption specifically." Denouncing a "broken" or "rigged" system allows Democrats to do just that—while also sounding a bit like the president himself.
That gets at another problem for Republicans: They can't run the way they did in 2024, when Trump and his allies argued that prices were high because President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were too focused on identity issues—particularly trans rights—to curb inflation. Republicans are once again pouring hundreds of millions into anti-trans messaging, but that's more or less all that they have. They can't promise to bring prices down because prices have skyrocketed under Trump, particularly since he foolishly launched a war against Iran in late February. "If Democrats like Hinojosa have managed to turn the election into a referendum on corruption," Mother Jones's Tim Murphy wrote in a sharp piece about what has become the corruption election, "it's also because Republicans have struggled to make the election about anything else."
Trump has made it easier for them, though. Referring to the high cost of oil and gas at a rally last month, he shrugged off concerns. "I don't give a damn, I'm going to say it," he said. "We're making a freaking fortune." On Monday, he held a rambling final get-out-the-vote rally at the Reflecting Pool—site of a botched multimillion-dollar renovation—and mused he would name it after himself.
It's no surprise, then, that corruption is a bipartisan issue. Almost 90 percent of Americans think corruption in politics is widespread, according to a September Gallup poll. "Allegations of corruption in Washington are nothing new in political campaigns. They are usually shrugged off by voters who figure all politicians are equally guilty," The New York Timesreported on Saturday, adding, "But Democratic efforts to bolster the issue this year may be resonating amid a drumbeat of stories about Mr. Trump's staggering increase in wealth and the billionaire and corporate elites who have supported him. Some recent polls have shown corruption has risen to the top of issues that voters say they care about most."
A Brennan Center study released last week found sharp increases in political ads focusing on government ethics and campaign spending. Republicans are airing these ads too, albeit with less success. But if there's a warning here for Democrats, it's that voters think the entire political system is corrupt—which implicates Democrats just as much as Republicans. Even though the current Republican president is overseeing the most crooked, self-enriching administration in U.S. history, many voters see this as a bipartisan problem and likely will be quick to accuse the next Democratic president of being corrupt, as well.
But massive Democratic gains in November can—and should—be part of a larger push for good government, especially as some memories of Democratic malfeasance (Nancy Pelosi's stock trades, the handling of Joe Biden's age) begin to fade. Not only that, but if they can win back control of at least one chamber of Congress, the Democrats can expose Republican corruption in ways that were not possible before. Out of power in both the House and the Senate, Democrats have been unable to launch investigations, subpoena witnesses, or hold public hearings. They'll be able to do all of that come January if they win back the House.
If the Democrats get there, it will be because they hammered Republicans on corruption. If El-Sayed wins on Tuesday, he'll become the first Muslim elected to the Senate. That will be the headline, and rightly so. But the story about how he won will be quite different: Despite Haley Stevens's best efforts to sabotage El-Sayed, he remained laser-focused on the midterms' most important issue.
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My first thought about this - what took the country so long? It has been obvious since he first announced 11 1/2 years ago that Trump is an utterly corrupt individual. The following 10 years of him either in the presidency or in the news every day as the "loyal" opposition dragged our country and our society down. Now people are realizing what he is , after 11 1/2 years. I guess better late than never but it never should have been like this.
Unfortunately his base, about 30% of republicans, have NOT realized it and are still backing all his actions. Whether illegal, immoral, or out right unconstiutional.
LET'S TAKE TRUMP DOWN!
When they had the first "No King's" rally like a year ago I thought, why can't we just start with "No Convicted Felon's" and "No Pedophile Protectors" representing our country? How about "No admitted Sexual Predators"? Let's reset the bar there and hopefully it would never get to having to remind America we already fought to stop any Kings in our country. But here we are, with still tens of millions of conservative 'mericans' approving of a convicted felon and admitted sexual predator who has spent the last two years protecting the names of his pedophile friends from going public. And the thing that might just get them to wake up is that they didn't even get anything for it. They've been abasing themselves before their lord and master and he shit on them and they're just now realizing it.
“…it never should have been like this.”
Perhaps the next generation will look at the current dysfunction and realize the importance of electing candidates, at every level, that are less interested in partisan victories and more inclined to uphold our traditional values, rights, and freedoms.
Direct involvement in the process is essential or the apathetic spiraling will continue and signal the beginning of the end of our great experiment and that will be the historic footnote of this administration.
