Donald Trump has given Democrats a lot of reason to worry, maybe even panic.

But for this longtime thinker and strategist at the center of the party, the path forward is becoming clear.

We're out of power. We can't get anything done. But at least we need to be able to articulate a coherent narrative about the future.

Doug Sosnik is best known for being a top advisor to Bill Clinton.

He's been in the private sector for years now.

And during much of that time, he's been writing splashy memos about the state of American politics

that can really get the town talking.

He's given his newest one to Politico exclusively, check it out in the playbook newsletter,

and it might be a tough pill for Democrats to swallow. But it's not all bad news. In fact,

Democrats might have some opportunities coming soon. Well, I think the success for Democrats

going to be our leaders in America, not our leaders in Washington.

I talked to Sosnik Thursday morning about where he thinks the Democrats are messing up,

where Trump has them chasing their tail, and what or who is their best chance to regain the White House in 2028. The long-term solution for our party is going to sink or swin based on who we nominate for president

and whether or not they win the elections.

I'm Dasha Burns, and this is Playbook Deep Dive.

So you've seen the politics of old, and now you're witnessing the politics of new.

You've got this set of slides out, some information that you want to share with the party, with the voters, with the political class.

What was the goal of putting this information together?

Well, I used to say in the run-up to the 2024 election, you can't understand the 2024 election tree if you don't understand the forest that it's sitting in.

And we're going through an historic period of transition in our country, and it's in real time. And it roots back

50 years or so in the early 1970s with the beginning of the decline of the middle class in America.

And in combination with that, I think, is a feeling by a lot of people, a feeling of alienation

...