Can the Democratic Party be an "opposition" party? .............

[socialist_n_TN]

Or are they doomed by their history and their instincts to only be a "compromise" party.

I don't have much hope that they can oppose Trump, at least not in the same way that the Republicans opposed Obama. The nature of the Dems is to "compromise", so I expect them to "compromise" away some of the more restrictive and more blatantly offensive parts of the right-wing agenda and then vote for it.

Are there any signs that they are ready to go into full scale "opposition" mode? Not only in elected offices, but also among the rank-and-file who consider themselves to be Democrats.