Former Chicago Democratic Mayor Rahm Emanuel turned the spotlight back on his own party, saying that a number of recent policy positions had put Democrats at odds with a majority of Americans and proved that they had “lost the plot.”
Emanuel joined the “Fifth Column” podcast, hosted by Kmele Foster, Michael Moynihan, and Matt Welch, and said that, especially on several key cultural issues, Democrats had gone all in on positions that ultimately alienated some of their own voters.
WATCH:
Rahm Emanuel — Obama’s Chief of Staff, Clinton’s political director — just said it.
“We lost the plot.”
Emanuel: 50% of American kids aren’t reading at grade level. Reading and math scores at a 30-year low. The Democratic Party’s response was bathroom access and trans athletes… pic.twitter.com/VjvaZO08pc
— Jake (@JakeCan72) April 2, 2026
“We lost the plot,” he said. “We as Democrats nationally, from ‘Latinx,’ to defunding the police, to ‘police organizations are all racist,’ to bringing a set of cultural wars to our schools. We are on the losing side of those cultural wars. Full stop.”
“You are worried about bathroom access and locker room access. Why don’t you focus on classroom excellence?” Rahm asked, adding, “You have 50% of our kids not reading at grade level.”
One of the podcast hosts pushed back, saying that all Democrats had to do was address both topics at once: keep fighting the culture war while also addressing everyday issues like education, the economy, and health care.
“You’ve proven you can’t, because you’ve permitted a 30-year low in reading and math scores, and nobody seems to be calling the whistle on this,” Emanuel argued.
“We’ve lost the plot,” Emanuel said again, claiming that had happened “because the party got unanchored.”
Emanuel, who also previously served as White House Chief of Staff to former President Barack Obama, said that successful Democrats in the past had always been “anchored” to values or specific issues that resonated with everyday Americans. Instead, Emanuel argued, the party had in recent years embraced issues that undermined some of the core values it had held for decades.
“And I’ll just take one on that I shouldn’t,” Emanuel said. “So, here goes: I remember fighting for Title IX. The reason we are champions in women’s sports in the Olympics in soccer, hockey, is Title IX. Why would you undercut the premise of Title IX with the ability of trans [identifying] men playing in women’s sports?”
“To me, it’s insane! You’re undermining one of the great accomplishments we as a country, but also spearheaded by the Democratic Party, Title IX! And we’re undercutting it!” he exclaimed.
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