EPISODE · May 17, 2026 · 23 MIN
The Bethlehem Project: Democrats battle over their party’s future
from FT News Briefing
Democrats are looking for a bit of a rebrand after losing the White House and both houses of Congress in 2024. They have an opportunity this November to test out some new types of candidates. In a critical swing district in Pennsylvania, the party establishment has coalesced around a progressive, blue-collar candidate named Bob Brooks. The other frontrunner in the race, Ryan Crosswell, represents a very different vision for winning over swing voters. He’s a former Republican and former federal prosecutor who’s more centrist. Host Sonja Hutson travels to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, to interview the candidates and ask party activists where they fall in the electability debate. Listen to all episodes of The Bethlehem Project here. Mentioned in this podcast:Dousing the DC ‘dumpster fire’: Democrats battle over party’s futureThe Bethlehem Project is hosted and produced by Sonja Hutson and edited by Marc Filippino. The show was mixed by Sam Giovinco. Lauren Fedor contributed reporting. Our executive producer is Topher Forhecz. Special thanks to Pierre Nicholson.Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
What this episode covers
Democrats are looking for a bit of a rebrand after losing the White House and both houses of Congress in 2024. They have an opportunity this November to test out some new types of candidates. In a critical swing district in Pennsylvania, the party establishment has coalesced around a progressive, blue-collar candidate named Bob Brooks. The other frontrunner in the race, Ryan Crosswell, represents a very different vision for winning over swing voters. He’s a former Republican and former federal prosecutor who’s more centrist. Host Sonja Hutson travels to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, to interview the candidates and ask party activists where they fall in the electability debate. Listen to all episodes of The Bethlehem Project here. Mentioned in this podcast:Dousing the DC ‘dumpster fire’: Democrats battle over party’s futureThe Bethlehem Project is hosted and produced by Sonja Hutson and edited by Marc Filippino. The show was mixed by Sam Giovinco. Lauren Fedor contributed reporting. Our executive producer is Topher Forhecz. Special thanks to Pierre Nicholson.Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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The Bethlehem Project: Democrats battle over their party’s future
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