Speaker 1: Hi everyone, I'm Kitty Kuric, and this is next question.
Speaker 1: It's hard to believe, but the twenty twenty four election
Speaker 1: is less than a year away. What's even harder to believe,
Speaker 1: As Yogi Bear would say, it's deja vu all over again. Yep,
Speaker 1: that's right, Biden versus Trump. We've been hearing a lot
Speaker 1: about the Republican side of the campaign with the Iowa
Speaker 1: caucuses and the New Hampshire primary and now Super Tuesday
Speaker 1: is just over a month away, but we haven't been
Speaker 1: hearing as much from the current administration. That's why I
Speaker 1: was thrilled to jump on a train, brave the elements,
Speaker 1: and head to the Eisenhower Executive Office Building to sit
Speaker 1: down with Vice President Kamala Harris. By the way, these
Speaker 1: interviews can be very strong. She's an incredibly busy person,
Speaker 1: so they only gave me thirty minutes, and I had
Speaker 1: a lot to cover, abortion, immigration, Israel, Gaza, the administration's
Speaker 1: historically low approval ratings despite their many accomplishments, Trump voters
Speaker 1: and some crucial voting blocks that don't necessarily think the
Speaker 1: second time's a charm. First of all, thank you so
Speaker 1: much for being here for agreeing to have this conversation.
Speaker 1: I'm very excited to talk to you about everything you're doing.
Speaker 1: Before we sat down, we both had a little something
Speaker 1: we needed to clear up. Why did I think you
Speaker 1: were much taller? I recently learned you're only five too.
Speaker 2: Is that absolutely incorrect? Okay? I am five four and
Speaker 2: a quarter. Okay, four and a half and with heels,
Speaker 2: which I always around five seven and a half. Thank
Speaker 2: you very much.
Speaker 1: Okay, Wikipedia, you're wrong, and we need to go on.
Speaker 2: I've said this to my team, like what, I don't
Speaker 2: know where it came from.
Speaker 1: I was five to when I was twelve, they say
Speaker 1: I'm five to one on my Wikipedia page by three
Speaker 1: and three quarters right and shrinking.
Speaker 2: It's like, literally they just want to just make us
Speaker 2: smaller in every way.
Speaker 1: I know, but I but I was excited because I'm short,
Speaker 1: and I was like, oh, kamalo.
Speaker 2: No, I am not. I am not just trying to
Speaker 2: take two and a half inches off my you know. Correct.
Speaker 1: Yes, we started with a topic that's proving to be
Speaker 1: a powerful driver for democrats. I know that Vice President
Speaker 1: harrisher embarking on a Reproductive Freedom's tour to highlight the
Speaker 1: harm caused by abortion bands and restrictive laws following the
Speaker 1: overturning of Roe v.
Speaker 2: Wade.
Speaker 1: This is an issue that has resonated so much with
Speaker 1: Democratic voters and I'm curious, what is your goal as
Speaker 1: you travel around the country.
Speaker 2: Well, my my goal, my ultimate goal is that we
Speaker 2: will build up the support to build and get a
Speaker 2: Congress that will pass a bill to restore the protections
Speaker 2: of Roe into law, and President Joe Biden will sign it.
Speaker 2: But then let's take a step back. So I'm starting
Speaker 2: the We're naming the Fight for Our Reproductive Freedom's Tour,
Speaker 2: and it'll begin on January twenty second, which is the
Speaker 2: fifty first anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision. And Katie,
Speaker 2: you know I mean you, and I'm going to speak
Speaker 2: for you. I think I could immaccurate most of our
Speaker 2: adult or our conscious lives right when we were able
Speaker 2: to be aware of what is happening in the world.
Speaker 2: Roe v. Wade was the law of the land.
Speaker 1: Row pass when I was in tenth grade.
Speaker 2: So it was the law of the land for almost
Speaker 2: the entirety of our adult lives. And you know, I'll
Speaker 2: speak for myself now. You know I always pro choice
Speaker 2: pro CHOI whenever there was a moment where we had
Speaker 2: to speak about the protecting role, would let us protect Row.
Speaker 2: But honestly, I pretty much, I think most of us
Speaker 2: pretty much, we were pretty certain it would always be here.
