1 00:00:04,879 --> 00:00:07,160 Speaker 1: What's going on? Thank you so much for listening to 2 00:00:07,200 --> 00:00:09,640 this podcast. It is heard live every day from noon 3 00:00:09,679 --> 00:00:12,519 to three on WBT Radio in Charlotte. And if you 4 00:00:12,560 --> 00:00:16,719 want exclusive content like invitations to events, the weekly live stream, 5 00:00:16,760 --> 00:00:19,239 my daily show prep with all the links, become a patron, 6 00:00:19,320 --> 00:00:22,600 go to dpeakclendershow dot com. Make sure you hit the 7 00:00:22,640 --> 00:00:25,160 subscribe button. Get every episode for free, write to your 8 00:00:25,160 --> 00:00:27,719 smartphone or tablet, and again, thank you so much for 9 00:00:27,760 --> 00:00:31,440 your support. It is Tuesday at noon and that means 10 00:00:31,480 --> 00:00:34,240 we chat with Andrew Dunn. He is the publisher of 11 00:00:34,240 --> 00:00:37,119 long Leaf Politics. You can read that at long leafpol 12 00:00:37,280 --> 00:00:40,840 dot com, and he is also a contributing columnist over 13 00:00:41,159 --> 00:00:42,520 at the Charlotte Observer. 14 00:00:42,679 --> 00:00:43,759 Speaker 2: Andrew, how are you, sir? 15 00:00:45,079 --> 00:00:48,320 Speaker 3: I'm great, just trying to stay out of Valigator Alcatraz. 16 00:00:48,439 --> 00:00:51,119 Speaker 1: Well, if you're in, if you're not in, an illegal alien, 17 00:00:51,159 --> 00:00:53,240 I think you're off to a very good start. So 18 00:00:53,920 --> 00:00:56,079 don't let yeah, don't let that be something that keeps 19 00:00:56,079 --> 00:00:58,640 you up at night, unless, of course, you are an 20 00:00:58,640 --> 00:01:01,679 illegal alien, and you would like to make a confession 21 00:01:01,759 --> 00:01:07,439 right now on the radio. No comment, Okay, fair enough, 22 00:01:07,959 --> 00:01:10,920 all right, So first off, I'm not sure have you. 23 00:01:10,920 --> 00:01:13,319 You said in one of your posts long Leave Politics 24 00:01:13,319 --> 00:01:16,439 that you would be writing something up on the Tillis decision. 25 00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:19,519 Have you published that yet and if not, well, what 26 00:01:19,680 --> 00:01:22,239 is it that? How did that strike you yesterday? I 27 00:01:22,239 --> 00:01:24,840 spent all show talking about it yesterday, so I'm I'm 28 00:01:24,920 --> 00:01:27,200 kind of tillised out on at the moment. 29 00:01:27,200 --> 00:01:28,560 Speaker 2: What were your reactions? 30 00:01:29,280 --> 00:01:32,040 Speaker 3: Oh yeah, I bet yeah. I had a column go 31 00:01:32,200 --> 00:01:35,560 up on the Charlotte Observer actually on Sunday writ and 32 00:01:35,640 --> 00:01:39,680 about that. You know, I was actually writing something about 33 00:01:40,799 --> 00:01:44,719 that when President Trump did his tirade against Tillis after 34 00:01:44,799 --> 00:01:48,560 he voted against the One Big Beautiful Bill, and I 35 00:01:48,599 --> 00:01:50,840 had to pivot pretty quick and adapt it to the 36 00:01:50,879 --> 00:01:55,560 news that Tillis was actually dropping out. I wasn't surprised 37 00:01:55,560 --> 00:01:58,599 to see that he's not running for reelection. I was 38 00:01:58,640 --> 00:02:01,519 a little surprised by the i'man you know, coming just 39 00:02:01,599 --> 00:02:06,079 so soon after that that truth socialill blow up. My 40 00:02:06,200 --> 00:02:08,319 first reaction was, oh, this has got to be some 41 00:02:08,439 --> 00:02:11,800 kind of AI hopes, but it turned out not to be. 42 00:02:13,199 --> 00:02:16,919 But you know, my main takeaway there is, you know, 43 00:02:17,479 --> 00:02:21,080 this has happened so many times before, where you know, 44 00:02:21,719 --> 00:02:24,439 Tillis has gotten on the wrong side of President Trump, 45 00:02:25,120 --> 00:02:28,520 you know, in regards to the Pete Hegseth nomination, and 46 00:02:28,560 --> 00:02:32,319 then there was the border wall emergency funding thing in 47 00:02:32,400 --> 00:02:37,080 President Trump's first term, and you know, every time Senator 48 00:02:37,120 --> 00:02:39,639 Tillis has been able to patch things up, you know, 49 00:02:39,680 --> 00:02:44,000 pretty quickly. But I guess either he felt like this was, 50 00:02:44,800 --> 00:02:47,560 you know, the ultimate breakup with President Trump, or he 51 00:02:47,599 --> 00:02:50,520 was just tired of trying to pretend to be somebody 52 00:02:50,599 --> 00:02:50,879 he's not. 53 00:02:51,879 --> 00:02:56,000 Speaker 1: So I and my thought yesterday after going through you know, 54 00:02:56,039 --> 00:02:57,840 the tweets and all of that stuff, and listening to 55 00:02:57,879 --> 00:03:01,159 his floor speech and then going you know, deep into 56 00:03:01,240 --> 00:03:04,479 the argument he was making about Medicaid and the trigger 57 00:03:04,479 --> 00:03:07,159 in the North Carolina law and all of this, you know, 58 00:03:07,199 --> 00:03:11,199 the payments and then the rebates from the hospitals. My prediction, 59 00:03:11,319 --> 00:03:13,400 and I don't make a lot of predictions because I'm 60 00:03:13,400 --> 00:03:15,120 really not good at it, and this will probably be 61 00:03:15,159 --> 00:03:18,840 another example of why I don't do them. I suspect 62 00:03:19,159 --> 00:03:23,360 he may go work for a hospital system. That's that's 63 00:03:23,840 --> 00:03:26,759 I think that after listening to his comments, I think 64 00:03:26,800 --> 00:03:29,159 that's that's where he may land. Maybe a lobbyist or 65 00:03:29,199 --> 00:03:34,319 a government liaison or something like that. It's I don't know, 66 00:03:34,360 --> 00:03:38,479 it's just the argument he was making in order to 67 00:03:38,520 --> 00:03:41,879 protect these you know, these payoffs basically to the hospital 68 00:03:41,919 --> 00:03:46,199 systems and offloading all the cost of the Medicaid expansion 69 00:03:46,199 --> 00:03:48,400 onto federal taxpayers so the state doesn't have to pay 70 00:03:48,400 --> 00:03:51,360 any money at all towards the new expansion class. It 71 00:03:51,439 --> 00:03:55,159 was just, yeah, it just struck me as hollow. 