Sahil Kapur is the senior national political reporter for NBC News. He notes that Thursday marks the seventh anniversary of Joe Biden's "epiphany" that the Republican Party would abandon Donald Trump after 2020. Kapur correctly reports that Biden was wrong. Just look at Kentucky a day ago, when a poll showed Rep. Thomas Massie's Trump-backed challenger leading him 53-45 in the Republican primary.
Meanwhile, House Minority Leader Extreme Hakeem Jeffries is going on about redistricting, saying, "We are in an era of maximum warfare, everywhere, all the time." He even had it printed on a backdrop for a press conference, he liked the quote so much.
Kapur has concluded that "Democrats are moving on to a more combative style of politics."
NEW: 7 years ago, on this day, Joe Biden predicted a Republican “epiphany” where the party abandons Trump after 2020.
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) May 14, 2026
Many primary voters bought into it. But the prophecy failed.
Now Democrats are moving on to a more combative style of politics.https://t.co/aejfgKCgud
Can’t stop laughing at the suggestion that Democrats haven’t been combative until just now.
— Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) May 14, 2026
Imagine being a journalist and writing that line. https://t.co/YTu7943QCW
Kapur reports:
As far back as 2011, Democratic voters had preferred a posture of compromise over combat. Trump’s second-term victory triggered something new within the base that didn’t exist under Presidents Biden or Barack Obama.
It’s a far cry from former first lady Michelle Obama’s famous quote, “When they go low, we go high.” In fact, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., quotes himself on the front page of his website saying, “When they go low, we strike back.”
Former Senate Democratic leadership aide Adam Jentleson, a fervent real-time critic of Biden’s “epiphany” rhetoric, saw it as a close cousin of Obama’s ill-fated predictions that the GOP “fever” would break after he won re-election in 2012.
“There was a sense that Trump was an aberration,” Jentleson said. “Seeing him lose an election and fall out of favor and then reassert his control over the GOP and get re-elected — that completely shattered any illusion that Republicans of sound conscience were going to rise up and take back their party.”
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Democratic voters preferred a posture of compromise over combat, according to a poll by NBC News.
"Combative"
— JWF (@JammieWF) May 14, 2026
Normals call that violent, Sammy.
They are now just getting combative? pic.twitter.com/39OPYFsLs3
— Derek (Recovering 🧀 Addict) 🇺🇲 (@DerekM121) May 14, 2026
More combative? Uh, sure, I guess. Assassination is more combative.
— Lady Hecate 🇺🇲 (@hecate40) May 14, 2026
More "combative" than shooting up a Congressional baseball practice?
— SixPoundLine (@PeaGravelNed) May 14, 2026
Combative? As opposed to what, deranged? You guys are afflicted by TDS, and not sure what gonna happen once Trump is gone from political scene.
— Red Head Sophia (@RedHeadS0phia) May 14, 2026
What they’re gonna use all caps to call their opponents Nazis
— SM (@Scottymcmahon22) May 14, 2026
So all those acts of violence, burning cities, assassinations of and attempts of political rivals, was just?
— Corey (@thisandthaatt) May 14, 2026
You guys used show trials to make sure Trump got nominated and it worked! In fact in worked so well I went from planning on staying home on election to voting for Trump and every other R completely and entirely bc of said show trials. Great job all around
— Aszarkarias (@aszarkarias) May 14, 2026
Decent society would not survive if Democrats were any more combative.
— Timebomb the Hero (@Veltios1) May 14, 2026
A “more combative” style of politics than Obama/Biden’s use of the permanent government as a weapon? Oh, sorry, you could have chose another adjective than combative but meant to inspire violence with your selection.
— Kevin K Distler (@pontiusP33) May 14, 2026
More combative than impeaching Trump twice, prosecuting Trump for crimes no one else would be prosecuted for, calling Trump supporters garbage and deplorable, telling black people Mitt Romney would put them in chains …
— Joey Snipes (@joeysnipes19) May 14, 2026
Buckle up!
You and I have very different ideas of what it means to be “combative”. Democrats have been on a seek and destroy mission of this country for decades. Now they’re onto the kill portion.
— stephen parker (@sjboilers2) May 14, 2026
*More* combative?
— Tectus (@TectusVulpes) May 14, 2026
What are they going to do? Call Republicans Nazis, and get them shot at? Burn down neighborhoods, lay siege to courts and the White House, accuse opponents of killing grandma?
I mean seriously, where can they go from here?
Democrats have been violent lunatics for quite some time, actually.
— B.C. (@BAC_III) May 14, 2026
Of course, Democrats, who only ever wanted compromise with Republicans, are only becoming more combative because of Trump adopting "a posture of all-out political warfare with Democrats" after his reelection.
“With Donald Trump out of the way, you’re going to see a number of my Republican colleagues have an epiphany. Mark my words,” said Biden at a 2019 campaign stop.
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