Jesse Ferguson: People Are Feeling the GOP Economic Agenda
By Jesse Ferguson
In the classic film “Groundhog Day,” Bill Murray’s character relives the same day over and over again. For decades, American politics followed a similar pattern: Republicans threatened to dismantle the social safety net, Democrats sounded alarms, voters rejected the Republican agenda, and the cycle repeated.
But now, the pattern is broken. The dog hasn’t just caught the car; it’s dragged out the mailman and is driving the truck, too.
Throughout recent history, we’ve seen this cycle play out repeatedly. In 2005, President Bush proposed privatizing Social Security. Democrats rallied opposition, won back Congress in 2006, and preserved the system millions rely on. In 2012, Republicans pushed to transform Medicare into a voucher program through the “Ryan Budget.” Democrats campaigned against it, Obama won reelection, and seniors’ healthcare remained intact. In 2017, with control of both chambers and the White House, Republicans tried repealing the Affordable Care Act until Senator McCain’s dramatic thumbs-down saved healthcare for millions. The following year, Democrats campaigned on protecting healthcare and flipped 41 House seats to regain the majority.
Each time, the same pattern: Republicans threatened, Democrats warned, voters responded, and worst outcomes averted.
Now, with Trump back in the White House and Republicans controlling Congress, they’re not just threatening—they’re doing. The administration is implementing massive tax breaks for the wealthy and corporations while laying off food inspectors, air traffic controllers and cancer researchers. They’re preparing to slash Medicaid, which millions of families, children, and seniors in nursing homes depend on. They’re targeting Social Security disability benefits, closing Social Security offices, and turning off the phones.
This isn’t speculation. It’s happening. The Department of Education faces elimination. Environmental protections are being gutted. Project 2025—once dismissed as merely aspirational—is becoming the blueprint for governance. Trump’s reckless tariffs are raising costs on everything we buy and sending the economy into a free fall. At every turn, the middle class is getting screwed.
Conservative ideologue Grover Norquist famously said he wanted to shrink government “down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub.” Former Speaker Newt Gingrich spoke of letting Medicare “wither on the vine.” These weren’t just colorful metaphors—they were the game plan, now being executed.
We’ve already seen a preview of what happens when Republican threats become Americans reality. After the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, voters rejected Republican candidates across the country. The abstract threat of losing reproductive rights had become concrete, and Americans recoiled.
The same dynamic has the potential to play out in 2026, but this time on the economy. By then, Americans won’t just be hearing about threats to their economic security—they’ll be living with the consequences. Seniors will be facing higher healthcare costs. Working families will be struggling with reduced services and higher tax burdens. Students will be navigating an education system increasingly tilted toward the privileged.
This isn’t just a communications problem for Republicans. It’s a fundamental policy problem. Their agenda, long shielded from full implementation by Democratic firewalls, will finally be exposed for what it is: a massive transfer of wealth and power from working Americans to the already wealthy and well-connected.
The irony is that Republicans have spent decades campaigning against these very programs while carefully avoiding actually eliminating them. They understood that while complaining about “big government” polls well, taking away people’s Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other essential services does not.
For Democrats, the 2026 midterms present both an opportunity and a challenge. Voters will be experiencing the concrete consequences of Republican governance firsthand. The senior whose prescription costs skyrocket, the worker whose workplace protections vanish—these Americans won’t need warnings about what might happen. They’ll be living it.
But Democrats must resist positioning themselves as mere defenders of the pre-Trump status quo. Americans were dissatisfied with government before Republicans took full control, and merely promising a return to 2024 won’t inspire the coalition needed for victory.
Instead, Democrats have to present a forward-looking vision centered on reform—making government work effectively for working people again. The message isn’t “let’s restore” instead it’s “we deserve better.”
While Republicans dismantle critical protections that middle-class families count on, Democrats should champion the principle of “mend it, don’t end it.” This means acknowledging legitimate frustrations with bureaucracy and inefficiency while offering solutions that strengthen rather than abandon core programs. For Social Security and Medicare, this means reforms that enhance long-term solvency without cutting benefits or raising the retirement age. For healthcare, it means addressing cost concerns directly while expanding access.
By 2026, the contrast between the two parties’ visions for America’s future will be unmistakable. Republicans will have demonstrated their willingness to sacrifice middle-class security for ideological purity and donor interests. Democrats must offer a practical alternative: not defending government as it was, but fighting for government as it should be—responsive, effective, and genuinely committed to expanding opportunity for all.
In “The Wizard of Oz,” Dorothy’s dog Toto pulls back the curtain to reveal the true wizard. In 2026, voters won’t need Toto—they’ll have already seen behind the curtain. And felt it too.
Jesse Ferguson is a veteran Democratic Strategist. His focus is on the blend of message, strategy and media – political marketing for major candidates, causes and campaigns.