Speaker 2: And look what happened. The highest court in our land
Speaker 2: took a constitutional right that had been recognized from the
Speaker 2: people of America, from the women of America. And the
Speaker 2: day that that decision came down, the world in so
Speaker 2: many ways in terms of a lived experience for the
Speaker 2: women of America changed in a drastic way. After the
Speaker 2: Dobs decision, which undid Row, came down, states around our
Speaker 2: country proposed and passed laws that would punish women, criminalize
Speaker 2: health care providers, ban abortion in some cases, even in
Speaker 2: the situation of rape or incess. As you know, I
Speaker 2: spent a lot of my career as a prosecutor, and
Speaker 2: one of the reasons I became a prosecutor of started
Speaker 2: to share the story more. My best friend in high school,
Speaker 2: when we were in high school, I learned was being
Speaker 2: molested by her stepfather. And when I learned that, I said, well,
Speaker 2: you have to come and stay with us. I called
Speaker 2: my mother. My mother said, of course, she has to
Speaker 2: come stay with us, and she did, and so I
Speaker 2: decided I wanted to do the work that was about
Speaker 2: protecting women and children from violence. And the majority of
Speaker 2: my career as a prosecutor was focused on crimes against
Speaker 2: women and children. So bringing that back to the point
Speaker 2: of no exception even for rape or ancest So these
Speaker 2: extremist so called leaders are basically saying to a survivor
Speaker 2: of a crime of violence to their body, a violation
Speaker 2: of their body, saying to these survivors, and you don't
Speaker 2: have the authority or right to make a decision about
Speaker 2: what happens to your body next. That's immoral. That's immoral.
Speaker 2: And what I have seen traveling our country listening to
Speaker 2: women who have been directly affected because of these laws
Speaker 2: is the stories of women having miscarriages in toilets. Katie,
Speaker 2: There's a woman in Texas who I've spent some time with.
Speaker 2: She and he her husband. She wanted to become pregnant,
Speaker 2: she wanted to have children, but her pregnancy then she
Speaker 2: was having a miscarriage. She went to the emergency room,
Speaker 2: she was denied care because the hospital workers were so
Speaker 2: afraid that they might get sued or be committing something
Speaker 2: against the law that they would not give her care.
Speaker 2: It was only when she went back because she had
Speaker 2: developed sepsis that they gave her care. Women around our
Speaker 2: country are experiencing a profound harm because of these laws
Speaker 2: as a result of that Supreme Court decision, and many
Speaker 2: of the stories are untold. Many of these cases are
Speaker 2: women who are silently suffering. And the other layer of
Speaker 2: this Katie that really should be addressed and understood is
Speaker 2: how these extremists are framing the discussion in a way
Speaker 2: that really is about judging women as though they've done
Speaker 2: something wrong, something they should be embarrassed about. And as
Speaker 2: we know, when people are already going through a moment
Speaker 2: in their life where they need support, not judgment, and
Speaker 2: where they then feel because of this environment that they've
Speaker 2: done something wrong, they're going to silence, they suffer, and
Speaker 2: they're going to fill alone, which is very disempowering. And
Speaker 2: so when I travel our country listening to these stories,
Speaker 2: hearing these women and thinking about this issue and how
Speaker 2: it is taking place in terms of the effect in
Speaker 2: real time, I feel compelled to travel as I've been,
Speaker 2: to organize folks and talk with folks about why we
Speaker 2: all should stand for these basic freedoms, the right of
Speaker 2: an individual to make decisions about their own body.
Speaker 1: Pragmatically speaking Man and Vice President. The composition of the
Speaker 1: Supreme Court is unlikely to change anytime soon, it seems.
Speaker 1: So what can you realistically do? You were talking about
Speaker 1: electing people to Congress and passing a law of federal
Speaker 1: law protecting a woman's right to choose in the interim,
Speaker 1: are there any other things that can be done to
Speaker 1: prevent these women from suffering the way they have been,
Speaker 1: and particularly in very restrictive states like Texas, Idaho, and Tennessee.
Speaker 2: Well, I'll start with what our administration is working on,
Speaker 2: which includes fighting for an informing states about the responsibility
Speaker 2: to administer emergency care, the duty to administer emergency care,
Speaker 2: and so that is part of what we are doing.
Speaker 2: There is a law that the acronym is m Tala,
Speaker 2: but it basically says people cannot be denied emergency care.
