Democrats tone down ‘resistance’ campaigning in Trump-friendly areas
Senate incumbents walking fine line in Midwest states
WINCHESTER, Ind. — The worker's message for Sen. Joe Donnelly was blunt: "President Trump, I think, has got a long road ahead of him," he said, "and I hope you can back him on some things, because I think he has the country's best interest at heart."
Donnelly assured the man that he is working with Trump on creating jobs and combating opioid abuse. Looking out on the construction of a railroad underpass in this rural heartland town, he said, "Anywhere we've got some common-sense stuff, count me in."
"I hope so," said the worker, who declined to give his name to a reporter. "Because if not, then I'm going to be voting for someone else."
It's a message that Donnelly, a burly Indiana Democrat, is hearing a lot this year. And it's one that he and other Democrats seeking reelection next year in states that Trump won are responding to in a way that puts them at odds with the leadership and base of their own party: by promising to work with this president.
Donnelly is one of 10 such Democratic senators — and one of five in states where Trump's margin entered the double digits (in Indiana, Trump won by 19 points). They face a seemingly impossible challenge: to appeal to Trump voters while retaining the support of anti-Trump Democrats. They must do so not only for their own political futures but also for their party to win back control of the Senate and compete in states rich with the white working-class voters who drifted to Trump last year.
Key congressional forecasters consider Donnelly's race a toss-up, even without a clear Republican opponent. The same goes for the races of Democratic senators in Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, West Virginia and other states — all caught between their constituents' support for Trump and a national Democratic brand increasingly centered on resistance to the president.
It's a delicate dance for many of them. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., described her approach at a recent town hall: "My job isn't to fight the president. My job is to fight for you." And it was on full display last week as Donnelly kicked off his reelection campaign, touring the state in an Indiana-built RV.
At the highway project, Donnelly basked in the praise of the local mayor, who said that if Donnelly hadn't made a phone call to the railroad, the project might still be entangled in red tape.
That's the kind of prudent, results-oriented governing Donnelly ran on when he pulled off his unlikely 2012 victory, and it's the image he hopes voters will have in mind when they cast their ballots next year.