72 00:03:56,120 --> 00:03:59,080 Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean it was. You may be right, and 73 00:03:59,120 --> 00:04:02,159 that wouldn't surprise me, but I was a little surprised 74 00:04:02,159 --> 00:04:06,439 to see such passion from Tillis on this issue in particular. 75 00:04:06,560 --> 00:04:09,759 I mean, Tillis was Speaker of the House right with 76 00:04:09,879 --> 00:04:13,319 Carolina right after you know me, you know, the Affordable 77 00:04:13,360 --> 00:04:16,079 Care Act, and nobody was in favor of Medicaid expansion. 78 00:04:16,199 --> 00:04:19,560 So I'm a little confused as to, you know, when 79 00:04:19,959 --> 00:04:22,800 his position switched on it. You know, there is an 80 00:04:22,879 --> 00:04:25,759 argument to be made for doing a little bit more 81 00:04:25,800 --> 00:04:29,000 to help support rural hospitals, but I don't think that 82 00:04:29,160 --> 00:04:31,040 Medicaid has to be the way to do it, or 83 00:04:31,160 --> 00:04:32,399 is even the best way to do that. 84 00:04:32,639 --> 00:04:33,519 Speaker 2: Yeah, I agree. 85 00:04:34,000 --> 00:04:36,920 Speaker 1: Now, one of the names floated as a potential candidate 86 00:04:36,959 --> 00:04:39,560 even before he announced his dropping out, But now even 87 00:04:39,959 --> 00:04:43,399 more so Jeff Jackson, the Attorney General, and we've talked 88 00:04:43,399 --> 00:04:46,040 about him and whether or not it would make sense 89 00:04:46,079 --> 00:04:48,480 for him to look to run for another seat after 90 00:04:48,519 --> 00:04:51,560 he just got into the AG's office. But you've got 91 00:04:51,560 --> 00:04:53,800 to post up at Long Leave Politics about something he 92 00:04:53,839 --> 00:04:56,439 has launched called the Lighthouse Fund. 93 00:04:56,720 --> 00:04:58,759 Speaker 2: So what is that and what's its aim? 94 00:05:00,120 --> 00:05:00,319 Speaker 4: Yeah? 95 00:05:00,439 --> 00:05:03,399 Speaker 3: So, I mean, like its politics or not. Jeff Jackson 96 00:05:03,519 --> 00:05:07,399 is the smartest political communicator North Carolina has seen, at 97 00:05:07,439 --> 00:05:10,399 least in my lifetime for sure. And he put out 98 00:05:10,399 --> 00:05:13,439 an email the other day asking for folks to contribute 99 00:05:13,519 --> 00:05:16,600 to you know, like you said, the Lighthouse Fund, it's 100 00:05:16,639 --> 00:05:20,079 really just a fancy name for something pretty simple. He 101 00:05:20,120 --> 00:05:24,519 wants to target one million unaffiliated voters with a digital 102 00:05:24,600 --> 00:05:27,920 ad once a month between now and his next election, 103 00:05:28,959 --> 00:05:31,399 and he asks people to chip in for that. Now, 104 00:05:31,439 --> 00:05:37,680 it's not uncommon for political figures to target people, you know, 105 00:05:37,759 --> 00:05:40,839 off cycle, but there were two things that were unusual 106 00:05:40,839 --> 00:05:42,879 here and that's why I ended up writing about it. 107 00:05:43,240 --> 00:05:45,800 You know, First, he actually puts a price tag on it, 108 00:05:45,839 --> 00:05:48,199 you know, he says ninety five hundred dollars a month 109 00:05:48,279 --> 00:05:53,839 to reach a million unaffiliated voters, kind of unusual for 110 00:05:53,959 --> 00:05:56,759 people to actually put that specific price tag on there. 111 00:05:57,680 --> 00:06:00,519 And then he's also what I think is really smart, 112 00:06:00,519 --> 00:06:04,439 as he's asking people to donate for a really specific purpose, 113 00:06:04,920 --> 00:06:08,360 you know, might and I get dozens and dozens of 114 00:06:08,480 --> 00:06:12,519 fundraising emails every month and they're all, you know, pretty much, 115 00:06:12,680 --> 00:06:17,120 you know, donate now to help me stop the opposing party. 116 00:06:17,160 --> 00:06:19,800 It's more general. I think it's really smart to ask 117 00:06:19,839 --> 00:06:22,759 people to chip in for something really specific. I would 118 00:06:22,800 --> 00:06:25,519 have to guess that his conversion rate is pretty high 119 00:06:25,560 --> 00:06:25,879 on that. 120 00:06:26,839 --> 00:06:29,480 Speaker 1: Yeah, you say, every politician should be thinking about off 121 00:06:29,519 --> 00:06:32,759 cycle messaging like this, And I would just throw this out, 122 00:06:32,800 --> 00:06:35,000 you know, new Stock eleven ten ninety nine three WBT 123 00:06:35,040 --> 00:06:39,399 if you'd like to advertise the other thing you've got. 124 00:06:39,480 --> 00:06:42,639 This was at the Charlotte Observer that I took interest in. 125 00:06:42,839 --> 00:06:47,439 Is peace titled? In North Carolina? Democrats have an identity crisis, 126 00:06:47,519 --> 00:06:51,560 and I've been some may say I have been a 127 00:06:51,600 --> 00:06:56,720 little harsh on the Democrat party chair, Anderson Clayton, or yeah, 128 00:06:56,720 --> 00:06:59,000 Anderson Clayton, right, yeah, because I always think I'm saying 129 00:06:59,000 --> 00:07:04,839 her name backwards and over her, you know, rural outreach efforts, 130 00:07:04,879 --> 00:07:07,879 which as far as I can tell is like saying 131 00:07:08,000 --> 00:07:12,600 y'all a lot and uh and it's like cussing. I 132 00:07:12,600 --> 00:07:15,160 think those are the like, those are the main components. 