Speaker 2: There is the work that we are doing to protect
Speaker 2: access to contraception, which is a real issue here. There's
Speaker 2: work I've been doing, for example, to convene university presidents
Speaker 2: who of course have as the vast major already of
Speaker 2: their student population. People who are in the height of
Speaker 2: their reprotective years, to ensure that they are doing what
Speaker 2: they can to protect medical records, to protect privacy, to
Speaker 2: make allowances if, for example, a student has an unwanted
Speaker 2: pregnancy and can't receive medical care in their state needs
Speaker 2: to leave, which means miss time from class, to make
Speaker 2: sure that that student is not punished because they had
Speaker 2: to leave the state even though they would have preferred
Speaker 2: to stay where they were. So this is some of
Speaker 2: the work. The other work is around just talking with
Speaker 2: people about the realities of it all, for example, pointing
Speaker 2: out that I think we all agree that one does
Speaker 2: not have to abandon their faith or deeply held beliefs
Speaker 2: to agree that the government should not be telling her
Speaker 2: what to do with her body. If she chooses, she
Speaker 2: will consult with her priests or rabbi, her past or
Speaker 2: you mom, but it should not be the government telling
Speaker 2: her what to do. So there are many layers to
Speaker 2: the work that I think needs to be done, including
Speaker 2: reminding the individuals who are going through this right now,
Speaker 2: the women who are going through it right now, that
Speaker 2: they're not alone, and that we hear them and we
Speaker 2: see them, we do not judge them. And we want
Speaker 2: them to have the support that they so rightly need.
Speaker 1: I also think there's a lot of disinformation about late
Speaker 1: term abortions, absolutely, and I think a lot of misconceptions
Speaker 1: about that as well, that women are having abortions, you know,
Speaker 1: before their baby, you know, right before the baby is born,
Speaker 1: and these horror stories about that. How can you educate
Speaker 1: the public that even rowe had restrictions on the third trimester.
Speaker 2: Well not only that, but let's just remember that before
Speaker 2: the Dodds decision, this was not an issue that was
Speaker 2: being debated about whether women were doing these things that
Speaker 2: people are now describing as.
Speaker 1: Possible or partial birth abords.
Speaker 2: And I just think that it is meant to distract
Speaker 2: from the realities which is this and it's really basic
Speaker 2: and fundamental. On one level, this is about taking freedoms away,
Speaker 2: the freedom to make decision about your own body. This
Speaker 2: is a question also of trust. I trust women. President
Speaker 2: Joe Biden trusts women to be able to know what
Speaker 2: is in their own best interest and then make good decisions.
Speaker 2: And by the way, and women trust us to know
Speaker 2: we're going to protect and fight for their freedoms. But fundamentally,
Speaker 2: that is the issue and I think there are many
Speaker 2: people who want to distract from that fundamental foundational issue,
Speaker 2: and I take it to a foundational issue in terms
Speaker 2: of this is one of the main principles upon which
Speaker 2: our country was founded.
Speaker 1: Do you think that this will motivate voters in November,
Speaker 1: because I know it's shown that primarily referendum are REFERENDU
Speaker 1: that's a plural of referendum, right is what are what
Speaker 1: motivate people to go and vote? And so how can
Speaker 1: you I mean, I'm assuming that you're trying to encourage
Speaker 1: people who feel strongly about this issue to go to
Speaker 1: the polls come November.
Speaker 2: Because they can make a difference. Literally, this issue will
Speaker 2: be ultimately determined about whether women have this freedom or
Speaker 2: not because of elections, because of what will result from elections,
Speaker 2: which is elected leaders passing a lot to reinstate the
Speaker 2: protections of freedom at the state level. Well, but ultimately
Speaker 2: it's going to take the federal level because what we
Speaker 2: see is state by state, you see different laws that
Speaker 2: have been unleashed after the Dobbs decision. So we want
Speaker 2: to go back to the law of the land being
Speaker 2: a row. And I think that elections matter, Katie on
Speaker 2: this issue in particular elections, they.
Speaker 1: Matter after the break Immigration the second most important topic
Speaker 1: for voters after the economy. If you want to get
Speaker 1: smarter every morning with a breakdown of the news and
Speaker 1: fascinating takes on health and wellness and pop culture, sign
Speaker 1: up for our daily newsletter, Wake Upcall by going to
Speaker 1: Katiecuric dot com. I want to talk to you a
Speaker 1: little bit about immigration because I think just about everyone
Speaker 1: and you have said as well, agrees that the immigration
Speaker 1: system is broken and we need comprehensive immigration reform. Early on,
Speaker 1: I know you were tasked with understanding the root causes
Speaker 1: of the immigration crisis, but you are not in charge
Speaker 1: of the border, which I think is important to point out.
Speaker 1: Having said that, fourteen House Democrats joined Republicans in denouncing
Speaker 1: the Biden administrations so called open border policies, calling it
Speaker 1: quote a national security and public safety crisis. And as
Speaker 1: you know, I'm sure you've talked to them. So many
Speaker 1: big city mayor's Democrats are saying this is an untenable
Speaker 1: situation in cities across the country. Sixty eight percent of
Speaker 1: Americans disapprove the way the Biden administration has handled the border.
