A Democrat Who Is Thinking Differently | The Ezra Klein Show

After the elections, I started asking congressional Democrats the same question: If the elections had gone the other way, if they had won a trifecta, what would be their first big bill? In almost every case, they said they didn’t know. That’s a problem. Democrats are in the opposition now. That means fighting the worst of what Trump is doing. But it also means providing an alternative. So one thing I’m going to do this year is talk to Democrats who are trying to find that alternative — an agenda that meets the challenges of the moment, not just one carried from the past. Representative Jake Auchincloss of Massachusetts is the first up to bat. We spoke in January, so we don’t cover the latest Trump news. The conversation is really focused on his ideas, and he has a lot of interesting ones — about the abundance agenda, the attention economy and how Democrats should talk about policy during a second Trump term. I don’t necessarily agree with every idea he offers, but he’s definitely wrestling with that question I posed to other Democrats: What is your alternative? 0:00 Intro 1:56 Democrats and "Diet Coke" populism 8:00 Abundance agenda 11:35 Education 16:55 TikTok ban 22:15 Crypto corruption 29:24 Attention tax 36:50 Trump tax cuts & health care reform 49:14 Corporate and special interests 55:00 Democratic opposition to Trump 1:01:44 Book recommendations Read the full transcript here: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/18/op... Watch more on ‪@EzraKleinShow‬ Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com. You can find transcripts (posted midday) and more episodes of “The Ezra Klein Show” at nytimes.com/ezra-klein-podcast. Book recommendations from all our guests are listed at https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-....