We're six days into what could spiral into World War III, and only 20 members of Congress think maybe Trump shouldn't have unilateral war powers. Meanwhile, Democratic leadership keeps pushing the same losing "moderate" strategy.

In this episode, I explain why the anti-war position IS the moderate position Democrats should embrace. Trump's base is already splitting over potential war with Iran - Tucker Carlson and Steve Bannon are warning it would "end Trump's presidency." But instead of capitalizing on this, Democrats are following AIPAC scripts and proposing bailout funds for a healthcare system that's bleeding us dry.

If Democrats want to stop losing to convicted felons, they need to become the party that delivers for working people - not the party that delivers bombs and corporate bailouts.

We also dive into the healthcare crisis (projected $77 trillion in spending over the next decade), why privatization has failed, and what it would actually look like for Democrats to present a vision of government that works.

Live from the No Kings protest in Knoxville, I join Steve Schmidt to report on something I didn't expect to see in East Tennessee - 5,000 people in the streets, including Trump voters who feel betrayed.

In this conversation, I share what protesters told me on the ground:

• Trump voters saying "this isn't what I voted for" as ICE raids hit their neighbors
• A WWII vet on a walker saying he's fighting fascism again
• Why even bodybuilders and construction workers showed up
• The fear spreading through Latino communities that make up 12-13% of our towns

Steve and I dig into the bigger picture:

• Why the Democratic Party is still less popular than Republicans (even now)
• How Tennessee went from 5 Democratic House members to the worst delegation in Congress
• Why I told Steve the only way Democrats win in Tennessee is by running AGAINST the Democratic establishment
• The party's lack of identity beyond "not Trump"

We also talk about what Tennessee used to be - a state built by federal programs like TVA and the Manhattan Project. Programs that actually built things. Oak Ridge is 10 miles from my house, still prosperous because of government investment. But I'm 44 and haven't seen the federal government build anything lasting here since the interstate system.

My take: Democrats have become a decline management party. We need to stop managing decline and start building again. There's nothing inherently incapable about us as a people - we built the TVA, we won WWII with American manufacturing, NASA developed the tech SpaceX uses.

The MAGA movement needs to be defeated and buried. But the mechanism we have to do that - the Democratic Party - is broken in places like Tennessee.

This is about more than one protest. It's about whether we're going to rebuild something meaningful or just keep managing the decline.

Recorded January 2025 from Knoxville, Tennessee.

Two Democratic operatives from different wings of the party hash out what went wrong and where we go from here. Mike Nellis (White Guys for Kamala founder, 20-year Democratic strategist) and Corbin Trent (former AOC comms director, Bernie 2016 organizer) find surprising common ground despite their establishment vs. progressive divide.

From their shared Bernie 2016 origins to their current split on strategy, they tackle:

• Why Democrats keep losing working-class voters
• The $77 trillion healthcare disaster no one's addressing
• Consumer debt crisis: Americans financing groceries with Klarna
• AI's threat to manufacturing jobs (and who will own the robots)
• The Democratic Party's fatal communication problem
• Should we primary Hakeem Jeffries? (They disagree)
• Why primaries make Democrats stronger
• Building a Marshall Plan for America

Key revelations:

• Tennessee had 5/9 Democratic House members when Obama won
• Bottom 80% of Americans spend over 100% of income on essentials
• 50-60% of consumer spending comes from the top 1%
• Half of Congress in 1950s didn't have college degrees

This isn't your typical left vs. center shadowboxing - it's two strategists who want to win having an honest conversation about how.