Illinois Governor JB Pritzker joins Marc Elias for a candid, wide-ranging conversation about governing through constant crisis and confronting the growing threat to American democracy. Pritzker reflects on balancing Illinois’ budget, leading through COVID, responding to the migrant crisis, and pushing back against what he describes as Donald Trump’s authoritarian tactics—from ICE and CBP raids in Chicago to attacks on civil liberties and democratic norms. Drawing on Holocaust history and his own life experience, he explains how democracies erode and why the danger is real. Looking ahead to 2026, Pritzker argues that while democracy is the foundational issue of our time, elections are won on kitchen-table concerns like wages, rent, healthcare, and affordability, sharply criticizing Trump’s tariffs as hidden taxes on working families. The interview offers a clear-eyed look at leadership, values, and what it will take to defend democracy and win going forward.

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