These Democrats aren’t ready to jettison big business as party stalwarts shift left

The new plan underscores a tug-of-war within the Democratic Party over its economic message ahead of the pivotal November elections, which could return the party to power after President Donald Trump and his Republicans swept the 2024 elections. And with Trump’s polling on the economy plummeting, picking a winning strategy could be the difference between making the president a lame duck and spending two more years in the political wilderness. 

The New Democrats argue Americans want a more moderate approach that bridges the gap between big business and the average voter.

“I reject the idea that business is bad,” said Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa., one of the plan’s authors. “This is a set of solutions, tangible, practical, doable solutions, and an answer to ‘what are you going to do when you’re in charge?'” 

Among the road map’s proposals are lightening the federal permitting process for energy projects with the aim of lowering utility costs, reducing homebuilding regulations with the goal of getting affordable housing built more quickly, and developing a national strategy for data centers to spread out the “benefits and costs” of the facilities and make sure they don’t “overburden” certain areas.

Absent from the proposal are sweeping new taxes on the wealthy, a cap on credit card interest rates and the creation of a single-payer health-care system, which are popular with prominent progressives like Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. 

They, along with state and local officials like new New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, are calling for an ambitious, populist agenda that forsakes the wealthy — a movement that’s gained traction as wealth has consolidated at the top and eats into Trump’s own populist base. 

“If there are good ideas that will reduce costs for families, sign me up,” Warren said Tuesday in a brief interview at the Capitol when asked about the New Democrats’ dialed-back approach. “But make no mistake, we need big changes, and that’s bringing down the cost of housing and getting universal child care. That’s what makes a big difference in people’s lives.”

Mamdani notably called for universal child care in New York City during his campaign. The New Democrats instead call for “federal pilot programs that explore cost-sharing partnerships among families, employers, and government to lower monthly child care expenses.”

Article source: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/11/election-2026-democrats-populism-big-business-congress.html