Was it Jim Carville who once said "it's the economy, Stupid!"?
Trump threw a Hail Mary this morning , announcing a 4 billion dollar aid cut to Israel.
Obviously he thinks this desperate attempt to find a few anti-Israel fence sitters is the thing to do.
Tomorrow he'll change his mind.
I think he wants to fuck with Netanyahu's replacement... or scare some of the coolitions into backing him.
it was probably bibi's suggestion ...
Correct sentiment, correct message. Hobble Trump and fire/impeach his corrupt, sycophantic enablers.
Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough pulled out a handwritten list of President Donald Trump’s political controversies on Election Day, rattling off everything from the Jeffrey Epstein files and the killings of two Americans in Minneapolis to the Iran war as he questioned how Republicans had managed to accumulate so many problems in a single year.
The MS NOW host repeatedly added to his inventory of administration controversies during an extended discussion of Trump’s second term, eventually holding up his notes for the camera.
“I’m just writing it down right now. Their mistakes are so – I’ve just never seen a run this bad and mainly in 2026,” Scarborough began.
He contrasted the administration’s early efforts to implement its Project 2025 agenda with the political fallout surrounding Trump’s signature tax and spending legislation, tariffs and health care cuts.
“They had their Project 2025, and they hit all the marks. They were ruthlessly efficient. It was scary for a lot of people,” he said.
Scarborough then turned to Minneapolis, where federal immigration officers fatally shot Renee Good and Alex Pretti in January, sparking protests and scrutiny of the administration’s immigration crackdown.
“I still believe that when history books are written, that Minneapolis will be the end. That will be the Pickett’s charge version of this administration,” he declared, comparing the shootings’ potential political significance to the civil rights movement.
The former Republican congressman also condemned Trump’s war with Iran , accusing the president and his allies of abandoning their 2024 campaign promises to avoid another Middle Eastern conflict after claiming Democratic candidate Kamala Harris would begin a war.
“Lie, lie, lie, lie, lie!” he exclaimed.
Scarborough argued that the administration’s handling of the Epstein files had also damaged Trump’s relationship with his MAGA supporters, accusing the president of attempting to conceal information about the disgraced financier.
“So there are so many bad things. I don’t know where to start on what. It’s hard to imagine a worse 2026,” he said.
As co-host Jonathan Lemire attempted to respond, Scarborough interrupted to add allegations of corruption involving the Trump family’s finances and the president’s efforts to attach his name to Washington landmarks.
“Oh, I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I don’t mean to interrupt you. I left out two of the most important ones. This list goes on. The corruption!!”
Finally, holding up his handwritten notes, Scarborough delivered his rundown once more.
“Seriously, can you believe this in one year?” he asked. “ One Big Beautiful Bill , tariffs, the slashing of health care, gunning down people in the streets of Minneapolis, the Iran war, the cover-up of the Epstein files, unprecedented corruption, and trying to put his name on the Kennedy Center, the Reflecting Pool, and everything else.”
Co-host Willie Geist interjected: “And DOGE too.”
Scarborough immediately agreed, adding another controversy to the list.
Watch above via MS NOW.
Lol. Opposing DOGE on an anti-corruption platform. MSNBC really despises their viewers intellect.
DOGE was an absolute, expensive, failure.
Of course it was. Anything these low IQ poorly educated conservative bigots touch turns to shit.
It was supposed to make government small enough to drown in a bathtub. They didn't even get that right.
They ended up having to rehire a good percentage of the people they fired, and at a higher pay rate to coax them to return.
I predicted that when it started. I guess that wasn't as apparent to stable geniuses...
They said they'd cut $2 trillion in unnecessary government spending in a year. As of last count they claim to have saved the US $110 billion but even that is in dispute because it doesn't factor in what they've had to spend fixing all the shit they broke with the mass firings. Fucking idiots. The only thing dumber were the idiots who voted for them.
Doge overstated claims to have saved Americans $110bn, watchdog finds
A report released on Thursday by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has given an extensive review of Doge's claims about its so-called "Wall of Receipts", which reported savings of $110bn (£82bn) across contracts, grants and leases.
"Several issues limit the transparency and reliability of these reported savings," the report stated.
Asked for comment, a White House official said the administration told the GAO that all employees had to complete ethics training and follow financial disclosure requirements.
