Interview Only w/ Neera Tanden - The Democratic Party's Credibility Problem — And How to Fix It

Neera Tanden — president and CEO of the Center for American Progress and a longtime Democratic policy hand — joins the Chuck Toddcast for an unusually candid reckoning with where the party went wrong and what it actually needs to do next. Tanden doesn't soften the verdict: Democrats' one job in 2024 was to keep Trump out of office, and they failed, in part because the establishment let the Biden campaign go on far too long and has consequently lost credibility it hasn't earned back. She argues that in an era where every election is close, Democrats shouldn't be satisfied chasing narrow wins — the actual goal should be a decisive Electoral College victory built around a genuine 60% coalition, especially now that even longtime Trump supporters are starting to break away. Tanden is refreshingly specific on policy: she defends incrementalism as the proven Democratic playbook (the ACA and Biden's Medicare drug price negotiations both succeeded that way, while Medicare for All keeps stalling because people are fundamentally change-averse), argues entrenched Washington interests can block even a clear majority's will, and wants Democrats to build their economic message explicitly around working-class anxieties.They discuss the sharp moral case for the estate tax while cautioning that a wealth tax is nearly impossible to administer fairly year to year and would almost certainly be struck down by this Supreme Court. The conversation turns to the internal Democratic civil war and the road to 2026 and beyond. Tanden argues there's no rise of the DSA without Trump's return, frames the Michigan Senate primary as the real petri-dish test for the left, and is blunt that Democrats in swing states need to remember they're in swing states. She calls for a real, honest autopsy of 2024, and lays out her vision for a Democratic trifecta in 2027: pass bills that directly address the cost of living, investigate the administration's corruption and recognize that Trump's entire contract with his base rests on the promise that he can never lose.  Play ball and swing for the fences on FanDuel, an official partner of the MLB at https://FANDUEL.COM.  Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Get up to $3 million in coverage in as little as 10 minutes at https://ethos.com/chuck. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. 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Please contact Medicare.gov, 1-800-Medicare, or your local State Health Insurance Program (SHIP) to get information on all of your options.    Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Neera Tanden joins the Chuck ToddCast 01:00 Developing ideas for the country’s biggest problems 02:30 Democrats have real anger with the Trump administration 03:30 Democrats job was to keep Trump out of office & they failed 05:00 Pelosi thought Biden would lose and chose to act, but too late 06:00 The establishment allowed the Biden campaign to go on too long 06:30 The establishment has less credibility than in the past 07:15 Longtime Trump supporters are starting to break away from him 08:30 Every election is close, never enough for repudiation 09:15 Goal should be a large scale electoral college victory 11:00 The opportunity to build a 60% coalition 13:00 The problems America faces seem to big for incrementalism 15:45 The success of the ACA came via incrementalism 16:30 Medicare drug price negotiation was a huge win for Biden 17:30 Problem with Medicare-for-all is people are changing averse 18:30 Entrenched interests in Washington can stop a majority  21:30 Dems should organize messaging to include more working class people 22:00 Why do we have a trillionaire when people are struggling with basics? 22:45 Working class people are more sensitive to crime issues 24:00 People are worried about the wealthy having too much power 25:30 Inheritance tax would help prevent oligarchy 27:00 People are pessimistic their kids won’t do better than them 27:30 It feels like the social contract has been eroded in America 29:00 If you believe in merit, you should believe in the estate tax 30:00 A wealth tax is hard to evaluate year to year 30:45 Supreme Court unlikely to find wealth tax constitutional 31:45 State wealth taxes are not a good idea 33:30 Democracy is undermined when there’s an economic nobility 35:00 Attitudes toward inequality were different in the 90s, every group doing better 37:15 There’s no rise of the DSA without the return of Trump 38:00 Michigan primary will be the petri dish test for the left 39:45 Democrats in swing states need to remember they’re swing states 40:30 Liberals in Texas thought Talarico was more electable 42:30 Progressives winning in blue cities isn’t that big of an issue 43:15 DSA needs to be cognizant that they would struggle in swing states 45:00 Democratic leadership has stayed the same 46:15 Democrats needs to do a real autopsy on 24 47:00 Harris being on the ticket saved the Democrats 4 senate seats 49:00 If Dems win both chambers, how should they spend 2027? 49:45 Dems should pass bills that address the cost of living 50:15 The administration’s corruption needs to be investigated 51:30 SCOTUS basically gave Trump a pass for illegality, Dems can’t do much 52:45 Republicans are starting to break, but they tolerate the intolerable 55:15 Trump’s contract with his base is that he can’t lose 56:30 Which under the radar senate race do you find most fascinating? 57:45 Amy Acton in Ohio will be the canary in the coalmineSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.