Hey folks, it’s Cliff.
Chris Peleo-Lazar—Chris Matthews’ producer guest hosting—invited me on the big show.
It was a bit surreal seeing a guy whose papers I once graded (during those heady days working on my American History PhD, which became ABD) tossing me Hardball-style questions on live TV. (Don’t worry, Chris—you were reasonable enough you get to keep the A-minus.)
We dove right into the meat of it: how the Democratic Party lost its appetite for a good fight. I talked about the new Roosevelt Institute report, which lays it out plain—Democrats became the “steady-as-she-goes” party while Republicans went full demolition derby on the rule of law—and that massively harmed democracy.
My message? Have the damn fight. Stop treating Mitch McConnell like he’s a disappointed headmaster. The filibuster isn’t scripture; it’s a relic that keeps progress hostage.
We talked about Project 2025—Trump’s little fascist starter kit—and how Democrats need an FDR-sized spine to counter it. FDR didn’t whine about the courts; he stared them down until they blinked.
That’s the model. Build new institutions, break up monopolies, take on billionaires and remind working people government can still be a force for good.
I may have gotten a little animated—shocking, I know—when we hit the billionaire beat.
Because while regular Americans are juggling rent and childcare, the ultra-rich are playing “cyborg wedding Barbie” with 50-million-dollar ceremonies. It’s grotesque, and why both populism and fighting billionaire-owned Republicans aren’t dirty words for Democrats—they’re about the survival of the republic.
Chris tried to lighten it up by picking a pizza fight. He’s a Chicago deep-dish guy; I’m strictly New York slice. I told him deep-dish is lasagna with PR. He laughed, but I could see the pain behind his eyes.
We ended where I always like to end: hope. Real, stubborn hope. The kind Gretchen Whitmer, Andy Beshear, and Sherrod Brown embody every time they show up, speak plainly, and refuse to back down.
Authenticity and courage still win—if we’re willing to fight like we mean it. And hey, another guy who has these? Michigan Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist, running to be Governor in 2026—we had him on Amped Up yesterday.
We showed how Garlin is out there fighting like a real leader right now—kind of like this guy, who I wrote about just two days ago. Newsom has taken his mockery of Trump sycophants to a whole other level.
Gavin Newsom Torches Trump Cultists With Epic Mockery
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If you want to dig deeper, revisit my earlier conversations: Nina Burleigh on the Epstein machine and Dana DuBois on sexism and the patriarchy. They’re all part of the same struggle: truth versus the comfortable lie.
At Blue Amp Media, that’s what we’re building—a loud, unbought, un-bossed movement to save democracy from the wrecking crew. So subscribe, share, and stay mad in the most productive way possible. Because this isn’t Hardball anymore. It’s something harder.
— Cliff
