Layla Zaidane is the president and CEO of the Millennial Action Project.
The most effective lawmakers are the ones who know how to work well with others. This might seem simple, but in a time of intense disagreement and polarization, it can be a forgotten truth. Over the last two decades, our politics has been defined by partisanship and gridlock. It has boosted the careers of some politicians in the short term, yet that style doesn’t deliver results for real people over the long term. But good news: a few weeks ago, young lawmakers across America joined together to publicly buck the trend of performative partisanship and demonstrate that a better way to make policy is possible.
Through Millennial Action Project (MAP)’s network of local chapters, called Future Caucuses, Gen Z and millennial lawmakers are already building bridges and working on policy solutions together. Elected officials ranging from progressive to conservative are a part of these effective groups, and today we count 34 Future Caucuses and 1,600 young lawmakers as a part of this movement.
Every year, MAP hosts a National Week of Action to catalyze action among members of the Future Caucus. It’s a week dedicated to mobilizing young lawmakers from all corners of the country — in Congress and in state legislatures — to showcase examples of good governance, and build a new narrative around what effective collaboration looks like.
This past March, young lawmakers nationwide led the most successful Week of Action yet. Throughout the week, MAP launched a new Future Caucus in the state of Delaware; named new Future Caucus leadership in PA, NC, MA, AL, and CT; spotlighted young members of Congress pioneering this work; and showcased via list upon list the critical bipartisan legislation that these incredible young leaders are achieving.
Moments like the Week of Action not only demonstrate the power of a rising generation of legislators to transcend political polarization — it offers a much needed reminder to the young elected officials leading this work that they are not in this alone. It’s a critical part of ensuring a healthy democracy — but don’t just take my word for it, hear for yourself from the young lawmakers themselves!
“Never before are the decisions that we make today going to impact the younger generations more than in our history,” said Congressman Blake Moore (R-UT). “That’s why we have to be at the table, because it's our future on the line. We have to find these bipartisan solutions so they are lasting.”
“It’s incredibly important for us to have young people at the table,” said Congresswoman Sara Jacobs (D-CA). “You don’t have to be older to make a difference. You don’t have to wait. We need you, we need your voice. We have incredible challenges in our country right now, and we are going to need everyone working together to be able to do that.”
“We’ve grown up with technology, we watched 9/11, many of us got out of college (me!) and high school during a recession, we nearly all have student loan debt… the system has been broken for most of our lives,” said Del. Kayla Young (D-WV). “ We are willing to fight for our states and a country that wants to fix it.”
“Youth does not equal inexperience. If you have a vision and a voice, run. Be respectful of other perspectives, but don’t be afraid to provide your own, ” said Rep. Thomas Kutz (R-PA). “ Long-term sustainable change requires bipartisan support. It does no good for anyone to shut out the other side entirely and have it undone when majorities and executives change parties. This is especially true in Pennsylvania where we have a one-seat margin in the House!”
Rep. Leonela Felix (D-RI) shared that she seeks to transcends polarization “By listening empathetically, building friendships and coalitions beyond political ideologies and helping my community stay informed about the issues they care about through various mediums like social media, emails, newsletters… ”.
“Young candidates (and young elected officials) offer a fresh perspective on the issues facing our society today, and they’re often much more willing to work across the aisle to accomplish a mutual agenda,” said New York Young Republicans during the National Week of Action.
“Childcare is a big one where I see bipartisan support for reforms: parents are desperate for quality care that doesn't cost their entire paycheck, entrepreneurs need their employees to have reliable care, and anti-bureaucrat types want to eliminate burdensome regs and paperwork,” said Rep. Jackie Chretien (D-NH).
“I think the perspective is different. Gen Z and Millennials want to solve problems and move forward to new challenges. I find older generations are more dogmatic and looking to win a fight,” said Rep. Tanner Magee (R-LA) on the value of young people in public service.
“I believe in bipartisanship. I wanted to be a leader who makes a point to work across the aisle but also knows when to stand for KS HD 10 values,” said Rep. Christina Haswood (D-KS). “The MAP helps us create space and uplifts the voices & issues of our generations.”
“When you reach across the aisle, you are able to get feedback on ideas from people who might approach a problem in a different way. When you discuss and debate the specifics, you'll end up with a stronger piece of legislation,” said Asm. Jared Gandolfo (R-NY).
