WEBVTT - Trump Is "POISONING The Well" In Congress + Devastating Medicaid Cuts w/Ritchie Torres 0:00:03.760 --> 0:00:07.040 Happy Monday. Welcome to another episode of the Chuck Podcast. 0:00:07.120 --> 0:00:09.440 Thank you for watching, for those of you on YouTube 0:00:09.640 --> 0:00:12.560 or watching as a video podcast on Spotify. Those of 0:00:12.560 --> 0:00:16.120 you listening, also, thank you for tuning in. Always appreciate that. 0:00:16.560 --> 0:00:19.479 So I had to check my watch for the year 0:00:20.000 --> 0:00:23.440 again over the weekend make sure we were still in 0:00:23.520 --> 0:00:26.319 twenty twenty five, because we kind of had one of 0:00:26.360 --> 0:00:28.960 these news Joe Biden news cycles over the last seventy 0:00:28.960 --> 0:00:33.519 two hours that was quite rare, meaning it was a 0:00:33.600 --> 0:00:37.200 Joe Biden. You might be forgiven if you thought Biden 0:00:37.280 --> 0:00:40.800 was still president versus Trump, because it's rare for Donald 0:00:40.840 --> 0:00:44.000 Trump to ever get overshadowed, particularly when he's actually president. 0:00:44.440 --> 0:00:46.239 But for the last seventy two hours, all things Joe 0:00:46.280 --> 0:00:50.519 Biden has very much overshadowed Donald Trump. Now some of 0:00:50.560 --> 0:00:54.840 it is intentional by Trump, and I'm going to get 0:00:54.880 --> 0:00:58.440 into that, but let's unpack this Biden news cycle. Obviously, 0:00:58.480 --> 0:01:01.800 the most recent news being his office announcing that he 0:01:01.880 --> 0:01:06.000 is an aggressive form of prostate cancer. So obviously it 0:01:06.040 --> 0:01:11.559 goes without saying that that is not good news to hear, 0:01:12.440 --> 0:01:16.280 and he is there is nobody that knows how to 0:01:16.319 --> 0:01:22.319 fight and rebound from health challenges more than Joe Biden. 0:01:22.400 --> 0:01:24.560 I feel like he's been doing it off and on 0:01:24.640 --> 0:01:28.040 his whole life. The guy is tough, he's resilient, and 0:01:28.080 --> 0:01:32.960 I have no doubt he's going to make it through 0:01:33.000 --> 0:01:37.480 this and likely thrive after they make their decision on 0:01:37.520 --> 0:01:40.640 where to go with treatment. Obviously, that news came in 0:01:40.720 --> 0:01:44.280 the middle of what's been a pretty negative set of 0:01:44.280 --> 0:01:47.240 headlines for Joe Biden and for the Democratic Party as 0:01:47.240 --> 0:01:51.559 a whole. As you've had the book Jake Tapper Alex 0:01:52.200 --> 0:01:56.880 Thompson's book about what happened inside the West Wing, what 0:01:57.000 --> 0:02:01.920 happened inside the Democratic Party that that led to what 0:02:02.040 --> 0:02:05.559 was a disastrous summer, if you will, the disastrous last 0:02:05.560 --> 0:02:08.320 eighteen months of the Biden presidency. Was it a cover up? 0:02:08.400 --> 0:02:10.920 Was it not? You don't think there's any proof that 0:02:10.960 --> 0:02:14.560 it was a cover up of anything other than it 0:02:14.680 --> 0:02:18.600 was either a lot of wilful blindness by the staff 0:02:19.160 --> 0:02:23.400 perhaps making themselves feel better because it was Donald Trump 0:02:23.520 --> 0:02:25.600 that was on the other side, and had it been 0:02:25.639 --> 0:02:28.120 anybody else, maybe they would have had clear set of 0:02:28.160 --> 0:02:32.760 eyes and thinking. But that book got supercharged over the 0:02:32.760 --> 0:02:37.799 weekend with the Trump administration's decision and the timing of that, 0:02:37.880 --> 0:02:39.600 and again I'm going to get into that in a minute. 0:02:39.800 --> 0:02:42.960 To release the full audio recording, and this was a 0:02:43.080 --> 0:02:46.240 Justice department decision. They did it, So it's Trump's Justice 0:02:46.240 --> 0:02:48.560 department that did this. Just keep this in mind, and 0:02:48.560 --> 0:02:50.440 we're going to ask some questions in a few minutes 0:02:50.480 --> 0:02:53.120 about why did they choose this moment, why are they 0:02:53.160 --> 0:02:54.840 choosing to do this, But we'll get into that in 0:02:54.880 --> 0:02:58.320 a minute, But let's not beat around the bush. The 0:02:58.840 --> 0:03:05.119 release of the Robert herbick has certainly I think put 0:03:05.600 --> 0:03:10.520 that entire episode in a different light. What Robert Hurr 0:03:10.520 --> 0:03:14.639 wrote about his interview when he said that no jury 0:03:14.639 --> 0:03:18.640 would convict him, is that he was going to be 0:03:19.000 --> 0:03:23.160 that his memory of an was a bit forgetful, but 0:03:23.240 --> 0:03:25.880 it would be something that a jury would forgive considering 0:03:26.000 --> 0:03:29.920 his age. Well, when that report came out, there was 0:03:30.680 --> 0:03:33.880 immediate denunciations because remember when when it came out, he 0:03:34.000 --> 0:03:37.000 was still running for reelection at the time when this 0:03:37.080 --> 0:03:40.800 report came out, so it was obviously something that they 0:03:40.920 --> 0:03:45.680 feared would only sort of bring back the news cycle, 0:03:45.800 --> 0:03:48.480 bring back the chatter that he shouldn't run for reelection, 0:03:48.600 --> 0:03:51.360 that the party should go in a different direction. So 0:03:51.440 --> 0:03:56.400 there was a very forceful pushback attacks on her personally, 0:03:57.160 --> 0:04:00.040 accusations that he was somehow doing the bidding of the 0:04:00.040 --> 0:04:04.160 Trump campaign when he was doing it, just personal and 0:04:04.280 --> 0:04:08.800 vicious attacks by some people who are not journalists but 0:04:08.840 --> 0:04:11.720 are considered members of the media. And I do make 0:04:11.760 --> 0:04:14.640 this distinction because I do think reporters and journalists were 0:04:14.640 --> 0:04:18.039 trying to do a story and we're trying to be 0:04:18.080 --> 0:04:19.919 honest about what the heck was going on with Biden 0:04:19.960 --> 0:04:23.520 in the White House. But there were certainly pundits and 0:04:23.560 --> 0:04:28.920 analysts and hosts of cable TV shows that we're trying 0:04:28.960 --> 0:04:32.480 to protect their access to the president and use talking 0:04:32.520 --> 0:04:38.320 points that were hand delivered to them by Biden supporters 0:04:38.360 --> 0:04:43.040 and Biden defenders to attack Robert Hurr. We'll see if 0:04:43.040 --> 0:04:45.480 those folks decide to apologize, decide to do a mega 0:04:45.560 --> 0:04:48.400 Kalpa on that, because clearly, now when you listen to 0:04:48.400 --> 0:04:54.120 the recording, her was not an antagonist here. Her was 0:04:54.160 --> 0:04:57.120 not trying doesn't seem like he was at all trying 0:04:57.160 --> 0:05:00.720 to lead the witness and some sort of negative territory 0:05:01.880 --> 0:05:06.479 that he was willfully misinterpreting the conversation that he had 0:05:06.520 --> 0:05:09.000 and how the interview went. I think it was pretty 0:05:09.040 --> 0:05:12.479 clear that her was a professional in the during the 0:05:12.520 --> 0:05:17.240 whole time, behaved very professionally and certainly was even empathetic 0:05:17.839 --> 0:05:21.039 at times when the president, who of course, it turned 0:05:21.040 --> 0:05:23.480 out it was the President that brought up his son's death, 0:05:23.560 --> 0:05:30.880 not Robert Herr. So that recording has only I think 0:05:31.000 --> 0:05:36.000 taken and certainly, let's remember the Trump Justice Department released 0:05:36.040 --> 0:05:40.520 the recording to one of the two authors of the book, 0:05:40.600 --> 0:05:43.080 to the news organization Axios, which of course employs one 0:05:43.120 --> 0:05:45.000 of the two authors of the book. So the Trump 0:05:45.040 --> 0:05:47.880 White House knew exactly what it was doing here. They 0:05:47.880 --> 0:05:51.960 saw an opportunity to take a news cycle that was 0:05:52.040 --> 0:05:55.000 growing and developing and really was more of a Washington 0:05:55.040 --> 0:05:59.279 news cycle about the Democratic Party, and essentially ad an 0:05:59.320 --> 0:06:03.000 accelerant it. Right the release of this recording, which is 0:06:03.000 --> 0:06:06.039 not in the book. Okay, this was not something that 0:06:06.080 --> 0:06:10.600 they were able to get for the book, but they 0:06:10.680 --> 0:06:14.000 sort of giving it to the author only seemed to 0:06:14.080 --> 0:06:17.719 supercharge the attention and it certainly now created a much 0:06:17.760 --> 0:06:20.080 bigger news cycle and has forced a lot of Democrats 0:06:20.800 --> 0:06:22.640 to have to answer for this because at the end 0:06:22.680 --> 0:06:26.880 of the day, the Democratic Party did turn a blind eye, 0:06:27.279 --> 0:06:31.239 not just to Joe Biden, but they turned the blind 0:06:31.320 --> 0:06:34.640 eye to the voters. Ultimately, what they did is they 0:06:34.640 --> 0:06:37.880 we the voters were the ones that were telling Paul 0:06:38.080 --> 0:06:42.200 after poll that they had more concerns about Joe Biden's 0:06:42.240 --> 0:06:46.440 age than they did Donald Trump's character. And it was 0:06:46.560 --> 0:06:50.600 Paul after Paul after poll that would show that. And 0:06:51.040 --> 0:06:55.640 it was amazing to me how often Democrats would dismiss 0:06:55.760 --> 0:06:59.279 those numbers and say, oh no, you know, once, once 0:06:59.360 --> 0:07:02.839 the public sees Joe Biden in action, that will go away. 0:07:02.880 --> 0:07:06.800 But Donald Trump's character is built in, and the issues 0:07:06.839 --> 0:07:09.320 and the fear of his presidency will kick in and 0:07:09.360 --> 0:07:13.600 people will focus on that. Well, that didn't happen because 0:07:13.960 --> 0:07:16.960 Joe Biden wasn't able to reassure folks that he was 0:07:17.000 --> 0:07:20.280 able to do the job. The debate, obviously, the infamous debate, 0:07:21.280 --> 0:07:25.760 ended up being the moment that only reinforced what the 0:07:25.880 --> 0:07:29.400 voters were already telling us. And that's what I think 0:07:29.480 --> 0:07:32.760 is the biggest problem the Democratic Party has right now 0:07:32.800 --> 0:07:37.640 in this moment in dealing with this Biden situation. Look, 0:07:37.800 --> 0:07:41.160 it does appear that Joe Biden is about to experience 0:07:41.200 --> 0:07:44.880 what Jimmy Carter experienced starting in nineteen eighty one, which 0:07:44.960 --> 0:07:47.600 is the Democratic Party is going to do everything it can. 0:07:47.680 --> 0:07:49.880 Anybody that's currently active in the party is going to 0:07:49.920 --> 0:07:52.440 do everything they can to find a way to distance 0:07:52.520 --> 0:07:55.920 themselves from him in some form. Maybe they will say, well, 0:07:55.960 --> 0:07:58.480 I thought, you know, you'll hear. Richie Torres, who I'm 0:07:58.520 --> 0:08:01.160 interviewing today, is one of the rising stars in the 0:08:01.160 --> 0:08:04.240 Democratic Party. He may be a candidate for New York governor, 0:08:04.240 --> 0:08:06.760 a primary challenger to the New York governor there, Kathy Hochel. 0:08:07.520 --> 0:08:10.720 He will admit that, hey, it turns out we were wrong. 0:08:10.840 --> 0:08:14.200 We should have had a deeper conversation about this is 0:08:14.320 --> 0:08:17.480 essentially his message. But I want to read something Chris 0:08:17.560 --> 0:08:21.320 Murphy said on Meet the Press to my friend Kristen Welker, 0:08:22.560 --> 0:08:24.320 and he said this, because I think this gets it 0:08:24.360 --> 0:08:27.080 to the heart of the challenge for the Democratic Party 0:08:27.120 --> 0:08:31.200 going forward, if they're going to ever convince voters to 0:08:31.240 --> 0:08:35.360 trust them. In retrospect, Chris Murphy says, you can't defend 0:08:35.360 --> 0:08:38.240 what the Democratic Party did because we are stuck with 0:08:38.280 --> 0:08:40.560 a madman, a corrupt president in the Oval office, and 0:08:40.559 --> 0:08:42.840 we should have given ourselves a better chance to win. 0:08:44.520 --> 0:08:46.719 So what is he saying there. What he's saying is 0:08:47.920 --> 0:08:51.360 to voters, it's okay to blame the Democratic Party for 0:08:51.400 --> 0:08:55.280 Trump's election. That if the Democratic Party had behaved more responsibly, 0:08:55.520 --> 0:08:57.959 had the Democratic Party put the wishes of the voters 0:08:58.000 --> 0:09:00.600 ahead of the wishes of the establishment, they may have 0:09:00.679 --> 0:09:03.880 gone somewhere. They may be in a different place. Donald 0:09:03.920 --> 0:09:07.880 Trump may not be president, you know, the Republican Party. 0:09:08.080 --> 0:09:12.760 If Donald Trump ends up a failed president and sets 0:09:12.800 --> 0:09:17.400 the democracy back decades and sets American exceptionalism back decades, 0:09:18.480 --> 0:09:20.720 not only will you have the Republican Party to blame, 0:09:20.760 --> 0:09:24.079 because they've willfully gone down this road and they've looked 0:09:24.080 --> 0:09:26.320 the other way on character, and they've looked the other 0:09:26.360 --> 0:09:31.680 way on sort of the historical nature of what he's 0:09:31.720 --> 0:09:36.080 trying to do here. But the Democratic Party did the 0:09:36.120 --> 0:09:39.720 same thing. They didn't put the interests of the country 0:09:40.200 --> 0:09:43.200 ahead of the interests of the party or the interests 0:09:43.200 --> 0:09:46.240 of themselves. And what really makes it, I think even 0:09:46.240 --> 0:09:48.960 more damning for the Democrats and why this recovery is 0:09:49.000 --> 0:09:52.079 going to be so much harder no matter how unpopular 0:09:52.080 --> 0:09:55.000 Donald Trump and the Republicans are in this moment, because 0:09:55.000 --> 0:10:00.679 it's a trust issue, right, there was this this lack 0:10:00.840 --> 0:10:05.640 of being able to of being able to see, and 0:10:06.600 --> 0:10:11.760 the rhetoric was Donald Trump's an existential threat to the democracy. Well, 0:10:11.800 --> 0:10:14.400 if you believe that, then you had to make sure 0:10:14.440 --> 0:10:17.440 you were doing everything you can as a party to 0:10:17.559 --> 0:10:20.280 put that front and center, that that issue would be 0:10:20.280 --> 0:10:22.600 front and center. So if you had a sitting president 0:10:22.600 --> 0:10:25.679 that wasn't up to the challenge, then that he needed 0:10:25.720 --> 0:10:28.680 to be he needed to be primary or he needed 0:10:28.720 --> 0:10:32.240 to be convinced not to run again. And it should 0:10:32.240 --> 0:10:35.760 have happened a heck of a lot sooner. The party 0:10:36.000 --> 0:10:39.440 never seemed to take the Trump threat as seriously as 0:10:39.480 --> 0:10:43.960 the rhetoric. They would utter because their actions didn't back 0:10:44.160 --> 0:10:47.679 up the rhetoric. How do we know that, Just look 0:10:47.720 --> 0:10:50.040 at how they handled the Biden situation in the last 0:10:50.040 --> 0:10:53.640 two years of the Biden presidency. So the question is 0:10:55.160 --> 0:10:59.120 how many people in the Democratic Party are going to 0:10:59.160 --> 0:11:02.720 be tainted with this? So let me go back. I 0:11:02.760 --> 0:11:05.000 want to go back to the experience of the last 0:11:05.040 --> 0:11:08.040 time that the Democrats had sort of this. They had 0:11:08.040 --> 0:11:11.440 sort of an era of defeat that called into question 0:11:11.559 --> 0:11:14.160 whether the Democratic Party was strong enough to lead in 0:11:14.200 --> 0:11:19.480 this country. The Democratic Party had got blown out in 0:11:19.480 --> 0:11:24.120 seventy two by George McGovern. They narrowly win the White House, 0:11:26.800 --> 0:11:28.920 even though they should have won it by a lot. 0:11:29.000 --> 0:11:31.200 But they narrowly win the White House in seventy six 0:11:31.320 --> 0:11:35.440 post Watergate, essentially because Ford pardons Nixon and that was 0:11:35.440 --> 0:11:39.559 an unforgivable sin. Carter gets blown out in eighty Walter 0:11:39.640 --> 0:11:42.160 Mondale gets blown out in eighty four, and Michael Ducaccus 0:11:42.160 --> 0:11:45.720 gets blown out in eighty eight. So four landslides in 0:11:45.840 --> 0:11:49.439 five elections. And after that eighty eight election, there were 0:11:49.640 --> 0:11:54.319 serious there were serious debates about what was the Democratic 0:11:54.360 --> 0:11:57.480 Party going to do with itself. There was books that 0:11:57.520 --> 0:12:01.439 were put out that's a permanent minority party. The Democratic 0:12:01.480 --> 0:12:05.120 parties headed for permanent minority party status. And what happened. 