What do you mean by this? Democrats wanted more Republicans on the campaign trail?
Liz Cheney et al. They didn’t start with that - that came later.
I see. I may need more coffee this morning.
Agreed. We can argue w. each other about what lessons of the past should the future prospects learn or unlearn when they become likely candidates
Back on subject, at this point the person most actively conducting himself as a public “Un-Trump” seems to be Newsom. Which does not mean necessarily he will be a frontrunner or even competitive come 2028, there’s been many seemingly good year-one Presidentiabiles who have not made it to the ticket in both parties. And must admit his parody tweets of 47’s own bizarre propaganda media are amusing, eventually he will have to move along but I can enjoy it for now.
The possible candidate I’m most disappointed about is Cory Booker. I’ve met the man briefly. I heard him speak years ago. When most of the NJ National Guard were deploying he spoke to us and our families before we went and when we came back. He was there as the mayor of Newark speaking on behalf of the mayors of the state. Both times he spoke with no notes. No teleprompter. He was eloquent and memorizing. I have never been in the presence of someone who spoke with such charisma. I was convinced that he would be president one day. It’s not that he’s bad on TV, but for some reason the full power of his speech does not come across as well as it does in person. At this point he would have to overcome being a loser in his previous campaign.
Booker came out for door to door confiscation of guns- “assault weapons.” This kinda thing won’t fly.
The current Republican party demonstrates that this is absolutely not a universal truism. It might be something that, in the current political climate, only works for Republicans - it’s possible insulting Democrats gets more Republican voters to the polls, while insulting Republicans makes Democratic voters stay home, but it’s abundantly clear that “insulting voters” is a viable strategy for at least half the country.
I urge everyone to read the full text of this speech.
I sense leadership here. Someone sticking his head above the crowd. Calling Trump out. Speaking plain truth.
And he is a straight white man–I believe this is essential to be elected in the USA. Like it or not, it’s a fact.
AND he is filthy rich.
Checks all my boxes. 
More on Pritzker from May, 2025. Not 100% positive this is a gift link.
This billionaire could unify the Democrats against Trump
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/05/05/pritzker-president-trump-resistance/
…
What’s so special about Pritzker? First of all, and most important, he’s more clear-eyed about Donald Trump and other Republicans than many in his party. Around the start of the president’s second term, when many Democratic politicians were rejecting the idea of another sustained resistance, Pritzker was already anticipating that Trump would govern in an authoritarian way and promising to be a bulwark against him. Others in the party now sound more like Pritzker did three months ago.But even as the administration destroys federal agencies and ignores judicial rulings, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, both Democrats from New York, have to be begged by activists to say or do anything really aggressive.
Not Pritzker. “Never before in my life have I called for mass protests, for mobilization, for disruption. But I am now. These Republicans cannot know a moment of peace,” the governor said in a speech last week in New Hampshire.
…
But Pritzker isn’t falling in with Democrats’ usual pattern of distancing themselves from marginalized communities whenever the party loses an election.
“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 in his New Hampshire speech.
…
Who else is speaking out against trump directly like this?
Thanks for posting this, @ThelmaLou . I just saw a brief clip of this. It was the part where Gov. Pritzker was saying “do not come to Chicago. You are not needed or wanted here”, and I thought, same as you, there’s someone who puts his people before his career.
Unlike some here, I quite like Gov. Newsom, but I know I’m biased, and I also know there are lots of folks that don’t like him or even the state of California, so I don’t think he has as good a shot as Pritzker.
Democratic Governors, take a damn lesson before it’s too late.
I’ve been a fan of Pritzker for a while now. There’s just something about him. Gravitas, Midwestern, good speaker, unholy amounts of money. I really like the idea of a class traitor billionaire paired up with the bartender-turned-progressive-firebrand AOC as the Dem ticket.
Concurred.
Or the incredibly erudite, unflappable, gay former Secretary of Transportation.
I would be just fine with either one.
Or the current Governor of Kentucky.
All three have the potential to be formidable tickets.
In long form discussions of the issues he’s hard to beat. Unfortunately most voters don’t listen to long form discussions of the issues.
For the most part, I like Pritzker as governor. He would certainly be a better president than Trump (but so would my dog.). I’d vote for him quite readily.
To the extent some folk seem to look for reasons to vote against certain candidates, how do you think his being overweight and Jewish would play in a general election? (Apologies if this was discussed upthread.)
Well he’s not svelte or athletic like Trump.
Gubernatorial candidates in Kentucky run in odd-numbered years. This explains why has won attorney general and gubernatorial races.. When people don’t vote, Democrats win.
Beshear has never run statewide in a high turnout year.If he is nominated by the Democrats, I doubt he can carry his state.
I do not think there is strong evidence that being Jewish is (or is not) a problem.
I just did some googling on the weight issue, and didn’t find strong evidence on that either.
It’s true that heavy people are judged negatively, but the judgmentalism is worse for female candidates.
Any Pritzker weight disadvantage, would be approximately as true in the primary season as in the general election. So if Pritzker could win the nomination, that suggests that, in his case, his weight does not much matter.
Pritzker should run. Let’s see how he does in the primary season debates.
Pritzker could just lie about his weight and say he’s at 224 pounds and find a shill of a doctor to state that he’s the healthiest person ever to run for president. I don’t see weight as being an issue. There’s no data on how a Jewish person would do in a presidential run. I just want to see someone run who’s a fighter. I’m tired of Democrats playing George McFly to the Republican Biff.
Khrushchev: The difference between the Soviet Union and China is that I rose from the peasant class, while you came from the privileged mandarin class.
Zhou Enlai: True. But there is this similarity. Each of us is a traitor to his class.