Speaker 1: So how do you address that have you done enough?
Speaker 2: There's no question our immigration system is broken and it
Speaker 2: needs to be fixed, and as with any problem, then
Speaker 2: leaders will participate, true leaders in the solution. So I'm
Speaker 2: going to take you back to about three years ago,
Speaker 2: and it was I think the day after our inauguration
Speaker 2: when we came in, Joe Biden as president, me as
Speaker 2: Vice president. The first bill that we offered was a
Speaker 2: bill to fix the immigration system.
Speaker 1: And that's when you controlled both houses.
Speaker 2: And Congress did not take it up. And I will
Speaker 2: tell you that this is, first of all, not a
Speaker 2: new issue, but sadly it has become so deeply partisan
Speaker 2: and the subject of then political gamesmanship, when in fact
Speaker 2: the solution are at hand, and we offered a solution
Speaker 2: early on and invited bipartisan work. Let's work on it
Speaker 2: to fix this. And in fact, we have right now
Speaker 2: a proposal for fourteen billion dollars so that we can
Speaker 2: put more resources to address this very situation. And we
Speaker 2: hope and and are really trying to compel in particularly
Speaker 2: some of the Republicans in Congress to participate in the solution.
Speaker 2: But sadly, you know, we want to fix it, they
Speaker 2: want to run on it. They want a political issue
Speaker 2: to run on in November.
Speaker 1: Well it's working, honestly, Well.
Speaker 2: I don't I think that. Listen again, I start, I
Speaker 2: go back to where I started. The situation is such
Speaker 2: that the system has broken and it needs to be fixed,
Speaker 2: and we have offered a solution, and real leaders ought
Speaker 2: to lead on this, meaning not play politics with it,
Speaker 2: but work with us.
Speaker 1: I think Senates the problem. Republicans I know are trying to.
Speaker 2: Do that right. The challenge is going to be on
Speaker 2: the House side.
Speaker 1: Exactly, and they have linked legislation fixing the immigration crisis
Speaker 1: to military aid to Ukraine and Israel, and military aid
Speaker 1: those two allies desperately need. Is this immigration bill as
Speaker 1: it currently stands, something that you all can support in
Speaker 1: order to release that aid money.
Speaker 2: So it's a work in progress. So by the time
Speaker 2: your listeners listen to this conversation, I don't know what
Speaker 2: situation or status it will be in. But let me
Speaker 2: just say this. We ought to be able to do
Speaker 2: everything we are the United States, and that means fixed
Speaker 2: problems such as what we need to do to address
Speaker 2: the immigration system, and we must stand by our allies,
Speaker 2: and that includes giving aid to Ukraine, which has been
Speaker 2: the subject of a violation of one of the oldest
Speaker 2: and most important rules in norms, which is the importance
Speaker 2: of protecting sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of
Speaker 2: Russia's unprovoked aggression and attempt to use forced to change
Speaker 2: borders the first war in seventy years in Europe, and
Speaker 2: the United States must stand by our ally Ukraine on principle,
Speaker 2: much less to stand strong about what is American leadership
Speaker 2: to uphold international rules and norms. And by the way,
Speaker 2: I've now met with over one hundred and fifty world
Speaker 2: leaders katie presidents, prime ministers, chancellors, and kings, many of
Speaker 2: them now multiple times they look to us to be
Speaker 2: a leader on so many of these issues. I've been
Speaker 2: in the Oval Office with the President, with President Biden
Speaker 2: when he will get calls from world leaders asking for
Speaker 2: perspective and advice or support. So when we talk about
Speaker 2: the United States Congress on an issue like Ukraine or Israel,
Speaker 2: we should be able to do all of these things
Speaker 2: and not put conditions on one in exchange for the other.
Speaker 1: Let's turn to Israel, because it's been more than three
Speaker 1: months after the horrific attacks of October seventh, people are
Speaker 1: seeing graphic images of devastation and thousands of civilian casualties
Speaker 1: in Gos. I'm sure you're seeing them too, Yes, i am.
Speaker 1: Many people in your party, especially young people, have called
Speaker 1: for a cease fire for months now, and I'm wondering
Speaker 1: if you could articulate for us why you believe that
Speaker 1: is not a good idea if you do believe that.
Speaker 2: So let's start with October seventh. On October seventh, we
Speaker 2: saw a terrorist organization Hamas commit an act of sheer
Speaker 2: brutality and terrorism when they attacked and slaughtered over twelve
Speaker 2: hundred people, innocent people, many of them young people attending
Speaker 2: a concert. Women were raped horrendously, So not at all,
Speaker 2: it is all. Rape is always horrendous, obviously, but.
