Obama Says Democrats Need to Get Younger

[applegrove]

Obama Says Democrats Need to Get Younger

February 15, 2026 at 5:02 pm EST By Taegan Goddard 0 Comments

https://politicalwire.com/2026/02/15/obama-says-democrats-need-to-get-younger/

“Former President Barack Obama is urging the Democratic Party to invest in younger candidates if it wants to come out victorious in the 2026 midterm elections and, eventually, the 2028 presidential election,” Politico reports.

Said Obama: “I’m a pretty healthy 64, feel great, but the truth is, half of the references that my daughters make about social media, TikTok and such, I don’t know who they’re talking about. There is an element of, at some point, you age out. You’re not connected directly to the immediate struggles that folks are going through.”

[Srkdqltr]

1. He is very right. You need the younger in-touch folks.

[RockRaven]

2. No shit.

One can decry "age discrimination" until one is blue in the face -- it won't change how the general public thinks/feels. And some degree of meeting the public where they are at, rather than where one thinks they ought to be, is necessary if one wants to win. Do we want to win, or do we want to be self-righteous?

[Easterncedar]

3. I would love to get younger.

Any tips?

[greatauntoftriplets]

7. Same here!

[QueerDuck]

8. Me three!

🤣😂🤪

[applegrove]

13. I don't go outside much. I don't get much sun. Fewer wrinkles.

[LisaM]

22. Ha ha ha ha ha.

That was funny.

[iemanja]

24. That's obviously deliberately bullshit framing

It’s not what Obama said. You can see that from the excerpt.

It’s a trash site.

[MorbidButterflyTat]

37. Yes, it is obvious

[Renew Deal]

4. He's right about refreshing the pool of candidates and people in office but...

Last edited Sun Feb 15, 2026, 08:01 PM - Edit history (1)

I'm not convinced that the young understand "the immediate struggles that folks are going through" for older people either.

[iemanja]

25. We can always keep losing

Will that benefit seniors?

[Renew Deal]

29. Not sure I get your point

[Aussie105]

5. The older politicians are good at several things:

1. An addiction to perceived power and actual income.

2. Minimizing effort in their jobs.

3. Keeping young upstarts at bay.

Obama is one of the few smart enough to realize there is a point at which you have peaked and it is time to retire.
But few are.

There is a lower age limit for being in politics, why not an upper limit?

[PeaceWave]

6. This argument only holds up until someone mentions Bernie Sanders...

Then, all of a sudden, excuses start being made for a man who's 84 freaking years old.

[QueerDuck]

10. 👍🍷

🤣😂👍

[NewHendoLib]

11. He's not a Democrat

[progressoid]

12. Interestingly, nearly everyone I knew who volunteered for Bernie was under 30.

There were a couple of paid operatives who were older but the vast majority of his "crew" were young.

Edited to add that virtually everyone in my kid's high school wanted to vote for him. Sometimes it's more about attitude than age.

[moonscape]

16. So did my dentist, until

Bernie wasn’t the candidate. Then he voted for … yep! 🤦‍♀️

[Autumn]

17. Bernie is one of the very few politicians who see how young people have been impacted by

our economic system and Bernie shouts it from the rooftops. But most older entrenched politicians don't seem to care.

[PeaceWave]

28. "Nearly everyone in your kid's high school" would have voted for Yoda given the chance...

Seriously, we're talking about a bunch of teenagers, most of whom can't yet vote. Jeez Louise.

[progressoid]

35. No I don't think they would have voted for Yoda if given the chance.

Yoda doesn't have a position student loans or gender rights. My kids and her friends like Yoda, but they aren't fatuous.

Regardless, it would seem prudent to target young people even if they can't yet vote. In pursuit of that goal, our local Democrats have started a voter education and outreach to engage teenagers - similar to a program engage with new immigrants.

Heck, our youngest started way before high school. She was put in an advanced placement class in the 6th grade. They spent half a semester studying the election. They took it very seriously. Four years later she accompanied me to this event:

https://democraticunderground.com/128089344#

[Renew Deal]

30. Sanders is a political anomoly

He hasn't been corrupted by his time in office.

