In a country where political polarization increases each year, two experts on the topic — from opposite sides of the political spectrum — took part in a lively discussion at the Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek, proving that the roots of friendship can run deeper than the divide.

Veteran Democratic political strategist Donna Brazile and George Will, a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and author, sat down with KTVU Fox 2’s Greg Lee during the Lesher Foundation’s Newsmakers: Lesher Speaker Series on March 31. Both assured the packed theater that the country and its citizens will make it through this period of political uncertainty and heightened polarization. 

“The American people are not angry. They’re exhausted and they’re embarrassed,” Will said. “The political problem is to keep the peace … keep the peace between people of strong opinions and a strong preference for their own opinions.”

“The politics of hope is around the corner, but you cannot see around the corner unless you get up and start walking and you find yourself at the intersection,” said Brazile about what she believes it will take to get there. “Either you go across or you turn back, and we’re at that intersection, and we have to keep moving — we cannot go back, and we have to learn how to listen to one another. 

“We cannot say all MAGA people are bad and all Democrats are bad,” she continued. “That’s not the way to solve it.”

Local residents Chris and Sue Wulff said the speakers’ discussion left them feeling positive about the future.

“It gave me a little more hope that things might be able to change,” Chris Wulff said. “We heard George Will talk a couple of years ago and he started off the night saying he was gonna make us go breathless. This was a different outcome tonight.”

“I thought he gave us more happiness,” Sue Wulff said. “I liked it very much.”

Brazile and Will spoke third in the 2025 Newsmakers: Lesher Speaker Series. At each event, a local nonprofit also is featured for its impact on the community. This evening’s spotlight shined on Tech Exchange — an Oakland-based organization that gives families, schools and community organizations donated computers that they have refurbished.

The Lesher Foundation has invited fan favorites to this year’s series in commemoration of its 20th season. Board President Steve Lesher said the decision to bring together Brazile and Will was based on their personal relationship outside of analyzing the current political landscape.

“They’ve been here before and had a good reception, but also because they have such a good rapport with each other. And we want it to be a discussion and not a debate,” Lesher said. “I do expect they’ll disagree about some things. I’d be disappointed if they didn’t.”

When asked by moderator Lee how her relationship with Will was formed, Brazile shared that she started reading his columns as early as the late 1970s. In the early 2000s, she got to work alongside Will after becoming a panelist on ABC News’ Sunday morning program, “This Week.”

“I was so doggone nervous. It’s one thing to read George Will, but to meet him? I was scared, I didn’t know what to expect,” Brazile said. “He could quote Madison, and I could quote Malcolm X. There was such an imbalance there.”

Brazile said those nerves were replaced with the fun she had being on the panel, learning something new and important every Sunday from people with different political views.

“I also learned what I didn’t know and I needed to know, being with George Will,” Brazile said.

‘Deep breath’ candidate

During the 90-minute event, Will — who continues to write a twice-weekly column on politics and domestic and foreign affairs for The Washington Post – said he believes the boundaries of presidential power have been pushed by the last four presidents; he wishes to see the next commander-in-chief do something “unnatural” in politics.

“My dream is that the next president says ‘I’m not gonna give a State of the Union address,’” said Will, describing what he sees as a “disgusting spectacle” of a political pep rally on the House floor “with people jumping up on their hind legs to cheer and other people sitting there pouting.”

“Both parties need new blood, and they’re gonna get it,” Will said, describing the next president as a ‘deep-breath’ candidate. “One person’s gonna come forward, in one party or the other, and make Americans feel good again. That is, they’re gonna come forward to be a deep-breath candidate saying, ‘Deep breath, everybody.’”

Brazile was the first African American woman to serve as the manager of a major party’s presidential campaign, running the campaign of former Vice President Al Gore. She previously served as interim chair of the Democratic National Committee and is a current member of the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee. Her thoughts on how her party felt during — and since — the 2024 presidential election is why she says this “deep-breath candidate” will fall outside of the norm.

“Democrats are tired of being defeated, they’re tired of being in disarray, and they’re ready to fight back,” she said. “Don’t look for Washington Democrats to lead us out of this wilderness — it’s gonna come from ‘we the people.’”  

A seat at the table

Brazile’s old boss, Shirley Chisholm — who was the first Black woman elected to Congress, as well as the first woman and African American to seek the nomination for president of the United States from one of the two major political parties — told her, “If you come into a room and find yourself without a seat, just bring in a folding chair.” Brazile has carried this advice with her.

“Throughout my life, I have brought in folding chairs, and even when I got a chance to have a seat at the table, I made sure that I made room for others,” Brazile said. “We have to make room for other people. This is about ensuring the next generation carries a torch, and the torch of America is a great torch.

“There’s no one person or no one entity that will make America great or strong,” Brazile added. “It’s all of us combined together, and we have to make sure that everyone understands that they have a seat at the table.”

Loujain Habibi is a 12th grader at Liberty High School in Brentwood. Contra Costa Youth Journalism coverage of the Newsmakers series is made possible by support from the Lesher Foundation and the Bay City News Foundation. Stories are produced independently by the CCYJ news team.