A placard at a protest outside a Trump 2020 campaign fundraiser in New York, 2017. Image: PAEarlier this month, the newly elected US congress took office with Democrats now commanding a majority in the House following November’s midterm elections. As images of the latest batch of representatives were beamed across the globe, there was much for the Democrats to celebrate. The 116th Congress is the most diverse on record, and with the Republican congressional caucus still resembling a company boardroom from the 1950s, it is the Democrats who are transforming the composition of US politics. It is a historic moment, but it comes at a time when new fault lines are being drawn, both within the Democratic party, and along established party lines. A new generation of progressive, grassroots Democrats are not only clashing with Republicans, but also figures of the Democratic establishment over policy ideas.
Nowhere is this division more apparent than in the realm of healthcare. In the final weeks of 2018, a federal judge in Texas ruled with Republicans to strike down Obamacare in a move President Trump celebrated on Twitter. The ruling opened up a new legal front in a long-standing war between Republicans and Democrats. But it also exposed a rift within the Democratic party, with leaders divided over whether to simply fight for Obamacare, push for a new comprehensive government-backed plan, or develop something in between.