Speaker 1: The barbarism of the crimes.
Speaker 2: Rape is a tool of war, all right. And so
Speaker 2: I will start this conversation by saying, and Israel has
Speaker 2: a right to defend itself, we would, and how it
Speaker 2: does so matters. We've been very clear that far too
Speaker 2: many Palestinians, innocent Palestinian civilians, have been killed, and that
Speaker 2: Israel must do more to protect innocent civilians. We've been
Speaker 2: very clear humanitarian aid must flow from day one. I
Speaker 2: will tell you one of my areas of priority included
Speaker 2: let's think about the day after, because we must stay
Speaker 2: focused on an eventual to a state solution.
Speaker 1: Well, having said that, I want to tell you something
Speaker 1: which I'm sure you're well aware of that bb Net
Speaker 1: Yahoo Prime Minister net who recently said he rejected US
Speaker 1: calls to scale back Israel's military action in the Gaza
Speaker 1: Strip or to support a Palestinian state after the war.
Speaker 1: He even said that Israel quote must have security control
Speaker 1: over the entire territory west of the Jordan River, which
Speaker 1: includes Gaza. So given those positions, how can you possibly
Speaker 1: come together? How can the US and Israel come together
Speaker 1: to solve this? And should aid to Israel be conditional?
Speaker 2: So I'll start with the principles that we are applying
Speaker 2: to this discussion, which we have been very clear with
Speaker 2: the Israeli government about one as it relates to the
Speaker 2: day after. There should be no reoccupation of Gaza. There
Speaker 2: should be no changing of the territorial boundaries of Gasa
Speaker 2: that the Palestinians are entitled to in equal measure with
Speaker 2: Israelis security and prosperity.
Speaker 1: Doesn't sound like the Leonette now who agrees with that.
Speaker 2: We're the United States of America. I'm telling you our position,
Speaker 2: and we take our role in this discussion very seriously.
Speaker 2: There may be disagreements. That doesn't mean we're going to
Speaker 2: change our mind about the principles that are important to
Speaker 2: be applied to this process in terms of what a
Speaker 2: day after should look like, and those principles remain consistent.
Speaker 2: We believe very strongly. I believe very strongly Palestinians are
Speaker 2: entitled to dignity and self determination. We believe there must
Speaker 2: be a two state solution for the sake of the
Speaker 2: stability in the region. We believe very strongly, as a
Speaker 2: first principle, Israel must be secure that Hamas and it
Speaker 2: must not be in a position to commit terrorist acts
Speaker 2: against innocent people or the people of Israel in particular.
Speaker 1: So should AID that and Vice President be conditional. If
Speaker 1: the Prime Minister of Israel is stating this, should that
Speaker 1: AID not come if there's not that kind of flexibility
Speaker 1: that you're seeking.
Speaker 2: We are right now in a position of negotiating with
Speaker 2: Congress to follow through on a commitment we made for AID,
Speaker 2: and we are taking it one day at a time
Speaker 2: in terms of what is happening in the region and
Speaker 2: how we are addressing the issue. But that's where we
Speaker 2: are right now.
Speaker 1: So I don't feel like you really answered my question.
Speaker 2: Well do you?
Speaker 1: But do you think it should be conditional? I know
Speaker 1: you're carrying out.
Speaker 2: That's about our position right now?
Speaker 1: Not right now? Yeah, okay, I'm want to turn to
Speaker 1: the accomplishments of the Biden administration. Good an infrastructure Bill,
Speaker 1: finally the Chips Act, the Safer Communities Act addressing gun violence,
Speaker 1: to name three legislative accomplishments. Low unemployment, millions of jobs created,
Speaker 1: inflation down, the stock market up. You don't hear that
Speaker 1: much from reporters, do you, in a form of a question?
Speaker 1: And yet and yet you and President's Biden's approval ratings
Speaker 1: are at historic lows. The President at thirty eight, you
Speaker 1: at thirty seven. Why do you think that is given
Speaker 1: what I just outlined.
Speaker 2: Well, first of all, if I listened to polls, I
Speaker 2: would have never run for my first office, or probably
Speaker 2: my second or third for that matter. So I only
Speaker 2: put so much stock in polls.
Speaker 1: But it must be discouraging.
Speaker 2: Well, no, here's the thing we have to we have
Speaker 2: to earn the reelect. That is, without any question, the
Speaker 2: right to be in a democracy. You got to earn
Speaker 2: the reelect and so our job. You are correct, a.