133 00:07:15,319 --> 00:07:19,920 I kid, she's also doing the listening tour, but I'm 134 00:07:19,920 --> 00:07:22,240 not so sure that. And you you do a good 135 00:07:22,319 --> 00:07:25,759 job of highlighting this, like, can can the Democrats be 136 00:07:25,959 --> 00:07:29,639 two things at once? And I don't think they can. Right, 137 00:07:30,000 --> 00:07:32,879 They're trying to win back rural voters rural Democrats, but 138 00:07:32,920 --> 00:07:36,120 they also, you say, are tethered to a base that 139 00:07:36,240 --> 00:07:40,639 demands loud affirmation on social issues, and I don't I 140 00:07:40,680 --> 00:07:42,839 don't see a way to bridge that divide, do you? 141 00:07:44,600 --> 00:07:45,680 Speaker 4: I don't, you know. 142 00:07:46,000 --> 00:07:48,600 Speaker 3: And the reason why I wrote about this was, you know, 143 00:07:48,639 --> 00:07:52,399 I've been following the Rural Listening Tour and it seems 144 00:07:52,439 --> 00:07:55,600 like they've had decent attendance here and there. But I 145 00:07:55,720 --> 00:07:58,639 noticed on their calendar they've got the Rural Listening Tour 146 00:07:58,720 --> 00:08:01,759 going on and then the same week they hosted a 147 00:08:01,879 --> 00:08:05,839 drag brunch in Raleigh, And you know, to me, there's 148 00:08:05,879 --> 00:08:08,920 there's a whole lot of tension between those two goals. 149 00:08:08,920 --> 00:08:11,120 So my question was can they do both at the 150 00:08:11,160 --> 00:08:15,000 same time? You know, I spoke with Anderson Clayton. And 151 00:08:15,240 --> 00:08:17,639 you know, of course she says, yes, they can. They 152 00:08:17,639 --> 00:08:20,480 can walk and chew gum at the same time as 153 00:08:20,519 --> 00:08:23,959 she says. But I'm a little bit more skeptical of this. 154 00:08:24,199 --> 00:08:26,839 You know, there's a reason why Democrats have been hemorrhaging 155 00:08:27,160 --> 00:08:29,839 rural votes over the last ten years, and I think 156 00:08:29,879 --> 00:08:33,120 a lot of that has to do with social issues 157 00:08:33,159 --> 00:08:36,639 and mixed messaging. And you know, when a lot of 158 00:08:36,679 --> 00:08:40,399 these voters, who you know live in small town North Carolina, 159 00:08:40,679 --> 00:08:43,799 you know, when they keep seeing all these you know, 160 00:08:43,879 --> 00:08:47,480 social messages that don't align with their worldview. And I 161 00:08:47,600 --> 00:08:51,159 think hosting a drag brunch at eleven am on a 162 00:08:51,279 --> 00:08:53,759 Sunday when a lot of folks are supposed to be 163 00:08:53,799 --> 00:08:57,519 in church, I think that sends a clear message that 164 00:08:57,679 --> 00:08:58,879 they're not on the same side. 165 00:08:59,120 --> 00:09:02,759 Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, this is one of the things I've said 166 00:09:02,759 --> 00:09:05,799 before these listening tours. First off, most of the people 167 00:09:05,799 --> 00:09:07,919 that show up to those things are Democrats already. It's 168 00:09:07,960 --> 00:09:13,399 not like they're bringing in you know, conservatives or unaffiliateds 169 00:09:13,440 --> 00:09:14,879 that are that lean conservative. 170 00:09:15,120 --> 00:09:16,840 Speaker 2: It seems like they're just it's just. 171 00:09:16,840 --> 00:09:20,600 Speaker 1: Like a complaint athon where you know, Democrats go in 172 00:09:20,600 --> 00:09:22,360 there and talk about how bad things are with the 173 00:09:22,399 --> 00:09:25,039 Republicans in charge. And the other thing is that it's 174 00:09:25,080 --> 00:09:28,360 like they call it a listening tour, and it's it's 175 00:09:28,360 --> 00:09:31,279 one of these words that I wonder how people use 176 00:09:31,320 --> 00:09:34,279 it because the way I've always understood it, it was 177 00:09:34,320 --> 00:09:37,279 like you're hearing me, like it's a hearing tour, right, 178 00:09:38,000 --> 00:09:40,440 But then I started wondering, are they using it like 179 00:09:41,080 --> 00:09:45,120 a parent uses it with a child, like listen to me? 180 00:09:45,480 --> 00:09:48,360 Speaker 2: In other words, obey right. It's not like I'm here 181 00:09:48,440 --> 00:09:51,159 to listen to you to hear you. I'm here to. 182 00:09:51,559 --> 00:09:53,320 Speaker 1: Tell you this is what we're doing and this is 183 00:09:53,360 --> 00:09:55,399 how it's going to be. Because I can't imagine people 184 00:09:55,399 --> 00:09:57,320 are going to walk in there and say, yeah, you 185 00:09:57,360 --> 00:09:59,639 know what, I haven't voted Democrat in a really long time, 186 00:09:59,720 --> 00:10:02,399 but I would consider doing it if you abandoned all 187 00:10:02,399 --> 00:10:04,799 of the LGBTQ platform, Right. 188 00:10:04,679 --> 00:10:06,320 Speaker 2: They're not going to They're not going to listen to that. 189 00:10:06,360 --> 00:10:07,360 They're not going to do that. 190 00:10:10,080 --> 00:10:12,440 Speaker 3: Yeah, I think you're exactly right. I mean, I think 191 00:10:12,480 --> 00:10:15,080 the main reason why you do something like that it 192 00:10:15,120 --> 00:10:17,399 is a couple of things. One, you try to get 193 00:10:17,440 --> 00:10:20,559 a headline in the local newspaper with your picture on it. Yeah, 194 00:10:20,600 --> 00:10:22,879 and you know, shows hey, I was here, and then 195 00:10:22,919 --> 00:10:25,519 you take a bunch of pictures that then next time 196 00:10:25,679 --> 00:10:29,240 the election season rolls around, you can put your photo 197 00:10:29,320 --> 00:10:31,720 out there and say, hey, I'm just like you. 198 00:10:31,879 --> 00:10:32,799 Speaker 4: I was here. 199 00:10:33,519 --> 00:10:35,519 Speaker 2: Well, and I thought you summed it up very well. 200 00:10:35,559 --> 00:10:36,559 A great line. You said. 201 00:10:36,559 --> 00:10:40,120 Speaker 1: It's getting harder to live one political identity in downtown 202 00:10:40,200 --> 00:10:44,279 Durham and another in Duplin County. Social media collapses the 203 00:10:44,360 --> 00:10:48,639 distance and voters see everything. Yeah, that's the and I 204 00:10:48,639 --> 00:10:51,120 think that's the issue is, like you just mentioned, it 205 00:10:51,159 --> 00:10:53,639 may be good for photo op in the local paper 206 00:10:54,519 --> 00:10:56,799 or in a like hey remember when I visited you 207 00:10:56,919 --> 00:10:59,720 kind of a thing, But in the meantime, they're seeing 208 00:10:59,840 --> 00:11:03,679 all of these other tweets and Facebook posts and. 209 00:11:04,039 --> 00:11:06,000 Speaker 2: All of this other stuff for the for the rest 210 00:11:06,000 --> 00:11:06,559 of the year. 211 00:11:07,519 --> 00:11:08,960 Speaker 1: And I guess that, you know, to bring it back 212 00:11:08,960 --> 00:11:12,960 to Jeff Jackson, that's that's the brilliance of what it 213 00:11:13,039 --> 00:11:15,720 is that he's doing. He's got to keep hammering his 214 00:11:15,919 --> 00:11:17,960 brand to these independent voters. 