WEBVTT - Why "No Kings Day" is Focused on America's Future | A Conversation with Ezra Levin

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<v Speaker 1>What does reform and renewal for the country mean to you.

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<v Speaker 2>I think it means not just acting like none of

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<v Speaker 2>this happened and moving forward. I think one of the

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<v Speaker 2>greatest mistakes of the Biden administration was appointing Merrick Garland.

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<v Speaker 2>I think we missed an opportunity to actually hold accountable

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<v Speaker 2>those who committed crimes, including a violent insurrection that tried

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<v Speaker 2>to overturn a democratic election. I don't think we can

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<v Speaker 2>afford to forget and move on. I think we have

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<v Speaker 2>to contend with what we've gone through here in this

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<v Speaker 2>world that you're talking about, Steve. We've survived. We've built

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<v Speaker 2>a pro democracy movement that prevented a permanent authoritarian rule

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<v Speaker 2>in this country. That's incredible. We should celebrate what we've

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<v Speaker 2>accomplished as a country, and then we should implement the

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<v Speaker 2>kinds of reforms that are necessary to prevent that from

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<v Speaker 2>happening again anytime in the near future. We should be

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<v Speaker 2>thinking of a policy agenda into our twenty twenty nine

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<v Speaker 2>the way we would have thought of one after World

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<v Speaker 2>War two or after the Civil War. We've gone through

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<v Speaker 2>some shit together, We've survived. How do we build for

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<v Speaker 2>the new era, and so what I don't want to

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<v Speaker 2>see are warned over policy proposals from twenty sixteen or

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<v Speaker 2>twenty twelve and just moving on in that way. But

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<v Speaker 2>if I got to be honest, Steve, my head's not

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<v Speaker 2>in twenty twenty nine.

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<v Speaker 1>Right now.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm trying to live to fight another day. I'm looking

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<v Speaker 2>at how do we win this shutdown fight right now?

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<v Speaker 2>How do we win the elections in California and Virginia

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<v Speaker 2>and New Jersey and Pennsylvania three weeks from now, and

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<v Speaker 2>then how do we win a primary season in the

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<v Speaker 2>Democratic Party That should be about what is that party

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<v Speaker 2>going to be fighting for when they reteak power in

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<v Speaker 2>twenty twenty six at the end of the year. And

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<v Speaker 2>that should be a party that is in the fight

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<v Speaker 2>back faction of the party and not the rollover in

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<v Speaker 2>play dead faction at the party.

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<v Speaker 1>So again, I can't stress how impooring I think that

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<v Speaker 1>these protests are this weekend. I can't stress how much

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<v Speaker 1>I admired you for the leadership that you've exhibited in

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<v Speaker 1>this moment. I mean it, You're a You're a great

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<v Speaker 1>American patriot, and I have a question for you that

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<v Speaker 1>that I think we got to put on the table

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<v Speaker 1>to talk about because as you, as you lay out

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<v Speaker 1>everything is everything that you have said, I'm I'm a

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<v Speaker 1>complete violent agreement agreement on I look ahead and I

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<v Speaker 1>see you, I see a young guy, and I read

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<v Speaker 1>the story in Politico about your analogue, which is which

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<v Speaker 1>is all these young Republicans in the I love Hitler,

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<v Speaker 1>Maggot crowd, and I see this disease. I see this

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<v Speaker 1>cancer right that's forming. Jade Vance is asked to respond

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<v Speaker 1>to all of these Republicans. They're all in the picture

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<v Speaker 1>back in. Any national leader with any moral foundation should

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<v Speaker 1>dress that in a very serious way, and of course

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<v Speaker 1>Jadie Vance is not that, so he doesn't. And he

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<v Speaker 1>points a finger at the Democratic nominee for Attorney General

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<v Speaker 1>in Virginia, who is running in a moment when the

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<v Speaker 1>rule of law is under siege and assault. We have

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<v Speaker 1>Banana Republican prosecutions take a place, including from Virginia, and

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<v Speaker 1>the Democratic Party has nominated someone that has put out

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<v Speaker 1>all of these emails, these tags that have come out

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<v Speaker 1>that are basically I want to shoot the Republican speaker

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<v Speaker 1>in the head, I want to kill his I want

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<v Speaker 1>to kill his kids, and YadA, YadA, YadA, YadA, And

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<v Speaker 1>to me, that person, this is an easy decision in

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<v Speaker 1>the pro democracy fight. Take his ass up, boom, over

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<v Speaker 1>the rail into the ocean. I don't want to defend him.

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<v Speaker 1>I have no investment in that person. I think he's

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<v Speaker 1>a whack job that is an agent of a terrible cause.

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<v Speaker 1>In the end, he is a booster rocket for MAGA

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<v Speaker 1>and there should be zero tolerance for him on our side.

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<v Speaker 1>And what I would put to you is you're a

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<v Speaker 1>leader of the American opposition, not a leader in the

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<v Speaker 1>Democratic Party, And so how do you process all of

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<v Speaker 1>this as a leader in the American opposition that obviously

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<v Speaker 1>in the two party system, the Democrats are guys so

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<v Speaker 1>to speak, if we're opposed to this, But at the

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<v Speaker 1>same time, it's also the institution the lost to Donald Trump.

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<v Speaker 1>And I know for my part, you know, as a

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<v Speaker 1>person who's involved in one of that cluster of groups,

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<v Speaker 1>I am completely against signing up for another pickets charge

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<v Speaker 1>or led by the saint people who've lost two out

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<v Speaker 1>of the last three elections to the Donald Trump. But

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<v Speaker 1>how do you factor all of that into this? As

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<v Speaker 1>every Democratic leader is looking at these protests this weekend

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<v Speaker 1>and saying, right, if they're Chuck Schumer, Oh this is

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<v Speaker 1>for me. No, it's not. It's about something else. And

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<v Speaker 1>so there's a lot of people trying to get on

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<v Speaker 1>to the south right. But what are you saying, how

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<v Speaker 1>do you see all that?