Speaker 2: We have historic accomplishments in terms of the economy, but
Speaker 2: we've done to move forward. It's science, technology and investment
Speaker 2: in the American workforce, growing the American workforce, rising wages,
Speaker 2: bringing down prices. Historic work has happened, no question. It
Speaker 2: is incumbent on us to let people know who brung
Speaker 2: it to them. Frankly, because here's the thing, Katie, when
Speaker 2: if you do want to look at polling, let's also
Speaker 2: look at the fact that it tells us that if
Speaker 2: you ask people how they feel about the fact that
Speaker 2: we finally kept the cost of insulin for seniors at
Speaker 2: thirty five dollars a month, hugely popular. If you ask people,
Speaker 2: how do you feel about the fact that seniors too long,
Speaker 2: too many had to determine whether they could fill their
Speaker 2: prescriptions or fill the refrigerator. And now we have allowed
Speaker 2: medical care to negotiate drug prices finally, which means we're
Speaker 2: capping the annual cost of prescriptions for seniors at two
Speaker 2: thousand dollars. They're not going to pay more than two
Speaker 2: thousand dollars a year for their prescription drugs. Very very
Speaker 2: popular if you ask students with debt, with students people
Speaker 2: have graduated with debt or even haven't graduated, who have
Speaker 2: caught debt from college or secondary school.
Speaker 1: And he just announced today additional debt relief for.
Speaker 2: We have now erased the debt of over three and
Speaker 2: a half million people. Very popular if you look at
Speaker 2: what we are doing that is right now active projects
Speaker 2: in all fifty states. They are about upgrading roads and bridges,
Speaker 2: repairing streets, and airports. Usually popular. And I you know,
Speaker 2: if you drive down most streets in America, you'll somewhere
Speaker 2: or another see some construction site or a crane up
Speaker 2: that you can probably point to the Biden Harris administration
Speaker 2: and to know that that work is starting to happen
Speaker 2: because we finally got the infrastructure work done. Previous administration
Speaker 2: kept talking about infrastructure. We actually made it happen. So
Speaker 2: you're right, we have a lot of accomplishments, and I
Speaker 2: think what the American people want most in their leaders
Speaker 2: is that we actually get things done. And we have
Speaker 2: done it, we haven't taken adequate credit for it. Frankly,
Speaker 2: and we got to do a better job of getting
Speaker 2: the word out about what we have accomplished and who
Speaker 2: did it.
Speaker 1: When we come back, Kamala Harris has a tall order
Speaker 1: making sure Latino, Black, and young voters stay in the fold.
Speaker 2: They have now met with over fifteen thousand students gen Z, who,
Speaker 2: by the way, I think is a terrific generation.
Speaker 1: I know you love gen Z. You said it on
Speaker 1: the view.
Speaker 2: Do you love gen Z?
Speaker 3: I really do?
Speaker 1: You do very well among young voters, among people of color,
Speaker 1: both black voters and Latino voters. President Biden isn't doing
Speaker 1: as well. In twenty twenty, he won young people by
Speaker 1: more than twenty points, but now he's tied with Donald Trump.
Speaker 1: And I'm curious you've been I think I think people
Speaker 1: believe you're a good messenger to bring some of those
Speaker 1: voters back into the fold to support Joe Biden and
Speaker 1: not just Kamala Harris. How are you going to do that?
Speaker 2: Well? Part of it is getting the heck out of DC,
Speaker 2: which I've been doing. Fact, after the Dobs decision came down,
Speaker 2: I decided to get on the road ahead of the
Speaker 2: midterms and going to purple red and blue states in
Speaker 2: almost equal measure, talking with folks and listening to folks.
Speaker 2: And I started then last fall college tour, where I
Speaker 2: have now met with over fifteen thousand students gen Z, who,
Speaker 2: by the way, I think is a terrific generation.
Speaker 1: I know you love gen Z. You said it on
Speaker 1: the view.
Speaker 2: Do you love gen Z? I really do, because they
Speaker 2: it's a lived experience for them. They've only known the
Speaker 2: climate crisis. Most of them have endured active shooter drills
Speaker 2: between kindergarten and twelfth grade. They during the height of
Speaker 2: their reproductive years, saw the court take away an essential
Speaker 2: right for them. And so traveling the country makes a
Speaker 2: difference to one listen, but to remind people that they
Speaker 2: are being seen and that what they do matters, including
Speaker 2: that they vote. And so I'm going to keep doing that.
Speaker 1: Are you worried that they're not going to turn out?
Speaker 1: I mean, that is so key to your reelection.
