David Sirota doesn’t shy away when it comes to what he sees as one of the biggest myths in modern Democratic politics.
In a scathing essay published on his Substack, he says Donald Trump’s presidency has shattered the long-standing excuse that Democratic presidents couldn’t deliver big results because they lacked the power.
Posting on X, Sirota said it clearly:
“The one silver lining in Trump’s daily rampages is that they have exposed Democrats’ most insidious lie – the lie claiming that Democrats’ own presidents never had the power to change much. It was always a lie. Now everyone can see that – and nobody will believe it next time.”
Sirota, an American liberal journalist and editor who also founded The Lever and served as a senior adviser to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), argues that Trump’s aggressive use of executive authority reveals what many on the left suspected all along: that past Democratic leaders, especially during the Obama era, pretended to be powerless when they actually weren’t.
“Pretend Powerlessness” Was Always a Political Choice
Sirota points to the Barack Obama White House’s repeated claims that it could not push through major promises like a public option for health care or more aggressive Wall Street reforms.
“Everyone in the Obama White House and in liberal media [defended] Obama’s failures by insisting that he never had the power to do any of the big things he promised,” Sirota wrote.
He recalls how grassroots supporters who pushed Obama to be bolder were often insulted or dismissed.
In one example, then-Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel reportedly called progressive activists pushing for healthcare reform “f***ing retarded” in a private meeting, as reported by The Wall Street Journal and noted by Sirota.
The pattern didn’t end with Obama. Under President Joe Biden, Democrats continued the tradition of blaming “rotating villains” like former Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ), or procedural figures like the Senate parliamentarian, to explain why bigger changes couldn’t happen.
Trump Shows Just How Much a President Can Do Alone
Sirota isn’t praising Trump’s actions; in fact, he calls them dangerous and tyrannical.
But he argues that Trump’s bold and often unilateral moves as president prove that the office holds far more power than Democratic leaders have admitted.
“Donald Trump’s ongoing second-term rampage of unilateral executive power shows what a complete lie all of that pretend Democratic powerlessness really was,” he wrote.
He cautions against embracing the idea of an all-powerful executive, but says Trump’s actions demonstrate that Democratic presidents simply chose not to use the tools available to them.
“You don’t have to be a dictator to at least try to use existing executive authority to, say, shut down the most indefensible loophole in the entire tax code that you promised to close,” he wrote.
“The fact that Obama never even tried to do that lays bare the whole lie of pretend powerlessness.”
Why It Matters Now
Sirota believes Trump’s presidency, especially during his current term, should serve as a wake-up call.
The idea that a president can only do so much has been used for years to justify broken promises on healthcare, climate, labor protections, and corporate accountability.
“The more mayhem and terror and chaos that this White House unilaterally inflicts on the country, the more it exposes the Democrats’ Big Lie that they just never had any power to do much of anything,” Sirota wrote.
He doesn’t want a Democratic version of Trump, but he does want future presidents to stop hiding behind institutional excuses and at least try to deliver on what they promise.
Some Exceptions, but Not Enough
Sirota does give limited credit to the Biden administration for certain actions.
He notes that Biden pushed through a larger stimulus package than Obama and that some federal agencies under Biden, like the Federal Trade Commission and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, have used their authority more assertively.
But he also argues that Biden, like Obama, continued to promote the idea of a constrained presidency, especially when it came to avoiding confrontation with corporate interests or the donor class.
Looking Ahead
Sirota says Americans should learn from what Trump has revealed about the presidency’s potential.
While many people during the Obama years accepted that change wasn’t possible, that excuse no longer holds up.
“If there is any potential silver lining in Trump’s frenzy, it is that the next time there’s a non-MAGA president, far fewer Americans should accept at face value the notion that a president can’t do much,” he wrote.
Still, he warns that the Democratic establishment and its allies in the media are likely to keep pushing the narrative of limited power.
“I’m old enough to not underestimate the Democratic political and media machine’s power to lobotomize liberals into complacency,” Sirota added.
For Sirota, the lesson is clear: presidential power isn’t nearly as limited as many Democrats have claimed.
And going forward, voters shouldn’t let anyone get away with pretending otherwise.
IMAGE CREDIT: “President Donald J. Trump delivers remarks on the Administration’s tariff plans” by Abe McNatt, The White House. Licensed under U.S. Government Work. Image adjusted for layout.