Politicon 2017: Cenk Uygur and Hasan Piker on the Democratic Party’s Chances Next Year (Video)
The Young Turks' Piker (left) and Uygur say the party needs to adopt a more progressive economic platform in preparation for the 2018 midterm elections.
The 2018 midterm elections may be over a year away, but that’s no time at all for liberals who have their eye on taking back control of Congress.
Though the Democratic Party’s plan to win Americans over with a platform based on economic justice is reportedly in the works, it’s going to take much more than a blueprint to sway voters.
Truthdig assistant editor Emma Niles landed an interview Sunday with “The Young Turks” commentators Hasan Piker and Cenk Uygur at the Pasadena Convention Center during Politicon 2017, the third go-round of the “unconventional political convention” in Southern California. Piker and Uygur figured prominently on a number of panels throughout the weekend, and the two journalists talked with Truthdig just before Uygur took the stage again for a highly anticipated debate with conservative commentator and former Breitbart editor Ben Shapiro.
Piker and Uygur weighed in on the future of the Democratic Party, the need for truly progressive economic policy, and partisan rhetoric in the age of President Trump. Watch the full conversation below:
WAIT, BEFORE YOU GO…
If you're reading this, you probably already know that non-profit, independent journalism is under threat worldwide. Independent news sites are overshadowed by larger heavily funded mainstream media that inundate us with hype and noise that barely scratch the surface. We believe that our readers deserve to know the full story. Truthdig writers bravely dig beneath the headlines to give you thought-provoking, investigative reporting and analysis that tells you what’s really happening and who’s rolling up their sleeves to do something about it.
Like you, we believe a well-informed public that doesn’t have blind faith in the status quo can help change the world. Your contribution of as little as $5 monthly or $35 annually will make you a groundbreaking member and lays the foundation of our work.
Something even bigger than policy was on the line in the 2018 midterms: the country's soul.
Even though the 2018 elections had the highest midterm voter turnout in half a century, fewer than half of eligible voters cast their ballots.
Among the positive signs from the recent midterm elections is the pushback against privatizating public education in the U.S.
Is packing the top court “necessary to save democracy”?
As the American president picks fights with allies such as French leader Emmanuel Macron, nationalism threatens to shatter Europe.