Speaker 2: Well, like I've said many times, because it is a
Speaker 2: mantra for me during election time, they're two ways to run,
Speaker 2: either without an opponent or scared. You got to earn
Speaker 2: it and you got to get out there and you
Speaker 2: got to do the work. And I'm prepared to do it.
Speaker 1: You know, I wasn't going to ask you a question
Speaker 1: about Joe Biden's age, because, after all, Donald Trump is
Speaker 1: just three years younger, and some people seem fixated on
Speaker 1: Joe Biden's age. But I wanted to ask.
Speaker 2: You it's because they have nothing to run on, Katie.
Speaker 1: Well, immigration now they're running on.
Speaker 2: Too, which they could actually participate in fixing, right, and
Speaker 2: so no, but really yeah, you know, so yeah, you're right.
Speaker 2: They're running on immigration because they like having the problem,
Speaker 2: so they can they can have an issue. But how
Speaker 2: in fact we have offered them the ability to solve
Speaker 2: it and they don't want to participate in that, right
Speaker 2: in the solution.
Speaker 1: Right about immigration, but having you know, the age thing.
Speaker 1: Voters are concerned. I mean, according to almost poll that
Speaker 1: is an issue. And I was curious to get your
Speaker 1: take on this. Four years ago, I think it was
Speaker 1: a rally in Detroit, then Canada. Biden was at a
Speaker 1: rally with you, Corey Booker and Gretchen Widmer, and I
Speaker 1: looked up what he said. He said, Look, Joe Biden says,
Speaker 1: look a lot, doesn't He says, Look, I view myself
Speaker 1: as a bridge, not as anything else. There's an entire
Speaker 1: generation of leaders you saw stand behind me. They are
Speaker 1: the future of the country. And I wondered when you
Speaker 1: heard that if you thought that was a four year
Speaker 1: bridge or an eight year bridge.
Speaker 2: I want to get to the heart of what I
Speaker 2: think you're raising, which you've said is his age. So
Speaker 2: let's talk about that. I spend a lot of time
Speaker 2: with Joe Biden, be it in the Oval office or
Speaker 2: the situation room, and I can tell you this is
Speaker 2: someone who is tireless in terms of working on behalf
Speaker 2: of the American people. To your point of knowing Joe Biden,
Speaker 2: he comes from a background and a place in his
Speaker 2: heart and soul where he cares so deeply about working people,
Speaker 2: about families. We talk about his empathy because he actually
Speaker 2: is concerned about the suffering of other people and works
Speaker 2: to alleviate that suffering. He is bold, and it is
Speaker 2: because of all of that that we have been able
Speaker 2: to pass transformational work, bipartisan work. When we've been able
Speaker 2: to do it, a large part of it is because
Speaker 2: Joe Biden, and I've watched him, sits in that Oval
Speaker 2: office with the leaders on the two sides and helps
Speaker 2: people figure out that compromise is actually a good thing.
Speaker 2: Solutions are a good thing. I have been in the
Speaker 2: Oval Office when heads of state from around the world,
Speaker 2: in particular, our allies call up Joe Biden and ask
Speaker 2: for his advice and he gives it. It is Joe
Speaker 2: Biden who is, without any question and leaders around the
Speaker 2: world would admit it, the one who was able to
Speaker 2: bring together NATO to support Ukraine. So this whole issue
Speaker 2: that they are raising about his age is again because
Speaker 2: they've got nothing to run on. And I just think
Speaker 2: that we've got to get beyond this because I think
Speaker 2: ultimately what the American people deserve is that their leaders
Speaker 2: perform by way of solutions and uplifting the condition of
Speaker 2: their lives.
Speaker 1: I'm glad you used that word perform because I was
Speaker 1: listening to something Hillary Clinton said recently about performative politics. Yeah,
Speaker 1: it's a right, and that now people who are doing
Speaker 1: the hard work of the nation's business are not performing,
Speaker 1: and I thought that was such an interesting things.
Speaker 2: Is performing right, right?
Speaker 1: Right? Perform Yeah, are not performative exactly, And I thought
Speaker 1: that was such an insightful observation because people doing the work,
Speaker 1: let's face it, are not that entertaining, but in the.
Speaker 2: True sense of the word perform in terms of are
Speaker 2: you actually doing anything. Joe Biden's getting a whole lot
Speaker 2: of stuff done. First Chips and Science Act. We're going
Speaker 2: to be investing in the future of technology, competing on
Speaker 2: a global level. We have created over eight hundred and
Speaker 2: fifty new manufacturing jobs. We're bringing manufacturing back to America.