0:12:05.440 --> 0:12:08.600 Somebody decided to pick a fight and take the Democratic 0:12:08.640 --> 0:12:10.760 Party in a whole new direction. And that's somebody was 0:12:10.760 --> 0:12:13.199 Bill Clinton. And I've gone through this a few times before, 0:12:13.240 --> 0:12:15.880 so I'm not going to re talk about this moment, 0:12:15.920 --> 0:12:19.000 but that was a cathartic moment for a party. And 0:12:19.720 --> 0:12:24.559 Bill Clinton confronted the establishment. Bill Clinton confronted the very 0:12:24.600 --> 0:12:28.720 basic issues that swing voters were saying they didn't trust 0:12:28.760 --> 0:12:31.360 whether it was law and order issues, national security, or 0:12:31.360 --> 0:12:35.240 the economy. Right, he came out and was centered the 0:12:35.280 --> 0:12:40.520 party as being more pro business, more pro free trade, tough. Essentially, 0:12:40.600 --> 0:12:44.480 when he got elected president, he basically adopted half of 0:12:44.520 --> 0:12:47.560 the national defense policy that George H. W. Bush had kept. 0:12:47.559 --> 0:12:50.760 Colin Powell kept a bunch of holdovers at the time 0:12:50.800 --> 0:12:54.160 and essentially preserved much of this of the status quo 0:12:54.200 --> 0:12:58.720 in the national security, and of course he projected himself 0:12:58.720 --> 0:13:03.200 as much tougher on law orders, even famously leaving the 0:13:03.280 --> 0:13:08.960 campaign trail to oversee the use of the death penalty 0:13:09.000 --> 0:13:11.560 when he was governor of Arkansas late in the campaign, 0:13:12.080 --> 0:13:14.720 just to reinforce the message that he was a different 0:13:14.720 --> 0:13:19.360 type of Democrat. It was all about him making contrast 0:13:19.400 --> 0:13:22.680 that he wasn't Jimmy Carter, that he wasn't Michael Ducacas, 0:13:22.679 --> 0:13:25.559 and that he wasn't Walter Mondale. And the one thing, 0:13:25.600 --> 0:13:27.240 and he actually had to push back that he wasn't 0:13:27.240 --> 0:13:29.760 George McGovern. That was a little harder for him, why 0:13:30.120 --> 0:13:34.600 because Bill and Hillary Clinton ran Texas for McGovern back 0:13:34.640 --> 0:13:37.880 in seventy two. But still, you see my larger point, 0:13:38.240 --> 0:13:42.280 he had to not just run against the party, but 0:13:42.520 --> 0:13:46.840 contrast himself and put those previous Democratic leaders in a 0:13:46.880 --> 0:13:50.880 negative light. That's likely the situation the Democrats are in now. 0:13:51.000 --> 0:13:53.679 Right if you put the grouping of candidates together of 0:13:53.800 --> 0:13:58.760 Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, and Kamala Harris. We've had three 0:13:58.800 --> 0:14:03.600 elections and two of them lost, and the Joe Biden 0:14:03.760 --> 0:14:08.360 victory turned out to be probably more of an accident 0:14:08.920 --> 0:14:12.560 in hindsight than we all realize. I think that one 0:14:12.600 --> 0:14:17.200 of the fundamental problems Democrats I think have made and 0:14:17.320 --> 0:14:21.320 why they may have chosen not to confront the Biden 0:14:21.400 --> 0:14:24.040 age issue when they should have, is I think they 0:14:24.080 --> 0:14:27.000 misinterpreted both what happened in twenty twenty and twenty twenty two. 0:14:27.200 --> 0:14:30.560 I think the Democrats mostly believe that their success in 0:14:30.600 --> 0:14:34.560 twenty and they're doing and they're better than expected showing 0:14:34.600 --> 0:14:37.800 in twenty two was due to a rejection of Donald 0:14:37.800 --> 0:14:42.000 Trump and trump Ism, when it looks like if you 0:14:42.120 --> 0:14:45.000 actually dig in and now sort of see how voters 0:14:45.040 --> 0:14:49.200 behaved in twenty four, now we can look back and realize, oh, 0:14:49.800 --> 0:14:53.560 in twenty this was simply about COVID, and that Donald 0:14:53.600 --> 0:14:57.680 Trump managed COVID better heat of one reelection, and oh, 0:14:57.760 --> 0:15:00.680 by the way, he almost won reelection anyway. And in 0:15:00.760 --> 0:15:06.440 twenty two it was simply superior Democratic candidates running against 0:15:06.640 --> 0:15:10.960 terrible Republican nominees. And if there weren't those terrible Republican nominees, 0:15:11.520 --> 0:15:14.920 the twenty twenty two midterms go differently. And perhaps it 0:15:15.040 --> 0:15:19.000 actually motivates the Democratic Party to say, hey, they've got 0:15:19.000 --> 0:15:21.520 a pivot from Joe Biden. Something is wrong here, this 0:15:21.560 --> 0:15:27.880 isn't working. But they believe the voters that the message 0:15:27.920 --> 0:15:30.640 the voters were sending was a full on rejection of Trump, 0:15:30.720 --> 0:15:33.200 when really it was just a rejection of the specific 0:15:33.240 --> 0:15:36.600 policy of the moment, and of that moment in twenty 0:15:36.640 --> 0:15:41.320 twenty was covid. And I also think what happened on 0:15:41.400 --> 0:15:44.280 January sixth really clouded the judgment of a lot of Democrats. 0:15:44.280 --> 0:15:46.400 I think a lot of Democrats believe the country would 0:15:46.400 --> 0:15:50.280 never forgive Republicans for what happened on January sixth, not 0:15:50.440 --> 0:15:57.840 realizing that what the conservative media machine had done a 0:15:57.880 --> 0:16:01.960 great job building an alternative ecosystem, and Donald Trump supercharged 0:16:01.960 --> 0:16:06.560 that alternative ecosystem. When Facebook and Twitter decided to deplatform him, 0:16:06.920 --> 0:16:09.600 he was forced to have to go find a new 0:16:09.640 --> 0:16:13.920 way to communicate. And all that did was, I think 0:16:14.040 --> 0:16:17.120 less in whatever impact democrats thought January was going to sick, 0:16:17.200 --> 0:16:20.200 January six was going to have on the electorate as 0:16:20.280 --> 0:16:23.400 a whole. So look, I think you're going to continue 0:16:23.400 --> 0:16:26.160 to see more Democrats try to distance themselves. I think 0:16:26.200 --> 0:16:28.680 it's going to be really tough for some of them. 0:16:28.680 --> 0:16:32.520 I saw James Carvill just attack Pete Bootajige the other 0:16:32.600 --> 0:16:36.120 day saying, oh, now you're saying because Botajige went in Iowa, 0:16:36.400 --> 0:16:38.560 essentially said yeah, maybe we should have gone in a 0:16:38.560 --> 0:16:41.920 different direction rather than Biden seeking reelection. And of course 0:16:41.960 --> 0:16:44.240 Carvel's first answer was because Carvel was out there early 0:16:44.280 --> 0:16:47.040 on saying Biden shouldn't seek reelection. He was saying it 0:16:47.040 --> 0:16:51.320 in twenty twenty three when many Democrats were not saying 0:16:51.320 --> 0:16:54.320 it then, or certainly weren't saying it publicly. And he 0:16:54.360 --> 0:16:56.320 basically said, where were you, Pete Bootagige. Why didn't you 0:16:56.360 --> 0:17:00.200 say anything then? And so I think that that's going 0:17:00.320 --> 0:17:03.000 to be It's going to be an albatross that every 0:17:03.040 --> 0:17:07.159 single Democrat that runs for office. The closer you are 0:17:07.320 --> 0:17:09.800 to Biden, the more questions you're going to have to 0:17:09.840 --> 0:17:12.199 answer about what you saw and what you didn't see, 0:17:12.440 --> 0:17:14.159 and if you didn't see it, the question is going 0:17:14.240 --> 0:17:15.960 to be why didn't you see it? Why didn't you 0:17:15.960 --> 0:17:18.280 ask questions about why you weren't allowed to meet more 0:17:18.320 --> 0:17:20.480 often with the president if you were a cabinet secretary 0:17:20.520 --> 0:17:24.119 for instance, or why did you say what you said? 0:17:24.240 --> 0:17:27.960 Some of these defenses, Oh, you know when people it 0:17:28.200 --> 0:17:30.959 was it was always you know, all these quotes are 0:17:30.960 --> 0:17:33.199 coming back to haunt so many Democrats because they'd be 0:17:33.200 --> 0:17:35.560 out there saying I was with Biden and he was amazing, 0:17:35.600 --> 0:17:37.840 and he was this. It was almost like over the 0:17:37.880 --> 0:17:42.239 top rhetoric and trying to defend Biden, which after the 0:17:42.280 --> 0:17:44.840 release of the her tapes and after the release of 0:17:44.880 --> 0:17:50.320 this Tapper book is only makes those quotes age really 0:17:50.400 --> 0:17:53.359 really poorly. So, look, I suspect you're going to have 0:17:53.400 --> 0:18:01.080 to that the Democrats are not anywhere near answering the 0:18:01.200 --> 0:18:04.359 question that voters are going to end up asking them 0:18:04.880 --> 0:18:08.359 at some point, because I go back to what I 0:18:09.280 --> 0:18:13.680 to what Chris Murphy said on Sunday. The more unpopular 0:18:13.760 --> 0:18:18.760 Trump gets, the more unpopular the decisions he makes, the 0:18:19.000 --> 0:18:24.520 worse our economy is. Some of that blame isn't all 0:18:24.560 --> 0:18:26.119 going to go to the Republicans. There are going to 0:18:26.119 --> 0:18:29.639 be some voters who do blame the Democratic Party for 0:18:29.880 --> 0:18:33.800 not focusing on the task in hand back in twenty 0:18:33.840 --> 0:18:37.600 twenty four, for looking the other way on Biden. And 0:18:37.920 --> 0:18:41.800 so what does that mean? Right? I've posited here that 0:18:42.000 --> 0:18:46.479 if we didn't if they're if the duopoly of ballid 0:18:46.520 --> 0:18:50.880 access didn't exist, I do think the Democratic Party's major 0:18:50.920 --> 0:18:54.919 party status would be in real jeopardy. But because of 0:18:55.000 --> 0:18:59.240 how embedded, and because there's only one vehicle to guarantee 0:18:59.240 --> 0:19:03.400 ballid access without having to go around gathering partition signatures 0:19:03.400 --> 0:19:07.120 and things like that in many states, it gives them 0:19:07.240 --> 0:19:10.960 essentially a chance to try to reinvent themselves. But they 0:19:10.960 --> 0:19:14.920 have to reinvent themselves. Make no mistake, if you're thinking 0:19:14.960 --> 0:19:17.240 about leading this party in twenty six or twenty eight, 0:19:17.800 --> 0:19:20.760 go spend some time watching what Bill Clinton did in 0:19:20.840 --> 0:19:24.160 nineteen eighty nine, in nineteen ninety, Go take a look 0:19:24.160 --> 0:19:28.680 at the DLC. It doesn't mean you have to move ideologically. 0:19:29.359 --> 0:19:34.280 I do think that sometimes strength can be projected without 0:19:34.560 --> 0:19:37.760 shifting your ideology left to center or center to left. 0:19:38.440 --> 0:19:41.679 What you've got to do is project strength whatever it is, 0:19:42.680 --> 0:19:46.480 either if it's strength on an issue, strength on character. 0:19:47.240 --> 0:19:54.000 But these mealy mouthed answers, and this sort of attempt 0:19:54.160 --> 0:19:58.480 to try to try to sort of vaguely blame others 0:19:58.560 --> 0:20:02.359 or blame the establishment is is, I think a fool's 0:20:02.440 --> 0:20:08.320 Errand I do want to remind folks why is the 0:20:08.400 --> 0:20:11.560 her tape public? The her tape is only public because 0:20:11.600 --> 0:20:13.960 the Trump White House chose to make it public. Now 0:20:13.960 --> 0:20:16.359 you ask yourself, why do they choose? Why Why is 0:20:16.400 --> 0:20:24.200 Donald Trump so so enamored with constantly bringing up Joe Biden? 0:20:25.000 --> 0:20:27.919 Because in many ways, you know, if you think about it, 0:20:28.000 --> 0:20:31.199 like how a poker player might analyze somebody at a table, 0:20:31.680 --> 0:20:33.640 why is he doing this? Well, to me, it's a tell. 0:20:34.240 --> 0:20:38.040 What's the tell? He knows he's not popular. He knows 0:20:38.240 --> 0:20:41.400 many of the things he's doing are not popular. That 0:20:41.480 --> 0:20:44.000 Middle East trip, there were he did a few things 0:20:44.040 --> 0:20:47.119 that that may pay dividends long term. I think Syria 0:20:47.160 --> 0:20:49.720 and Iran could pay some long term dividends and some 0:20:49.760 --> 0:20:54.000 stability in the Middle East. But the stinkiness of the 0:20:54.160 --> 0:20:58.159 business transactions and the clear sort of intent of his 0:20:58.280 --> 0:21:03.760 personal businesses and his sons profiting off of the government's 0:21:03.840 --> 0:21:08.880 businesses with those three golf countries UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Katar, 0:21:09.400 --> 0:21:12.639 plus the whole plane business. Right, there's some stinkiness to it, 0:21:13.320 --> 0:21:15.560 So what was the best way to get people to 0:21:15.600 --> 0:21:18.280 ignore that stinkiness for about twenty four to forty eight 0:21:18.320 --> 0:21:23.879 hours release the Biden her tapes. Anyway, it's obvious that 0:21:25.560 --> 0:21:30.080 Donald Trump is pursuing a strategy that Joe Biden might 0:21:30.760 --> 0:21:36.359 actually might admire, which is Donald Trump doesn't want you 0:21:36.400 --> 0:21:38.119 to judge him by the Almighty. He wants you to 0:21:38.200 --> 0:21:40.960 judge him by the alternative that he chooses to compare 0:21:41.040 --> 0:21:44.959 himself to, and constantly bringing up Biden he thinks is 0:21:45.080 --> 0:21:49.040 a net positive for him. But it does lead to 0:21:49.200 --> 0:21:53.040 a curious question that I have in watching the full response, 0:21:53.080 --> 0:21:56.000 if you will, over the weekend, and where the anger 0:21:56.080 --> 0:21:59.800 was coming up when the first clips of the her 0:22:00.080 --> 0:22:04.200 it came out. It was interesting to me that it 0:22:04.240 --> 0:22:09.440 fears as if the right conservative media Republican elected officials, 0:22:09.960 --> 0:22:15.919 all of them seemed to be angrier about this, about 0:22:15.960 --> 0:22:25.080 Biden's about the attacks on her, about Biden's appearance on there, 0:22:25.320 --> 0:22:29.520 and how it was clear that he was certainly, if anything, 0:22:29.600 --> 0:22:33.160 had a bad day when he did that first interview, 0:22:33.720 --> 0:22:35.840 But there was more anger from Republicans than there was 0:22:35.880 --> 0:22:38.480 from Democrats, and that's been a head scratcher to me. 0:22:39.359 --> 0:22:41.200 I think the release of the her tapes should be 0:22:41.280 --> 0:22:44.320 making Democrats a heck of a lot angrier than Republicans. 