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<v Speaker 2>Well, I think you're exactly right that this is not

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<v Speaker 2>a Democratic Party movement. Indivisible as an organization has never

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<v Speaker 2>been an arm of the Democratic Party. And in March,

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<v Speaker 2>after Trump, or after Trump successfully bullied Schumer into surrendering

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<v Speaker 2>on the previous Republican funding bill, we held an emergency

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<v Speaker 2>meeting of thirteen hundred Indivisible leaders from around the country.

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<v Speaker 2>Ninety two percent of them voted for US to call

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<v Speaker 2>for Chuck Schumer to step down from leadership because he

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<v Speaker 2>had frittered away what little leverage he had up until

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<v Speaker 2>this point. Now, the six months later, we have a

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<v Speaker 2>cee our bill again. I think the reason why you

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<v Speaker 2>see Schumer and the other Democrats fighting now is because

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<v Speaker 2>in the intervening months since that point, they have been

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<v Speaker 2>absolutely demolished by rank and file, THEMS and grassroots members.

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<v Speaker 2>This isn't ideological, This isn't the left versus the center,

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<v Speaker 2>or the left versus the conservatis. This is normal everyday

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<v Speaker 2>Democrats who said, what the hell, why aren't you using

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<v Speaker 2>your leverage? And they are being pushed, and they're showing

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<v Speaker 2>up on Hands Off in April, and they're showing up

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<v Speaker 2>on No Kings in June, and they're showing up in

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<v Speaker 2>bigger numbers in No Kings two in a few days,

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<v Speaker 2>and Democrats are scared that they're going to be tossed

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<v Speaker 2>out unless they respond in some way. I think what

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<v Speaker 2>we need to do is be really hard on our

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<v Speaker 2>leaders and not allow them to get away with just

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<v Speaker 2>performative gestures. And this is something we saw shortly after

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<v Speaker 2>the hands off protests and the no Kings protests originally

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<v Speaker 2>is a lot of dims who were in the rollover

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<v Speaker 2>and play dead category said, oh my gosh, the rank

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<v Speaker 2>and file are really pissed off right now. We should

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<v Speaker 2>send some strongly worded letters to show that we're on

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<v Speaker 2>the same side. We should give some inspiring speeches. We

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<v Speaker 2>should cuss more. There should be more cursing to demonstrate

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<v Speaker 2>how pissed off we are. I think there was an

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<v Speaker 2>actual memo that went around that commits them to do that,

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<v Speaker 2>and I'm not going to lie. I like a good speech.

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<v Speaker 2>I like a good rant with some cursing about what

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<v Speaker 2>Trump is doing. I think that's a step in the

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<v Speaker 2>right direction. That's better than condescending dismissal. But what we're

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<v Speaker 2>looking for is a party that fights back and a

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<v Speaker 2>party that's serious about standing up for democratic values. So

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<v Speaker 2>I think it is easy to call that out. Is

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<v Speaker 2>easy for me to sit here and say this Democratic

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<v Speaker 2>leader failed, that Democratic leader failed. I want the party

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<v Speaker 2>to do X. Why aren't they doing it? Why are

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<v Speaker 2>they disappointing me so much? But the Democratic Party is

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<v Speaker 2>what we make of it. It is what we demand.

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<v Speaker 2>We get the party that we demand, and I think

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<v Speaker 2>we should take advantage of the opportunity in front of

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<v Speaker 2>us to demand a party that actually fights back and

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<v Speaker 2>represents a serious opposition to authoritarianism in this country. The

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<v Speaker 2>most immediate opportunity I see for that is the primary

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<v Speaker 2>season that's coming now. We are going to have primaries

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<v Speaker 2>for Congress, for the Senate, for state legislatures all over

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<v Speaker 2>the country, and we can accept the same old leadership

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<v Speaker 2>that we've had, or we can go and withhold our

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<v Speaker 2>money and our votes and our attention from those who

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<v Speaker 2>are part of the old field version of this party.

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<v Speaker 2>I think I'm happy to talk about that. We're not

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<v Speaker 2>involved at the state race in Virginia, the lieutenant governor's race.

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<v Speaker 2>I think it's atrocious what he did. I think it's

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<v Speaker 2>extremely damaging. And we're also in the general election against

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<v Speaker 2>the Fascist Party, so I would like to see some

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<v Speaker 2>serious contrition. I would like to see him clean it

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<v Speaker 2>up as much as possible. And also, given limited capacity

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<v Speaker 2>that we have, I'm putting a lot more energy into

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<v Speaker 2>Proposition fifty in California to fight back against Jerry Mannery,

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<v Speaker 2>and put a lot more energy in the three Pennsylvania

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<v Speaker 2>Supreme Court races, which could be determinative on whether we

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<v Speaker 2>have free and fair elections in twenty six and twenty eight.

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<v Speaker 2>And I'm putting more energy in the New Jersey governor's

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<v Speaker 2>race in the Virginia's governor's race.

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<v Speaker 3>I'm Steve Schmidt. This is the warning. I invite you

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<v Speaker 3>to join this community where I promise to be honest,

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<v Speaker 3>blunt and direct about what is happening in this country.

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<v Speaker 3>America is in crisis. Follow and subscribe to this channel

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<v Speaker 3>and on substack. Thank you