215 00:11:19,639 --> 00:11:23,120 Speaker 3: Oh yeah, absolutely. And the other interesting part is that 216 00:11:23,399 --> 00:11:26,080 local races are getting more and more nationalized. 217 00:11:26,159 --> 00:11:26,320 Speaker 4: You know. 218 00:11:26,679 --> 00:11:31,399 Speaker 3: I see we've got the municipal elections coming up this fall, 219 00:11:31,559 --> 00:11:34,840 and I'm seeing more and more candidates for these local 220 00:11:34,879 --> 00:11:38,679 offices running on national issues, which makes what the Democrats 221 00:11:38,720 --> 00:11:41,000 are trying to do even harder. 222 00:11:41,320 --> 00:11:42,759 Speaker 2: Yeah, Andrew Dunn. 223 00:11:42,799 --> 00:11:45,519 Speaker 1: You can read his work at long leafpol dot com 224 00:11:45,559 --> 00:11:49,240 Longleaf Politics. Also, he is a contributing columnist over at 225 00:11:49,240 --> 00:11:51,559 The Charlotte Observer and The roleyg News and Observer. Andrew, 226 00:11:51,559 --> 00:11:54,559 always good to talk with you. I believe we are 227 00:11:55,759 --> 00:11:58,399 no show next week, so take next week. 228 00:11:58,200 --> 00:11:59,720 Speaker 2: Off, all right. 229 00:11:59,759 --> 00:12:01,000 Speaker 3: Well, I'll miss you now. 230 00:12:01,000 --> 00:12:04,039 Speaker 2: I'll miss you too, Andrew. I appreciate that Happy Independence. 231 00:12:03,600 --> 00:12:05,200 Speaker 3: Day to you as well. 232 00:12:05,240 --> 00:12:06,600 Speaker 2: Hi, buddy, take care all right. 233 00:12:06,600 --> 00:12:08,440 Speaker 1: If you're listening to this show, you know I try 234 00:12:08,440 --> 00:12:10,240 to keep up with all sorts of current events, and 235 00:12:10,279 --> 00:12:12,320 I know you do too. And you've probably heard me 236 00:12:12,360 --> 00:12:16,559 say get your news from multiple sources. Why Well, because 237 00:12:16,600 --> 00:12:19,279 it's how you detect media bias, which is why I've 238 00:12:19,320 --> 00:12:22,639 been so impressed with Ground News. It's an app and 239 00:12:22,840 --> 00:12:25,759 it's a website and it combines news from around the 240 00:12:25,759 --> 00:12:28,440 world in one place so you can compare coverage and 241 00:12:28,600 --> 00:12:31,639 verify information. You can check it out at check dot 242 00:12:31,919 --> 00:12:35,639 ground dot news slash pete. I put the link in 243 00:12:35,679 --> 00:12:38,799 the podcast description too. I started using ground News a 244 00:12:38,799 --> 00:12:41,519 few months ago and more recently chose to work with 245 00:12:41,600 --> 00:12:43,960 them as an affiliate because it lets me see clearly 246 00:12:44,320 --> 00:12:47,679 how stories get covered and by whom. The blind spot 247 00:12:47,720 --> 00:12:50,559 feature shows you which stories get ignored by the left 248 00:12:50,679 --> 00:12:51,320 and the right. 249 00:12:51,480 --> 00:12:52,320 Speaker 2: See for yourself. 250 00:12:52,639 --> 00:12:57,120 Speaker 1: Check dot Ground, dot news slash pete. Subscribe through that 251 00:12:57,200 --> 00:13:00,159 link and you'll get fifteen percent off any subscription. I 252 00:13:00,240 --> 00:13:03,559 use the Vantage plan to get unlimited access to every feature. 253 00:13:03,759 --> 00:13:06,519 Your subscription then not only helps my podcast, but it 254 00:13:06,559 --> 00:13:09,720 also supports ground News as they make the media landscape 255 00:13:09,759 --> 00:13:15,440 more transparent. Some breaking news, the Senate passed the Obah Baba, 256 00:13:15,960 --> 00:13:19,639 the One Big Beautiful Bill Act through reconciliation. It was 257 00:13:19,679 --> 00:13:25,720 a fifty one to fifty vote yes. JD Vance, the 258 00:13:25,799 --> 00:13:30,679 Vice President. Vance broke the tie. There were three Republican 259 00:13:30,919 --> 00:13:36,240 no votes Ran Paul Tom Tillis and Susan Collins. They 260 00:13:36,360 --> 00:13:40,120 voted no, and so Vance rather came in and broke 261 00:13:40,159 --> 00:13:44,639 the tie. And I believe now it's got to go 262 00:13:44,759 --> 00:13:53,440 get concurrence from the House. So we'll see how that goes. Alrighty, 263 00:13:53,480 --> 00:13:57,120 So back to Andrew Dunn's piece at the Charlotte Observer, 264 00:13:57,159 --> 00:13:58,480 because I want to use this as a bit of 265 00:13:58,480 --> 00:14:02,879 a springboard into another article from the New York Times. 266 00:14:02,919 --> 00:14:09,240 But this question of the Democrats identity crisis, it is 267 00:14:09,480 --> 00:14:14,960 acute here in North Carolina, but it is also throughout America, 268 00:14:15,399 --> 00:14:18,840 right where you've got the party that as I call 269 00:14:18,879 --> 00:14:24,320 it the Elysium Party sometimes because of the movie Elysium, 270 00:14:24,960 --> 00:14:28,480 which is e L Y si U M. And if 271 00:14:28,480 --> 00:14:30,600 you don't know the movie, it's Matt Damon is in it, 272 00:14:30,679 --> 00:14:34,759 I believe. And it has this like the Earth has 273 00:14:34,799 --> 00:14:39,759 become uninhabitable or almost uninhabitable, just really dry because you know, 274 00:14:39,799 --> 00:14:42,279 climate change and all that, but they still need all 275 00:14:42,320 --> 00:14:44,080 of the minerals and stuff. 276 00:14:43,840 --> 00:14:45,679 Speaker 2: Mined off of the earth. 