0:22:44.840 --> 0:22:48.600 You would think Trump allies are ecstatic that Democrats did 0:22:48.640 --> 0:22:50.720 nothing about Joe Biden for as long as they did. 0:22:51.280 --> 0:22:55.720 You would think Republicans should be celebrating that Democrats essentially 0:22:55.880 --> 0:22:58.720 didn't put their best foot forward in twenty twenty four. 0:23:00.160 --> 0:23:04.000 But if anything, they're attacking. They seem to be angrier 0:23:04.119 --> 0:23:07.760 about the development and angrier that Aha, see, they were 0:23:07.840 --> 0:23:11.720 right in their minds, they were right Biden wasn't up 0:23:11.720 --> 0:23:14.639 to the job. Now. I know that some on the 0:23:14.680 --> 0:23:16.640 right they think this is going to be some sort 0:23:16.640 --> 0:23:20.960 of vindication for them, that this will reinforce that you 0:23:21.000 --> 0:23:25.480 can't trust the left on anything. I think there are 0:23:25.480 --> 0:23:29.000 some on the right that believe this Biden cover up, 0:23:29.000 --> 0:23:31.080 if you want to call it that, as akin to 0:23:31.720 --> 0:23:35.200 the no weapons of mass destruction that sort of saddled 0:23:35.240 --> 0:23:38.639 Republicans for over a decade, if you will, And so 0:23:39.680 --> 0:23:41.720 I think that's what the right things but I will 0:23:41.720 --> 0:23:45.800 say this, I don't understand why Democrats aren't angrier. It 0:23:45.920 --> 0:23:49.640 was a lot of hiding a little bit in response 0:23:49.720 --> 0:23:52.520 to the hur tapes when it and while the Republicans 0:23:52.560 --> 0:23:55.800 seemed to be venting and frustrated, it was almost as if, 0:23:55.920 --> 0:23:58.120 why couldn't the Democrats have put up a better candidate 0:23:58.960 --> 0:24:01.480 so that Donald Trump didn't become president. Now they didn't 0:24:01.520 --> 0:24:04.679 say the second part, but that the anger is so 0:24:04.840 --> 0:24:07.960 palpable on the right that it's like, wow, why did 0:24:08.000 --> 0:24:10.880 you make us nominate Donald Trump? As almost what they're 0:24:10.920 --> 0:24:15.560 saying without saying it anyway, just something to think about 0:24:16.880 --> 0:24:20.360 into the motivation into why Trump's doing this. And I'll 0:24:20.359 --> 0:24:23.119 say this, it says a lot to me that the 0:24:23.160 --> 0:24:25.840 Trump White House feels the need that they have to 0:24:25.880 --> 0:24:28.800 do this because guess what, they've had a bad ninety 0:24:28.840 --> 0:24:34.760 six hours Russia is clearly Trump has no influence over Putin. 0:24:35.240 --> 0:24:40.359 He continues to snub Ukraine, snub an he ceasefire and oh, 0:24:40.760 --> 0:24:43.040 they just bombarded him with one of the larger drum 0:24:43.119 --> 0:24:48.040 strikes that Ukraine has experienced in a while. All in 0:24:48.080 --> 0:24:49.919 the run up to where Donald Trump says He's going 0:24:49.960 --> 0:24:51.600 to engage talk to putin and see if he can 0:24:51.640 --> 0:24:56.919 talk him into this. You also have House Republicans shooting 0:24:56.960 --> 0:25:02.160 at each other, unable to get this one big, beautiful 0:25:02.240 --> 0:25:06.359 bill onto the floor for a vote. Donald Trump's probably 0:25:06.400 --> 0:25:07.960 going to have to play Speaker of the House again. 0:25:08.119 --> 0:25:10.720 I mean, as we've learned, Mike Johnson is not his 0:25:10.760 --> 0:25:14.080 speaker and title only whenever he actually has to get 0:25:14.160 --> 0:25:17.359 a vote across the finish line. He desperately needs Donald 0:25:17.359 --> 0:25:21.760 Trump to make individual phone calls, individual threats. And let's 0:25:21.760 --> 0:25:23.240 just say, Donald Trump has a lot of work to 0:25:23.280 --> 0:25:28.520 do this week playing House speaker. And that again, when 0:25:28.520 --> 0:25:31.879 you have all that on your plate, it's no wonder 0:25:31.920 --> 0:25:35.280 They said, Hey, let's throw up the distraction shiny metal object, 0:25:35.400 --> 0:25:39.440 and let's release the her Biden tape. All right, let 0:25:39.440 --> 0:25:42.000 me sneak in a break here, and for those of 0:25:42.040 --> 0:25:43.960 you that are listening on audio when we come back, 0:25:44.280 --> 0:25:46.600 you're going to hear from one of the fascinating rising 0:25:46.640 --> 0:25:50.560 stars of the New York City Congressional delegation. And he 0:25:50.640 --> 0:25:54.520 could be a future candidate for governor of New York One, 0:25:54.640 --> 0:26:06.720 Richie toires New York City Democratic Congressman Richie Torres. Richie, 0:26:06.760 --> 0:26:10.399 it's good to see you. You're in some ways, I 0:26:10.440 --> 0:26:12.119 think a lot of the folks that listen to me 0:26:12.160 --> 0:26:14.760 and are watching me do know who you are. You're 0:26:14.920 --> 0:26:18.520 a progressive Democrat who's really pro Israel. Been one of 0:26:18.520 --> 0:26:21.000 the been one of the more important voices for those 0:26:21.040 --> 0:26:23.720 that support Israel in the New York City area. But 0:26:24.560 --> 0:26:27.639 I miss the old Stephen Colbert days of get to 0:26:27.640 --> 0:26:31.040 know your district. So I've made I made Goldman do this. 0:26:31.600 --> 0:26:34.320 So I'm gonna make you do this because this you know, 0:26:34.560 --> 0:26:37.639 tell me about your district, like I've never been to 0:26:37.680 --> 0:26:41.800 New York City. Describe this district to somebody that lives 0:26:41.840 --> 0:26:42.720 in Rolla, Missouri. 0:26:45.160 --> 0:26:48.440 So I represent one of the few congressional districts that's 0:26:48.480 --> 0:26:51.960 wholly contained within one county. I represent about half the Bronx. 0:26:52.520 --> 0:26:54.560 So my district is home to the New York Yankees, 0:26:56.280 --> 0:27:00.840 and it's it's really known for its int intitutions. We 0:27:00.920 --> 0:27:03.959 have the New York Botanical Garden, we have the Bronx 0:27:04.000 --> 0:27:08.840 SIOU at Fordham University. The largest employer in the Bronx 0:27:09.000 --> 0:27:13.639 is the monsterra House System. And it's just an ethnically 0:27:13.720 --> 0:27:18.280 and racially very district, Dominican and Latino and Puerto Rican 0:27:18.320 --> 0:27:21.720 and Mexican population in the South Bronx, an African, American 0:27:21.760 --> 0:27:25.080 and Caribbean population in the Northeast Bronx, a Jewish population 0:27:25.119 --> 0:27:28.240 at Riverdale, Irish population, and Woodlaw. And so I have 0:27:28.280 --> 0:27:33.240 Little Italy, little Ireland, Little Yemen. It is remarkable for 0:27:33.320 --> 0:27:38.200 its diversity, and I have a special reverence for Arthur Abu. Literally, 0:27:39.160 --> 0:27:41.359 there may be no community in New York City that 0:27:41.440 --> 0:27:43.920 has a greater concentration of businesses that have been owned 0:27:43.960 --> 0:27:46.480 by the same family for more than one hundred years. 0:27:47.640 --> 0:27:49.560 So it's one of the most I would argue it's 0:27:49.560 --> 0:27:52.000 the best congressional district in America, But of course I 0:27:52.040 --> 0:27:52.600 have a bias. 0:27:52.880 --> 0:27:55.280 You better, you better say that. So you bought up 0:27:55.320 --> 0:28:02.080 against AOC in her district? Yes, yes, And what's the 0:28:02.119 --> 0:28:05.639 difference between hers and yours? Is it beyond geography? Beyond 0:28:05.680 --> 0:28:09.119 just butting up against I mean what her district is. 0:28:09.359 --> 0:28:11.040 It's not all contained in the Bronx, right. 0:28:11.040 --> 0:28:15.720 Yeah, So I'm exclusively in the Bronx, whereas AOC represents 0:28:15.760 --> 0:28:20.119 both the Bronx and Queens. I split the South Bronx 0:28:20.119 --> 0:28:23.480 with AOC, I split the West Bronx with Adriano s 0:28:23.560 --> 0:28:27.360 Bayot and I split the Northeast Bronx with George Latimer, 0:28:27.440 --> 0:28:32.239 and AOC primarily represents the East Bronx, which happens my 0:28:32.280 --> 0:28:34.280 mother happens to live in her districts. 0:28:34.640 --> 0:28:37.080 Oh, well, there you go. It's just she can't vote 0:28:37.119 --> 0:28:39.000 for you. Mom can't vote for you. 0:28:39.280 --> 0:28:42.240 She cannot vote right now. She votes for me in spirit, 0:28:42.320 --> 0:28:43.840 but not in practice. 0:28:44.280 --> 0:28:46.840 You served on the New York City Council, and I 0:28:46.880 --> 0:28:51.560 don't think people are fully appreciate how enormous the New 0:28:51.640 --> 0:28:55.520 York City Council is. I mean every time I hear like, wait, 0:28:56.520 --> 0:28:57.920 one hundred and how many members? 0:29:00.280 --> 0:29:03.080 Yes, so I might have had more staff as a 0:29:03.120 --> 0:29:05.400 New York City Council member than I did as a 0:29:05.400 --> 0:29:10.120 member of Congress. Unlike most local legislators who operate with 0:29:10.240 --> 0:29:14.000 volunteer staff with part time staffers, New York City has 0:29:14.040 --> 0:29:18.880 a full time, professional legislature. It's about fifty one members, 0:29:18.920 --> 0:29:21.360 one of whom is the speaker, and each member of 0:29:21.360 --> 0:29:24.600 the City Council represents about one hundred and sixty to 0:29:24.600 --> 0:29:29.479 one hundred and seventy thousand people and have enormous power 0:29:29.520 --> 0:29:33.520 over land use development within their districts. I was in 0:29:33.600 --> 0:29:37.720 charge of investigations. I had not only my own personal staff, 0:29:38.280 --> 0:29:41.800 but the investigations and oversight division of the City Council 0:29:42.200 --> 0:29:46.680 reported to my committee. So it was great preparation for 0:29:46.800 --> 0:29:48.640 my role in Congress because I feel like, as a 0:29:48.680 --> 0:29:51.680 former city council member, I have an on the ground 0:29:51.720 --> 0:29:54.600 knowledge of how federal policies and programs operate at the 0:29:54.600 --> 0:29:56.800 local level because so much of what we did locally 0:29:57.520 --> 0:29:59.960 was essentially the administration of federal programs and for our 0:30:01.160 --> 0:30:01.680 So look. 0:30:01.520 --> 0:30:03.479 I'm obsessed with uncapping the House. I think we need 0:30:03.480 --> 0:30:07.080 to double the size of Congress. And you have a 0:30:07.160 --> 0:30:10.800 unique You have a nique window here. You went from 0:30:10.800 --> 0:30:13.000 a constituency of about one hundred to one hundred and 0:30:13.000 --> 0:30:15.640 fifty thousand. You just said right, to a constituency of 0:30:15.680 --> 0:30:20.480 approximately eight hundred thousand. Talk to me about those challenges 0:30:20.920 --> 0:30:23.240 and is eight hundred thousand too much? Should it be 0:30:23.280 --> 0:30:24.080 four hundred thousand? 0:30:27.040 --> 0:30:30.160 I would maintain the status quo. To be honest with you, 0:30:31.360 --> 0:30:35.680 I can. I mean, the House has trouble functioning with 0:30:35.720 --> 0:30:38.560 four hundred and thirty five members. Not to mention the 0:30:38.640 --> 0:30:41.480 representatives of territories, the thought of doubling the size of 0:30:41.480 --> 0:30:43.040 the House. I mean there is a point at which 0:30:43.960 --> 0:30:48.080 just operationally becomes overwhelming, So I would maintain the status quo. 0:30:48.320 --> 0:30:51.280 The greatest concern I have about the House is just 0:30:51.800 --> 0:30:55.520 running every two years. That the moment you've won your election, 0:30:56.000 --> 0:30:59.760 you're beginning a new election cycle. And I feel like 0:30:59.760 --> 0:31:02.520 they're members of Congress who's just spend too much time fundraising, 0:31:02.560 --> 0:31:05.760 too much time campaigning. It has a crowding out effect 0:31:05.800 --> 0:31:08.280 on governing. You know, we have two year terms, the 0:31:08.320 --> 0:31:10.760 president is four year term, Senators have six year terms. 0:31:11.480 --> 0:31:14.360 The Supreme Court as a lifetime appointment. So the House 0:31:14.400 --> 0:31:16.920 got the short end of the stick. Well did it? 0:31:17.080 --> 0:31:18.600 Or is it supposed to be the most small d 0:31:18.680 --> 0:31:19.920 democratic right? Like? 0:31:20.160 --> 0:31:23.000 You know, this is where I do think it. I 0:31:23.440 --> 0:31:26.800 think in this case, more is better. If the if 0:31:26.800 --> 0:31:28.680 the founders were here, they would say that. 0:31:31.320 --> 0:31:34.160 It's a good it's a fair point. I would if 0:31:34.160 --> 0:31:36.720 I have to choose between a world in which both 0:31:36.760 --> 0:31:39.800 the Senate and the House have four year terms or 0:31:39.920 --> 0:31:42.280 the status quo, I probably would prefer both to have 0:31:42.320 --> 0:31:43.160 four year terms. 0:31:43.440 --> 0:31:47.400 Interesting, what was the term length on the city council 0:31:48.080 --> 0:31:51.200 four years? Four years and same four years? Or did 0:31:51.200 --> 0:31:52.000 they stagger it. 0:31:53.800 --> 0:31:56.120 To your your term limited, so you you're confined to 0:31:56.160 --> 0:31:59.960 two terms. And when I actually, when I entered the 0:32:00.000 --> 0:32:01.840 New York City Council, I was in favor of term 0:32:01.800 --> 0:32:04.600 moments because I felt to create space for a new 0:32:04.600 --> 0:32:08.479 generational leadership. But since then, I've become a skeptic because 0:32:08.720 --> 0:32:13.080 the mass exodus of members from the City Council has 0:32:13.160 --> 0:32:15.920 led to a real brain train and and it, you know, 0:32:16.000 --> 0:32:19.280 has the effect of shifting power from elected officials to 0:32:19.520 --> 0:32:22.000 the unelected staff, the permit diet, the so called deep 0:32:22.000 --> 0:32:23.000 state of the City Council. 0:32:23.440 --> 0:32:27.560 I am. I believe this every single state legislative capital, 0:32:27.960 --> 0:32:33.040 okay that has done this. The lobbyist run the legislature 0:32:33.960 --> 0:32:36.960 because they have the institutional memory. By the way, some 0:32:37.080 --> 0:32:40.200 very well meaning lobbyists. Just because your lobbist doesn't mean 0:32:40.240 --> 0:32:43.160 you're you're only out for the you know, standing up 0:32:43.200 --> 0:32:46.600 for bad guys. It just doesn't. But they're not termalmenting, right. 0:32:47.840 --> 0:32:50.520 And I you know, and it's even more so at 0:32:50.520 --> 0:32:53.560 the federal level. You know, the the issues that I 0:32:53.720 --> 0:32:57.280 tack was a member of Congress are so immensely complicating, 0:32:57.800 --> 0:33:00.880 complicated that you cannot learn them? Will you can only 0:33:00.960 --> 0:33:04.080 learn them over time by osmosis, and so there is 0:33:04.120 --> 0:33:07.000 something to be said for institutional memory. I feel creates 0:33:07.000 --> 0:33:08.400 a much more democratic government. 0:33:09.600 --> 0:33:11.880 So I went on a bit of a rant the 0:33:11.920 --> 0:33:16.200 other day about the lack of bipartisanship these days. In 0:33:16.960 --> 0:33:20.680 this respect, here you had Donald Trump, who was in 0:33:20.760 --> 0:33:22.680 favor of a couple things that they are a majority 0:33:22.680 --> 0:33:26.120 of Democrats that are in favor of raising. He wants 0:33:27.200 --> 0:33:31.600 a tax rate for millionaires as one way. He floated 0:33:31.600 --> 0:33:34.120 it out there. We know that there's Democratic support for that, 0:33:34.480 --> 0:33:37.000 yet he didn't go and seek it. He did an 0:33:37.080 --> 0:33:41.080 executive order on prescription drugs that has no teeth whatsoever. 0:33:41.880 --> 0:33:45.040 If he had worked on finding Democrats to help him, 0:33:45.080 --> 0:33:49.320 you could suddenly probably get some bipartisan legislation. He's not alone. 