What does Heather Cox Richardson say about Jon Ossoff and the 2028 Democratic field?

Heather Cox Richardson said the Democratic bench is incredibly deep and that she neither likes nor dislikes any candidate yet, because a ferment from below is still throwing up new people. She compared the moment to the 1850s, when Lincoln was a late entrant who rose through the 1858 Lincoln-Douglas debates. She said Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia is using an old formula of invoking the nation's founding principles and is now discussed as a presidential candidate.

• Scott Galloway said Ossoff gives off the most Camelot-like energy and that early poll leaders such as Gavin Newsom rarely win, citing Herman Cain, Rudy Giuliani and Fred Thompson.
• Galloway also named Andy Beshear, J.B. Pritzker, Wes Moore and Josh Shapiro as well positioned.

▸In their words

“The American people created Lincoln.” Heather Cox Richardson · at 46:31 — open in the transcript →

Source: our own transcription of the episode. The full conversation is on Pivot (2026-10-18). Read the whole episode summary →

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