No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen - Biden on the brink of biggest win of his presidency

Episode Date: October 31, 2021

We finally have a finished Build Back Better Act; we discuss what's in and what's out, as well as a trap that Republicans are hoping Democrats fall into with this bill. Brian interviews White House Communications Director Kate Bedingfield about the bill, how the White House intends to pass the rest of its priorities that were left out, and about whether they’re doing enough in the face of Republicans dismantling the foundations of our democracy. The mayor of Richmond, Virginia, Levar Stoney, joins to discuss the state of the race between McAuliffe and Youngkin, how the early vote is looking, and what’s at stake if Youngkin were to win.Donate to the "Don't Be A Mitch" fund: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/dontbeamitchShop merch: https://briantylercohen.com/shopYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/briantylercohenTwitter: https://twitter.com/briantylercohenFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/briantylercohenInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/briantylercohenPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/briantylercohenNewsletter: https://www.briantylercohen.com/sign-upWritten by Brian Tyler CohenProduced by Sam GraberRecorded in Los Angeles, CASee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today we're going to talk about the finished build-back better act, what's in and what's out, and a trap that Republicans are hoping Democrats fall into with this bill. I interview White House Communications Director Kate Bettingfield about the bill, how the White House intends to pass the rest of his priorities that were left out, and whether they're doing enough in the face of Republicans dismantling the foundations of our democracy. I also talked to the mayor of Richmond, Virginia, LeVar Stoney, about the state of the race between McColliffe and Yonkin, how the early vote is looking, and what's at stake if Yonkin were to win. I'm Brian Tyler Cohen, and you're listening to No Loud.

So it looks like we officially have a Build Back Better Act. Congress finished up negotiations with help from the White House this past week, and Representative Jaya Paul announced that there's now legislative text, I believe, 1,400 pages. But top line, here's what's in and here's what's out. The bill includes $550 billion for climate change, mostly composed of clean energy tax credits. It expands Medicare, with coverage now including hearing benefits,

universal pre-K for three- and four-year-olds, child tax credit, providing a monthly cash allowance of $300 per child under six and $250 per child between six and 17 years old. An expanded earned income tax credit benefiting 17 million low wage workers. Child care costs would be capped at 7% of income, expanding access to about 20 million kids and freeing up their parents to participate in the jobs market and stimulate the economy. Elder care by expanding home-based services through Medicare coverage, college grants for low-income college students, better ACA subsidies and premium ACA tax credits, money for affordable

housing, for community violence intervention, maternal health, pandemic preparedness, and combating supply chain disruptions. What's out is paid family leave, free community college, adding dental and vision coverage benefits to Medicare, and of course, lower prescription drug prices. Obviously, things could change between now and when the final text of the bill comes up for a vote, but this is where it stands as of today. Now, it seems that we were able to keep the majority of these programs by shortening, the duration from the original 10 years to bring the prices down.

So, for example, universal pre-K will be funded for six years and the child tax credit extended for one year. And in a way, it's not necessarily a bad thing that we've shortened the window of time that these programs are going to run because now, in a few years, when these programs are set to either sunset or renew, Democrats can hopefully run in a message of continuing the massively popular child tax credit. They can hopefully run in a message of continuing universal pre-K, hopefully run in a message of continuing rebates for electric vehicles.

And not only is that good politics for Democrats, it also takes some of the oxygen away from the bullshit culture war issues that Republicans need these elections to be about. Like, just look at the 2018 midterm cycle. Yes, it was referendum on Trump, but the top issue was health care. It happened right as the Republicans

were finally looking to dismantle the ACA. And because that entire midterm was focused on policy and Republicans couldn't make it about their bullshit culture war issues. They couldn't make it about, uh, Starbucks coffee cups not being Jesusy enough because we got to dictate the terms of the conversation

we not only won we won the biggest margin in the House in modern U.S. history so yes we're risking some of these important programs by failing to make them permanent but we're also helping our future selves by giving ourselves something good to run on since Democrats

clearly have trouble going on the offense okay so now in terms of the response to this bill it's been mixed because on one hand watching this negotiation process play out and hearing the media report second by second on what's being left on the cutting room floor really just showed us how much we could have had

and ultimately didn't. Like, Mansion and Cinema really took a knife to this thing. They're the reason that we don't have paid family leave and community college and dental and vision coverage and lower prescription drug prices. All provisions that are wildly popular, by the way. Dan Pfeiffer from Potsave America called cinema a contrarian without a cause.

That's at play right here. There is no reason, not politically, not economically, that we would eliminate those things from this bill other than just two people wanted to show that they could for a constituency of God knows who because it's not their voters who wanted that. Their voters in Arizona and West Virginia overwhelmingly support these provisions.

And so, you know, at best, witnessing what we lost shows that we can't deliver on all of our promises. And at worst, it gives Republicans an opening to co-op these ideas and pass them themselves or at least run some fake populist campaign pretending that they'll pass them. But either way, it's hard to feel

like we didn't lose just as much as we gained. But the flip side is that if we're able to pry ourselves away from our own cynicism, which is, you know, trust me, not an easy feat these days, the flip side is what we did get. The biggest investment to fight climate change in history, an expansion of Medicare, universal pre-K, another year of strengthening of the child tax credit and the earned income tax credit, child care, elder care, affordable housing, college grants, this will impact so many lives. And barring Kirsten Cinema waking up this week and deciding that she just wants to watch the place burn, we'll be able to pass it in a caucus

that includes Bernie Sanders and Joe Manchin, AOC and Josh Gottheimer. That is big. So again, we could have and should have had more, but we save that fight for the next one, and we focus on getting this past because this is what we've got in front of us and people need what's in it.