277 00:14:46,360 --> 00:14:49,639 Speaker 1: And all the rich people are up on like a 278 00:14:51,519 --> 00:14:57,159 climate controlled like massive spaceship that just kind of circles around, 279 00:14:57,200 --> 00:14:57,440 you know. 280 00:14:58,080 --> 00:15:00,559 Speaker 2: And and so it's. 281 00:15:00,440 --> 00:15:05,759 Speaker 1: This this you know, abject poverty and unimaginable wealth, right, 282 00:15:06,080 --> 00:15:10,039 and that's what the Democrat Party is becoming. And the 283 00:15:10,080 --> 00:15:12,720 people who have all of the wealth that are you know, 284 00:15:13,080 --> 00:15:18,440 hovering above the lowlies on the planet. You know, they 285 00:15:18,480 --> 00:15:21,759 set the policies, they make the rules, they they they 286 00:15:21,799 --> 00:15:26,320 offer the direction and stuff, and the others are just 287 00:15:26,360 --> 00:15:28,720 sort of you know, kept alive in order to keep 288 00:15:28,799 --> 00:15:31,600 you know, cleaning their houses and picking their crops. I mean, 289 00:15:31,639 --> 00:15:35,200 I'm sorry, I mean mining, the mining, the minerals and such. 290 00:15:35,840 --> 00:15:39,639 So that's very much the structure as I see it 291 00:15:39,679 --> 00:15:42,279 that the Democrat Party has right now, and all of 292 00:15:42,320 --> 00:15:46,720 the polling is confirming this that basically the Obama voters 293 00:15:46,759 --> 00:15:50,240 migrated over to Donald Trump, and now the Republican Party 294 00:15:50,240 --> 00:15:52,840 has become the party of the working class. They have 295 00:15:52,879 --> 00:15:55,000 a lot more middle class, working class people that are 296 00:15:55,000 --> 00:15:58,759 in their their ranks now. And so this attempt that 297 00:15:58,840 --> 00:16:01,840 the North Carolina Democrat Party is making to win back 298 00:16:01,960 --> 00:16:10,000 rural voters, to me is sort of laughable because it's 299 00:16:10,120 --> 00:16:15,759 not for a poor slogan that you're losing these voters, 300 00:16:17,399 --> 00:16:21,600 right it's the policies. It's what you actually stand for. 301 00:16:22,080 --> 00:16:24,120 And this is one of the things that Democrats tell 302 00:16:24,159 --> 00:16:27,799 themselves is that people love our policies. It's just our 303 00:16:27,919 --> 00:16:33,399 messaging that isn't breaking through. For some reason, despite controlling 304 00:16:33,480 --> 00:16:37,080 the media and movies and music and all of these 305 00:16:37,080 --> 00:16:45,159 institutions right from schools through the cultural institutions of entertainment 306 00:16:45,639 --> 00:16:49,279 and sports, and like all of these things, despite all 307 00:16:49,320 --> 00:16:52,759 of this control, for some reason, our message just isn't 308 00:16:52,799 --> 00:16:56,600 getting through. And that's not it, guys. Your message is 309 00:16:56,720 --> 00:16:59,919 getting through. We hear it. We're just not listening to you. 310 00:17:01,000 --> 00:17:05,279 As I said with Andrew, Like, there's a difference in 311 00:17:05,359 --> 00:17:08,079 the way these words are used, I think, and too 312 00:17:08,160 --> 00:17:10,960 often when people say, you know, we're listening or they 313 00:17:10,960 --> 00:17:13,680 need to listen to us, what they're saying is obey. 314 00:17:14,160 --> 00:17:17,599 They're not saying here because I have heard your messages. 315 00:17:18,279 --> 00:17:21,079 I have heard what you stand for. I have heard 316 00:17:21,240 --> 00:17:26,680 what you cheer for. So your booze mean nothing. Right, 317 00:17:27,200 --> 00:17:31,119 people have heard what you stand for. They can't avoid it. 318 00:17:31,359 --> 00:17:33,319 You've been pushing it. 319 00:17:33,880 --> 00:17:35,359 Speaker 2: For quite some time. 320 00:17:35,799 --> 00:17:38,559 Speaker 1: We all hear what you're saying, and we reject it. 321 00:17:38,920 --> 00:17:46,880 We just don't agree. So this rural listening toward Anderson Clayton, 322 00:17:46,920 --> 00:17:50,519 the like the I think she's like thirteen years old now, 323 00:17:50,559 --> 00:17:52,880 I think anyway, she's like the youngest Democrat party chair 324 00:17:52,880 --> 00:17:55,839 in a state. And she says, we haven't just lost 325 00:17:55,880 --> 00:18:01,200 rural voters, We've lost rural Democrats. Yeah, did you see 326 00:18:01,200 --> 00:18:04,119 what happened to Robinson County the other day? Like three 327 00:18:04,160 --> 00:18:08,160 of the Democrat County commissioners all flipped party affiliation, and 328 00:18:08,279 --> 00:18:12,519 Robinson County is still a majority Democrat county. They just 329 00:18:12,640 --> 00:18:17,599 don't vote that way. That's not a messaging problem, that's 330 00:18:17,640 --> 00:18:20,960 a you problem. Here's a great idea. How about making 331 00:18:21,000 --> 00:18:24,039 an escape to a really special and secluded getaway in 332 00:18:24,079 --> 00:18:26,759 western North Carolina. Just a quick drive up the mountain 333 00:18:26,839 --> 00:18:30,200 and Cabins of Asheville is your connection. Whether you're celebrating 334 00:18:30,240 --> 00:18:32,720 an anniversary, a honeymoon, maybe you want to plan a 335 00:18:32,720 --> 00:18:35,480 memorable proposal, or get family and friends together for a 336 00:18:35,480 --> 00:18:38,960 big old reunion, Cabins of Asheville has the ideal spot 337 00:18:39,000 --> 00:18:41,519 for you where you can reconnect with your loved ones 338 00:18:41,599 --> 00:18:44,559 and the things that truly matter. 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Cabins of Ashville has the 348 00:19:17,680 --> 00:19:20,960 ideal spot for you for any occasion, and they have 349 00:19:21,039 --> 00:19:24,559 pet friendly accommodations. Call or text eight two eight three 350 00:19:24,720 --> 00:19:27,799 six seven seventy sixty eight or check out all there 351 00:19:27,839 --> 00:19:30,480 is to offer at Cabins of Aashville dot com and 352 00:19:30,519 --> 00:19:34,680 make memories that'll last a lifetime. Ray, Welcome to the program. 353 00:19:34,720 --> 00:19:39,519 Speaker 4: Hello Ray, Hello again, Pat. What I was wanting to 354 00:19:39,599 --> 00:19:44,359 ask you is I've heard it before, said probably numerous times, 355 00:19:45,680 --> 00:19:49,640 this thing of they say is the reason they're not 356 00:19:50,000 --> 00:19:55,319 doing well is because it's their messaging and not their policies. 