The lure of living in the past: From the Politics Desk

From the Politics DeskThe lure of living in the past: From the Politics DeskPlus, Kristen Welker recaps her bipartisan interview with Sens. Katie Britt and John Fetterman.Listen to this article with a free account00:0000:00Kristen Welker with Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) and John Fetterman (D-Pa.) at Common Ground in Washington on Thursday.Caroline Gutman for NBC NewsShareAdd NBC News to GoogleApril 24, 2026, 5:39 PM EDTBy The Politics DeskWelcome to From the Politics Desk, a daily newsletter that brings you the NBC News Politics team’s latest reporting and analysis from the White House, Capitol Hill and the campaign trail.Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.In today’s edition, Alexandra Marquez dives into the latest NBC News Decision Desk Poll and examines a strain of nostalgia for past eras pervading Gen Z. Plus, Kristen Welker takes us inside the latest edition of NBC News’ “Common Ground” bipartisan interview series. Sign up to receive this newsletter in your inbox every weekday here.— Scott BlandDiscomfort with modern technology shapes Gen Z's desire to live in the pastBy Alexandra MarquezSome members of Gen Z are feeling so pessimistic about the future of the country and modern technology that they want to hop into a time machine. Nearly half (47%) of adults ages 18-29 said that if they had the option, they’d choose to live in the past, according to a new NBC News Decision Desk Poll powered by SurveyMonkey. One-third said they’d pick a time period less than 50 years in the past, while another 14% said they’d choose more than 50 years in the past. Meanwhile, 38% of Gen Zers said they’d prefer to live in the present, 10% said they’d go less than 50 years in the future, and 5% chose more than 50 years in the future. The results were largely consistent across gender lines and partisan divides, though young Black adults were less likely to say they’d prefer to live in the past (33%) than young white adult...