“Democrats stand united not because of who we fight against but because of who we are fighting for — the working class, the middle class, hardworking Americans,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) during a press conference outlining the conference’s priorities during this session of Congress on Thursday.

Schumer and Senate Democrats are attempting to flip the script and convince voters the party is on their side when it comes to the economy, the border, and other issues. 

Senate Democrats released a splashy social media video ahead of their press conference, featuring comments from a variety of senators, emphasizing their focus is “to fight for working Americans.” 

The 119th Congress has begun, and Senate Democrats are ready to get to work and fight for you. pic.twitter.com/xTc1LlKDrg

— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) January 9, 2025

“We will fight to bring down inflation, to help people save money when they go to the grocery store, when they go to the pharmacy, when they pay their cable or internet bill,” Schumer said. “We’ll fight to make housing more affordable. We’ll fight to see that Americans aren’t ripped off by giant corporations’ hidden fees and predatory behavior.”

Last year, Republicans and their allies spent hundreds of millions of dollars in ads linking Democratic candidates to the crisis at the southern border and a rise in crime. In the closing days of the election, GOP ads casting the Democratic Party as taking transgender rights to extremes dominated the airwaves. 

Democrats in the upper chamber are settling into life in the minority after four years in control. Some Democratic operatives are warning lawmakers to tread carefully as President-elect Donald Trump and Republicans work to implement his agenda as he prepares to be sworn in on Jan. 20.

“The last time Trump was president, Democrats mounted a very loud resistance. This time it needs to be very different,” said a Democratic strategist based in Washington, D.C., speaking on the condition of anonymity. “The reality is that we lost the election and we need to win back the voters that went over to Trump.”

“I think we do that by being willing to work with Republicans when it comes to the issues that voters said mattered most to them, which is the economy and immigration,” the strategist said. “Unfortunately, so much of the Democrat’s focus this cycle was on abortion and the Jan. 6 insurrection and the threat to democracy. Those were not winning messages this cycle.”

During Schumer’s press conference on Thursday, those topics did not take center stage, a signal Democrats are attempting to learn from prior missteps. The Democratic Senate leader stood alongside new freshman members who each shared their goals and priorities.

Sen. Andy Kim (D-NJ) shared his own personal story about how his father got into an accident six months ago that left him paralyzed.

Sen. Andy Kim (D-NJ) en route to the chamber with his family. pic.twitter.com/gBmgsUVdYH

— Samantha-Jo Roth (@SamanthaJoRoth) January 3, 2025

“He will never have the chance to be able to walk again. His life turned upside down. Now trying to figure out how he can get the care that he needs,” Kim explained. 

“We need more options for the American people. I’m a father of a seven-year-old and a nine-year-old. I’ll be honest with you, I worry about what kind of America my kids are gonna grow up in. So many families that I talk to in New Jersey face these challenges of care, whether a sandwich generation like myself or others trying to figure out how they’re going to be able to build the kind of lives that they want,” he added.

Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE) emphasized that her state of Delaware contains three counties that are “blue, purple, and red” and that she’s ready to work with everybody.

“As the former secretary of labor of the state of Delaware, jobs and the economy are job No. 1. As a matter of fact, if I were to have a second middle name, it would be Lisa Blunt ‘Jobs’ Rochester, because we know that when working people thrive, we all thrive,” she said.

The only freshman who won a razor-thin race in a state where Trump also won, Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), said her goal is to find common ground with Republicans.

“My job as someone who represents a state that voted for Donald Trump is to look for common cause anywhere I can. Leadership is about picking between the things you have to compromise on and the things you should never compromise on — so wherever I can, I’m going to work across the aisle,” Slotkin said.

As the second Trump era is about to begin, there are signs that pieces of his agenda won’t receive the same level of resistance as his first term. The latest signal came after senators voted to advance the Laken Riley Act on Thursday, an immigration proposal, in which 33 Senate Democrats sided with the GOP. Under Democratic control, the Senate refused to bring the proposal to the floor last year. 

Democrats are still strategizing when it comes to the looming confirmation battles that await Trump’s nominees beginning next week. Leadership has instructed senators to grill controversial Trump nominees like Pete Hegseth, Trump’s pick to lead the Defense Department, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nominee for health and human services secretary, but to relate it back to the American people, according to a source familiar with their thinking. 

“Democrats will not hesitate to fight back if Republicans use their new majorities to make life more expensive for the working families of this country,” Schumer said. “If Donald Trump and Republicans use their new majorities to push the same old GOP policies and tax cuts for the very rich, cuts to healthcare, trickle-down economics — Democrats will fight back.”