Now that President Donald Trump is back in the White House, I realize that he's attracting most of the attention. Can I pause for a minute, though, to say how thrilled I am that Democrats Kamala Harris and Tim Walz did not win in November?
The former vice president and her running mate were each out and about recently, and hearing them talk again reminded me why voters made the right choice in the presidential election.
Harris, who spoke April 30 to a group that recruits Democratic women to run for office, returned to tired campaign rhetoric about Trump, claiming he's causing a "constitutional crisis."
She also awkwardly told the crowd that Democrats need to mirror how a herd of elephants at the San Diego Zoo responded to a recent earthquake.
"Everybody has been asking what are you thinking about these days," Harris said. "For those who haven't seen it, here those elephants were, and as soon as they felt the earth shaking beneath their feet, they got in a circle and stood next to each other to protect the most vulnerable. Think about it. What a powerful metaphor."
And Walz, the Democratic governor of Minnesota, gave a talk to Harvard's Kennedy School about the future of the Democratic Party. It was weird, as Walz likes to say, when he talked about why Harris chose him for the ticket.
"I could code talk to white guys − watching football, fixing their truck, doing that, that I could put them at ease," Walz said. "I was the permission structure to say, 'Look you can do this and vote for this.' "
That turned out well for him.
Such cringeworthy rhetoric coming from two of the most prominent Democrats highlights that the party is still floundering to find its way in a second Trump term.
While Democrats reliably melt down over everything Trump does or says, they've failed to present any credible alternatives on the pressing issues that the president is tackling - including border security, trade and the deficit.
Walz's "code talk" messaging and Harris' elephant-circling strategy will not convince the country that Democrats aren't the party of the status quo.
Voters need to hear real ideas and a real vision.
Even as Trump's approval numbers are wavering, the country is still confident it made the right choice in November. And voters certainly aren't flocking to Democrats.
In a recent CNN poll, 42% of U.S. adults say Trump has done a better job than Harris would have, 41% say Harris would have been better and 16% say they'd be about the same.
And when Trump is compared with Democrats in Congress - his most current political opponents - he comes out further ahead. A Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll asked registered voters whom they think is doing a better job handling the country's main problems, and 40% said Trump. Just 32% said congressional Democrats.
Another Democratic governor with bigger political ambitions gave a speech in a key primary state at the end of April. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker spoke to a group of New Hampshire Democrats, indicating he's a likely contender in the 2028 presidential primary. He chided members of his party for not doing enough following their 2024 losses and called for a "bold" agenda.
His recommendations left a lot to be desired, however.
"Never before in my life have I called for mass protests, for mobilization, for disruption," Pritzker said. "But I am now. These Republicans cannot know a moment of peace. They have to understand that we will fight their cruelty with every megaphone and microphone that we have. We must castigate them on the soap box and then punish them at the ballot box."
He also called Trump a "madman" who can't be reasoned or negotiated with, and he said that Republicans who have backed Trump should have their portraits sent to "museum halls reserved for tyrants and traitors."
I'm going to take a wild guess and assume that kind of messaging will offend the tens of millions of voters who chose Trump over the lackluster agenda Harris and Walz offered.
Raging against Trump and his supporters has repeatedly failed for Democrats. And it will again.
Ingrid Jacques is a columnist at USA TODAY. Contact her at ijacques@usatoday.com or on X: @Ingrid_Jacques