0:33:49.680 --> 0:33:52.120 The last Democratic president didn't make much. But I don't 0:33:52.160 --> 0:33:53.720 feel like Biden made much of an effort to reach 0:33:53.720 --> 0:33:56.040 out Republicans, and we could say Republicans didn't want to 0:33:56.080 --> 0:33:59.760 be outreached to. Barack Obama had to do Obamacare. So 0:34:00.600 --> 0:34:04.920 George W. Bush basically passed his prescription drug benefits solo. 0:34:06.080 --> 0:34:09.640 What does it take And if Donald Trump came to 0:34:09.680 --> 0:34:13.880 the House, Democratic House, Democratic Caucus and said, hey, I 0:34:13.920 --> 0:34:17.080 want to raise tax I want to create a tax rate, 0:34:17.400 --> 0:34:19.080 you know, a higher tax rate for those that make 0:34:19.080 --> 0:34:24.040 two million or more. Are we in a space where 0:34:24.080 --> 0:34:26.960 there could be a bipartisan agreement on that, or is 0:34:27.000 --> 0:34:30.920 the toxicity of Trump himself now make it impossible for 0:34:30.960 --> 0:34:32.720 bipartisanship in this current conference. 0:34:35.560 --> 0:34:39.960 I feel the appearance of DC is much more partisan 0:34:40.000 --> 0:34:44.120 than the reality. Particularly so I want to take issue 0:34:44.120 --> 0:34:47.040 with something you said with Biden. I actually felt, you know, 0:34:47.080 --> 0:34:51.320 for all the partisanship, particularly in the wake of January sixth, 0:34:52.040 --> 0:34:58.040 that he had a bipartisan and productively bipartisan presidency. Veteran healthcare, 0:34:58.560 --> 0:35:02.640 gun safety, chips ack, infrastructure, all of which were passed 0:35:03.160 --> 0:35:06.360 on a bipartisan basis. And those are significant pieces of legislation. 0:35:06.840 --> 0:35:08.239 Not all of them were. A lot of them were 0:35:08.400 --> 0:35:10.480 in the party line vote, but some of it was 0:35:10.480 --> 0:35:10.880 in the body. 0:35:10.880 --> 0:35:13.200 The Inflationial Reduction Act was party line, but ships ack 0:35:13.320 --> 0:35:18.279 was bipartisan. Yeah, kind safety was bipartisan. Veteran healthcare was bipartisan, 0:35:19.280 --> 0:35:23.120 Infrastructure was bipartisan. And those are four significant pieces of legislation. 0:35:23.520 --> 0:35:28.040 And I'm and Trump one point, oh was with somewhat bipartisan. Right, 0:35:28.080 --> 0:35:31.080 you had the trade bill, you had a criminal justice 0:35:31.080 --> 0:35:34.680 reform which was actually directly negotiated with Leader Jefferies. 0:35:35.120 --> 0:35:35.319 Right. 0:35:36.360 --> 0:35:38.319 Trump two point zero is quite different. I mean, he's 0:35:38.360 --> 0:35:43.040 just much more vindictive and aggressive and emboldened than ever before, 0:35:43.960 --> 0:35:46.759 and he is poisoning the well and has made it 0:35:46.800 --> 0:35:50.840 increasingly impossible for Democrats to have anything resembling a working 0:35:50.840 --> 0:35:53.719 relationship with him. So I felt like there were a 0:35:53.760 --> 0:35:56.759 prospect for bipartisanship with Trump one point zero. But he's 0:35:56.760 --> 0:35:57.840 a radically different person. 0:35:58.360 --> 0:36:01.600 Look, you have a reputation for being incredibly reasonable. Have 0:36:01.680 --> 0:36:03.680 you heard from his congressional liaisons. 0:36:05.200 --> 0:36:08.480 I've had no communication with Trump. I mean I have 0:36:08.600 --> 0:36:11.040 relationships with congressional Republicans. 0:36:11.320 --> 0:36:13.960 Sure, No, I'm talking about the Trump White House, you know, 0:36:14.080 --> 0:36:18.000 because I remember stories about the early Reagan days where 0:36:18.000 --> 0:36:21.120 they specific now granted they had a Democratic House they 0:36:21.200 --> 0:36:24.439 were dealing with, so there was they certainly they had 0:36:24.440 --> 0:36:26.920 to have relationships if they were going to pass legislation, 0:36:28.000 --> 0:36:31.919 but it was a day one priority. And you're right, 0:36:32.000 --> 0:36:34.279 Trump one point zero did want to you know, there 0:36:34.280 --> 0:36:36.000 would be days where it felt like, hey, he brought 0:36:36.000 --> 0:36:38.759 in Democratic lawmakers to have a conversation about this or that. 0:36:40.480 --> 0:36:43.840 There seems to be no demand, no interest in that whatsoever. 0:36:44.040 --> 0:36:47.399 Even as he again, I this prescription drug Executive Order, 0:36:48.560 --> 0:36:52.279 you get three hundred votes in the House for it. 0:36:52.280 --> 0:36:56.280 It just suits me as contempt for Congress. He expects 0:36:56.280 --> 0:36:59.160 the Republicans to fall in line, and they largely do. 0:37:00.120 --> 0:37:02.600 And he's in vindictive mode. I mean, he's just intent 0:37:02.680 --> 0:37:06.440 on dismantling what, you know, the bureaucracy of the government 0:37:06.560 --> 0:37:10.040 and higher education. Like everyone including Democrats, seemed to be 0:37:10.160 --> 0:37:13.400 on his Nixsonian enemies list. So I see no appetite 0:37:13.400 --> 0:37:15.000 for bipartisanship in either direction. 0:37:17.719 --> 0:37:20.160 What is that going to I mean, that's a pretty 0:37:20.760 --> 0:37:23.239 ugly next two and a half years we're going to spend, 0:37:23.280 --> 0:37:23.560 is it not. 0:37:27.520 --> 0:37:31.640 It bolts poorly for the country. And look, I think 0:37:31.680 --> 0:37:34.360 a few weeks ago I wrote something to the effect 0:37:34.440 --> 0:37:40.080 if a superpower we're planning the seeds of its own decline, right, 0:37:40.120 --> 0:37:43.520 it would paralyze the global economy with a certainty of uncertainty. 0:37:44.360 --> 0:37:46.800 It would erode confidence in the reserve status of the dollar. 0:37:47.160 --> 0:37:49.960 It would discard due process, it would defund scientific and 0:37:50.000 --> 0:37:53.239 medical research, It would sabotage advanced trip making, and it 0:37:53.239 --> 0:37:57.080 would grow the deficit until debt service becomes the largest 0:37:57.120 --> 0:38:00.760 expense in the federal budget, and that is in twenty 0:38:00.800 --> 0:38:03.040 twenty five under Donald Trump. But I feel like we're 0:38:03.080 --> 0:38:03.960 in a dangerous place. 0:38:04.520 --> 0:38:06.480 So what do you do as a lawmaker? You're a Democrat, 0:38:06.480 --> 0:38:09.520 You're a lawmaker. You in theory, you you're in the 0:38:09.719 --> 0:38:12.680 you're in the arena. What do you what role can 0:38:12.719 --> 0:38:14.920 you play to get us out of this? 0:38:16.200 --> 0:38:18.040 Well, well, first we have to I mean I have 0:38:18.120 --> 0:38:23.239 to resist, you know, so take Medicaid. There's no congressional 0:38:23.280 --> 0:38:26.240 district in America that has a greater stake in Medicaid 0:38:26.719 --> 0:38:30.560 than mine. Sixty seven percent of my congressional district is 0:38:30.560 --> 0:38:34.200 a role to Medicaid. In my district, more than seventy 0:38:34.239 --> 0:38:38.040 percent of troldren, more than eighty percent of nursing home residence, 0:38:38.120 --> 0:38:41.640 more than ninety percent of baby deliveries are covered by Medicaid. 0:38:42.239 --> 0:38:44.120 And so I have to spend much of my political 0:38:44.160 --> 0:38:49.600 capital fighting this unprecedented assault on the social safety upon 0:38:49.680 --> 0:38:52.440 which the BRONX is heavily heavily dependent. The largest employer 0:38:52.480 --> 0:38:55.840 in the BRONX is the Montafuer Health System, which employs 0:38:55.880 --> 0:38:59.320 tens of thousands of people and depends heavily on Medicaid. 0:38:59.320 --> 0:39:01.560 And Medicaid matter not only the districts like mine, but 0:39:01.560 --> 0:39:03.960 to Blue states and Red states urban communities. 0:39:04.120 --> 0:39:07.879 Well, you saw Josh Holly, Republican senator from Missouri. He's 0:39:07.920 --> 0:39:13.640 well aware of majority of his constituents love Medicaid or reliable. 0:39:12.920 --> 0:39:16.440 And it's you know, Medicaid is not only health insurance 0:39:16.760 --> 0:39:19.719 for the lowest income. It has become long term care 0:39:20.520 --> 0:39:23.200 for the elderly and the disabled and richie. 0:39:23.360 --> 0:39:27.960 Both my grandmother and my wife's grandmother the end of 0:39:28.000 --> 0:39:31.399 life care that they needed we couldn't have afforded without 0:39:31.400 --> 0:39:34.080 the help of Medicaid both instances. 0:39:35.560 --> 0:39:38.840 I feel Medicaid is every bit as vital to senior 0:39:38.880 --> 0:39:43.720 citizens as medicare. Like in New York State, the elderly 0:39:43.760 --> 0:39:46.560 and the disabled account for twenty percent of the enrollees 0:39:46.680 --> 0:39:50.480 but make up sixty percent of the expenses. And so 0:39:50.680 --> 0:39:52.920 an attack on Medicaid is ultimately an attack on the 0:39:52.960 --> 0:39:56.479 elderly and the disabled. And that's the case we're making. 0:39:56.880 --> 0:40:02.280 Do you take any so the way they're right this bill, 0:40:03.520 --> 0:40:07.920 and guys like Chip Roy are unhappy with it. It 0:40:07.960 --> 0:40:11.920 feels as if all of the potential cuts to medicate 0:40:12.600 --> 0:40:14.840 or reforms, whichever side of the ale you want to 0:40:14.840 --> 0:40:18.720 be on on this don't kick in for a few years, 0:40:18.800 --> 0:40:21.160 which means it feels as if they're going to get 0:40:21.160 --> 0:40:24.000 their hamburger today, they'll pay for it down the road, 0:40:24.360 --> 0:40:27.840 and by the time down the road comes, there'll probably 0:40:27.840 --> 0:40:30.600 be a different Congress that make sure those either work 0:40:30.600 --> 0:40:33.000 requirements don't kick in or those cuts don't kick in. 0:40:34.160 --> 0:40:36.799 You do you think that's Do you take any sort 0:40:36.800 --> 0:40:38.920 of solace in the fact that that's probably what this 0:40:39.040 --> 0:40:40.440 legislation may end up looking like. 0:40:42.840 --> 0:40:46.120 It's not clear and the only issue is not the legislation. 0:40:46.320 --> 0:40:50.399 So you know, under Donald Trump, you know, thirteen point 0:40:50.400 --> 0:40:53.760 seven million people are in danger of losing their healthcare. 0:40:53.920 --> 0:40:57.640 So the Republican Reconciliation Bill could cause eight point six 0:40:57.640 --> 0:40:59.680 million to lose the healthcare. But then you have the 0:40:59.680 --> 0:41:03.839 exp of the Affordable Care Acts premium tax credits, which 0:41:03.920 --> 0:41:06.800 might cause four point too many people to lose their healthcare. 0:41:07.280 --> 0:41:09.600 And then there's a Trump regulation that could cause one 0:41:09.640 --> 0:41:13.640 point eight million. So those numbers are staggering. That's comparable 0:41:13.680 --> 0:41:15.520 to the number of people would have lost their healthcare 0:41:16.280 --> 0:41:18.839 during the initial attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Acts. 0:41:18.840 --> 0:41:22.040 So I do feel the impact will be felt. Republicans 0:41:22.080 --> 0:41:25.200 are going to message that their targets are not the 0:41:25.239 --> 0:41:30.360 elderly and the vulnerable, it's undocumented immigrants or its work requirements. 0:41:30.920 --> 0:41:33.440 But you know it's deceptive if you're reducing money for 0:41:33.480 --> 0:41:37.000 the overall system, which will not only kill people's lives 0:41:37.000 --> 0:41:43.840 but also livelihoods. And the work requirements are essentially paperwork requirements. 0:41:43.880 --> 0:41:46.600 There's no evidence the work requirements lead to actual work. 0:41:47.160 --> 0:41:49.400 It simply causes people to lose their health insurance. So 0:41:49.600 --> 0:41:54.560 Arkansas was the first state to implement a work requirements program. 0:41:54.920 --> 0:41:57.800 It did not boost employment. It simply led eighteen thousand 0:41:57.840 --> 0:42:00.879 people to lose their health insurance in the first five 0:42:01.239 --> 0:42:03.680 months of the program, and the majority of those people 0:42:03.719 --> 0:42:06.080 were eligible for Medicaid. 0:42:07.160 --> 0:42:14.799 What is there a Can you split Medicaid eligibility between say, 0:42:14.920 --> 0:42:19.319 children who are citizens versus maybe one parent who may 0:42:19.360 --> 0:42:19.600 not be. 0:42:20.560 --> 0:42:25.000 I mean, I don't, I don't know how you could. 0:42:26.360 --> 0:42:27.680 That's what I'm trying to figure out. I don't know 0:42:27.680 --> 0:42:30.080 how you I get the thesis, but I don't know 0:42:30.080 --> 0:42:32.320 how you do it. And that's what I was curious. 0:42:32.800 --> 0:42:37.160 Look, if you are well, if you a seven and 0:42:37.160 --> 0:42:42.440 fifteen billion dollars, defunding a Medicaid is going to reduce 0:42:42.520 --> 0:42:46.040 funding for every safety net hospital, for every hospital in America, 0:42:46.719 --> 0:42:49.680 which means must care for everyone, not simply for the 0:42:49.719 --> 0:42:53.960 population you're targeting. You're reducing funding for the overall system. 0:42:54.360 --> 0:42:57.720 And I also feel like we should be a compassionate society. 0:42:57.760 --> 0:43:00.000 If you're an undocumented immigrant and you have a heart attack, 0:43:00.719 --> 0:43:03.360 are the Republicans suggesting that you should not get emergency 0:43:03.360 --> 0:43:06.080 care and that care should not be covered by the 0:43:06.080 --> 0:43:08.120 federal government. Is that the kind of society that we 0:43:08.160 --> 0:43:09.640 want to live in, that we want people to be 0:43:09.680 --> 0:43:12.719 left to die because of their immigration status or because 0:43:12.760 --> 0:43:16.359 of their income. Like, the consequences of what they're proposing 0:43:16.880 --> 0:43:17.600 are barbaric. 0:43:19.960 --> 0:43:23.560 So when you is there any so you don't even 0:43:23.600 --> 0:43:26.520 see a feasible way of even if you were trying 0:43:26.560 --> 0:43:29.640 to do this and say, well, children who are citizens 0:43:29.680 --> 0:43:33.120 are eligible for Medicaid but their parents are not. 0:43:33.840 --> 0:43:39.120 I do not buy that you can surgically target undocumented 0:43:39.160 --> 0:43:44.719 immigrants without destabilizing the overall system. I mean, even today 0:43:45.040 --> 0:43:48.480 we are underinvesting in long term care right there, are 0:43:48.480 --> 0:43:51.520 eight hundred thousand people on the waiting list for MEDICAI 0:43:51.600 --> 0:43:55.160 funded long term care. And we're in aging society, so 0:43:55.200 --> 0:43:56.760 more and more people are going to be living longer 0:43:56.760 --> 0:43:59.360 and longer their health can needs will become more complex, 0:43:59.480 --> 0:44:02.759 The need for long term care will rise over time, 0:44:04.200 --> 0:44:06.480 and most of the hospitals and places like New York 0:44:06.520 --> 0:44:08.799 are either teetering on the brain core underwater. 