Moral Clarity, Leadership, and Hope with Rep. Sarah McBride
Over the past few weeks, I have met and spoken with Jewish voters around the country. While each conversation has been slightly different, there have been some constant themes. Jewish Americans are deeply concerned about the rise of antisemitism, the Trump administration’s weaponization of it, and the danger of phrases like “globalize the intifada,” which Democratic leaders have made clear have no place in the Democratic Party.
While we won some critically important elections in 2024, Democratic losses have led to many questions about the path forward. Many of you are asking about the strategy for winning in 2026 and which leaders will guide us to victory. Most Jewish voters are looking to Democrats to provide moral clarity, inspiration, and hope for the future.
While we’re inclined to look for such leadership among the most senior elected officials, hope can also be found in a new generation of leaders. That’s certainly the case with freshman Congresswoman Sarah McBride, who has served in the House for just six months as the only representative from Delaware.
In our conversation this week, Rep. McBride conveyed clear alignment with the Jewish community, hope, and perseverance to fight for a better future. She has demonstrated the ability to get things done in Congress and a willingness to work across the aisle, including with those who targeted her with a campaign of cruelty and hate that focused on, of all things, which bathroom she may use.
While many see Rep. McBride as a trailblazer because she’s the first transgender member of Congress, she’s a trailblazer despite a Republican campaign to see her solely through the lens of LGBTQ+ issues. In our conversation, Rep. McBride offered a clear vision for Democrats and called on us to “summon our hope, find the light, and once again change this world.” Even better, she offered both light and reasons for hope, detailed below.
My Conversation with Rep. Sarah McBride (DE)
Rep. McBride on the importance of the Jewish vote and JDCA’s work:
“This coalition of Jewish Democrats has been so critical to our victories. It’s been so critical to keeping Democrats committed to our values, and of course, at this particular moment where there is so much toxicity in our politics or hatred, including antisemitism…the work that you all do has never been more important and probably more challenging, emotionally, as we navigate these times.”
Rep. McBride on the importance of fighting antisemitism:
“I truly believe that antisemitism is the canary in the coal mine for all other prejudices. It is the world’s longest, most pervasive prejudice, and where you find antisemitism, you see racism, you see homophobia, you see transphobia, if not immediately, almost inevitably. And I think it is critical for us to make clear that our progressivism includes combating antisemitism…
“We have to be able to have legitimate disagreements and to call out at the same time, if someone on the other side of that disagreement is engaging in antisemitic behavior, call it out and denounce it when it occurs…
“Being a big tent doesn’t mean welcoming in the far right, right? Being a big tent [also] doesn’t mean welcoming in people who are apologists for Hamas. It means welcoming in reasonable thought and reasonable disagreement, done with mutual respect.”
Republicans’ Big Ugly Bill and the 2026 midterms:
“It [the Big Ugly Bill] is a ticking time bomb that the Trump administration and congressional Republicans inserted into the middle of the American healthcare system that is set to go off in 2027.
“That means we, as Democrats and as Americans, have the capacity to defuse that bomb in the November 2026 election. Because if we win the House and win the Senate, it gives us negotiating leverage with Donald Trump, who really couldn’t care less about the Medicaid cuts. He just wants the tax breaks for billionaires and funding for immigration. If we have leverage, it gives us the capacity to restore Medicaid funding to save care for millions. But we need people to turn out, we need people to vote, we need people to elect Democrats to the House and the Senate in 2026, so that we can defuse that bomb.”
Why MAGA Republicans remain so fixated on targeting the trans community:
“I think that they have turned trans people into an avatar of everything that’s wrong for men in society, and I think it struck a nerve because I think in many cases, Democrats have not done a good job of seeing the very real pain across our society, including among people that we dismiss often as privileged…
“And I think as we push back on these attacks, we have to do it in a way that continuously pulls back the curtain on a right-wing strategy that is using vulnerable people as political pawns in order to enrich themselves, consolidate power, and divert the public’s attention from those efforts.
“I refuse to be used as a pawn in their pitiful effort to get attention. And so my job is to not give them the response that they need. That doesn’t feel viscerally comforting to me or the community.”
Rep. McBride on the importance of hope in our politics:
“Hope is essential for people who believe in politics. Cynicism is so en vogue right now. The system isn’t working for people. The American dream is increasingly unaffordable and inaccessible. There’s reason to be frustrated. There are reasons to be angry. But we can never lose hope. Because a politics of anger and bitterness and resentment – that might result in some short-term wins, maybe if you channel it. But it is always, in the long run, regressive.
“In order to convince people to believe in a future that has never existed, it means that you take risks, right? It’s a leap of faith to push for a world that we’ve never experienced, that we’ve never known. You can’t deliver that based on just fear and anger. You need hope. You need to appeal to people’s better angels.”
We hope you’ll share Rep. McBride’s message with those looking for Democratic leaders who stand with the Jewish community, provide inspiration and hope, and are fighting to deliver for the American people.
Thank you for your support and partnership, which allow us to continue to lift up Democrats who share our values.
Shabbat Shalom,
Halie Soifer
CEO, Jewish Democratic Council of America