Obama hails 'power of pluralism' as some Democrats push to pass the torch

Former US president Barack Obama speaks at the Obama Foundation Democracy Forum, one month after the Democrats loss in the US presidential election, in Chicago, Illinois, US, December 5, 2024. REUTERS

Former US President Barack Obama, who has mostly stayed quiet in the weeks since Vice President Kamala Harris' election loss, on Thursday urged a new generation of American leaders to talk with people they disagree with.

In a speech at a "Democracy Forum" sponsored by his foundation, the former president said he was convinced that a renewed commitment to pluralist principles was essential to ensure the survival of democracy.

"The alternative is what we've seen here in the United States and in many democracies around the globe - not just more gridlock, not just public cynicism, but an increased willingness on the part of politicians and their followers to violate democratic norms, to do anything they can to get their way."

Obama discussed the "power of pluralism" with thousands of live and online attendees at a deeply divided time in US history and an unsettling one for Democrats as Republican Donald Trump returns to the White House.

Building lasting majorities that supported justice required "framing our issues, our causes, what we believe in, in terms of 'we' and not just 'us and them,'" he said.

But that did not mean rolling over when opponents abused power, he said. "That's a problem. And when that happens, we fight for what we believe in."

While Obama, 63, remains in high demand to campaign for his fellow Democrats, some in the party are calling for a crop of younger leaders to take the baton after Harris lost every battleground state and the popular vote and Democrats lost control of the House of Representatives and the Senate.

"I think he'd be the first to agree," David Axelrod, former senior adviser to Obama, told Reuters. "I think he would say he's run his race and we need others to step up."

"Time marches on, and I think that he would say ... we need a whole array of leaders, and there are young leaders in the Democratic Party who are dynamic and very much in touch with the times who can step up and play a big role."

November's disappointing results for Democrats, including support eroding among working-class and Latino voters, sparked an angry blame game inside the party and an effort by some to push for fresh talent.

"I've always been an advocate for a new generation of leadership in the party and I think that people are yearning for that," Representative Seth Moulton, a Democrat from Massachusetts, told Reuters.

"It doesn't mean that the Obama magic is totally gone, but Obama's not going to be a future president. Obama's not running for Senate. We need to hear from newer voices that can better represent the fears and struggles that Americans face today."

Obama and his wife Michelle campaigned around the country and remain enormously popular within the party base, wielding influence behind the scenes through fundraising and a deep network of allies and former staff.

But despite fundraising success and resonant speeches, Obama was unable to help propel Harris to victory this year. Democratic nominee and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also failed to win the presidency in 2016 despite his backing.

Advisers from his one-time inner circle who joined Harris' campaign after President Joe Biden stepped aside are drawing fire for failing to admit any mistakes in how they handled the 2024 cycle.

A day after the Nov 5 election, the Obamas issued a statement congratulating Trump and saying "progress requires us to extend good faith and grace - even to people with whom we deeply disagree."

Obama made history as the first Black president of the United States and racked up comfortable margins of victory over his Republican opponents when he ran: more than seven percentage points in 2008 and nearly four in 2012.

But American politics has changed since then, some strategists say.

"His two wins do seem that much more remarkable in retrospect, given how much of the coalition that Republicans have built around Trump has been around racial politics," said Jeff Timmer, chief operating officer of the Lincoln Project, a political consulting group of former Republicans opposed to Trump who worked to elect Harris and Biden before her.

Obama campaigned heavily for Biden, who won in 2020, but his words on the campaign trail this year backfired at least once. At a stop in Pennsylvania, he seemed to lecture Black men over their reluctance to vote for a woman, drawing criticism from some Black activists.

Down-ballot demand for the former president this year was high, though. Democratic congressional candidates such as Senator-elect Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin and Senator-elect Ruben Gallego of Arizona sought Obama's help, got it, and won.

"Is this the ultimate turning the page on the Obama years? Maybe," said Michael Feldman, a communications consultant and former adviser to Al Gore, reflecting on the 2024 election. "Will he still be and will she (Mrs Obama) still be the two most popular figures within the party for the foreseeable future? The answer is absolutely."