0:44:10.200 --> 0:44:12.960 Ritchie, let me tell you on this long term care try. 0:44:13.760 --> 0:44:15.880 Even if you think you can afford your own long 0:44:16.000 --> 0:44:18.680 term care policy, you can't get one to sell you. 0:44:18.719 --> 0:44:22.840 My wife and I got our long term care policies 0:44:22.840 --> 0:44:24.520 when we were in our early thirties. We're now in 0:44:24.560 --> 0:44:26.840 our fifties. Do you know how many times this insurance 0:44:26.840 --> 0:44:29.560 company has tried to buy us out. They're desperately trying 0:44:29.640 --> 0:44:32.200 us to get us off their books. They don't want it. 0:44:32.239 --> 0:44:34.640 And we got it because she lost her parents early 0:44:34.680 --> 0:44:37.719 in life. And you know, it was more of a hey, 0:44:37.840 --> 0:44:39.960 this is our and this is something that we were 0:44:40.000 --> 0:44:43.839 concerned about. But there's not even a marketplace for long 0:44:43.920 --> 0:44:47.880 term care that's realistic. And I feel like government has 0:44:47.880 --> 0:44:51.239 been dropping the ball on this one for a long 0:44:51.280 --> 0:44:53.920 period of time. Now I don't know what long term care, 0:44:55.440 --> 0:44:59.280 government funded insurance looks like here. Do you have a thought, 0:44:59.280 --> 0:45:01.480 do you have a blueprint in your head about how 0:45:01.520 --> 0:45:05.000 you would help to because this is increasingly people are 0:45:05.120 --> 0:45:08.279 my age. Right, we've got kids in college, and we've 0:45:08.320 --> 0:45:11.759 got aging parents. Right, We're in this sort of we're 0:45:11.800 --> 0:45:16.120 caught in this. Is there a realistic policy here that 0:45:16.160 --> 0:45:18.440 can help out? Is it all just through medicators or 0:45:18.440 --> 0:45:19.040 something else? 0:45:20.080 --> 0:45:24.239 I mean medicaid is what we have. It's inherently expensive. 0:45:24.440 --> 0:45:27.320 I mean, nursing homes are expensive, the siste living is expensive. 0:45:28.200 --> 0:45:31.719 You know, I think we should be advocating for home care, 0:45:31.760 --> 0:45:34.600 allowing people to age at home and agent place. But 0:45:35.160 --> 0:45:37.520 there's no uskeeping the course. You know, the problem in 0:45:37.520 --> 0:45:40.160 America is not that we're investing too much in long 0:45:40.239 --> 0:45:42.920 term care. The problem is that we're investing too little. 0:45:44.400 --> 0:45:48.520 Look, I've got a grandmother. She's all there, she's physically 0:45:48.760 --> 0:45:52.279 just has to be in an assisted living facility. And 0:45:52.320 --> 0:45:54.239 she tells me all the time, She's like, yeah, they're 0:45:54.239 --> 0:45:57.800 always understaffed, especially on weekends. They never have enough staff. 0:45:58.320 --> 0:46:02.640 And this is universal and so we have a healthcare 0:46:02.680 --> 0:46:06.680 worker shortage in this country as well, you. 0:46:06.560 --> 0:46:11.560 Know, innovations like telehealth can make a difference. So you know, 0:46:12.120 --> 0:46:15.919 I have a constituent who is caring for her father 0:46:15.960 --> 0:46:18.920 who has Alzheimer's, and she would have to wake up 0:46:18.960 --> 0:46:21.600 five hours before his appointment in order to pick him 0:46:21.680 --> 0:46:24.799 up from his bed and bathe him and feed him 0:46:24.800 --> 0:46:27.200 and close him and then bring him down the stairs. 0:46:27.239 --> 0:46:30.800 Like the process of bringing him to the hospital was arduous. 0:46:31.440 --> 0:46:34.080 And then telehealth is a game changer, right. It allowed 0:46:34.120 --> 0:46:37.080 him to receive medical care from the comfort of his 0:46:37.120 --> 0:46:40.560 own home. So there are innovations that can dramatically lower 0:46:40.640 --> 0:46:44.399 the cost of health care and make it more personalized. 0:46:45.360 --> 0:46:48.960 Let me switch to national security. This is also in 0:46:49.000 --> 0:46:52.879 the Middle East and the president's trip. We're speaking here 0:46:53.000 --> 0:46:56.480 when a timestamp is Thursday, May fifteenth, presidents just wrapping 0:46:56.560 --> 0:46:58.840 up his trip to the Middle East. I want to 0:46:58.840 --> 0:47:00.680 get your reaction to something he said in a speech 0:47:00.719 --> 0:47:03.480 he gave us Saudi Arabian sort of his version of 0:47:03.520 --> 0:47:07.200 real politique. He said, far too many American presidents have 0:47:07.239 --> 0:47:09.319 been afflicted with the notion that it is our job 0:47:09.360 --> 0:47:11.920 to look into the souls of foreign leaders and use 0:47:12.040 --> 0:47:14.960 US policy to dispense justice for their sins. It is 0:47:15.040 --> 0:47:17.480 God's job to sit in judgment, My job to defend 0:47:17.520 --> 0:47:21.000 America and to promote the fundamental interests of stability, prosperity, 0:47:21.040 --> 0:47:24.080 and peace. It's sort of a real polity. Hey, you know, 0:47:24.120 --> 0:47:25.839 we're not going to tell Saudi Arabia how to run 0:47:25.880 --> 0:47:29.880 their society. We're not going to tell Qatar, We're not 0:47:29.920 --> 0:47:33.080 going to tell I assume this also means we're not 0:47:33.080 --> 0:47:35.440 going to tell Germany how they should manage their politics. 0:47:35.440 --> 0:47:38.359 But I'll get to that. It is sort of selective here, 0:47:38.440 --> 0:47:41.279 I think a little bit. But in theory what he's saying, 0:47:41.320 --> 0:47:44.480 where are you on that issue? You know, what, should 0:47:44.480 --> 0:47:49.719 America conduct its foreign policy always through this prism of realism? 0:47:50.320 --> 0:47:55.360 How much aspirational pro democracy morality should we also be preaching. 0:47:57.800 --> 0:48:03.640 So I'm not a Jacksonian like Donald Trump, but nor 0:48:03.640 --> 0:48:07.400 am I Wilsonian. I am skeptical about the use of 0:48:07.440 --> 0:48:11.720 American power to spread democracy throughout the world. I thought 0:48:12.360 --> 0:48:18.240 both the counterinsurgency in Afghanistan and the decision to invade 0:48:18.320 --> 0:48:22.839 Rock was a grave miscalculation, was a grave, colossal waste 0:48:22.840 --> 0:48:28.080 of American resources and lives. I saw one study indicating 0:48:28.120 --> 0:48:31.279 that the cost of every post nine to eleven war 0:48:32.320 --> 0:48:36.080 is eight trillion dollars when you factor in the cost 0:48:36.200 --> 0:48:40.920 of disability benefits and veteran healthcare, and that's eight trillion 0:48:40.960 --> 0:48:43.239 dollars not spent on meeting the domestic needs of the 0:48:43.280 --> 0:48:45.840 American people. So there is a sense in which his 0:48:45.960 --> 0:48:47.480 critique loss. 0:48:47.320 --> 0:48:50.480 Of prestige, lost soft power, things like that that you 0:48:50.520 --> 0:48:51.680 can't really put it price on. 0:48:52.400 --> 0:48:54.800 There is a sense in which his you know, critique 0:48:54.800 --> 0:48:58.400 of neo conservatism resonates widely, including with me and my 0:48:58.400 --> 0:49:01.719 My generation, which came of age during the Iraq War 0:49:01.760 --> 0:49:05.440 and during the Afghanistan War, is suspicious of the establishment, 0:49:05.520 --> 0:49:08.400 and it is suspicious of the whover zealous use of 0:49:08.440 --> 0:49:12.480 American power. But I'm more of a Hamiltonian. I do 0:49:12.520 --> 0:49:17.680 feel like we have to build relationships with countries based 0:49:17.719 --> 0:49:22.000 on shared economic interest, but also values do matter. But 0:49:22.600 --> 0:49:25.120 you know, someone once made an observation, Someone said to me, 0:49:25.640 --> 0:49:28.359 you know, China goes to the Global South and gives 0:49:28.440 --> 0:49:31.319 us infrastructure, and America goes to the Global South and 0:49:31.320 --> 0:49:32.120 gives us a lecture. 0:49:33.360 --> 0:49:35.440 And one hundred percent there's. 0:49:35.200 --> 0:49:38.800 Something to that. I think, you know, people want to 0:49:38.840 --> 0:49:40.759 have a relationship with the United States. They want us 0:49:40.760 --> 0:49:43.080 as a security partner. They want us as a trading partner, 0:49:43.880 --> 0:49:46.600 and we should have a Hamiltonian focus on winning their 0:49:46.600 --> 0:49:51.600 goodwill rather than lecturing people about their about their government. 0:49:52.160 --> 0:49:54.799 All right, well we established that, So let's talk about 0:49:54.840 --> 0:50:03.640 Cutter because I've been I've been uh a Cutter skeptic 0:50:03.680 --> 0:50:07.080 for some time. The amount of money they throw at Washington. 0:50:09.239 --> 0:50:11.920 I've I'd like to think I've worked really hard to 0:50:11.920 --> 0:50:14.640 make sure it didn't infuse in anything I was working on. 0:50:14.719 --> 0:50:18.279 But you know, whether it's purchasing a minority stake, and 0:50:18.640 --> 0:50:23.520 are some sports franchises in DC too. It's hard to 0:50:23.560 --> 0:50:26.600 go to an event in Washington that isn't somehow partially 0:50:26.640 --> 0:50:31.600 funded by Cutter. And now this airplane business. How do 0:50:31.640 --> 0:50:35.160 you view them and what they're doing, because they might say, hey, 0:50:35.160 --> 0:50:37.440 we're doing We're doing what Saudi Arabia did in the 0:50:37.480 --> 0:50:41.160 seventies and eighties and it worked for them. Why shouldn't 0:50:41.160 --> 0:50:42.680 we use the same playbook. 0:50:45.200 --> 0:50:47.720 I feel like there are two models in the Middle 0:50:47.760 --> 0:50:52.640 East right there. There's the Ammaradi and now Sauty model 0:50:53.040 --> 0:50:58.640 of pursuing modernization and moderation. Uh, you know, we want 0:50:58.680 --> 0:51:01.360 to we want to put it for you mean on prosperity, 0:51:01.400 --> 0:51:03.320 you want to actually, frankly, be more like the West. 0:51:04.280 --> 0:51:08.520 And then there's the Iranian and Katari model of sponsoring 0:51:08.640 --> 0:51:14.880 terrorism and destabilizing the region. But unlike Iran, the United 0:51:14.880 --> 0:51:18.600 States does not treat Qatar like the pariah. It should. 0:51:18.800 --> 0:51:21.040 I feel like Qatar has been a destructive force in 0:51:21.080 --> 0:51:24.879 the world. It is a state sponsor of Hamas, which 0:51:24.920 --> 0:51:29.120 committed the deadliest day, you know, October seventh, the deadliest 0:51:29.160 --> 0:51:32.000 day for juic since the Holocaust. So I feel like 0:51:32.040 --> 0:51:36.319 there should be a re examination of our relationship with 0:51:36.400 --> 0:51:39.920 Qatar and the ties that the Trump administration has to 0:51:39.960 --> 0:51:41.120 Qatar or Corus Bohlan. 0:51:42.239 --> 0:51:45.040 I mean, I look not to be super cynical here, 0:51:45.040 --> 0:51:46.880 but I'm going to be for a second. So if 0:51:46.960 --> 0:51:50.759 Joe Biden accepted an airplane from Qatar, what do you 0:51:50.800 --> 0:51:53.760 think the Republican response would be among your congressional colleagues. 0:51:55.320 --> 0:51:59.120 If if Joe Biden were promoting his personal mean coin, 0:52:00.560 --> 0:52:02.640 or selling access to the White House to the two 0:52:02.719 --> 0:52:06.959 hundred and twenty eighes bidders, or receiving two billion dollars 0:52:06.960 --> 0:52:10.040 in foreign deposits in exchange for his personal stable coin, 0:52:11.160 --> 0:52:13.560 or we're accepting a four hundred million dollar palace in 0:52:13.600 --> 0:52:17.440 the sky. The Republicans would be pursuing his impeachment. 0:52:19.440 --> 0:52:21.839 By the way, would that be outrageous that they were 0:52:22.000 --> 0:52:22.840 in your mind. 0:52:24.040 --> 0:52:25.440 They would be grounds for doing so? 0:52:25.600 --> 0:52:29.439 Yeah, it is, you know this is. 0:52:29.920 --> 0:52:34.080 Or even if Joe Biden, we're imposing a global tariff regime. 0:52:34.640 --> 0:52:37.440 Yes, I mean the out going to Congress without without 0:52:37.520 --> 0:52:39.719 Congression support powers of Congress. 0:52:40.000 --> 0:52:42.920 The organizing principle of our politics is no longer policy, 0:52:42.960 --> 0:52:46.359 it's personality. Like Donald Trump has completely reversed the diet 0:52:46.400 --> 0:52:49.960 ideological dynamics of the two parties. He has made Republicans 0:52:49.960 --> 0:52:53.640 the party of protectionism and price controls. I've heard Democrats 0:52:53.960 --> 0:52:58.720 quoting Ronald Reagan and Milton Friedman while critiquing Donald Trump's 0:52:58.719 --> 0:53:01.440 tariff policy. It's the world has been inverted. 0:53:03.000 --> 0:53:05.960 There's like a there's but now there's small ways that 0:53:06.000 --> 0:53:08.600 he's taken advantage of this that might be in net positive. 0:53:08.640 --> 0:53:11.200 He's going to cut a deal with Iron that Joe Biden. 0:53:11.520 --> 0:53:16.279 He's literally the same deal that Barack Obama cut. It's 0:53:16.280 --> 0:53:19.239 like us MCA versus NAFTA. Right, He's just going to 0:53:19.320 --> 0:53:24.320 change the name. I cut the deal. So it's different Syria. 0:53:24.480 --> 0:53:27.360 I'm not sure a democratic president would have any Republican 0:53:27.440 --> 0:53:30.640 support for doing what he did with Syria this week, 0:53:30.960 --> 0:53:33.040 am I am I being overly cynical here. 0:53:35.120 --> 0:53:36.799 I think if Biden had done it, there would have 0:53:36.800 --> 0:53:38.880 been Look, if Biden had given the speech that Trump 0:53:38.920 --> 0:53:42.719 gave in told Arabia, they would have been the same 0:53:42.760 --> 0:53:45.360 outreage against Biden that we saw against Obama when he 0:53:45.360 --> 0:53:47.080 delivered his speech in the Middle East. 0:53:47.400 --> 0:53:50.920 Which also was very similar that Cairo, strikingly some ways 0:53:50.920 --> 0:53:54.040 thematically saying hey, look, this is a different culture, these 0:53:54.040 --> 0:53:56.200 are different you know, we've got to be careful when 0:53:56.200 --> 0:53:59.840 we impose. And yeah, it was a it was deemed 0:53:59.840 --> 0:54:02.760 by some unpatriotic, Unamerican. 0:54:02.320 --> 0:54:05.279 Or going on an apology tour, right, the apology tour. 0:54:05.480 --> 0:54:08.799 Yes, although it sounds like that this would be that 0:54:09.160 --> 0:54:12.959 he's basically apologizing to our allies in the MIT least. 0:54:14.080 --> 0:54:16.680 What should that teach us about where we're headed with 0:54:16.680 --> 0:54:22.399 our politics? And because I sit here, look, eighty five 0:54:22.440 --> 0:54:24.480 percent of what he's doing I think is very damaging. 0:54:25.320 --> 0:54:27.520 But then there's that fifteen percent, Well, look it is 0:54:27.680 --> 0:54:30.480 I think this is healthy that we're trying to move 0:54:30.520 --> 0:54:32.879 to a different place with Iran. It's healthy that we're 0:54:32.880 --> 0:54:35.799 trying trying to your reward, Seria. Look, we had a 0:54:35.840 --> 0:54:37.680 policy of getting rid of a sad this guy got 0:54:37.800 --> 0:54:39.960 rid of him. Let's give him a chance, right, So 0:54:41.440 --> 0:54:44.120 what does that tell you about maybe how Democrats ought 0:54:44.160 --> 0:54:48.360 to use power when they're in charge. 0:54:48.480 --> 0:54:51.240 You know, full all, aren't you perfections? 0:54:51.320 --> 0:54:51.480 You know? 0:54:51.600 --> 0:54:55.800 The Democratic Party, he continues to be a normal political party, 0:54:55.920 --> 0:54:58.920 like we are a wide we're an ideologically very coalition 0:54:58.960 --> 0:55:02.600 and ranging the squad to the blue deb dogs. The 0:55:02.640 --> 0:55:05.040 Republican Party is no longer a normal political party. It's 0:55:05.040 --> 0:55:07.520 become a cult to personality around Donald Trump. I mean, 0:55:07.560 --> 0:55:12.200 he is a singular phenomenon in American history. I'm aware 0:55:12.200 --> 0:55:15.200 of no political figure who has had as much control 0:55:15.200 --> 0:55:18.160 over political party as Donald Trump has had over the 0:55:18.200 --> 0:55:20.800 Republican Party. I mean, it's close. 0:55:21.320 --> 0:55:23.480 FDR came close, but that was also he at the 0:55:23.520 --> 0:55:26.439 time that the era on his side, if you will, enough, 0:55:26.480 --> 0:55:29.319 it was a crisis. But but but then there were 0:55:29.640 --> 0:55:32.120 certain Democrats he didn't have control over. 0:55:32.080 --> 0:55:37.440 It just feels like the Republican politics has become a 0:55:37.520 --> 0:55:42.200 religion and the devotion to Donald Trump has a religious 0:55:42.280 --> 0:55:44.600 quality to it. 0:55:44.920 --> 0:55:48.120 Yeah, no, it does. So let's talk about the Democrats. 