08/20/2026
Hello from the We've Got To Talk podcast!!!
Happy end of the summer everyone! We have such a special episode this week!
Jolene Conway and Nicole Fonarow had a really interesting and enlightening conversation with fellow Builders Movement Partner, Layla Zaidane, the CEO of Future Caucus - formerly Millennial Action Project.
It's an organization that focuses on supporting Gen Z and Millennial lawmakers on the federal and local levels.
Republican and Democratic lawmakers... listen up!
We could all learn so much from Future Caucus!!!
Read the article about this episode.
Thank you Layla Zaidane we had so much fun hanging out with you!
Thank you Leia Gluckman and Miller Ink for connecting us to Layla. Thank you Elizabeth J. Rosen and Garrett James Wyatt of Future Caucus - formerly Millennial Action Project for spreading the word and collaborating with us.
Thank you as always to Brianna Ansaldo, Alex and Bamby Media. Big love to all.
We’ve Got To Talk is a podcast about two lifelong friends who met at the University of Iowa: one conservative and one liberal who talk about all the things with curiosity, empathy and fun.
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How Future Caucus Gets Republicans and Democrats to Work Together
There’s something quietly powerful about hearing someone talk about politics like it’s still a place where people can build things together. That was the tone from the very beginning with Layla Zaidane, the president and CEO of Future Caucus. Her whole world is built around a simple idea: if you can get young leaders across party lines to know each other as people first, the work changes. The temperature drops. The incentives shift. And suddenly, progress doesn’t feel like a miracle.
Layla’s story is part of why she’s so good at it. Her parents came to the US from Morocco on separate paths, chasing the same promise a lot of immigrant families chase. Safety, opportunity, a future that feels bigger than the one you were handed. Layla grew up with that background humming in the walls, and then she watched 9/11 unfold as a kid, which is the kind of moment that stamps itself onto your nervous system. She talked about the identity confusion that followed, the way the world suddenly felt more suspicious and more divided, and how that pushed her toward diplomacy and politics.
Future Caucus - formerly Millennial Action Project is built on a pretty simple idea, which is probably why it works. Young lawmakers across party lines are not doomed to hate each other. They can build relationships, learn how each other thinks, and work on policy without treating every disagreement like a moral failing. Layla kept coming back to this “human first” mindset, and it shouldn’t sound radical. But in a political culture that rewards dehumanizing your opponent, it kind of is.
One of the things we loved hearing about was their Future Summit, which is basically a mid-year reset for state legislators. Halfway through the year, when everyone is tired and cynical and running on fumes, they bring these young elected officials together to reconnect and swap notes on what’s working. There are policy wins and serious conversations, but there’s also axe throwing and karaoke where grown adults are apparently belting out Alanis Morissette like it’s 1997. It’s clear that joy is part of the point here. If you can’t laugh together, you’re not going to legislate together. If you can’t be in the same room without performing, you’re not going to build trust.
And trust is the whole game.
Because the barriers for young people getting into politics are not small. Layla was blunt about that too. Running for office costs money most people do not have. Serving in office often pays poorly, which quietly filters out anyone without a financial cushion. The hours are brutal. The scrutiny is relentless. And then there’s the part that is genuinely terrifying: the rise in political violence and threats. It’s hard to tell a smart, capable 28-year-old to put their hand up for public service when the reward is a smaller pay check and the risk is someone showing up at your house.
What Future Caucus seems to understand is that you can’t just tell young leaders to be brave and then leave them hanging. If you want good people to run, and if you want them to stay, you need structural support. Better compensation. Better staffing. Better technology. Better systems that make the job doable for someone who isn’t independently wealthy or willing to burn out by 35. Layla talked about the energy young leaders bring, the impatience, the willingness to try things differently, and how that can be channelled into real governance instead of just frustration. But it only works if the system stops treating public service like a hobby you do on the side.
The other thing that stuck with us was how these young officials respond when things get ugly. Layla described lawmakers across states standing together against violence and misinformation, even when they disagree on policy. That kind of solidarity feels rare right now, and it matters. It’s a reminder that democracy doesn’t survive on winning arguments. It survives on shared rules, mutual respect, and the basic agreement that your opponent is not your enemy.
If nothing else, let this be a small nudge. If you’ve been avoiding political conversations because they feel toxic, maybe the answer isn’t to opt out forever. Maybe it’s to find better models. Better people. Better rooms. The kind where you can disagree, stay in relationship, and still get something done.
RESOURCES MENTIONED:
Future Caucus: https://futurecaucus.org/
Future Caucus Exit Interview: https://futurecaucus.org/the-exit-interview/
Layla’s Podcast, Terms of Service: https://youtu.be/Nkbhx-o4FY0?si=fLud5hpQ4jlohHxj
Layla’s Good for the Soul: The Little Prince: https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/157993.The_Little_Prince
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