357 00:19:56,240 --> 00:19:58,759 Do you think do you think they really can be 358 00:19:58,920 --> 00:20:02,079 that ignorant of things or do they really believe that 359 00:20:02,200 --> 00:20:04,079 themselves both? 360 00:20:04,160 --> 00:20:07,440 Speaker 1: I think there are people that believe both of those. 361 00:20:07,480 --> 00:20:10,559 That either know that it's not the messaging, and they're 362 00:20:10,640 --> 00:20:13,559 basically like if they know that it's the policies that 363 00:20:13,599 --> 00:20:17,000 are unpopular, and then they say, well, it's not the 364 00:20:17,000 --> 00:20:22,160 policies are unpopular, it's the messaging and we're not breaking through. Well, 365 00:20:22,279 --> 00:20:25,599 they're obviously lying if they know that not to be 366 00:20:25,640 --> 00:20:27,440 the case, right, And so I think there are some 367 00:20:27,559 --> 00:20:30,279 people that are in fact lying, and I think what 368 00:20:30,400 --> 00:20:34,759 they're trying to say there is also you know, if 369 00:20:34,880 --> 00:20:38,960 only people would believe our lies, right, like, if we 370 00:20:39,200 --> 00:20:42,119 just figured out a better way to lie about what 371 00:20:42,160 --> 00:20:46,200 it is we're trying to do, then people would would 372 00:20:46,240 --> 00:20:48,440 go along with it. But there are a lot of 373 00:20:48,440 --> 00:20:51,000 people in the Democrat camp I think that that do 374 00:20:51,160 --> 00:20:54,200 honestly believe that it's just messaging because it has the 375 00:20:54,279 --> 00:21:00,960 benefit of offloading any responsibility from themselves, right they there's 376 00:21:01,039 --> 00:21:04,160 a motivated reasoning going on there, I think, where I 377 00:21:04,200 --> 00:21:06,559 don't want to be blamed for this failure, So I'm 378 00:21:06,559 --> 00:21:10,240 going to blame basically the voters for not getting what 379 00:21:10,319 --> 00:21:13,079 we're selling, but I'm going to wrap it up in 380 00:21:13,119 --> 00:21:16,559 this sort of package of Oh, it's totally my fault. 381 00:21:16,599 --> 00:21:19,319 I just you know, I didn't communicate it clearly enough. 382 00:21:19,319 --> 00:21:22,880 It's the equivalent of you know, I care too much. 383 00:21:22,960 --> 00:21:25,359 That's my biggest weakness is that I care too much. 384 00:21:25,920 --> 00:21:29,319 Speaker 4: It's just one of those things I think that for 385 00:21:29,359 --> 00:21:32,599 them to really believe that they're trying to fool themselves 386 00:21:32,640 --> 00:21:35,759 and you know, they have to. I think if they 387 00:21:35,759 --> 00:21:39,599 want to really figure out what's wrong and correct their course, 388 00:21:40,240 --> 00:21:42,319 they need to wake up and smell the coffee. 389 00:21:42,480 --> 00:21:45,759 Speaker 2: Well, this is this is zero hour for them. 390 00:21:46,160 --> 00:21:49,400 Speaker 1: They and I don't have any confidence that they're actually 391 00:21:49,440 --> 00:21:52,799 going to be able to course correct. This election of 392 00:21:52,839 --> 00:21:55,839 this guy in the Democrat primary in the New York 393 00:21:55,880 --> 00:22:00,279 City mayor's race. Right to me, this is this is 394 00:22:00,279 --> 00:22:02,960 their inflection point, and the path that they choose right 395 00:22:03,000 --> 00:22:06,480 now is going to set the course for the National Party. 396 00:22:06,480 --> 00:22:08,000 Speaker 2: I think, and I was. 397 00:22:07,960 --> 00:22:12,960 Speaker 4: I was thinking about that mayor candidate in New York City. 398 00:22:14,880 --> 00:22:16,960 I might be wrong, but I'm thinking he's gonna get 399 00:22:16,960 --> 00:22:18,640 smoked pretty bad in the general. 400 00:22:19,240 --> 00:22:20,240 Speaker 2: I'm not so sure. 401 00:22:20,559 --> 00:22:23,559 Speaker 1: I'm not so sure, especially if you've got Andrew Cuomo 402 00:22:23,720 --> 00:22:26,839 still in there, and you've got the Republican guy, Curtis 403 00:22:26,880 --> 00:22:29,599 Sliwa if he's still running, and you got Eric Adams 404 00:22:29,640 --> 00:22:33,920 as an independent. You got four candidates and the anti 405 00:22:34,640 --> 00:22:40,119 Mam Danny vote would be split, you know, three ways. 406 00:22:40,480 --> 00:22:43,119 Speaker 4: Okay, you know you might have a bird point there. 407 00:22:43,319 --> 00:22:45,880 Speaker 2: Well, thanks a lot, yes, sir, all right, good to 408 00:22:45,920 --> 00:22:46,240 talk with you. 409 00:22:46,319 --> 00:22:46,440 Speaker 3: Ray. 410 00:22:46,480 --> 00:22:49,640 Speaker 1: I appreciate the call, sir, and I am going to 411 00:22:49,720 --> 00:22:52,880 get to Mam Danny. Yeah, I'm gonna get Yeah, we're 412 00:22:52,880 --> 00:22:57,839 gonna go. We're gonna go on an anti commie ride today. 413 00:22:58,680 --> 00:23:00,680 So I want to I want to get back to 414 00:23:00,759 --> 00:23:03,799 this New York Times piece though. So this is by 415 00:23:03,839 --> 00:23:08,519 Shane Goldmacher New York Times from yesterday, and it starts 416 00:23:08,519 --> 00:23:11,880 off thusly, as he looks back at the defeat of 417 00:23:11,960 --> 00:23:15,400 former Vice President Kamala Harris last fall. The thing that 418 00:23:15,599 --> 00:23:21,400 keeps bothering Andre Cherney, a one time Democratic speech writer 419 00:23:21,519 --> 00:23:24,240 and state party leader, is that he did not know 420 00:23:24,319 --> 00:23:27,480 what miss Harris would have done as president if she 421 00:23:27,599 --> 00:23:31,279 had won. The way he saw it, President Trump ran 422 00:23:31,319 --> 00:23:35,599 on his own ideas, but miss Harris only ran against 423 00:23:35,720 --> 00:23:40,359 mister Trump's. And he says, the oldest truism in politics 424 00:23:40,440 --> 00:23:46,559 is you can't beat something with nothing. And so now 425 00:23:46,880 --> 00:23:50,720 mister Cherney, the co founder of a nearly two decade 426 00:23:50,759 --> 00:23:55,400 old liberal policy journal, is organizing a group of Democrat thinkers. 