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MINNEAPOLIS – Democrats opened their summer meeting in Minnesota on Monday with calls for unity against President Donald Trump, even as internal divisions on a host of issues threaten to erupt.
“We are unified towards one single goal: to stop Donald Trump and put this country back on track,” DNC Chair Ken Martin declared when he addressed the more than 400 elected party officials from all 50 states and seven territories, as the summer meeting kicked off in his home state of Minnesota.
While Democrats appeared united in their drive to counter the sweeping and controversial moves by Trump during his first seven months back in the White House, divisions among the committee members may flare on Tuesday.
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That’s when the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, and limiting dark money in presidential politics, will both be in the spotlight as the DNC’s Resolutions Committee meets.
Competing symbolic resolutions over the war in Gaza – which was sparked by the horrific Oct. 7, 2023, sneak attack by Hamas on Israel – will be voted on by the panel.
CLICK HERE FOR THE LATEST FOX NEWS REPORTING ON THE ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
Nearly 1,200 people in Israel were killed during the initial surprise attack by Hamas, with over 250 people taken hostage. In the nearly two years since the attack, over 60,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s ongoing military response.
The showdown over the resolutions comes as the Democratic Party’s once nearly unshakable support for Israel has fractured amid the bloodshed. And concerns over the growing death toll among Palestinians by many in the party’s progressive base have soared this spring and summer, amid famine in Gaza.
Recent polling indicates support for Israel’s continued military actions in Gaza is plummeting among Democrats.
One resolution, which is supported by Martin, calls for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas.
The competing resolution calls for an arms embargo and suspension of U.S. military aid to Israel, which has long been the top American ally in the Middle East.
The other resolution that’s bound to generate spirited debate and grab headlines on Tuesday is Martin’s push for the DNC to affirm its commitment to “eliminating unlimited corporate and dark money in our presidential nominating process beginning in the current 2028 cycle.”
While Democrats have long railed against the role of big money in politics, the resolution, which was first reported by the New York Times, calls for the creation of a new panel to propose by next summer “real, enforceable steps the D.N.C. can take to eliminate unlimited corporate and dark money in its 2028 presidential primary process.”
Outside groups such as super PACs, which are allowed to haul in unlimited contributions but are mandated to disclose their donors, have seen their influence in campaign politics multiply in recent election cycles.
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Democratic leaders and officials are gathering as the party tries to escape the political wilderness after last year’s elections, when Democrats lost control of the White House and Senate and fell short in their bid to win back the House majority. And Republicans made gains in voter demographics that previously made up key parts of the Democratic Party’s base.
The situation has only worsened for Democrats in the 10 months since last year’s election setbacks.
The Democrats’ brand is deeply unpopular, especially with younger voters, as the party’s poll numbers continue to drop to all-time lows in national surveys.
The DNC faces a massive fundraising deficit at the hands of the rival Republican National Committee (RNC) and voter data indicated Democratic Party registration was plunging while GOP sign-ups were on the rise in the 30 states that register voters by party.
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On Monday, amid talk that Democrats remain divided over a slew of policy and political issue, Martin wasn’t the only one preaching unity and downplaying any discord.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, in an address to the committee members, said “there’s a division in my damn house, and we’re still married, and things are good. That’s life… We are strong because we challenge each other.”
And longtime Democratic strategist and DNC committee member Maria Cardona told Fox News, “I’m so sick of people focusing on the infighting and the circular firing squad. All of that is crap, when we have real issues, existential threats that we need to fight about, and we are all united on that front and that’s all that matters.”
Martin, who was elected DNC chair in February, has weathered turmoil during his tenure so far, including a controversy sparked by now-former vice chair David Hogg’s backing of primary challengers against older House Democrats in safe blue districts.
RNC communications director Zach Parkinson, responding to Monday’s DNC session, told Fox News that “under Ken Martin’s leadership, Democrats have sunk to their lowest approval rating in 35 years.”
Pointing to Martin, Parkinson said “as Republicans, we think he is doing a fantastic job, and we fully endorse him to stay on as DNC Chair.”
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