Full transcript of "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," Aug. 16, 2026

On this "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" broadcast, moderated by Ed O'Keefe:

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And this week on Face the Nation: Socialism divides the Democratic Party. But are mainstream Democrats coming on board? And is President Trump being too dismissive of voters' concerns over the economy?

With about 11 weeks to go until midterm Election Day, Democrats continue their soul-searching when it comes to picking candidates to face voters in the fall. Will they unite behind this message?

DONALD TRUMP (President of the United States): They want to make us a communist country. They have skipped socialism. The communists want to turn America into a Third World country, into a hellhole of crime and filth.

ED O'KEEFE: But is that message doing enough to address voters' concerns about high inflation and gas prices?

We will hear from Kentucky Governor and potential Democratic 2028 hopeful Andy Beshear. Pennsylvania Democratic Socialist congressional candidate Chris Rabb will also join us.

Plus, insights into how Mr. Trump's agenda is playing in the heartland from Nebraska Republican Congressman Don Bacon.

After weeks of high-stakes primaries that pitted moderates versus progressive or socialist-backed Democratic candidates and raised questions about the future direction of the party, we wanted to know what Democrats and voters overall make of the future of the Democratic Party.

We're doing this in part because history would suggest they're set to win back control of at least some part of Congress this fall. And the elections come amid lingering concerns about the way the economy works, as our new CBS News poll shows 60 percent of all Americans say the U.S. economic system is unfair, and 73 percent believe the gap between the richest Americans and the middle class is increasing.

So we begin with Kentucky Democratic Governor Andy Beshear, who joins us from the capital city of Frankfort.

GOVERNOR ANDY BESHEAR (D-Kentucky): Good morning. Thanks for having me.

So our new CBS News poll out this morning finds 58 percent of Democrats have a positive view of socialism, and just 32 percent have a positive view of capitalism. What do you make of that?

GOVERNOR ANDY BESHEAR: What I make of it is that people are struggling. They're struggling because the cost of groceries is too high. The cost of gas is too high. It's too hard to see a doctor, and when you do, the cost of that is too high as well.