2028 feels like an eternity from now - I know. In some ways, it’s hard to imagine the tyrant & chief will even allow elections (how crazy is that to think?), but the eternal optimist in me is still looking towards the future.
In that future, I’m wondering what’s next?
While we CONSTANTLY hear politicians say “this is the most consequential election of our lifetimes” (gets pretty old to hear every election), I believe they are finally right…but more importantly…
It’s not just who we elect in the general election of 2028, but who we choose in the primary that I believe is the most consequential.
Ro Khanna has been running for President for years now…not officially…but it’s obvious when you pay attention to the way he promotes himself.
I’m not against it. Politicians are always thinking about their next move & I’ve had my eye on Ro for years now.
He’s been heavily leaning into the independent media landscape. He appears on independent media shows very often & has never been afraid to take stances that most in the party shy away from.
He was a part of Bernie Sanders’ 2020 campaign, and since being in Congress, has routinely advocated for progressive policies. He’s one of the few members of the House that has openly called for Medicare for all.
That’s not to say he’s perfect (I don’t believe in politician worship), but more times than not I have found him on the right side of the issues.
He’s one of the few Democrats calling for ICE to be dismantled, but it sounds like he wants to “replace” it with another agency. This is something I personally do not agree with, but his stance on ICE is way better than most Democrats.
In the video above, he showed up to Minnesota today, to be in the protests with people against ICE. Something that many Democrats representing Minnesota haven’t even done yet.
Most recently, he along with Republican Tom Massie, have led the charge on getting the Epstein Files released. While they’ve been met with heavy resistance from the regime, they have made ground while others were willing to abandon the cause all together.
I write all of this to make this point:
At some point we will have to examining our future potential nominees. It feels like a lifetime away, but that day will come.
When it does, a lot of Democrats will throw their name into the ring. I expect that AT LEAST these Democrats will run in 2028:
Gavin Newsom
Gretchen Whitmer
Pete Buttigieg
Kamala Harris
Josh Shapiro
J.B. Pritzker
Tim Walz
Cory Booker
And I’m sure several members of the House & Senate will also join the group. Names with the most popularity will vault to the front of the pack, but I hope that when that day comes, you’ll also consider Ro Khanna.
Now more than ever, I truly believe we need a progressive to lead this party.
Someone who will prioritize working people.
Someone who will call out fascism directly, not have sympathizers on their podcast cough cough Gavin Newsom.
Someone who will understand that billionaires need to be confronted, not cozied up to.
What I’m the most afraid of - is sending another corporate friendly Democrat out there, just to watch them maintain the status quo, and watch them give rise to another fascist in 2032.
Moving beyond this moment in time isn’t just about defeating MAGA, it’s also about redefining the Democratic Party.
Or else this cycle will loop indefinitely.
I don’t know that Ro Khanna is definitely the leader we need, but as of right now, given the candidates I expect to run, he feels like the closest representation to the values we need in the White House.
Until next time,
Desmond
P.S. I wanted to make this post MUCH longer, but definitely wanted to save some of my thoughts for future posts.
The conversation around saving our country is a complicated & nuanced one. I don’t want to pretend for a second that anything about this topic is simplistic. However, I do believe that the equation must include transforming the Democratic Party, if we are to truly defeat MAGA.
MAGA was able to seduce so many less-informed Americans off the backs of their “the country is broken” rhetoric.
And while MAGA had no intention of ever fixing what was broken, or truly changing the status quo, the assessment that the country is broken…is correct. Which is why it was easy for so many to be corrupted by that talking point.
My fear is, we will send ANY Democrat to represent us in 2028, just to defeat the MAGA threat…only to find ourselves replaying the same cycle of the last decade all over again.
Breaking that loop requires a better choice this time around. We cannot settle for just anyone. If we pick someone based on nothing more than “they have the best chance to win”, we will be doomed to repeat this cycle again.
We cannot afford that outcome.
The next fascist will be worse than Trump.
