CNN revealed its debate lineup for October 15th and I couldn't help but notice a familiar face moving closer and closer to the center. Andrew Yang Andrew YangBiden's latest small business outreach is just ... awful Doctor who allegedly assaulted Evelyn Yang arrested on federal charges The Hill's Campaign Report: Biden weighs in on police shootings | Who's moderating the debates | Trump trails in post-convention polls MORE is getting awfully close to the center of the stage there, just one mayor removed from alleged front-runner Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth WarrenOvernight Defense: Appeals court revives House lawsuit against military funding for border wall | Dems push for limits on transferring military gear to police | Lawmakers ask for IG probe into Pentagon's use of COVID-19 funds On The Money: Half of states deplete funds for Trump's 0 unemployment expansion | EU appealing ruling in Apple tax case | House Democrats include more aid for airlines in coronavirus package Warren, Khanna request IG investigation into Pentagon's use of coronavirus funds MORE.

Yang's slow march to the center of the stage comes on the heels of his fundraising announcement of 10 million dollars for the third quarter, outpacing sitting U.S. Senators like Cory Booker Cory Anthony BookerThe movement to reform animal agriculture has reached a tipping point Watchdog confirms State Dept. canceled award for journalist who criticized Trump 3 reasons why Biden is misreading the politics of court packing MORE and Michael Bennett.

That $10 million figure is quintuple what his campaign raised in the previous quarter, showing the power of a unique message. Now sure we don't know what Joe Biden Joe BidenFormer Pence aide: White House staffers discussed Trump refusing to leave office Progressive group buys domain name of Trump's No. 1 Supreme Court pick Bloomberg rolls out M ad buy to boost Biden in Florida MORE and Elizabeth Warren's numbers are just yet, but it's not too early to say that Yang's campaign is just a fundamentally new story in American politics and very much a preview of what our future could look like. Yang's candidacy is a refreshing and needed break from the political fights of today to try and in earnest the problems of our future.

So much of the candidacies of the major party candidates on the progressive and centrist wing of the party are about litigating the latest political story or finishing the battles of 20th century. Domestic politics like Wall Street reform, healthcare, drug prices, and foreign policy. Look, those are all really really important, but they lack the vision that a country redefining itself for the 21st century must have.

Yang's advocacy of U.B.I. seeks to address automation, and while I don't actually agree with the fundamentals of the policy, I just can't help but love his diagnosis of the problem. He is the only candidate to highlight declining life expectancy of the U.S. as a problem. To me that is literally the ultimate metric of how things are going: how long it is taking us to die and how things are along the way.

His forward vision allows him to appropriately cast the conflicts of today in such a remarkably clear light. Other Democratic candidates are loathe to wade into the scandals of today, by leaning in far too much to impeachment, or short circuiting like a robot when asked if their corruption plan would prohibit the son of their Vice President from serving on the board of a Ukrainian energy company after buying $10 million in ads saying you'll stand up against corruption. In case you didn't catch that reference, it's Senator Elizabeth Warren.

Just look at how Andrew Yang answered that question. I love that answer. It's clear as day. Not only will his admin officials not serve on the boards of foreign companies, but domestic ones as well. That is what every single American wants to hear because they're sick of all the loopholes and the excuses and the various hoops that politicians jump through to justify obvious misdeeds by themselves and the people around them.

Washington is a city that can warp you extraordinarily quickly. If you go on enough CNN panels and you legitimately believe that the most important issue on the earth is impeachment and whatever the latest development of the whistleblower is. It's not because people are stupid, they respond to incentives. So they know that to get TV time and be a force amongst the people who control the levers of power, they have to be focused on a narrow set of issues that aren't relevant whatsoever to your daily lives.

Yang isn't from here. He hasn't touched our political system. So his analysis of the problem and his answers to these questions are exactly the way a normal smart person might look at what exactly the hell is going on over here. I think it's extremely refreshing and I’m excited to see Pete Buttigieg Pete ButtigiegBillionaire who donated to Trump in 2016 donates to Biden The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by Facebook - GOP closes ranks to fill SCOTUS vacancy by November Buttigieg stands in as Pence for Harris's debate practice MORE freeze up next to him again when hears an original idea for the first time.