Rep. Laura Friedman (D-CA) revealed that a group of House Democrats meets weekly to discuss strategies for dismantling the Trump administration’s agenda.
“Every single week, we have a litigation working group where a large group of us—and I’m talking maybe 75 members of the House—sit down with the AGs to talk about legal strategy,” Friedman said. “This is all going on every single week behind the scenes. It is nonstop talk, nonstop introduction of bills and legislation, nonstop being on social media as much as we can without being throttled, without the crazy analytics, and doing all these things.”
Friedman’s declaration mirrors an effort launched by the Democratic National Committee (DNC) called the People’s Cabinet.
The “People’s Cabinet” is described as a project that will “leverage a deep bench of qualified policy experts, national and local leaders, as well as community voices who – all working together – will cut through the lies and speak directly to the American people about the reality of the Trump administration’s reckless and dangerous agenda,” the DNC said in a press release.
DNC Chair Ken Martin said in a video announcement for the effort, “I’ve been traveling across the country nonstop since I started this job, and what I hear over and over is this: Americans want us to challenge Trump’s lies and offer a better alternative.”
Former Rep. Wiley Nickel (D-NC) has also discussed the possibility of a “shadow cabinet.”
“If Trump seeks to eliminate the Department of Education, Congresswoman Jahana Hayes, a former teacher of the year, could step up as Shadow Education Secretary to loudly defend public education in the United States,” he said. “If Trump orders Marco Rubio to hand Ukraine and much of Eastern Europe to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Congressman Greg Meeks as shadow Secretary of State, could be a strong voice in support of maintaining international relationships and protecting democracy at home and abroad.”