Doge overstated claims to have saved Americans $110bn, watchdog finds
A year after Trump's DOGE cuts, workers whose lives were upended ask what was saved | PBS News
DOGE’s claim of $110B in savings was vastly inflated and riddled with errors: GAO - ABC7 New York
"Don't worry! We'll be fine! This method of just taking a chainsaw to the government won't hurt a bit!"
Redneck Dentistry Government brought to you by Trump and his supporters.
doge sent a friend the quit or else and tell us what you do emails his dept told him to ignore, then as a remote worker they made he and others report to a local gov't office that had no computers so they could sit on the floor in the hallways during the day, then they offered to buy him out and pay him to not work for 7 months, but be on call, until he retired at the beginning of the year. a few months ago after the gov't realized they had eliminated the entire sector of specialized scientists, they sent him an email asking if he would consider returning with some financially aggressive incentives. he declined. I've read multiple articles that claim doge cost the gov't 2x or 3x more than the retention of the gov't employees.
Haley Stevens's last-ditch efforts to undermine Abdul El-Sayed's campaign had yet to escalate from merely annoying to "despicable,
Asking El-Sayed, who pals around with radical Muslim extremists, to denounce an over the top antisemitic ad is now "despicable"
You can why Platner's Nazi tattoos helped with the progressive base.
Although, it's funny to see Democrats the party of corruption is going to win on a good government pledge. That's like hiring the grave robber to watch the tomb.
Democrats are doing well because : 1. it's a midterm. 2. They are angry and engaged. 3. People who don't pay much attention to anything are mad about gas prices. That's it.
I think Trump being the biggest asshole in our faces every day has a little something to do with it, lol.
Certainly makes more sense than voters believing democrats are not corrupt
Very few people on this earth are more corrupt than Donald Trump. Yet you say its just a normal midterms where the out of power party makes gains.
Its a little more than that.
It's hilarious how rightwing xenophobes call attending the same banquet 'palling around' but pretend Trump and Epstein barely knew each other.
The President and first lady palling around with a pedophile doesn't seem to bother them, but don't even think about running for any office if you've attended a banquet with a Muslim! /s
I almost had a spit take with that one. Republicans sitting on their hands while the greatest grift in American history is taking place by the President they voted for and support and their gullible dumb ass rubes are accusing the other party of being the party of corruption. Too fucking funny. Stupid, ignorant, wildly inaccurate, but hilarious, as rightwing conservatives almost always show themselves to be.
Its more self gratifying for them to pretend Trump isnt a fat blob of toxic waste. Now we are hearing that if the Democrats do well today it will just be a normal midterms and nothing to do with Trump mountain of flaws, lies, mistakes and visible insanity. This is them creating their own reality.
Are you against Epstein? That’s weird, Epstein actually dictated questions to a democratic congressman to ask during a hearing and that doesn’t ever seem to bother you or any other democrat.
Did trump bring Epstein to campaign for him? Nope. El sayed of course, brought “I hate America” piker to help win democratic votes,
You’ve been around a while John , how many times have you seen the party controlling the presidency and Congress win seats in a midterm?
Trump gave his final pitch for the Republicans yesterday in a speech at the reflecting pool. Some are calling it one of the most bizarre speeches he has ever given.
He should resign tomorrow. Call it a day. Win lose or draw he has proven he is not ethically, morally , or intellectually fit to lead America.
And you know it.
You do understand that rational patriotic Americans don't give a shit about xenophobic losers opinions who brand every Muslim who says something critical of America as a terrorist, right? I've said many critical things about America, we are not a perfect union, refusing to accept that fact doesn't make one an American hating terrorist so those who think like that can fuck right off.
link?
Thanks for making my point.
El Sayed knows his base hates America. That's why he brought in a guy who said "I hate America " and "America deserved 9/11" to campaign with him in a Democratic primary. He knows his audience.
Go back to 9/12/21 and tell progressives that in a few decades "America deserved 9/11" would be perfectly acceptable in their circles. They'd have denied it and called anyone a suggested it a liar. And yet here we are, attacking anyone who dares call such nonsense for what it is. Shameful shit.
It is at least a little funny to watch Piker make so many progressives thoroughly embarrass themselves by denying reality. He will literally tell them "I hate America" and most progressives simply can't process it. They are the perfect useful idiots.
you didn;t make one
what a stupid comment
Another day, another msnbc/New York times contributor threatening Americans and promising retribution against democrats who believe Israel has a right to exist if el—sayed loses,
The future of democracy looks bright with these guys in charge, huh?