Dan Turrentine Slams Democratic Leadership – No Strategy, No Authenticity
Dan Turrentine used his time on Mark Halperin’s 2Way to fire off some savage criticisms. Once a Democrat adviser, Turrentine now calls the party’s leadership out for having “zero strategy.” Short and simple, he isn’t holding back.
On a recent episode, he dished out an F for their performance. In his words, “They have no strategy. Both of them—F.” He didn’t spare Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer either, mocking his constant Twitter/X posts as cringey and totally inauthentic. This isn’t the time for sugarcoating.
Turrentine even warned that if Democrats can’t snag the House back in the midterms, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries might be shown the door. The message is clear: the party’s top dogs are floundering.
Below is a snippet straight from the discussion. All the quoted text is exactly as it was said:
MARK HALPERIN: Punchbowl News, a Washington insider publication, regularly looks at the leaders of both parties and ranks them. Let’s steal that idea just for today. Schumer and Jeffries—Dan, what letter grade would you give them for their performance so far in 2025? Letter grade for Schumer, letter grade for Jeffries, in terms of serving the interests of their party?
DAN TURRENTINE: F. They have no strategy. Both of them—F.
HALPERIN: Both of them an F?
TURRENTINE: They started unsure of where to go. They remain terrified of the base. They have no understanding of modern tactics in terms of how to organize and break through. And they have zero strategy. We’re heading into a budget negotiation this fall—after the disaster in March—and they still have no strategy.
HALPERIN: Sean, do you give them an F or an F-minus?
TURRENTINE: F-plus.
SEAN SPICER: Well, when I was in high school, we used to call it a “circle D.” That meant, “Mr. Spicer, you’re failing the class, but you try, so we’ll give you a pass.” I don’t even give them a circle D.
TURRENTINE: Yeah, they’re not trying.
SPICER: Dan’s right. It’s the definition of flailing—just throwing mud at a wall. Look at Schumer’s Twitter feed yesterday. He tweeted about Jim Crow, Epstein, inflation, tariffs…
TURRENTINE: Even his tweets read like a statement in the congressional gallery.
SPICER: Because they are!
TURRENTINE: There’s no authenticity, no humor—nothing that breaks through. Just dry and boring.
Watch the video embedded below to catch the full exchange:
Even if Turrentine carries a liberal label, his blunt critique speaks to anyone tired of underwhelming leadership. His words hit hard and make it clear – talk is cheap when there’s no real plan to win. Stay tuned.