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The guest host for today's show is Brad Bannon. Brad runs Bannon Communications Research, a polling, message development and media firm which helps labor unions, progressive issue groups and Democratic candidates win public affairs and political campaigns. His show, 'Deadline D.C. with Brad Bannon,' airs every Monday from 3-4pm ET.
Brad is first joined by Sarah Jones, Editor-in-Chief of PoliticusUSA, to break down the sweeping results of the 2026 midterm elections and what they could mean for the future of American politics.
Jones argues that the outcome was about more than dissatisfaction with Donald Trump personally. She sees it as a broader rejection of MAGA politics and conservative economic policies that she says have favored billionaires while leaving many Americans struggling with costs such as gasoline and everyday expenses.
Brad and Sarah also discuss the scale of Democratic gains, surprising results in traditionally Republican states, stronger Democratic performance among rural voters, and the possibility that some Republican voters crossed party lines. Jones describes the election as a historic political shift rather than a typical midterm wave.
The conversation also turns to women’s political gains, abortion rights, the minimum wage, billionaire and dark-money spending, and what the results could mean for figures such as Josh Shapiro, Elon Musk and the Republican Party heading toward 2028.
Brad is then joined by political scientist John Kenneth White, co-author of Democracy on the Edge: The Trump Elections and the Future of American Politics, to examine the 2026 midterm results and what they could mean for the future of both major parties and American democracy.
White characterizes the election as a major repudiation of Donald Trump and argues that the Trump movement’s setbacks were largely self-inflicted. Brad and John discuss voter dissatisfaction over the economy, health care, tariffs and foreign policy, as well as emerging divisions between Trump, Vice President JD Vance and different factions of the Republican Party.
The conversation then looks ahead to 2028, including possible fractures between MAGA and more traditional Republicans, generational changes in the electorate and the growing prominence of a new generation of political leaders. They also examine what the midterms could mean for the Democratic presidential field, including the potential importance of governors and candidates who have demonstrated an ability to appeal across traditional political divides.
Finally, Brad and John return to the central question posed by Democracy on the Edge: what happens to American democracy next? White argues that election results alone are not enough, and that Congress will need to reclaim constitutional powers that have increasingly shifted toward the presidency. They discuss war powers, congressional control of funding and the potential for a newly empowered Congress to impose greater checks on presidential authority.
Brad is on the National Journal's panel of political insiders, is an American political analyst for The Times of India TV, and is a national political analyst for WGN TV and Radio in Chicago and KNX Radio in Los Angeles. Brad also writes a political column every Sunday for 'The Hill.'
You can read his new Substack called, 'The Bannon Ballot Blast,' at www.bradbannon.substack.com.
His handle on BlueSky is @bradbannon.bsky.social.
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