In Trump country, a Democrat critiques Trump — and talks of succeeding him

Democrat Andy Beshear has twice won election as governor of Kentucky — thriving in a state that has voted for Donald Trump three times.

Now Beshear is considering a run for president. He discussed what he believes Democrats need to change in an NPR all-platform interview, which included a video and special podcast episode, as well as reports on the Up First podcast and Morning Edition.

He has a lower national profile than another contender, California’s Gavin Newsom. He’s also less well known than some previous guests in the NPR interview series — JB Pritzker, Pete Buttigieg and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. But he has a credential others lack: winning statewide in a very red state. (A red commonwealth, to be exact; it’s the Commonwealth of Kentucky.) In a party eager for new leadership, he is 47.

Kentucky Republicans dismiss his success as a quirk: The son of a popular former governor, Beshear won races in 2019 and 2023, which were not presidential election years. Many of Trump’s backers stayed home. Still he received credit for his handling of the pandemic and a string of natural disasters. A major theme of our interview was how Democrats can improve their dismal showing among rural and red-state voters.

You can view the interview above. Here are some highlights:

He says Trump owns any damage from the government shutdown

Beshear took note of the president’s threat to permanently fire federal employees as a way to pressure Democrats.

“If he fires a bunch of people, it’s not because Democrats wouldn’t reach a deal. It’s because the president decides and actually fires people,” he said. “People aren’t a negotiating tool. They are not a prop. And that’s how he’s treating these families.”

Some political analysts have suggested that Democrats needed a shutdown, having failed in almost every other way to slow down Trump from enacting his agenda. Beshear said he supported the shutdown only because Democrats settled on an issue affecting millions of people: Obamacare subsidies that expire later this year.

He makes the case for nominating a Democrat from a red state

Beshear has sharply criticized Trump — calling his address this week to military leaders “un-American.” Yet, he told us that within his state “the temperature is turned down,” and in some cases people are “willing to vote for people of both parties.”

He says Democrats can win more votes if they show “respect”

Beshear won two elections in a state where many voters are socially conservative, and Republicans do not let him forget it. Months before the 2023 vote, the legislature passed a bill restricting care for transgender youth.

“And I knew they did it in part so that they could run tens of millions of dollars of negative ads if I vetoed it. But I did veto it because it was the right thing to do,” he said. “My faith teaches me that all children are children of God, and I didn’t want these kids being picked on.” He added that explaining the reason shows voters respect.

He argues that Democrats can bring more states back into play 

As recently as 2008, Democrats had senators from rural and red states ranging from Montana to Arkansas to North Carolina, achieving a 60-vote supermajority. In that year’s presidential election, Barack Obama won Iowa and Indiana. Today it’s hard for Democrats to conceive of winning a 51-seat Senate majority, and the electoral map for the next presidential election will again be a challenge.

“The Democratic Party needs to invest,” Beshear said, offering himself as proof that the party can win in unexpected places. “Democrats can win back voters in those rural areas, especially with what we’re seeing right now. But Democrats need to be the common sense, common ground, get results, type of party, one that spends 80% of its time on concerns that impact 100% of the American population.”

The radio version was produced and edited by Adam Bearne and Reena Advani, with digital editing by Majd Al-Waheidi.