Michigan Democrat Sen. Elissa Slotkin, who delivered her party’s response to the State of the Union last week, struck a different tone than minority leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York, when she admitted on Sunday that it’s no secret Democrats have been “on their heels” since President Donald Trump won the 2024 election.
On a streamed conference call with Democratic leaders last week after Trump’s State of the Union address, Jeffries claimed that Democrats have Republicans “on the run” and that Democrats have had, and will continue to keep, their “foot on the gas pedal” in that success.
Slotkin offered a more tempered take on the state of her party when speaking with NBC’s Kristen Welker on Sunday’s edition of Meet the Press.
Welker noted that since Slotkin delivered the Democratic response, “a lot of eyes” have been on her, and asked the current Senator and former House member who she would say is the leader of the party right now.
“Look, I mean, people know me. I’m pretty straightforward. I don’t think it’s a secret that Democrats have been on their heels since Trump won the election, right?” said Slotkin. “I don’t think that’s, you know, something hidden.”
Slotkin said it’s on Democrats to be clear with the American people about both leadership and strategy, and suggested that painting a rosy picture rather than admitting something has to change is a bad strategy.
“I think you can’t get better until you admit you have a problem,” she said. “And for me, that’s one of the things that I think some of the new voices in the party have really been agitating about, right?”
WELKER: Since you delivered the Democratic response this week, a lot of eyes on you, senator. Who would you say is the leader of the Democratic Party right now?
SLOTKIN: Look, I mean, people know me. I’m pretty straightforward. I don’t think it’s a secret that Democrats have been on their heels since Trump won the election, right? I don’t think that’s, you know, something hidden.
And I think it’s on us to be clear about not only leadership, and there’s lots of leaders in both parties, but also a strategy, right? And I think that’s something that as Trump has been successful in flooding the zone and just, like, every day 15 things happening.
We are still finding our footing. And I think you can’t get better until you admit you have a problem. And for me, that’s one of the things that I think some of the new voices in the party have really been agitating about, right? New senators, new representatives, new folks who are like, “Hey, we need to do more. And we need to be showing that we’re actually having a plan to stand up on really important moments of inflection.”
So, that’s what I’m trying to do from within.
Watch the clip above via NBC News.