427 00:23:57,039 --> 00:23:59,359 I just gave you a moment there to finish laughing 428 00:23:59,400 --> 00:24:02,680 before I can take a group of Democrat thinkers to 429 00:24:02,839 --> 00:24:06,920 recreate what mister Trump's allies did when he was voted 430 00:24:06,920 --> 00:24:09,880 out of office. Which is to draft a ready made 431 00:24:09,880 --> 00:24:15,880 agenda for the next Democrat presidential nominee. And what are 432 00:24:16,359 --> 00:24:26,759 they calling it? Project twenty twenty nine. 433 00:24:28,240 --> 00:24:29,480 Speaker 2: I'm not kidding. 434 00:24:30,720 --> 00:24:36,079 Speaker 1: Like he literally says that Trump ran on his own 435 00:24:36,279 --> 00:24:40,680 ideas and Harris just ran against Trump's, and so their 436 00:24:40,759 --> 00:24:46,000 response is to rip off the Heritage Foundation's Project twenty 437 00:24:46,079 --> 00:24:51,319 twenty five, even down to the name. Guys, that's not 438 00:24:51,480 --> 00:24:57,680 your idea, Holy smokes, Project twenty twenty nine. They plan 439 00:24:57,839 --> 00:25:00,680 to roll out an agenda over the next two years 440 00:25:00,720 --> 00:25:03,680 in quarterly installments. Oh, I got that going first, then 441 00:25:03,720 --> 00:25:07,960 I guess through mister Journey's publication, which is called Democracy 442 00:25:08,200 --> 00:25:11,240 a Journal of Ideas, The goal is to turn it 443 00:25:11,279 --> 00:25:14,240 into a book, just like Project twenty twenty five, and 444 00:25:14,319 --> 00:25:18,839 to rally leading Democrat presidential candidates behind those ideas during 445 00:25:18,880 --> 00:25:23,440 the twenty twenty eight primary season. This also highlights the 446 00:25:23,640 --> 00:25:30,079 raging debate consuming Democrat lawmakers, strategists, and policymakers. Here it 447 00:25:30,160 --> 00:25:33,480 is whether the root of the party's problem is its 448 00:25:33,559 --> 00:25:43,119 ideas or its difficulty in persuading people to embrace them. Oh, no, 449 00:25:43,200 --> 00:25:46,200 it's definitely yes, it's definitely the people not being persuaded. 450 00:25:46,640 --> 00:25:48,319 It has nothing to do with the quality of the 451 00:25:48,359 --> 00:25:51,279 ideas you see. Guys, do you think maybe if your 452 00:25:51,319 --> 00:25:56,400 ideas were better, more people may be persuaded. It's easier 453 00:25:56,640 --> 00:26:00,960 to persuade people if they're idea as you're trying to 454 00:26:01,119 --> 00:26:04,960 convince them of don't suck. Okay, how about that? Why 455 00:26:04,960 --> 00:26:06,960 don't you start there? But they won't. 456 00:26:08,160 --> 00:26:08,640 Speaker 2: They won't. 457 00:26:09,319 --> 00:26:09,480 Speaker 3: You know. 458 00:26:09,559 --> 00:26:12,079 Speaker 1: Stories are powerful. They help us make sense of things, 459 00:26:12,119 --> 00:26:15,559 to understand experiences. Stories connect us to the people of 460 00:26:15,599 --> 00:26:18,920 our past while transcending generations. They help us process the 461 00:26:18,960 --> 00:26:22,400 meaning of life, and our stories are told through images 462 00:26:22,440 --> 00:26:26,240 and videos. Preserve your stories with Creative Video started in 463 00:26:26,319 --> 00:26:29,160 nineteen ninety seven and Minhill, North Carolina. It was the 464 00:26:29,200 --> 00:26:33,160 first company to provide this valuable service, converting images, photos 465 00:26:33,160 --> 00:26:37,400 and videos into high quality produced slide shows, videos and albums. 466 00:26:37,599 --> 00:26:40,960 The trusted, talented and dedicated team at Creative Video will 467 00:26:40,960 --> 00:26:43,039 go over all of the details with you to create 468 00:26:43,079 --> 00:26:46,920 a perfect project. Satisfaction guaranteed. Drop them off in person 469 00:26:47,000 --> 00:26:48,759 or mail them. They'll be ready in a week or two. 470 00:26:48,960 --> 00:26:54,160 Memorial videos for your loved ones, videos for rehearsal, dinners, weddings, graduations, Christmas, 471 00:26:54,319 --> 00:26:58,480 family vacations, birthdays or just your family stories, all told 472 00:26:58,519 --> 00:27:02,359 through images. That's what photos and videos are. They are 473 00:27:02,480 --> 00:27:05,200 your life told through the eyes of everyone around you 474 00:27:05,440 --> 00:27:07,599 and all who came before you, and they will tell 475 00:27:07,599 --> 00:27:12,079 others to come who you are. Visit creative video dot com. 476 00:27:12,240 --> 00:27:14,400 So the New York Times with this story about the 477 00:27:14,440 --> 00:27:19,279 Democrats brilliant, brand new, completely novel idea to create project 478 00:27:19,279 --> 00:27:25,039 twenty twenty nine. The New York Times article Democrats lay 479 00:27:25,079 --> 00:27:29,240 groundwork for a project twenty twenty nine. But there is 480 00:27:29,279 --> 00:27:33,799 a raging debate inside the Democrat party about whether the 481 00:27:33,880 --> 00:27:38,319 root of the problem is their ideas or their difficulty 482 00:27:38,359 --> 00:27:42,079 in persuading people to embrace their terrible ideas. Ah, that's 483 00:27:42,079 --> 00:27:48,039 so difficult to figure this out. The surprise success of 484 00:27:48,119 --> 00:27:53,680 Assemblyman Zoran Mamdani, a Democrats socialist, in the New York 485 00:27:53,720 --> 00:27:55,759 mayoral primary, has only added. 486 00:27:55,400 --> 00:27:56,519 Speaker 2: Fuel to the debate. 487 00:27:57,039 --> 00:28:00,000 Speaker 1: Did he succeed because of the audacity of his ideas 488 00:28:00,160 --> 00:28:04,480 is like freezing the rent, free buses and free childcare? 489 00:28:05,880 --> 00:28:09,920 Or because of the clarity and simplicity of those phrases? 