Levitttown, Pennsylvania - At a city hall in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona encouraged Democrats to return to their roots as the "big tent" party.
"The last election that happened was that we became so pure that we remained so pure that we started kicking people out of the tent," Gallego said. "There weren't enough people in the tent to win the election."
Gallego cited an example of podcast host Joe Rogan as a “kick out of the tent” because his message doesn’t exactly match the party.
"I'm sure you guys heard, 'Oh, well, Democrats need to have their own Joe Rogan,'" Gallego said. "We have Joe Rogan. We canceled Joe Rogan a few years ago. Democrats don't want to admit that. We did it, and then, whether we should continue Joe Rogan is questionable. We did it to ourselves."
Arizona’s first Democratic senator touted his success on the battlefield, an example of how a Democratic candidate can win forward. Gallego Beat Republican Lake Kari in Arizona Senate I scored two points last year.
"I represent a state that has 330,000 registered Republicans than Democrats," Gallego said. "You have to get a lot of votes, which means we're going to have to align with people we might not agree 100% of the time, right?"
This success has sparked speculation that Gallego is considering running for president in 2028. He is a minority Democrat who stopped nationwide and talked to voters, similar to Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.
"Of course, I've thought about it, but I also know that I want to... let my third child come on June 12, I don't want to divorce, I just became a U.S. Senator," Gallego told CBS News. “I love my job and I need to make sure I do it well. It’s not something I’m thinking about right now.
Asked if he thinks he wins Pennsylvania in 2028, Gallego said there will be a need for someone who can express sympathy for the people who voters have on the issues that affect them.
"I think it's going to give someone a real understanding of what's going on. People were hurt in the last election. I don't think Democrats really focused on that," Galgo said. "This guy will be able to communicate, like, yes, things are bad. Financial loss. You're sad, I'm here to help you."
Gallego spoke in Bucks County, the main battlefield north of Philadelphia, with President Trump speaking in 2024 by hundreds of votes.
Distrust and anger towards the Democrats were evident in the Town Hall when one participant asked Gallego how Democrats should change their messaging.
"People don't vote for parties, right? It's us who are running as Democrats. We need to be the face of the party, we need to be there," Gallego said. "The problem is that we're always too safe."