JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
Democrats from across the country gathered today in Washington to hold a conference about their future. They met at the left-leaning Center for American Progress with the goal of creating an agenda for the future. This is how Congressman Greg Casar of Texas explained it.
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GREG CASAR: If all we do is accountability but don't also do affordability work, then I think we'll have failed.
SUMMERS: NPR senior national political correspondent Mara Liasson was there, and she joins us now. Hi.
MARA LIASSON, BYLINE: Hi there.
SUMMERS: So, Mara, I mean, this event essentially was Democrats talking amongst themselves on a public stage. What about that was interesting to you?
LIASSON: What's really interesting to me is this project that Democrats have, which is to come up with a positive program, something other than just relying on running against President Trump. Now, that may not be super crucial for the midterms, which are a referendum on the incumbent party and the president. But looking ahead to 2028, Democrats believe it's really important that they have an actual affirmative agenda, and I was very curious about what that would look like.
SUMMERS: OK. Well, what did you learn? What did it look like? What did it sound like?
LIASSON: It sounds like they're at the beginnings of creating this agenda, but they have been identifying the problems they want to solve. They talked about restoring voting rights, making sure corruption doesn't take over, passing ethics laws - not just norms, but ethics laws that would prevent presidents from enriching themselves from taxpayer dollars. We also heard a lot about housing. That's the No. 1 middle-class frustration. It's too hard to build and too expensive to buy. California Governor Gavin Newsom, who's a potential presidential candidate, talked about a new social compact.
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GAVIN NEWSOM: I think we would do very well talking, as FDR talked in 1944, about a new social compact, talking about a floor where no one falls below, talking to that blue-collar and white-collar worker that are both asking the same question - what happens when I do fall? Will you be there to hold me up?
LIASSON: In addition to that, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren was there talking about childcare, which is a perennial Democratic goal, but she's talking about a massive new entitlement, universal childcare. She called it public infrastructure, and that could also become a part of the Democrats' new social compact.
SUMMERS: OK. Mara, though, a new social compact - that is a pretty broad idea. What does it mean in specifics?
LIASSON: I think it means it's a promise from the government to people that says we are not going to let you fall into poverty. There will be a social safety net there to catch you. And one of the reasons that blue-collar and white-collar people are so worried about the future is AI, and that's something that Democrats are wrestling with. The CEO of Anthropic AI said half of all entry-level white-collar jobs could be eliminated in the next four to five years. If that happens, Democrats want to figure out that they have an answer to that. Do they support the concept of universal basic income, which is kind of like welfare or an unemployment check? Or do they want something that some of the panelists talked about as universal basic capital, where the public would hold a stake in these big AI companies?
SUMMERS: Now, it's one thing to identify the problems they want to fix, but as you and I know well, it's another thing to actually pitch solutions for those problems. Do Democrats agree on the next step at this point?
LIASSON: Not necessarily, but I think that after the midterms are over, this debate will occur inside the Democratic presidential primary, and an agenda will emerge from there. This is a time when people are feeling economically precarious. They're very pessimistic about the future. You just heard Gavin Newsom talk about blue-collar and white-collar people. Both of them have the same anxieties. He said that white-collar/blue-collar group could be a new coalition for Democrats. And we know from polls that more and more voters are seeing - are being open to government assistance and activism, and many Democrats see that as an opportunity for their party.
SUMMERS: NPR's Mara Liasson, thanks as always.
LIASSON: You're welcome. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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