0:55:48.360 --> 0:55:52.319 What should be the first of all? Do you do 0:55:52.360 --> 0:55:56.880 you think Rocanna said that it's time for Democrats to 0:55:56.880 --> 0:55:59.200 admit we were wrong about Biden. We should have said 0:55:59.200 --> 0:56:02.120 something sooner. Where are you on the Biden question? 0:56:03.600 --> 0:56:07.359 No course, sure. I mean I think there's no point 0:56:07.360 --> 0:56:10.160 in denying that we made a great mistake in thinking 0:56:10.880 --> 0:56:14.200 that Biden was remotely capable of running again. So that 0:56:14.239 --> 0:56:15.680 was a mistake that we made as a party and 0:56:15.680 --> 0:56:17.960 we should own up to it. I feel like we 0:56:17.960 --> 0:56:19.600 should level with people, right. 0:56:20.000 --> 0:56:22.960 I take your point. There is there someone to blame 0:56:23.280 --> 0:56:28.520 outside of Joe Biden? Or is this a Joe Biden issue? 0:56:28.560 --> 0:56:31.000 I think it's principally Joe Biden and his team. And 0:56:31.400 --> 0:56:34.319 keep in mind, you know, one thing I noticed about 0:56:34.320 --> 0:56:38.000 Donald Trump is that he's extremely accessible to even the 0:56:38.000 --> 0:56:40.840 most rank and file Republicans in the House. Joe Biden 0:56:40.880 --> 0:56:44.480 was the exact opposite. He rarely met with members of Congress, 0:56:44.520 --> 0:56:47.680 particularly in the House. Maybe his first year he had meetings, 0:56:47.680 --> 0:56:50.080 but he was insulated by his staff. 0:56:50.440 --> 0:56:51.759 And do you have a meeting with him? Did you 0:56:51.880 --> 0:56:53.480 how many times did you have pace. 0:56:53.560 --> 0:56:56.239 I met with him once or two. I was part 0:56:56.239 --> 0:56:58.160 of a small group of people who met with him 0:56:59.120 --> 0:57:01.400 early on in his first year, but then he became 0:57:02.400 --> 0:57:03.920 less and less accessible over time. 0:57:04.480 --> 0:57:06.920 No, it wasn't just members of Congress. Apparently it was 0:57:06.960 --> 0:57:11.920 the cabinet as well as far as credibility, I mean, 0:57:11.920 --> 0:57:13.959 do you think do you think your leadership because both 0:57:14.160 --> 0:57:17.840 Akim Jeffreys and Chuck Schumer have just steered clear of 0:57:17.880 --> 0:57:20.880 this now. I've been critical. I think they should have 0:57:20.880 --> 0:57:25.280 sounded the alarm sooner as as leaders of the party 0:57:25.320 --> 0:57:28.560 at the time, but they've not wanted to confront this 0:57:28.680 --> 0:57:31.959 question at the moment. And I get it. On one hand, 0:57:31.960 --> 0:57:35.400 it's like, hey, let's not that's the past. We need 0:57:35.440 --> 0:57:38.480 to deal with what we have now. But what posture 0:57:38.520 --> 0:57:39.800 do you think they should be taken? 0:57:41.800 --> 0:57:44.000 I feel like the party collectively shouldmit that we made 0:57:44.000 --> 0:57:47.439 a mistake and we're paying a price in the form 0:57:47.480 --> 0:57:50.800 of a second Donald Trump presidency, which is far worse 0:57:50.840 --> 0:57:54.160 than even his first. And keep in mind, and look, 0:57:54.160 --> 0:57:57.640 I ultimately felt we lost because of inflation and to 0:57:57.720 --> 0:58:00.880 a lesser extent, immigration, the migrant crisis. But keep in 0:58:00.880 --> 0:58:03.480 mind the shift of two hundred and fifty thousand votes 0:58:03.520 --> 0:58:07.120 in the industrial Midwest could have handed the election to 0:58:07.160 --> 0:58:10.840 Kamala Harris. So maybe if we had an open primary, maybe, 0:58:10.880 --> 0:58:14.280 if we had a stronger candidate, Maybe if Joe Biden 0:58:14.280 --> 0:58:17.360 has stepped down earlier, the result of the twenty twenty 0:58:17.400 --> 0:58:19.560 four election could have been different. And for those reasons, 0:58:19.560 --> 0:58:23.680 we should acknowledge that we made a terrible mistake and 0:58:23.720 --> 0:58:27.240 not frushing Biden to seek a second term. 0:58:27.880 --> 0:58:32.360 When you see these polls where Democrats are sour on 0:58:32.400 --> 0:58:36.040 the Democratic Party right, where they have an unfavorable view 0:58:36.080 --> 0:58:39.880 of the party at the moment, and there's this brand issue, 0:58:40.240 --> 0:58:43.680 do you think the party has an ideological issue? Is 0:58:43.760 --> 0:58:49.320 this a generational issue? What do you see as the 0:58:49.400 --> 0:58:51.520 problems that should be addressed right now? 0:58:54.640 --> 0:58:59.000 Look, I do feel we're well positioned to win in 0:58:59.040 --> 0:59:01.360 twenty twenty six, but it has more to do with 0:59:01.400 --> 0:59:04.440 Donald Trump's weakness than it does with our strength. I mean, 0:59:04.480 --> 0:59:07.280 he's self destructing in real time. But I feel like 0:59:07.280 --> 0:59:10.040 we should know if there are I do sense to 0:59:10.080 --> 0:59:14.400 be blind among rank and file Democrats, widespread dissatisfaction, and 0:59:14.440 --> 0:59:16.320 we should take that to heart and we should do 0:59:16.360 --> 0:59:19.880 our best to improve and I sense when I'm meeting 0:59:19.960 --> 0:59:24.479 with constituents is a real hunger for more information. People 0:59:24.520 --> 0:59:26.200 want to know, like what is happening, what a we 0:59:26.280 --> 0:59:29.440 as Democrats doing to resist Donald Trump? And there's a 0:59:29.520 --> 0:59:31.880 hunger for a qual to action. People want to be 0:59:31.960 --> 0:59:35.120 part of something. People want to belong to something greater 0:59:35.240 --> 0:59:38.320 than themselves. And I feel like, as a party, it's 0:59:38.360 --> 0:59:41.640 not enough for us to stand against Donald Trump. We 0:59:41.680 --> 0:59:44.120 have to stand for something. We have to put forward 0:59:44.160 --> 0:59:47.600 a vision that will inspire not only our base but 0:59:47.800 --> 0:59:51.440 the country. Nu Gingridge had the contract with America in 0:59:51.480 --> 0:59:54.120 the nineteen nineties. You know, maybe we should have our 0:59:54.160 --> 0:59:57.320 own contract with America. Donald Trump has Project twenty twenty five. 0:59:57.840 --> 1:00:01.040 We ought to have Project twenty twenty nine. So I 1:00:01.040 --> 1:00:05.320 think my constructive self criticism of my party is that 1:00:05.360 --> 1:00:07.760 we should do more to put forward an affirmative vision 1:00:08.120 --> 1:00:09.320 for moving the country forward. 1:00:09.800 --> 1:00:12.840 Bill Clinton likes to say wrong and strong will always 1:00:12.880 --> 1:00:17.160 defeat weak and right, and the point being that there's 1:00:17.200 --> 1:00:23.840 a strength. You know, sometimes projecting strength can overcome people 1:00:23.880 --> 1:00:28.480 not liking some of your ideas, and it does. The 1:00:28.560 --> 1:00:30.880 thing that struck me about one survey I saw recently 1:00:31.000 --> 1:00:33.960 to give a word or phrase, and among Democrats they 1:00:34.040 --> 1:00:37.880 kept saying weak. So what this tells me some people 1:00:37.920 --> 1:00:39.560 are going to interpret and say, oh, the Democrats need 1:00:39.600 --> 1:00:41.880 to move left or the Democrats need to move right. 1:00:43.080 --> 1:00:45.479 I'm not sure it's a left right issue. I think 1:00:45.520 --> 1:00:50.640 it is a strength issue. But you know that's sometimes 1:00:51.120 --> 1:00:52.400 that's eye of the beholder stuff. 1:00:54.480 --> 1:00:56.080 Well, I do feel like if you swing the pencil 1:00:56.160 --> 1:00:57.880 too far to the left, you were all any most 1:00:57.920 --> 1:01:02.720 Americans as we did on immigration, and so I do 1:01:02.760 --> 1:01:05.680 feel like ideology does matter, but but it's it's a 1:01:05.720 --> 1:01:09.840 necessary but insufficient condition. Like we need to have compelling 1:01:09.880 --> 1:01:11.520 messengers on the party, and we need to offer a 1:01:11.560 --> 1:01:12.560 compelling visual. 1:01:13.960 --> 1:01:16.560 Is it? Are you a thousand flowers bloom? Right? Now, 1:01:16.640 --> 1:01:19.760 get everybody into the arena and let's see. Let let's 1:01:19.800 --> 1:01:24.720 see who rises or is there? Do you want to 1:01:24.720 --> 1:01:27.000 see a little more structure to this, fewer people trying 1:01:27.040 --> 1:01:29.080 to determine the future of the party. 1:01:32.120 --> 1:01:34.440 What did Will Rod What did Will Rogers say, I'm 1:01:34.480 --> 1:01:37.280 not a member of an organized political party. I'm a Democrat. 1:01:38.640 --> 1:01:42.080 I don't know. Let the let the cream rise, Let 1:01:42.120 --> 1:01:47.360 there be a free marketplace of debate. And you know 1:01:47.400 --> 1:01:49.440 that's what we were lacking in twenty twenty four is 1:01:49.680 --> 1:01:51.720 it was a sense that the political establishment had put 1:01:51.720 --> 1:01:53.400 its thumb on the scale in favor of one cant. 1:01:53.440 --> 1:01:55.880 Don't you feel like it's three nominees in a row. Actually, 1:01:56.080 --> 1:01:59.040 when you look at the sixteen, twenty and twenty four, 1:01:59.080 --> 1:02:01.440 do you really think Democrat primary voters feel like they 1:02:01.480 --> 1:02:03.000 had to say? 1:02:03.120 --> 1:02:07.040 You know, in British politics, the race for prime minister 1:02:07.440 --> 1:02:10.560 plays out in a matter of weeks. Our presidential primary 1:02:10.560 --> 1:02:12.880 plays out over the course of a year or more. 1:02:13.640 --> 1:02:16.240 But I feel like it's a character building experience. I mean, 1:02:16.280 --> 1:02:20.200 if you met think about I remember Barack Obama was 1:02:20.240 --> 1:02:22.720 the first president I voted for her, and I felt 1:02:22.720 --> 1:02:25.200 like at the end of the process he was a 1:02:25.320 --> 1:02:28.240 far better candidate. Oh and he was in the beginning. 1:02:28.600 --> 1:02:30.960 True, I'm a big defender of the long campaign. I 1:02:31.600 --> 1:02:34.840 know I'm a total polar opposite on this. I think 1:02:34.880 --> 1:02:38.400 the long campaign, by the time you actually become president, 1:02:39.960 --> 1:02:44.280 it's almost feels easier than the slog I mean, you know, 1:02:44.320 --> 1:02:47.880 the decisions are weightier, don't get me wrong, right deciding 1:02:48.280 --> 1:02:50.240 how much TV should we put on in Wisconsin or 1:02:50.240 --> 1:02:55.400 what trips, But the grueling punishment, the David Aswell calls 1:02:55.440 --> 1:02:58.200 it an MRI for the soul running for president, which 1:02:58.200 --> 1:03:01.760 I believe in. So it's you think the lung campaign. 1:03:02.040 --> 1:03:04.640 Actually, I see it as a character building experience. And 1:03:05.440 --> 1:03:06.880 it could have been the case that it would have 1:03:06.920 --> 1:03:10.000 resulted in Vice President Harris as the nominee, but she 1:03:10.000 --> 1:03:12.720 would have been a better and stronger nominee because of 1:03:12.720 --> 1:03:16.320 the process. That the process matters as much as the substance, 1:03:16.360 --> 1:03:19.120 and in fact, it improves the substance the. 1:03:19.120 --> 1:03:22.120 Ten thousand hour effect, right, welcome Gladwell's ten thousand hours. 1:03:22.160 --> 1:03:24.760 You campaign for two years. You've done your ten thousand 1:03:24.760 --> 1:03:28.760 hours of stupid interviews with people like me, you know, 1:03:29.440 --> 1:03:34.040 glad handing whatever it is, the roundtables, and you sort 1:03:34.080 --> 1:03:38.320 of you learn, you just figure it out. No, it's 1:03:38.320 --> 1:03:42.800 an interesting point. Why aren't you running for New York 1:03:42.840 --> 1:03:49.560 City mayors? How many members I could tell you this, 1:03:49.720 --> 1:03:51.840 I will just I'm gonna I'm gonna make you blush here. 1:03:52.120 --> 1:03:53.960 I got a lot of friends and family in New 1:03:54.040 --> 1:03:57.160 York City and they're very disappointed you're not running. 1:04:00.120 --> 1:04:03.880 Them. How do I answer your question without diminishing the 1:04:04.000 --> 1:04:06.600 role of mayor? I have a few thoughts. First, it's 1:04:06.640 --> 1:04:11.320 probably Michael Blomberg has described it as the best job 1:04:11.360 --> 1:04:12.840 I've heard him described it as the best job you 1:04:12.880 --> 1:04:13.600 ever had. 1:04:14.000 --> 1:04:16.760 But I'd argue it's one of the five most powerful 1:04:16.800 --> 1:04:18.240 elected positions in the globe. 1:04:19.240 --> 1:04:23.360 I feel is second. It is the second most demanding 1:04:23.800 --> 1:04:27.880 executive position in America, second only to the presidency and 1:04:28.040 --> 1:04:31.160 the New York City Press Corps is notoriously aggressive and ruthless, 1:04:33.160 --> 1:04:36.680 but I feel the prestige of the position exceeds the 1:04:36.720 --> 1:04:40.040 actual power The mayor cannot. 1:04:39.760 --> 1:04:41.560 Well, you are on the council, you would know this 1:04:41.680 --> 1:04:43.000 better than most. 1:04:43.040 --> 1:04:47.280 So explain that cannot install speak cameras without the approval 1:04:47.280 --> 1:04:50.280 of the state legislature. That the most important questions on 1:04:50.400 --> 1:04:54.680 matters of housing and healthcare and public safety are often 1:04:54.720 --> 1:04:57.800 decided at the state level by the state legislature and 1:04:57.800 --> 1:05:00.400 by the governor. And so I just feel the state 1:05:00.480 --> 1:05:04.840 has a much greater systemic impact in advancing the issues 1:05:04.840 --> 1:05:07.440 that I care about. And then one more point. You know, 1:05:07.560 --> 1:05:09.720 historically the mayor's office has been a graveyard where a 1:05:09.720 --> 1:05:12.520 political careers go to die. Uh So, if I were 1:05:12.520 --> 1:05:15.600 looking to retire prematurely, then that would be the right 1:05:15.600 --> 1:05:16.040 place for me. 1:05:16.080 --> 1:05:20.120 To go. I guess the reason why. I think some 1:05:20.280 --> 1:05:24.320 of my well connected friends they see you as somebody 1:05:24.360 --> 1:05:26.880 that might be able to bring the city together, and 1:05:26.920 --> 1:05:31.840 they're just nervous about having a retread politician. You know, 1:05:31.920 --> 1:05:35.880 they don't love the choice here make them feel better. 1:05:38.400 --> 1:05:43.240 Uh, look, I I'm going to vote for Andrew Cravoo 1:05:43.920 --> 1:05:47.200 and and I'm gonna you know, share, share, share what 1:05:47.240 --> 1:05:50.680 I respect about the debtor. And I'm sure you've been 1:05:50.680 --> 1:05:55.840 following there's a new movement on on the left known 1:05:55.880 --> 1:05:58.360 as the Abundance. Who've been mm hmm and and it's 1:05:58.400 --> 1:06:00.760 you know, it's based on a recognition that America is 1:06:00.800 --> 1:06:03.000 no longer a nation of builders. We've become a nation 1:06:03.080 --> 1:06:06.840 of bureaucrats. And to his credit, Andrew Cromo was one 1:06:06.880 --> 1:06:09.840 of the few executives in the twenty first century who 1:06:09.920 --> 1:06:15.720 was a genuinely great builder. Laguardier Airport, moyni Hen Train Hall, 1:06:16.280 --> 1:06:20.760 Mario Cuomo Bridge. You know, that's a rarity. You know, 1:06:21.000 --> 1:06:24.040 it was once common in the early twentieth century. But 1:06:24.400 --> 1:06:26.160 you know, he's one of the few executives who have 1:06:26.240 --> 1:06:30.840 proven ability to execute on grand infrastructure projects. And so 1:06:31.000 --> 1:06:33.600 that to me represents Governor Cloma at his best, and 1:06:33.640 --> 1:06:35.960 that's why I would vote for him, because I see 1:06:36.000 --> 1:06:37.760 him as the most experience of everyone in the field. 