Former Secretary of State John Kerry is emphasizing the fact that the upcoming November midterms should be at the forefront of the nation's current political debate because of what's at stake.
Kerry made the remarks at the Aspen Ideas Festival Wednesday.
"I don't think 2020 matters today," Kerry said, according to The Aspen Times. "There's one thing that matters today … control of Congress … that's what matters."
Kerry said the key to the Democratic Party in November will be voter turnout.
"We are costing ourselves our own democracy because we're not holding ourselves accountable," Kerry said.
When it was pointed out to him that turnout in the 2016 presidential election was just 54.2 percent, he called that "an astonishing figure."
Regarding President Donald Trump, Kerry urged Americans to "stop bloviating" about Trump's tweets and instead discuss "how we're going to help improve lives."
Kerry is a frequent Trump critic, particularly when it comes to the Iran nuclear deal that Kerry worked to negotiate and put together. Trump withdrew the U.S. from the agreement in May, saying it was a "one-sided deal that should have never, ever been made."