[PeaceWave]

38. We've got folks claiming a 70 year old is unelectable because "they might die in office." How then...

does an 84 year old belong in office? You can't use the geriatric argument in one case and disregard it in another. Sanders isn't Methuselah.

[NewHendoLib]

9. Bravo

[Autumn]

14. At last. Someone who sees what the party must do.

Thank you President Obama.

[progressoid]

15. Maybe he can convince some of the older ones to step aside and the kids take over.

Haaaaaahahahahaha. Just kidding.

That's unlikely to happen.

I watch the ripples change their size
But never leave the stream of warm impermanence and
So the days float through my eyes
But still, the days seem the same
And these children that you spit on
As they try to change their worlds
Are immune to your consultations
They're quite aware of what they're going through

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes, turn and face the strange
Ch-ch-changes, don't tell them to grow up and out of it
Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes, turn and face the strange
Ch-ch-changes, where's your shame?
You've left us up to our necks in it
Time may change me, but you can't trace time

[imaginary girl]

18. I agree some of the oldest need to step aside,

But I'd hate to see Gen X shoved aside early. Some of them have been in office learning the ropes and waiting for their turn. Doesn't mean they should be put out to pasture with the older generations just because they aren't as social media saavy. They can hire staff for that, you know ...

[Intractable]

19. Please call Schumer.

I think Schumer knows he's a drain on the party, but doesn't care. There's AIPAC and Wall Street to serve.

[awesomerwb1]

20. It's painfully obvious

[SunImp]

21. I wish some people in our government would learn that

"There is an element of, at some point, you age out. You’re not connected directly to the immediate struggles that folks are going through.”

[LisaM]

23. The generational gap is bigger than I have ever seen it.

I personally like to see all the generations represented, in the workplace, in government, in the movies, you name it. I think that is the healthiest way to function.

[ITAL]

26. President Truman

I saw a lecture by a historian once where he said that one of Truman's favorite jokes was (I'm paraphrasing because i don't remember it exactly).

The reason the Senate has the Committee on Foreign Relations and the House of Representatives has the Foreign Affairs Committee is because Senators are too old to have affairs.

[Skittles]

27. HE IS CORRECT

I am SICK of seeing the same old faces for DECADES - PASS THE FUCKING BATON ALREADY.

[Deuxcents]

34. I agree and good to hear Obama say what some have been saying but some here have missed the point

He’s not saying all older leaders need to opt out but they should have been a mentor for a while now because of course, we need experience. The younger generation he’s talking about know how to connect with younger voters and get them involved. There are many in the House n Senate that need to step aside as times and techniques have changed and so must the way they’re met.

[BidenRocks]

31. This short vid shows the problem.

The speaker is Xioma. He is a savant on languages and has a youtube channel. @xiaomanyc
Watch and think about this.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/oj4wYbiP6V8

[Ping Tung]

32. "There is no sadder thing than a young pessimist except an old optimist." Mark Twain

[kwolf68]

33. As usual President Obama knows his shit

He is right

[ColoringFool]

36. At 76, I'd Love To Get Younger! 😇

[Martin Eden]

39. The entire interview is well worth watching

Lots of takeaways.
https://m.

[OldBaldy1701E]

40. "You're not connected directly to the immediate struggles that folks are going through."

This may be the wisest thing he has ever said.

And, he has said some wise things.

This is the main problem with our governmental entity. We have allowed them to create a new 'nobility' class. They are not connected to the population in general, and they want it that way. We suffer from this every day. They don't care about us, except as to how many of us are making them richer.

But, we won't change it. Because the programming worked.

[yardwork]

41. Yes! Democrats need to completely overhaul their messaging.

Hire young people, run young candidates.

[PunkinPi]

42. MVP Harris is already stepping into the gap...

with the rebrand launch of Headquarters which is Gen-Z led...

Welcome to Headquarters, the new Gen-Z led progressive content hub.

— Headquarters (@headquartersnews.bsky.social) 2026-02-05T16:46:39.658Z