1:06:38.200 --> 1:06:40.280 Does he need to do more on the on sort 1:06:40.280 --> 1:06:42.640 of acknowledging the character flaws? 1:06:43.000 --> 1:06:47.880 I feel I think we all benefit from acknowledging our failings. 1:06:48.640 --> 1:06:50.240 I think when you level with people and say I 1:06:50.320 --> 1:06:54.840 made mistakes and I have failings, people appreciate him. 1:06:55.520 --> 1:06:58.600 I have resistance to that tone. I've not heard that 1:06:58.680 --> 1:06:59.400 tone from him. 1:07:00.080 --> 1:07:04.440 There is something to be set for humility and acknowledging 1:07:04.440 --> 1:07:11.000 your own fallibility. That's just human. People want their elected 1:07:11.040 --> 1:07:15.920 officials to be vulnerable and authentic and humble and acknowledge 1:07:15.920 --> 1:07:16.480 and like them. 1:07:16.480 --> 1:07:18.880 It's a representative democracy. 1:07:18.800 --> 1:07:21.360 It will all work in progress, right. You know, I've 1:07:21.360 --> 1:07:24.280 made decisions that I regret, but you live and you learn. 1:07:25.720 --> 1:07:28.439 So it sounds like to me you've made the case 1:07:28.480 --> 1:07:30.040 that if you want to make life better in New 1:07:30.080 --> 1:07:32.480 York City, the best place for you to do that's 1:07:32.480 --> 1:07:36.800 an Albany and you've been floated. They've been rumored about that, 1:07:36.920 --> 1:07:39.280 So let me ask you directly. You know, is that 1:07:39.360 --> 1:07:42.120 something you've thought about for twenty six or not yet. 1:07:43.240 --> 1:07:45.120 I'm exploring a run for governor. I will make a 1:07:45.160 --> 1:07:49.360 final decision in the summer after the mayor's race. I'll 1:07:49.360 --> 1:07:53.400 conduct polling. But but if you ask me what would 1:07:53.440 --> 1:07:55.360 I prefer? Would I prefer to be one of four 1:07:55.400 --> 1:07:57.160 hundred and thirty five or one of five hundred and 1:07:57.160 --> 1:07:59.960 thirty five in Congress, or an executive with a uni 1:08:00.120 --> 1:08:02.000 lateral domain of action. I would prefer to be an 1:08:02.000 --> 1:08:04.640 executive because you could have a far greater impact in 1:08:04.680 --> 1:08:05.440 improving people's lowed. 1:08:05.520 --> 1:08:07.520 Let's talk about housing. This is a passion of yours. 1:08:07.560 --> 1:08:10.200 You grew up in public housing, you see, you know 1:08:11.000 --> 1:08:16.839 housing is essential. We have a housing crisis in this country. 1:08:17.240 --> 1:08:20.360 And it's not just in New York, it's everywhere. You know. 1:08:20.400 --> 1:08:22.360 It's the biggest argument in the county that I live 1:08:22.400 --> 1:08:24.799 in Arlington County, how are we going to get more housing? 1:08:24.840 --> 1:08:27.880 And it's you know, ymbi's versus nimbi's and all of that. Right, 1:08:29.600 --> 1:08:31.680 what do you think you could do as governor of 1:08:31.720 --> 1:08:39.320 New York to supercharge the availability and the affordability of 1:08:39.439 --> 1:08:41.000 housing for everyday New Yorkers? 1:08:43.200 --> 1:08:45.880 And so at the core of the affordability crisis is 1:08:46.479 --> 1:08:48.720 a gap between supply and demand. Like the demand for 1:08:48.760 --> 1:08:52.080 affordable housing for exceeds the supply. There's a need for 1:08:52.160 --> 1:08:56.200 both deeper housing subsidy and greer housing supply. So we 1:08:56.240 --> 1:08:59.360 have to expand the supply of housing so that we 1:08:59.360 --> 1:09:01.120 can meet the demand. But we also have to ensure 1:09:01.160 --> 1:09:03.760 that the housing we do create is affordable to the 1:09:03.800 --> 1:09:07.400 lowest income families. One of the criticisms of affordable housing 1:09:07.439 --> 1:09:09.439 in New York is that much of the affordable housing 1:09:09.479 --> 1:09:13.479 we create is unaffordable to the poorest New Yorkers. And 1:09:13.560 --> 1:09:15.799 so I'm in favor of a concept known as housing vultures. 1:09:15.880 --> 1:09:21.160 Fall like every family either who's homeless or struggling with 1:09:21.160 --> 1:09:24.080 with housing and security should have access to a voucher 1:09:24.160 --> 1:09:26.240 which ensures that you pay no more than thirty percent 1:09:26.280 --> 1:09:29.960 of your income towards your rent. Universalizing access to vultures 1:09:30.520 --> 1:09:33.960 would radically reduce the amount of homelessness and housing and 1:09:34.040 --> 1:09:37.920 security in American society. So that's one piece. But second, 1:09:37.920 --> 1:09:41.160 we have to expand housing supply. I do feel are 1:09:41.600 --> 1:09:45.000 in public review process. Our environmental review process is so 1:09:45.080 --> 1:09:50.040 cumbersome that it stifles affordable housing creation in blue cities 1:09:50.080 --> 1:09:52.680 and blue states like New York and those processes have 1:09:52.720 --> 1:09:54.920 to be reformed so that we can build, We can 1:09:55.040 --> 1:09:57.839 re establish our country as a nation of builders. 1:09:58.640 --> 1:10:02.720 So your campaign for governorce, if it happens, housing I know, 1:10:02.840 --> 1:10:04.040 is going to be in the top of that list. 1:10:04.040 --> 1:10:06.559 What else is on on the top of your agenda 1:10:06.600 --> 1:10:08.960 that the voter's going to think? No, if you do 1:10:09.080 --> 1:10:11.200 run the focus of your campaign. 1:10:12.120 --> 1:10:13.479 Lower cost, lower crime rates. 1:10:15.360 --> 1:10:21.280 That simple. And you feel, as governor, how do you 1:10:21.320 --> 1:10:22.719 impact the crime right? As governor? 1:10:24.600 --> 1:10:27.280 Well, public safety policy is ultimately set at the state level, 1:10:28.000 --> 1:10:30.760 and I would submit to you New York has the 1:10:30.840 --> 1:10:35.680 most dysfunctional criminal justice system in the country. We have 1:10:35.760 --> 1:10:39.559 a practice of releasing repeat violent offenders, which has led 1:10:39.560 --> 1:10:43.760 to a cycle of recidivism. So since twenty nineteen, there's 1:10:43.800 --> 1:10:46.640 been a one hundred and fifty percent rise in the 1:10:46.720 --> 1:10:51.000 number of repeat offenders for felony assaults, more than eighty 1:10:51.040 --> 1:10:55.200 percent for robberies, more than sixty percent for burglaries and shoplifting, 1:10:55.240 --> 1:10:57.559 more than one hundred percent for grand larcity auto, more 1:10:57.560 --> 1:11:02.439 than seventy percent for grand larsity. And I'll cite one example. 1:11:02.520 --> 1:11:04.720 There was a gentleman by the name of a man 1:11:04.760 --> 1:11:08.559 by the name of Jamar Banks who stabbed to people 1:11:08.640 --> 1:11:11.839 on New Year's Day, and he had fifty four priors, 1:11:11.960 --> 1:11:15.599 including an attempt shooting, a murder, multiple stabbings, multiple acts 1:11:15.600 --> 1:11:20.280 of domestic violence. And despite his extensive criminal history, he 1:11:20.360 --> 1:11:23.519 was released back onto the streets, where he proceeded to 1:11:23.560 --> 1:11:27.200 commit more violence against more innocent New Yorkers. And here's 1:11:27.240 --> 1:11:29.200 the problem. New York is the only state in the 1:11:29.200 --> 1:11:34.559 country that prohibits judges from considering the public safety risks 1:11:35.360 --> 1:11:39.680 of repeat violent offenders. You can only consider flight risks 1:11:40.320 --> 1:11:42.839 and the question of whether judges should have the authority 1:11:42.840 --> 1:11:45.160 to consider public safety risk. If I were to present 1:11:45.200 --> 1:11:48.240 that question to the people of New York in the 1:11:48.280 --> 1:11:51.759 form of referendum, it would be an eighty twenty issue. 1:11:52.560 --> 1:11:55.479 Eighty percent of New Yorkers would vote for it. Why change? 1:11:56.000 --> 1:11:59.759 Is this a legislative legislative It's going to take legislation, yes. 1:12:00.400 --> 1:12:03.880 But the trouble with City Hall, the trouble with City Hall, 1:12:04.080 --> 1:12:07.639 Albany and Washington d C. Is that common sense has 1:12:07.640 --> 1:12:12.040 become dangerously income. And one of the criticisms that I 1:12:12.080 --> 1:12:13.639 have of my own party is that there are times 1:12:13.680 --> 1:12:16.920 when when more responsive to special interest groups than we 1:12:16.920 --> 1:12:19.759 are to everyday people on the ground, particularly on issues 1:12:19.760 --> 1:12:20.519 of public safety. 1:12:21.120 --> 1:12:26.360 On if Governor Holcal is there anything she could do 1:12:26.640 --> 1:12:28.800 to convince you not to challenge her? 1:12:30.720 --> 1:12:32.920 I mean, if she becomes an effective governor, then certainly 1:12:33.000 --> 1:12:34.000 that could persuade me to. 1:12:34.840 --> 1:12:36.679 Is there an issue you could see if she took 1:12:36.760 --> 1:12:39.240 up it would be persuasive or unlikely? 1:12:39.280 --> 1:12:42.839 At this point, the issue, it's not a failure of conception, 1:12:42.920 --> 1:12:45.960 it's a failure of execution. Like, there are issues in 1:12:46.000 --> 1:12:48.840 which I agree with the governor, but I just feel 1:12:48.840 --> 1:12:53.000 like she's fundamentally and effective at governing the state. And 1:12:53.080 --> 1:12:56.719 I'll be blunt, I'm not aware of any New Yorker 1:12:56.720 --> 1:13:00.639 who's like a passionate Kathy hocal supporter, Like when when 1:13:00.640 --> 1:13:03.720 Andrew Coromo was governor, he had a deep reservoir support. 1:13:03.840 --> 1:13:06.880 Hundred percent and up to some people. 1:13:06.960 --> 1:13:09.880 Yeah, I'm aware of no one who's like a passionate 1:13:10.280 --> 1:13:15.160 champion of Kathy Hochl. She simply benefits from the power 1:13:15.200 --> 1:13:21.559 of incumbency. And but look, the broken system is deeper 1:13:21.600 --> 1:13:25.160 than one governor, and it long predates the incumbent governor. 1:13:26.400 --> 1:13:29.439 You know, in twenty fifteen, New York had a one 1:13:29.520 --> 1:13:34.040 hundred and forty two billion dollar budget twenty twenty four 1:13:35.520 --> 1:13:39.360 two hundred and fifty four billion dollar budget. I am 1:13:39.360 --> 1:13:41.920 not aware of a single New York who has seen 1:13:41.960 --> 1:13:44.880 a one hundred and ten billion dollar improvement in the 1:13:44.920 --> 1:13:46.600 delivery of state services. 1:13:49.920 --> 1:13:52.679 So, you know, your challenge to her. It's not easy 1:13:52.720 --> 1:13:54.640 to say, are you challenging her from the left or 1:13:54.680 --> 1:13:58.559 the right? You're not. Really, It's not really an ideological challenge. 1:13:58.560 --> 1:14:00.240 If you end up doing this, this is really more 1:14:00.280 --> 1:14:01.080 of a competency. 1:14:01.400 --> 1:14:04.160 I feel like transcend those I feel like I transcend 1:14:04.200 --> 1:14:04.920 those categories. 1:14:05.560 --> 1:14:07.760 Well, no, it's why, it's why so many of my 1:14:07.840 --> 1:14:09.320 friends in New York wish you would be the next 1:14:09.320 --> 1:14:13.120 mayor because of that, the idea that you're not easily 1:14:13.160 --> 1:14:16.920 pigeonholed and that you have a broader, a broader perspective. 1:14:18.840 --> 1:14:21.479 Some would think of my advocacy for public safety as 1:14:21.600 --> 1:14:24.439 challenging from the right. I would disagar that characterization because 1:14:24.439 --> 1:14:26.040 I feel like, yeah. 1:14:25.880 --> 1:14:28.400 But you you know that that's how it'll look as 1:14:28.439 --> 1:14:29.719 far as the polling is concerned. 1:14:29.880 --> 1:14:33.439 Right, we're concerned about affordability. I mean, that's argued, you know, 1:14:33.520 --> 1:14:35.519 that could be argued that that's a challenge from the left. 1:14:35.560 --> 1:14:38.320 I mean, I'm I'm someone, for example, who believes that 1:14:38.800 --> 1:14:43.000 our public utilities, particularly our gas and electric utilities, should 1:14:43.000 --> 1:14:46.400 be owned by the pension files so that people pay 1:14:46.560 --> 1:14:52.080 a far lower rate. I mean, every every year my 1:14:52.160 --> 1:14:55.559 constituents have seen double digit increases. 1:14:56.479 --> 1:15:01.240 The government pension fund should be should own the elect Yeah, 1:15:02.640 --> 1:15:03.760 that's an interesting. 1:15:03.520 --> 1:15:05.680 Because I don't want to get too complicated. 1:15:05.680 --> 1:15:08.160 But no, no, no, no, but I find this a fascinating idea. 1:15:08.200 --> 1:15:13.680 Go. Yeah, So the Public Service Commission regulates utilities like 1:15:13.680 --> 1:15:18.040 con Edison, and the trouble with the Public Service Commission, 1:15:18.040 --> 1:15:20.880 which is ultimately accountable to the governor, is that it 1:15:20.960 --> 1:15:24.120 authorizes a rate of return that's far above the actual 1:15:24.160 --> 1:15:27.320 cost of capital, the actual cost that you would need 1:15:27.800 --> 1:15:31.599 to operate the utility. And I'm convinced if those utilities 1:15:31.600 --> 1:15:35.160 were owned by pension funds, which would which would demand 1:15:35.160 --> 1:15:40.040 lower returns than shareholders because their patient capital. Like if 1:15:40.080 --> 1:15:43.479 you tell them we guarantee you six percent returns for 1:15:43.520 --> 1:15:46.160 the next fifty years, they're happy with six percent. They 1:15:46.160 --> 1:15:48.760 don't need nine percent, they don't need ten percent. So 1:15:48.840 --> 1:15:52.479 I'm convinced that public ownership of these utilities to the 1:15:52.520 --> 1:15:57.160 pension funds would actually lower cost utility cost for everyday 1:15:57.200 --> 1:15:58.080 New Yorker's. 1:15:59.120 --> 1:16:01.400 I'll tell you I had not heard an idea like that. 1:16:01.400 --> 1:16:05.880 That makes it especially when you think about the cost 1:16:05.880 --> 1:16:08.720 of pensions and all of this. It is, it's a 1:16:08.880 --> 1:16:12.160 it's an to me, that's a that's an interesting idea 1:16:12.760 --> 1:16:15.439 to sort of solve two problems, if you will. 1:16:16.000 --> 1:16:18.280 But is that left wing or right wing? You could 1:16:18.320 --> 1:16:20.080 argue that's an attack from the left, but I just 1:16:20.120 --> 1:16:21.959 think that's common sentence. It's good policy. 1:16:22.880 --> 1:16:24.400 No, you could sit here, I could make a right 1:16:24.400 --> 1:16:27.000 wing argument against it or left wing argument against it 1:16:27.080 --> 1:16:30.479 right which is the beauty of the idea. Sometimes sometimes 1:16:30.520 --> 1:16:32.840 you just have good ideas or bad ideas. You know, 1:16:32.960 --> 1:16:35.000 it's okay to be a technocrat. And I say that 1:16:35.040 --> 1:16:37.360 with with I mean Michael Bloomberg problem. 1:16:37.560 --> 1:16:41.360 My core criticism of the progressive is that it's become 1:16:41.439 --> 1:16:45.559 more concerned with ideological purity and with the actual functioning 1:16:45.560 --> 1:16:49.519 of government. And what I appreciate about the Abundance movement 1:16:50.240 --> 1:16:53.479 is that it sends the message, no competence matters, the 1:16:53.520 --> 1:16:54.920 functioning of government matters. 