Speaker 2: What we have done in terms of fighting for things, well,
Speaker 2: you know, this is again where it'd be nice to
Speaker 2: have a little bit more bipartisan support to extend the
Speaker 2: child tax credit. In our first year, by pushing it through,
Speaker 2: we reduced tow poverty by over fifty percent. That's the
Speaker 2: kind of performing I think people want.
Speaker 1: But how are you going to get that messaging out?
Speaker 2: You know?
Speaker 1: Yeah, I know, but this alone, as much as I
Speaker 1: would like to say the entire country listens to this
Speaker 1: or watches this, it feels like that somehow that is
Speaker 1: not getting through. That's what a lot of people for
Speaker 1: I know you, and I know people like David Axelrodter like,
Speaker 1: let's get going people.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I appreciate that. I appreciate where he's coming from
Speaker 2: in terms of we all know what's at stake, Right,
Speaker 2: we all know what's at stake on the other side
Speaker 2: of this split screen, because let's be clear about it.
Speaker 2: We talked about a lot of issues today, you and I,
Speaker 2: most of which are not binary, like it's not one
Speaker 2: thing or the other. These are complex issues November of
Speaker 2: twenty twenty four binary. And on the other side, you've
Speaker 2: got someone who has said that if he were back
Speaker 2: in office, he would weaponize the Department of Justice, someone
Speaker 2: who has openly applauded insurrectionists as patriots, someone who has
Speaker 2: said that they will go after their political enemies and
Speaker 2: applauds dictators, indicating that he would be one. So let's
Speaker 2: be really clear about what's at stake. And then, yes,
Speaker 2: of course there is then a desire that let's get
Speaker 2: out there because we can't lose this democracy. We can't.
Speaker 2: And I agree with that passion. I am motivated by
Speaker 2: the same passion.
Speaker 1: I don't want your staff to kill me. I asked
Speaker 1: one more question.
Speaker 2: A lot of witnesses if they do.
Speaker 1: They ask one more question, Steane, Okay, all right, I'm
Speaker 1: as as a.
Speaker 2: Prosecutor if I said they're witnesses, as.
Speaker 1: A former prosecutor and a former general I'm sure you're
Speaker 1: familiar with these ninety one criminal indictments Donald Trump is
Speaker 1: currently facing or somewhat familiar, And I'm curious, why do
Speaker 1: you think so many of his supporters are willing to
Speaker 1: turn a blind eye to those indictments and support him regardless.
Speaker 2: Well, let's see if they do in November.
Speaker 1: Do you think minds will be changed as these court
Speaker 1: cases proceed.
Speaker 2: I think that the majority of Americans who are going
Speaker 2: to make the decision about the outcome of the election
Speaker 2: want a leader who is competent and not someone who
Speaker 2: invites and creates chaos. I think they are going to
Speaker 2: vote for a leader who respects and protects the rule
Speaker 2: of law, not someone who breaks it. I think they
Speaker 2: want someone who actually understands that the real strength of
Speaker 2: a leader is not on who you beat down, but
Speaker 2: based on who you lift up.
Speaker 1: Does it blow your mind that people don't Some people
Speaker 1: don't agree with that though, that They're like, we love
Speaker 1: this guy, it doesn't matter.
Speaker 2: I don't judge that. I don't judge that. I am
Speaker 2: just telling you I know what is at stake, and
Speaker 2: we are going to spend every day reminding the American
Speaker 2: people of what we have accomplished and what will be
Speaker 2: the impact of the selection, And it will be profound,
Speaker 2: and it will be in many ways existential.
Speaker 1: I believe, Madam Vice President, Thank you so so much.
Speaker 2: Good to be with you.
Speaker 1: Thanks for listening everyone. If you have a question for me,
Speaker 1: a subject you want us to cover, or you want
Speaker 1: to share your thoughts about how you navigate this crazy
Speaker 1: world reach out. You can leave a short message at
Speaker 1: six h nine five one two five five five, or
Speaker 1: you can send me a DM on Instagram. I would
Speaker 1: love to hear from you. Next Question is a production
Speaker 1: of iHeartMedia and Katie Kuric Media. The executive producers are Me,
Speaker 1: Katie Kuric, and Courtney Ltz. Our supervising producer is Ryan Martz,
Speaker 1: and our producers are Adriana Fazzio and Meredith Barnes. Julian
Speaker 1: Weller composed our theme music. For more information about today's episode,
Speaker 1: or to sign up for my newsletter wake Up Call,
Speaker 1: go to the description in the podcast app, or visit
Speaker 1: us at Katiecuric dot com. You can also find me
Speaker 1: on Instagram and all my social media channels. For more
Speaker 1: podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app Apple podcasts, or
Speaker 1: wherever you listen to your favorite shows.