By guest host Jane Clayson:

Terry McAuliffe has had a front seat in American politics for the last quarter century. The former chairman of the Democratic National Committee is known as a legendary fundraiser with close ties to everyone from President Carter to Tip O’Neill to good pal Bill Clinton.

He kick-started his career in politics right out of college, wearing glasses to look older and wrestling an alligator to raise $15,000 for President Carter’s reelection campaign. He overhauled the DNC to give the Democrats the tools they needed to go toe-to-toe with the Republicans in national elections, and he directed Hillary Clinton’s bid for the Senate.

This hour On Point: Terry McAuliffe on the Democratic party and where it’s headed next.

Guests:

Terry McAuliffe, former chairman of the Democratic National Committee and author of a new memoir, “What a Party! My Life Among Democrats: Presidents, Candidates, Donors, Activists, Alligators, and Other Wild Animals.”