Opinion | How Democrats Learned to Seize the Day – The New York Times

But if Democrats have learned a lot about economic reality since 2009, theyve learned more about political reality.

Obama came into office sincerely believing that he could reach across the aisle, that Republicans would help him deal with the economic crisis. Despite the reality of scorched-earth opposition, he continued to seek a grand bargain on debt. He regarded the rise of the Tea Party as a fever that would break in his second term. He was, in short, deeply nave.

Many progressives worried that President Biden, who had served in the Senate in a less polarized era, who talks a lot about unity, would repeat Obamas mistakes. But so far he and his congressional allies seem ready to go big, even if that means doing without Republican votes.

One thing that may be encouraging Democrats, by the way, is the fact that Bidens policies actually are unifying, if you look at public opinion rather than the actions of politicians. Bidens Covid-19 relief plan commands overwhelming public approval far higher than approval for Obamas 2009 stimulus. If, as seems likely, not a single Republican in Congress votes for the plan, thats evidence of G.O.P. extremism, not failure on Bidens part to reach out.

Beyond that, Biden and company appear to have learned that caution coming out of the gate doesnt store up political capital to do more things later. Instead, an administration that fails to deliver tangible benefits to voters in its first few months has squandered its advantage and wont get a do-over. Going big on Covid relief now offers the best hope of taking on infrastructure, climate change and more later.

Oh, and Democrats finally seem to have learned that voters arent interested in process. Very few Americans know that the Trump tax cut was rammed through on a party-line vote using reconciliation, the same maneuver Democrats are now pursuing, and almost nobody cares.

Finally, I suspect that Democrats realize that getting policy right is even more important in 2021 than it was in 2009 and not just because of the economics. When much of the opposition party wont acknowledge election results, condones insurrection and welcomes conspiracy theorists into its ranks, you really dont want to pursue policies that might fall short and thereby empower that party in the years ahead.

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Opinion | How Democrats Learned to Seize the Day - The New York Times