The president cautioned that his opponents will have to change: ‘They’re the party of some real bad things.’
President Donald Trump said Feb. 19 that he will meet with some Democratic officials in the coming days to discuss opportunities for collaboration.
“I’m going to be having lunch with some of the Democrats next week, and it would be wonderful if we could work together,” Trump told a crowd of about 700, made up of high-profile finance leaders and influential investors in Miami at the Future Investment Initiative Institute conference.
He expressed guarded optimism while also cautioning that some of his political opponents’ ideologies are in need of adjustment.
“I think working together would be great. But they have to change,” Trump said. “And I think they’ll change. … You can’t get elected on the programs that they want.”
The president pointed to his decisive margin of victory in the election—winning the popular vote and all six swing states, and securing shifts to the right in many states and counties across the country—as evidence that the Republicans’ messaging is resonating with the American people.
“We’re the party of common sense, and they’re the party of some real bad things,” Trump said.
It remains unclear which lawmakers the president plans to meet with, though some have already expressed a willingness to work with him.
Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) met with Trump at the president’s Florida home, Mar-a-Lago, in January shortly after the inauguration. California Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna also told other media outlets earlier this year that he was open to any discussions that could benefit his constituents.
Other Democrats, including New York Sen. Chuck Schumer and New Jersey Sen. Andy Kim, have expressed a reluctance to work with Trump but would consider a meeting under certain conditions.
During a wide-ranging speech and Q&A session that spanned nearly an hour and a half, the president addressed the audience at the investment gathering with a talk meant to drum up business and create opportunities.
Founded by the Saudi royal family, the institute aims to bring together “the brightest minds and most promising solutions to serve humanity.”
The three-day conference included discussions on education, health care, sustainability, and artificial intelligence and robotics, among other topics.
Trump’s talk marks the first appearance at one of the institute’s events by a U.S. president and comes on the heels of news that he secured $600 billion—a number that both sides have suggested could eventually top $1 trillion—in investment from Saudi Arabia into the U.S. economy.
During his first term, Trump visited the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh in 2017—his first foreign trip as executive in chief.