
The Enemy is The State
From No Sacred Cows by The Political Power Works
November 20, 2025 · 39 min · Season 1 · Episode 5
About this episode
The episode discusses the challenges faced by centre-left governments and the need for a clear moral purpose in politics.
Centre-left governments are often few and far between. So when they lose their way - the renewal has to be done swiftly, and at times bloodily. Trapped in process and unable to communicate, McTernan says the left loses its way when it believes the state has became our friend, just because we are running it. Bureaucratic, talking about ‘delivery’, and using management speak, we forget who the enemy is and what the purpose of a centre-left government is all about. What is required, instead, is to junk the sacred cow that the state is the answer and offer a clear moral purpose as a progressive government - aligning ourselves with the people. Join as we dive head-first into a long overdue debate about the future of mainstream politics on both sides of the Atlantic - no holding back, no pulling punches. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Topics covered
- centre-left government
- political renewal
- bureaucracy
- progressive politics
- mainstream politics
- Atlantic politics
Keywords
- centre-left
- government
- politics
- bureaucracy
- progressive
- renewal
- mainstream
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Acast
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- Reshaping the state needs a real plan · March 23, 2026 · 46 min
- Let's not go backwards on education · March 8, 2026 · 38 min
- Dump Trump · February 7, 2026 · 40 min
- Oh baby · January 23, 2026 · 42 min
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