490 00:28:10,599 --> 00:28:13,559 I can okay, Democrats, here's some free advice for you. 491 00:28:15,119 --> 00:28:18,640 Everybody loves stuff for free. Yeah, you promise a bunch 492 00:28:18,640 --> 00:28:21,680 of Democrats living in a city free crap, they're gonna 493 00:28:21,759 --> 00:28:24,799 vote for you. This is not a matter of oh, 494 00:28:24,880 --> 00:28:27,960 he figured out a way to save free buses. No, 495 00:28:28,519 --> 00:28:33,640 because spoiler alert, ain't no such thing as free. None 496 00:28:33,640 --> 00:28:35,640 of it's free. It's all got to be paid for. 497 00:28:36,759 --> 00:28:40,759 Many strategists see the party's issues as more style than substance, 498 00:28:40,839 --> 00:28:45,000 because of course they would, because if it's substance, then 499 00:28:45,160 --> 00:28:49,720 that means they have to change their ideas, and they 500 00:28:49,759 --> 00:28:53,880 don't want to do that. They're better than us. They 501 00:28:53,920 --> 00:28:58,759 care more about people. That's why they can't break free 502 00:28:59,400 --> 00:29:03,960 of this substance that they are trying to promote. So 503 00:29:04,079 --> 00:29:08,160 they comfort themselves with this idea that it's just style. 504 00:29:08,799 --> 00:29:09,759 Speaker 2: That's the problem. 505 00:29:09,960 --> 00:29:12,759 Speaker 1: They argue, Democrats need to do a better job at 506 00:29:12,960 --> 00:29:16,960 packaging and delivering their plans to voters, rather than crafting 507 00:29:17,039 --> 00:29:22,039 new proposals entirely. But others believe the party has been 508 00:29:22,039 --> 00:29:28,240 losing ground nationally because its ideas are stale, uninspiring, and 509 00:29:28,480 --> 00:29:33,519 unresponsive to the demands of today's voters. One of the 510 00:29:33,519 --> 00:29:38,680 people in charge some of the newest blood possible, the 511 00:29:38,720 --> 00:29:44,039 freshest of fresh faces near a Tandon. Yes, that's who 512 00:29:44,039 --> 00:29:47,880 we need to breathe some life into this Democrat carcass 513 00:29:48,759 --> 00:29:51,039 near A Tandon, who served in the White House in 514 00:29:51,079 --> 00:29:54,559 the Clinton, Obama and Biden administrations and now leads the 515 00:29:54,680 --> 00:29:58,680 Center for American Progress. She's part of a sizeable advisory 516 00:29:58,720 --> 00:30:02,640 board for Project twenty twenty nine that includes other fresh 517 00:30:02,680 --> 00:30:08,799 faces like Jake Sullivan, the National Security Advisor under Biden. 518 00:30:09,960 --> 00:30:12,640 There are a bunch of others and Marie Slaughter, former 519 00:30:12,680 --> 00:30:15,039 president of the New America Foundation, a bunch of other 520 00:30:15,079 --> 00:30:19,160 people whose names are well known in the stale Democrat establishment. 521 00:30:19,400 --> 00:30:23,039 These are the freshest of the fresh faces. Some would 522 00:30:23,039 --> 00:30:25,920 be allies. The Times goes on to say later, some 523 00:30:25,960 --> 00:30:30,759 would be allies are skeptical that such an ideologically diverse 524 00:30:31,039 --> 00:30:34,880 and divergent set of policy. 525 00:30:34,480 --> 00:30:41,160 Speaker 2: Minds could Yes, they are all so so diverse. 526 00:30:42,000 --> 00:30:47,000 Speaker 1: Yes, all of these Democrat thinkers are ideologically diverse and divergent. 527 00:30:48,000 --> 00:30:51,200 And so there's skepticism that all of these diverse minds 528 00:30:51,720 --> 00:30:55,559 could craft anything close to a coherent agenda. Well, that 529 00:30:55,680 --> 00:30:58,400 is true, that part is true. I don't think they're 530 00:30:58,400 --> 00:31:01,799 going to be able to craft a coher and agenda 531 00:31:01,920 --> 00:31:07,799 because leftism is incoherent. Again, I've made this point many 532 00:31:07,799 --> 00:31:11,160 many times over the years, which is, I don't envy 533 00:31:11,200 --> 00:31:13,519 them having to defend some of these ideas because they 534 00:31:13,559 --> 00:31:19,160 are like literally indefensible, they're logically incoherent. So that's the 535 00:31:19,200 --> 00:31:24,279 first challenge, I guess, Adam Gentilesen, this was Harry Reid's guy. 536 00:31:25,799 --> 00:31:30,400 He said, developing policies by checking every coalitional box is 537 00:31:30,440 --> 00:31:33,039 how we got in this mess in the first place. 538 00:31:33,200 --> 00:31:34,759 Speaker 2: Oh, that's true. 539 00:31:34,839 --> 00:31:37,839 Speaker 1: He has spent recent months preparing to open a new 540 00:31:37,920 --> 00:31:41,599 thing tank called Searchlight. There is no way to propose 541 00:31:41,640 --> 00:31:44,599 the kind of policies the Democrat Party needs to adopt 542 00:31:44,640 --> 00:31:51,319 without hacking off some part of the interest group. Borg well, 543 00:31:51,359 --> 00:31:53,680 so he has a bit of an incentive here too 544 00:31:53,759 --> 00:31:55,880 to crap on this idea because he has his own 545 00:31:56,279 --> 00:31:59,920 thing that he's trying to do. That would, I guess, yeah, 546 00:32:00,079 --> 00:32:04,559 be seen as a competitor. And then the populist wing 547 00:32:04,559 --> 00:32:07,480 at its simplest seeks to redistribute power and wealth to 548 00:32:07,519 --> 00:32:10,279 the working class and away from economic and corporate elites, 549 00:32:10,440 --> 00:32:12,920 and to mobilize voters through that fight. 550 00:32:13,880 --> 00:32:14,880 Speaker 2: Meanwhile, you've got the. 551 00:32:16,720 --> 00:32:20,160 Speaker 1: Establishment the party's long term success, The argument goes, will 552 00:32:20,160 --> 00:32:22,400 be determined by showing that liberalism works. So if you're 553 00:32:22,440 --> 00:32:24,720 the party of government, you have to make make it 554 00:32:24,799 --> 00:32:27,000 plain that government can work and that's not really what 555 00:32:27,039 --> 00:32:31,599 populists do. All right, that'll do it for this episode. 556 00:32:31,640 --> 00:32:33,720 Thank you so much for listening. I could not do 557 00:32:33,759 --> 00:32:35,880 the show without your support and the support of the 558 00:32:35,920 --> 00:32:38,960 businesses that advertise on the podcast, so if you'd like, 559 00:32:39,119 --> 00:32:41,200 please support them too and tell them you heard it here. 560 00:32:41,359 --> 00:32:43,880 You can also become a patron at my Patreon page 561 00:32:44,000 --> 00:32:47,559 or go to thepetecleanershow dot com. Again, thank you so 562 00:32:47,640 --> 00:32:55,000 much for listening, and don't break anything while I'm gone.