Political strategist James Carville weighed in on who he thinks could lead Democrats in 2028.
Carville ran through a list of potential candidates on Fox News contributor Raymond Arroyo’s show before ultimately settling on the billionaire governor of Illinois, J.B. Pritzker. And the reason he gave was interesting.
Carville, 81, first said neither former Vice President Kamala Harris nor Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez could win. “No Democrat wants anything to do with anybody that had anything to do with 2024,” he said of Harris.
Former Clinton and Obama White House official Rahm Emanuel would “have an effect on the dialogue,” he went on.
Carville then outlined the two “really important” factors to win the Democratic nomination. The first, he said, was raising money early in the campaign. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker could do that, he said.
But on the second point—who could be received well in a Black establishment—Pritzker had the edge.
“If I had to say one guy—I really don’t know him very superficially—but if I were like betting the Kentucky Derby and I saw this 12-to-1 horse and I said, ‘Yeah, I want to get a price,’ I’d take J.B. Pritzker,” he said.
To support his case, Carville mentioned Pritzker’s $1.4 million in gambling winnings in 2024 in a positive light. That, he said, would appeal to Black voters.
“They like him, man. He campaigns hard. I bet you there’s not a Black church in South Carolina that J.B.’s not part of the building fund committee,” Carville said. “He’s worth $3 billion and won a million and a half dollars shooting craps and blackjack in Las Vegas. That makes people like him.”
Carville added: “The young, disaffected Black males go, ‘S–t, this guy went up there and he had all that money and he fired it at them? If I had that kind of money, that’s exactly what I would do.’ Understand that.”
Regarding policy, Pritzker, 61, has strongly opposed the Trump administration on multiple fronts, in particular its immigration crackdown.
Pritzker has repeatedly clashed with Trump. In October last year, Trump called for Pritzker’s arrest, claiming he failed to protect ICE agents in Chicago.
“Let’s start with the idea that this is a convicted felon,” Pritzker told Chris Jansing Reports. “I got to say, this guy’s unhinged. He’s insecure. He’s a wannabe dictator.”
Their insults have even gotten personal, with Trump saying Pritzker “ought to spend more time at the gym.” Pritzker subsequently clapped back, “It takes one to know one on the weight question. And the president, of course, himself, is not in good shape. So, he ought to respond to that from me.”
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