Obama’s Blistering New Takedown of Trump Gives Dems a Way Forward

The key point is this: Without this abuse of power, Trump could not be unleashing such havoc. In short, Trump’s lawlessness and his economic destruction are the same story: The former doesn’t just enable the latter; the two are inextricably entangled with each other.

This is not tantamount to claiming that Democrats can only indict Trump’s assault on the rule of law when it impacts “kitchen table” concerns. Rather, it’s to say that rule of law, stable institutions, and constraints on everything from bureaucratic corruption to dictatorial abuses of power facilitate economic prosperity and flourishing. Dramatically erode those things, and the economy very well may follow in short order. That’s what Obama was getting at when he said:

We take for granted the idea that we don’t have to pay bribes or hire somebody’s cousin in order to get a business permit. That’s how we built the economy we did. That’s why this place worked. It has very concrete impacts on all of our lives.

The data analyst David Shor recently told Ezra Klein that Democrats must avoid the “trap” of focusing too much on “defending institutions and democracy” rather than remaining “economically focused.” Shor also told Eric Levitz that the lesson of the 2024 loss is that voters care more about “economic change” than about “preserving America’s institutions.”