NPR

Meet The Democrat Who Was The First To Declare A 2020 Presidential Bid

Former Maryland Congressman John Delaney, who declared his candidacy in July 2017, tells Here & Now's Jeremy Hobson about what his priorities would be as president.
Rep. John Delaney, D-Md., speaks to fairgoers during a visit to the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, Iowa, on Aug. 10, 2018. (Charlie Neibergall/AP)

Former Maryland Congressman John Delaney was in the 2020 presidential race before it even was one. The Democrat declared his candidacy in July 2017.

Delaney (@JohnKDelaney) tells Here & Now’s Jeremy Hobson that he first thought about running for president after Hillary Clinton lost the 2016 election to Donald Trump.

“That moment made me say, ‘We have to think differently about everything,’ ” Delaney says. “We really need to move to a bit of a post-partisan world where we actually start solving problems and stop kind of living in a country where the political leaders act like half the country is entirely wrong about everything they believe and increasingly try to pit American against American.”

While he admits it’s impossible for Americans to agree on everything, Delaney says politicians should focus on what they actually do agree on, and get politics back to what it is meant to be: “a debate of ideas.”

“There’s a long list of things where I

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from NPR

NPR2 min read
UAW Strike At Daimler Truck Averted At 11th Hour
More than 7,000 Daimler Truck workers, most of them in North Carolina, had threatened to go on strike. The UAW says the workers will get raises of at least 25% plus cost of living allowances.
NPR4 min readSocial History
What Abortion Politics Has To Do With New Rights For Pregnant Workers
A new regulation to protect the rights of pregnant workers is the subject of an anti-abortion lawsuit because it includes abortion as a pregnancy "related medical condition."
NPR2 min read
Biden Administration Abandons Plan To Ban Menthol Cigarettes, Citing 'Feedback'
An anti-smoking advocate says the decision to leave menthol cigarettes on the market "prioritizes politics over lives, especially Black lives."

Related Books & Audiobooks