The Patriot Post® · Democrats' Deal With the Devil?

If you listen to Democrats, Donald Trump is the worst thing ever to happen to our nation. But that evidently doesn’t mean they’re above working with him to get some of their agenda going. The Democrat National Committee New York Times reports, “Congressional Democrats, divided and struggling for a path from the electoral wilderness, are constructing an agenda to align with many proposals of President-elect Donald J. Trump that put him at odds with his own party. On infrastructure spending, child tax credits, paid maternity leave and dismantling trade agreements, Democrats are looking for ways they can work with Mr. Trump and force Republican leaders to choose between their new president and their small-government, free-market principles.” Divide and conquer — it’s the Democrat way.

First off, don’t trust the Times, even if they have promised to “rededicate” to honest reporting. But we’ll come back to that.

There’s reason to think the Demo strategy might work. For one thing, incoming Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer took more political cash from Trump than any other senator, dating all the way back to 1996, and the two have somewhat of a bond. “I’ve known Schumer for many, many years and I have a good relationship with him,” Trump said last year. “The fact is, that I think it is time maybe that we all do get along.” And for his part, Schumer said this week, “We’re not going to just, as some have done here in the past, say just because it’s President Trump’s idea or thought, we’re going to oppose it.”

Schumer may know that the best way to Trump’s heart is through flattery. And it’s also true that Trump isn’t ideologically opposed to things like more infrastructure spending or the other things the Times report listed.

That said, here’s a reality check for the Gray Lady: Mike Pence, Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell will have a thing or two to say about what gets done. And given the thrashing Republicans just gave Democrats up and down the ballot, we’d venture to guess Trump isn’t quite as eager to work with Democrats as the Times would have us believe. After all, they’ll do anything to sell a picture of a fractured Republican Party.