JB Pritzker calls out 'do-nothing' Democrats for failing to push back
against Trump
[April 28, 2025]
By JOEY CAPPELLETTI and HOLLY RAMER
MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker sharply criticized
fellow Democrats on Sunday for not doing enough to oppose President
Donald Trump, drawing a clear divide between himself and other
high-profile Democrats seen as future presidential contenders.
Pritzker delivered the keynote address at the New Hampshire Democratic
Party’s McIntyre-Shaheen 100 Club Dinner, the latest and most
high-profile in a series of speeches this year.
While Pritzker continued to attack Trump, he also focused on what he
says are shortcomings in his own party, assailing Democrats for
listening to “a bunch of know-nothing political types” instead of
everyday Americans. Without naming names, he called out Democrats
“flocking to podcasts and cable news shows to admonish fellow Democrats
for not caring enough about the struggles of working families.”
“Those same do-nothing Democrats want to blame our losses on our defense
of Black people, of trans kids, of immigrants, instead of their own lack
of guts and gumption,” Pritzker said.
The second-term governor has yet to say whether he will run for that
office again in 2026, but the billionaire Hyatt heir has been laying the
groundwork for a potential presidential campaign for years.
Notably, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, another high-profile 2028
contender, said on his podcast recently that the case of Kilmar Abrego
Garcia, a Maryland man mistakenly deported to El Salvador and detained
at one point in a notorious megaprison, was a “distraction” from issues
such as tariffs. Newsom also said on his podcast's inaugural episode
that he opposes trans athletes competing in women's sports.
Polling suggests immigration is Trump's strongest issue and that a
majority of Democrats also oppose trans participation in women's sports.
Pritzker on Sunday night said it was no time for Democrats to be in
despair.
“Never before in my life have I called for mass protests, for
mobilization, for disruption, but I am now,” he said, stressing that the
party “must castigate them on the soapbox and then punish them at the
ballot box.”
Pritzker has already spoken this year at the Human Rights Campaign’s Los
Angeles dinner and is scheduled to headline a Minnesota Democratic
dinner in June. He drew national attention in February when he used part
of his joint budget and State of the State address to draw a parallel
between Trump’s rhetoric and the rise of Nazi Germany.
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Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, center, and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H.,
left, attend the McIntyre-Shaheen 100 Club Dinner, Sunday April 27,
2025, in Manchester, N.H. (AP Photo/Reba Saldanha)
On Sunday, Pritzker again invoked his Jewish faith, criticizing
Trump’s efforts to deport foreign students who participated in
pro-Palestinian demonstrations. He called on Trump to “stop tearing
down the Constitution in the name of my ancestors,” a line that drew
a standing ovation from the crowd.
But Pritzker was also adamant in calling out the “do-nothing
Democrats,” asserting that while the party “may need to fix our
messaging and strategy, our values are exactly where they should
be.” He added, “We will never join so many Republicans in a special
place in hell reserved for quislings and cowards.”
Lou D'Allesandro, who retired from the New Hampshire State Senate
last year after five decades in public service and met Pritzker in
Chicago years ago, said the Illinois governor “has all the
ingredients to make it to the big time.”
“He's very quick on his feet, very gregarious,” he said. But any
Democrat who wants to win in 2028 has their work cut out for them,
he said.
“They've got to reintroduce themselves to the grassroots,” he said.
“They've got to let people know Democrats care about them, or
they're gonna be in big trouble.”
Last year’s featured speaker at the McIntyre-Shaheen 100 Club dinner
was Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who went on to become his party's vice
presidential nominee.
The annual event is especially significant among state Democratic
fundraisers given New Hampshire’s historic role holding the nation’s
first presidential primary, though Democrats last year moved South
Carolina ahead at the behest of former President Joe Biden.
The first 100 Club dinner was held in 1959 to promote the
presidential candidacy of John F. Kennedy. In 2020, speakers
included 10 Democratic candidates for president.
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Cappelletti reported from Saugatuck, Michigan.
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