1:16:55.439 --> 1:16:57.400 This is what concerned It's funny you say that's about 1:16:57.439 --> 1:16:59.400 the progressive. But this is what concerns me about the 1:16:59.400 --> 1:17:03.759 reactionary nature of what we've the so called successful rise 1:17:03.800 --> 1:17:07.120 of Trump, and that there are folks on the left 1:17:07.160 --> 1:17:10.599 that look at what MAGA was successful, it was able 1:17:10.640 --> 1:17:13.040 to do, and they see that as a blueprint. 1:17:14.200 --> 1:17:17.879 It's the wrong lesson. Yeah, the I feel the American 1:17:17.880 --> 1:17:23.200 people have a pattern of punishing incompetence. When George W. 1:17:23.280 --> 1:17:28.360 Bush catastrophically mismanaged the response to Katrina, he never recovered, 1:17:29.040 --> 1:17:33.600 Right When when when Joe Biden sloppily with true from Afghanistan, 1:17:33.880 --> 1:17:36.400 he never recovered, you know when? 1:17:36.520 --> 1:17:38.479 I don't know if Trump's going to recover. Yeah, I 1:17:38.479 --> 1:17:39.680 don't think that's recovering from this. 1:17:39.840 --> 1:17:42.840 When he missed, I would argue, but for the mismanagement 1:17:42.840 --> 1:17:44.680 of COVID, Trump would have been re elected to a 1:17:44.720 --> 1:17:49.560 second Yeah, butt for the mismanagement of the migrant crisis 1:17:50.000 --> 1:17:53.320 as well as inflation, a Democrat would be in the 1:17:53.320 --> 1:17:58.320 White House. So competence matters. And the people ask me, 1:17:58.600 --> 1:18:01.519 you know, how should we we structure the Democratic Party? 1:18:01.560 --> 1:18:04.160 And for me, the key to restructuring the Democratic Party 1:18:04.720 --> 1:18:09.760 is restructuring democratic governance. Good governance is good politics, Delivering 1:18:09.880 --> 1:18:10.800 is good politics. 1:18:12.800 --> 1:18:14.840 I've held you longer than I promised your staff that 1:18:14.840 --> 1:18:18.240 I would, so uh, not a bad way to end competence. 1:18:18.479 --> 1:18:20.960 That is, I always say I'm not people like to 1:18:21.080 --> 1:18:24.040 understand my politics, and I'm always like, I'm just who's 1:18:24.080 --> 1:18:27.400 going to get stuff done? Excuse my language, right, Who's 1:18:27.439 --> 1:18:30.840 just going to get stuff done? That that's kind that's 1:18:30.840 --> 1:18:34.320 sort of in the rational middle, the folks that live 1:18:34.360 --> 1:18:35.719 between the thirty five yard lines. 1:18:37.560 --> 1:18:39.000 So I'm on that scene. 1:18:39.000 --> 1:18:41.439 So it is. It is good to see are you 1:18:41.720 --> 1:18:44.599 are you? Are you fired up about the Knicks. By 1:18:44.640 --> 1:18:46.679 the time this airs will know whether they didn't blow 1:18:46.680 --> 1:18:48.400 it in Game six or not. I hope they don't. 1:18:49.840 --> 1:18:52.040 It's fun to I hate rooting for New York teams. 1:18:52.120 --> 1:18:54.200 It's fun to root for this next team. 1:18:54.840 --> 1:18:57.920 No, it's it's long overdue. And I know my chief 1:18:57.920 --> 1:19:00.320 of staff is fanatical about the next He is even 1:19:00.360 --> 1:19:01.160 more excited than I am. 1:19:01.240 --> 1:19:04.080 Is Well, yeah, Jalen Brunson could maybe be the next 1:19:04.160 --> 1:19:09.400 mayor of New York City if things go right. Richie Torres, 1:19:09.439 --> 1:19:17.720 congressman from the Bronx, good to see it, Thank you well. 1:19:17.720 --> 1:19:19.880 I hope you enjoyed that conversation with Richie Torres, how 1:19:19.880 --> 1:19:23.200 about that he does not think much of Kathy Hokeel 1:19:24.200 --> 1:19:28.400 he is and also believes there is more power to 1:19:28.560 --> 1:19:31.720 fix New York City as governor of New York than 1:19:31.760 --> 1:19:34.920 it is to be mayor of New York, which I 1:19:34.960 --> 1:19:40.240 think introduces an interesting set of questions for Andrew Cuomo, 1:19:40.560 --> 1:19:42.240 who is the front runner to be the next mayor 1:19:42.280 --> 1:19:45.320 of New York City. How often is he going to 1:19:45.400 --> 1:19:49.080 say certain things he can't deal with because he's got 1:19:49.120 --> 1:19:51.800 a it's it's up to the it's up to the 1:19:51.840 --> 1:19:55.920 democratic governor. So a fascinating set of analysis there from 1:19:56.000 --> 1:19:58.720 Richie Torres. I think that is somebody to pay attention to. 1:19:59.640 --> 1:20:03.080 And if he she does challenge her in a primary, 1:20:03.320 --> 1:20:05.679 you know the problem. The one thing she could benefit 1:20:05.720 --> 1:20:09.160 from is if there's multiple candidates in her former lieutenant 1:20:09.200 --> 1:20:12.080 governor's challenge, possibly she could end up having two or 1:20:12.080 --> 1:20:16.559 three primary challengers, which would guarantee her renomination. The question 1:20:16.640 --> 1:20:19.439 is going to be can she win a one on 1:20:19.439 --> 1:20:22.840 one if it ever gets down to being a one 1:20:22.880 --> 1:20:25.360 on one? And I think with the anger that is 1:20:25.360 --> 1:20:29.719 out there among Democrats, I think incumbent democrats in general 1:20:30.120 --> 1:20:33.400 are all going to be have targets on their back 1:20:33.840 --> 1:20:36.519 from voters. I think you're going to have to prove 1:20:36.600 --> 1:20:39.599 to voters that you're willing to go in a different direction, 1:20:39.760 --> 1:20:43.559 that you're willing not to sort of to sort of 1:20:43.600 --> 1:20:47.280 be a part of whatever this democratic establishment has been 1:20:47.320 --> 1:20:52.160 the last decade. So being an incumbent politician is going 1:20:52.200 --> 1:20:56.719 to be tough. I think a tougher road in Democratic 1:20:56.800 --> 1:21:02.040 primaries than maybe some incumbents are prepared, are prepared to 1:21:02.040 --> 1:21:07.000 believe in. Speaking of that, it does look like and 1:21:07.040 --> 1:21:10.360 you heard it from Rocanna. I love the fact that 1:21:10.960 --> 1:21:14.800 podcast listeners heard it here before CNN reported it, which 1:21:14.920 --> 1:21:18.599 was Rocanna said that she's been doing. The stuff she's 1:21:18.600 --> 1:21:21.680 been doing in California are what candidates for governor do, 1:21:21.920 --> 1:21:25.040 meaning she was going to events that only statewide candidates 1:21:25.120 --> 1:21:28.360 go to. Essentially, what Rocanna was saying me, the guy 1:21:28.439 --> 1:21:30.479 is thinking about running for president. It's not going to 1:21:30.479 --> 1:21:34.440 those events. But she is now. Of course, news circulating 1:21:34.439 --> 1:21:38.160 that she appears to be leaning more towards running for 1:21:38.280 --> 1:21:40.920 governor of California and twenty six and obviously if she 1:21:40.920 --> 1:21:44.799 makes that decision, she's taking herself out of the presidential 1:21:44.800 --> 1:21:48.479 sweepstakes in twenty twenty eight. You've heard me say this before, 1:21:48.720 --> 1:21:52.200 but for those that haven't heard this, I think this 1:21:52.360 --> 1:21:54.680 is going to be a tougher campaign for her than 1:21:54.720 --> 1:21:58.960 she realizes. And if she does run, she is going 1:21:59.000 --> 1:22:03.080 to that the shadow, the five o'clock shadow that is 1:22:03.200 --> 1:22:08.040 Richard Nixon, is going to be hovering over her. Richard 1:22:08.120 --> 1:22:11.400 Nixon loses a close race as a sitting vice president 1:22:11.960 --> 1:22:15.280 for the presidency in nineteen sixty, decides to go home 1:22:15.280 --> 1:22:19.479 to California run for governor, and he loses to Jerry 1:22:19.520 --> 1:22:25.519 Brown's father Pat Brown. It was after the infamous you 1:22:25.520 --> 1:22:28.439 won't have Dick Nixon to kick around anymore, as he 1:22:28.880 --> 1:22:31.720 yelled at the press Corps after losing in sixty two. 1:22:32.200 --> 1:22:35.599 That's where that quote came from. And then he spent 1:22:35.600 --> 1:22:38.599 the next six years preparing to see if he could 1:22:38.600 --> 1:22:41.040 come back and win the presidency in sixty eight, which 1:22:41.080 --> 1:22:45.519 of course he did. I do think there are some 1:22:45.640 --> 1:22:49.000 lessons here for Harris in the Nixon campaign. I think 1:22:49.000 --> 1:22:52.160 a lot of voters saw Nixon in sixty two. Is 1:22:52.240 --> 1:22:56.160 somebody that he was running for governor as a consolation prize. Well, 1:22:56.760 --> 1:22:59.200 Kamala Harris, if she's running for governor in twenty six 1:22:59.320 --> 1:23:02.760 has to explain she never planned on being available to 1:23:02.840 --> 1:23:05.000 run for governor twenty six. After all, I don't think 1:23:05.000 --> 1:23:06.920 anybody believes that she was going to run for governor 1:23:06.920 --> 1:23:10.040 of California in twenty six as the sitting president, So 1:23:11.160 --> 1:23:15.439 it's a consolation prize. She also is going to have 1:23:15.479 --> 1:23:18.719 to It's pretty clear, and it's going to be interesting. 1:23:18.800 --> 1:23:20.400 Later this week, you're going to hear an interview that 1:23:20.439 --> 1:23:25.160 I conducted about last week with another candidate for governor, 1:23:25.280 --> 1:23:29.000 a wealthy developer who was close to Harry Reid for 1:23:29.040 --> 1:23:32.160 a long time named Steve Klueback. And Steve Kluebeck is 1:23:32.320 --> 1:23:35.040 quite the personality. And look, I don't want to take 1:23:35.080 --> 1:23:37.320 away from the interview itself, but when you hear it, 1:23:37.400 --> 1:23:40.559 you may be one part entertained, in one part scratching 1:23:40.640 --> 1:23:43.559 your head, and one part liking what you hear, in 1:23:43.600 --> 1:23:46.160 one part a little uncomfortable. The point is is that 1:23:46.280 --> 1:23:50.240 he's a big personality, and he is some he's not 1:23:50.280 --> 1:23:52.760 a big fan of Kamala Harris, and he will not 1:23:54.080 --> 1:23:57.519 will not hold back, and I think that that's going 1:23:57.560 --> 1:24:00.200 to be she is going the minute she gets in, 1:24:00.720 --> 1:24:02.960 there's gonna be a whole bunch of people who are 1:24:02.960 --> 1:24:06.240 going to target her in a negative way in all 1:24:06.280 --> 1:24:09.280 sorts of directions. Her connection to Biden is going to 1:24:09.280 --> 1:24:12.240 be an issue. What did she see? What didn't she see? 1:24:12.240 --> 1:24:16.599 Why didn't she say something? Perhaps she's going to take 1:24:16.680 --> 1:24:20.160 heat for not for the campaign that she ran for president. 1:24:20.280 --> 1:24:21.880 I think for the most part, she ran a pretty 1:24:21.880 --> 1:24:25.320 good campaign for president given the situation she was in. 1:24:25.920 --> 1:24:29.080 But she's got an answer for the fact that she 1:24:29.160 --> 1:24:32.519 didn't sound the alarm that sooner about Joe Biden that 1:24:32.680 --> 1:24:34.840 she you know, You've even had some some on the 1:24:34.920 --> 1:24:37.320 right say how come she didn't push to invoke the 1:24:37.320 --> 1:24:40.880 twenty fifth Amendment and things like that. So while I 1:24:40.920 --> 1:24:44.280 think that's a bit extreme, she still has to provide 1:24:44.360 --> 1:24:47.720 an answer that isn't snarky and that isn't defensive, and 1:24:47.760 --> 1:24:54.439 that is believable. So look, I'm I'm a skeptic. On 1:24:54.439 --> 1:24:57.000 one hand. Look, if she's in the top two, she's 1:24:57.080 --> 1:25:01.559 probably the next governor. But I think this is an 1:25:01.680 --> 1:25:05.840 awfully risky decision because what's interesting if she decided not 1:25:06.000 --> 1:25:09.479 to run in twenty six for any office and chose 1:25:09.520 --> 1:25:12.880 not to run in twenty eight for any office, I 1:25:12.920 --> 1:25:17.759 think she could have sort of preserved herself to possibly 1:25:17.840 --> 1:25:20.799 run for governor in twenty thirty or run for president 1:25:20.840 --> 1:25:24.160 in twenty thirty two. But she's putting herself in a 1:25:24.160 --> 1:25:29.320 situation where she loses a governorship in twenty six and 1:25:29.360 --> 1:25:32.519 she can't get and she can't win that race, her 1:25:32.560 --> 1:25:35.320 political career is over. There's no comment back from that. 1:25:35.479 --> 1:25:39.080 Not in this era. Maybe Richard Dixon could pull it 1:25:39.080 --> 1:25:44.559 off back in an era of three television channel and 1:25:44.600 --> 1:25:48.880 no internet, no communications system like we have today. So 1:25:50.240 --> 1:25:53.080 I will say this, I think it's an awfully risky decision, 1:25:54.560 --> 1:25:58.320 and I just don't know if I'd be making a 1:25:58.360 --> 1:26:00.840 decision like this for an office I hadn't thought about 1:26:00.920 --> 1:26:04.080 running for before. I mean, that's a real question I 1:26:04.160 --> 1:26:07.559 have for her. Have you thought about being governor? When? When? 1:26:07.800 --> 1:26:09.920 You know? When was when was the first time you 1:26:09.960 --> 1:26:13.679 ever thought about being governor of California? Did it only 1:26:13.760 --> 1:26:20.439 start after you lost the presidents Anyway, it's a it's 1:26:20.439 --> 1:26:22.280 going to be interesting to watch and it certainly will 1:26:22.320 --> 1:26:25.880 become one of the premier races that national media covers 1:26:26.040 --> 1:26:30.360 if she does indeed run. All Right, that's the end 1:26:30.439 --> 1:26:34.800 of my Monday, big kind of praise my Gnats. They 1:26:34.840 --> 1:26:38.840 swept the Orioles and the Big Beltway Series. I think 1:26:38.960 --> 1:26:42.320 the Oriols firing their manager after Game one tells you 1:26:42.360 --> 1:26:44.400 everything you need to know about the state of the Orioles. 1:26:44.400 --> 1:26:48.160 But man paging my friend David Rubinstein, a bunch of 1:26:48.240 --> 1:26:51.840 US NATS fans were upset. David Rubinstein is this wealthy industrialist. 1:26:51.880 --> 1:26:54.400 He's the owner of the Orioles. He's also the guy 1:26:54.400 --> 1:26:58.080 that Donald Trump fired from the Kennedy Center. I will 1:26:58.120 --> 1:26:59.479 just tell you a lot of US NATS fans were 1:26:59.479 --> 1:27:01.559 disappointed and when he chose to buy the Orioles, when 1:27:01.560 --> 1:27:04.799 I was hoping he'd be the person to buy the Gnats, 1:27:05.000 --> 1:27:07.519 but he's a Baltimore native and he want to. He's 1:27:07.560 --> 1:27:10.519 going to become a reviled owner pretty quickly. Forget Donald 1:27:10.520 --> 1:27:13.720 Trump not being his biggest fan. He's going to have 1:27:13.760 --> 1:27:17.400 the entire Orioles fan base angry with him because before 1:27:17.439 --> 1:27:20.080 he was owner, they were winning one hundred games and 1:27:20.160 --> 1:27:23.720 ninety one games. Since he's become owner, they didn't have 1:27:23.760 --> 1:27:26.559 any big free agent signings. In fact, they lost a 1:27:26.560 --> 1:27:30.800 big free agent in Corbyn Burns, and now they have 1:27:30.800 --> 1:27:32.720 a worse und I'll tell you this. I never thought 1:27:32.760 --> 1:27:35.640 they'd have a worse record than the Nats at this 1:27:35.760 --> 1:27:38.679 point in the season, but they do. This was supposed 1:27:38.680 --> 1:27:40.280 to be an Oriols team on the rise. They've got 1:27:40.360 --> 1:27:44.800 some amazing young talent. So kudos to my Gnats, my 1:27:44.840 --> 1:27:48.040 man James Wood, Dylan Cruz even got a Homer was 1:27:48.080 --> 1:27:51.360 Homer have it on Sunday? So look, if I can't 1:27:51.880 --> 1:27:54.880 take this opportunity to use my own podcast to praise 1:27:54.920 --> 1:27:56.320 the Gnats, and what the hell do I have my 1:27:56.360 --> 1:27:59.840 own podcast for, right, So with that, I'll take the 1:27:59.840 --> 1:28:02.800 twenty four hour break of sorts and I'll talk to 1:28:02.880 --> 1:28:07.120 you the next time we upload to you again. M