Young people possess the key to break through partisan gridlock. In a time where campaign season is right around the corner and working across party lines typically slows down, we have seen just the opposite. The National Week of Action was a powerful reminder that young people are capable of so much, and when we can help them build a path forward together, anything is possible.
A golden tray sits on the Resolute Desk as President Donald Trump speaks during an announcement on American nuclear innovation in the Oval Office at the White House on July 24, 2026, in Washington, D.C. Trump is signing multiple executive orders targeting the nuclear energy sector and easing rules for new reactors and nuclear fuel supply chains.
Trump’s hubris rivals the fallen heroes of ancient Greek mythology
In January, the New York Times asked President Donald Trump if there were any limits on his global powers.
“Yeah,” the president responded, “there is one thing. My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me.”
That was eight months ago, but fortunately Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster adaptation of “The Odyssey” has made ancient Greek literature newly relevant. Before that window closes, I’d like to talk about hubris.
Today, the term mostly means excessive pride or arrogance. That’s part of what the Greeks meant by it too, but the meaning was a bit richer and more specific. Hubris was an insolent or outrageous act that offended the gods, often because the transgressor was claiming abilities or authorities that solely belonged to supreme beings.
Nolan renamed and slightly modified the concept of xenia for the film, calling it “Zeus’ law.” In the director’s telling, mortals should follow the rules laid out by the gods, specifically the requirement to treat strangers with respect lest they be gods in disguise.
In a sense, hubris is the opposite, or at least the rejection, of xenia. The hubris of the suitors, and at times Odysseus himself, invites punishment by the gods and their mortal instruments.
Which brings me back to Donald Trump. His claim that there are no constraints on his personal power to dictate events on the global stage was one of the greatest expressions of hubris ever uttered by a political leader.
Trump’s claim was obviously false when he made it.
He vowed that he could end the Russia-Ukraine war in 24 hours. He’s proved powerless to make that happen. If he had divine powers to work his will, why would he have balked at implementing his tariffs so often that Wall Street adopted the “TACO trade” term for his deals? “TACO” stands for “Trump always chickens out.”
And why would Trump have made so many embarrassing concessions to China — from rescinding tariffs on Chinese goods to allowing them to buy crucial and incredibly valuable computer chips?
But Trump saw his success at capturing Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro as proof of his ability to launch missiles to the same effect as Zeus’ lightning bolts. Trump believed he was the most powerful man who ever lived.
This is no exaggeration. In March, when the Iran invasion seemed successful, Trump gave a document penned by“Presidential Historian David King” to New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan purporting to prove that Trump was “the most powerful person to have EVER walked this planet.” King was, in fact, a businessman and occasional caddy for legendary golfer Gary Player.
King compared Trump favorably to many of history’s most powerful, and often heinous, figures: Alexander the Great, Attila the Hun, William the Conqueror, Napoleon Bonaparte, Joseph Stalin, Genghis Khan, Mao Tse Tung, Adolf Hitler and Vladimir Lenin. Many of these men thought they were the most powerful person in the world, too. And many were defeated precisely because they believed it.
At least Napoleon and Hitler had a string of truly impressive victories before they learned the folly of hubris. The limits on Trump’s power have been exposed by far less august forces than the combined might of the allies in World War II or the fearsome Russian winter.
Iran is a comparatively middling power. But the regime’s ability to absorb punishment while imposing its will on the Strait of Hormuz has proved to be a greater constraint on Trump’s power than his morality or mind. We should note that, at least rhetorically, his morality has not proved much of a constraint. He has repeatedly promised to destroy Iranian “civilization” if the regime refuses to capitulate.
But they haven’t — and won’t anytime soon — because the regime’s tolerance for pain far outstrips Trump’s. The combined fear of skyrocketing oil prices, outrage of Gulf state potentates, diminishing weapon supplies and domestic unpopularity is doing the work that international law, congressional oversight and the collective opinion of foreign policy experts can’t or won’t do.
If I considered Trump more heroic than reason and facts could allow, I would say his Sisyphean predicament has the whiff of Greek tragedy to it. Trump is vexed by the fact that the Iranians won’t honor deals or ratify his countless premature claims of victory — giving new meaning to his vow that his presidency would make people tired of winning. It’s almost like they’re out-Trumping Trump.
Things might have gone better if he’d heeded that great Greek tragedian Sophocles: “For Zeus utterly abhors the boasts of a proud tongue.”
____
Jonah Goldberg is editor-in-chief of The Dispatch and the host of The Remnant podcast. His Twitter handle is @JonahDispatch.