And with that said, too, we have a political incentive here to promote this good bill that we've got rather than to stay pissed off about what could have been, because Republicans would love nothing more than for all of those people who went out in record numbers to elect Democrats to turn around and say, you know, this bill's a failure because we didn't get everything. Both parties are

exactly the same. Neither one cares about me. What's the point of voting next time? Because look, again, will the Bill Back Better Act include everything that Democrats fought for? Unfortunately, no. But let's not equate 96% support among Democrats with zero percent support among Republicans. No Republicans support this. None. So the answer isn't to abandon Democrats because we didn't have a hundred percent sign on, it is to expand our majority to keep making progress. Let's not do the Republican Party's work for them. They would love nothing more than to sit back

and watch Democrats attack each other and give up. But we wouldn't have any of this if we did give up and allow the Republicans to take control. We wouldn't have any money for climate, any Medicare benefits, any tax credits, any care economy stuff. There is no equivalency between the two parties. And while we could definitely do better, this is far, far from what we'd have

if we relinquished control to Republicans. So I get that our expectations are high, and they should be. But let's take a minute to celebrate our success a little bit. Let's not fall into the constant trap where even when we do pass transformative legislation on the left, like the ACA, we allow Republicans propaganda machine to fill the messaging vacuum because we didn't get something that was perfect. We've still got time. We can still get our other priorities. But not if we don't remember to show people the positive, tangible effects of why they came out,

Why they cast those ballots, why they put Democrats into the majority. If we want the opportunity to get lower prescription drug prices and free community college and paid family leave and a federal $15 minimum wage and legalize marijuana and codifying road to protect women's reproductive rights, then we have to stay in power first. So we have to try to see the forest through the trees, take the W, and be strategic. It is frustrating, but I promise you that it'll pay off and will be happy that we did. next step is my interview with white house communications director cape beddingfield okay today we have the white house communications director kate beddingfield thanks so much for coming on thanks for having me

so uh slow week for you guys huh yeah nothing going on yeah so obviously we have uh the framework that's come out for the built back better act can you walk us through what's in and what's out of this bill. Yeah, absolutely. A lot of incredibly important transformative stuff is in. So this is a bill, which, as you know, is going to level the playing field for working families. It's going to hold corporations and the super wealthy accountable to pay their fair share. They're going to have to pay the taxes that they owe, and then that investment is going to be made in working people. And some of the really, really important investments they're going to be made are in, in particular, in climate, in kids, and in caregiving. So, this is a very,

This is a transformational historic investment in tackling climate change. It is an historic investment in our kids. It's the first time that we're adding mandatory schooling in the United States in over 100 years. So this bill is going to have universal free pre-K for three and four-year-olds. It's going to cap child care expenses for middle-class families at 7% of their income, which is really important of thousands upon thousands of dollars for those of you like me. who have kids in daycare, you know it is incredibly expensive, and this is going to cap their expenses at 7% of their income, which is a huge deal. It's also going to make elder care more

affordable. So if you're somebody who's struggling to take care of your parents or your grandparents who are ailing, this is a bill that's going to help make home care more affordable for them. And then lastly, it's a huge investment in health care. It's going to expand subsidies under the Affordable Care Act, which means it's going to make it more affordable for people. to be able to afford health care. It's going to close what's called the Medicaid coverage gap to help low-income people get health care. So this is really just a huge transformational investment

in working people in this country. It's going to make us more competitive. It's an incredibly important bill. Now, can you walk us through the provisions that are included to actually pay for it? Because I know that there was a lot of confusion and going back and forth in terms of what people supported, what they didn't support.

So at the end of the day, what's it going to be to actually get this thing paid for it? Yeah. So some of us is still being worked out. Some of the key pieces that have been agreed upon include a corporate minimum tax of 15%, so a 15% minimum tax on profits. The global minimum tax at 15% is something that the president and the administration, the Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, has been working on for many, many months that we've gotten over 100 countries around the world to agree to. 15% global minimum tax so that companies can't take their profits, move them into tax shelters overseas, and avoid paying taxes in the United States. So it's basically preventing a race to the bottom and making sure that companies are paying what they owe. Those are two of the big pieces. There are some other pieces that are under consideration.

And as we're kind of finalizing the deal over the next hopefully few days, few weeks, we'll see. As we're finalizing the deal, some of that will come into more focus. But there is a commitment from leaders in Congress, and this is certainly a priority of President Biden, to ensure that the pay for, the way it's paid for is going to, are going to net out making corporations pay their fair share,

making the super wealthy pay their fair share, and that that's how we're going to pay for it. And as you know, we're going to pay for the whole thing, not going to add any money to the debt, for the deficit, and we're going to do that by making sure that the wealthiest pay their fair share. Progressives have endorsed the framework for the Build Back Better Act, but it looks like they don't want to vote on the bipartisan infrastructure package until there's a text for Build Back Better, and then they can vote for both in tandem. So what's the White House's stance on this issue and will the White House respect their strategy? So the president actually addressed it when he went, he went to the House caucus this morning

and made a really passionate case for both the Build Back Better framework that he rolled out this morning and the infrastructure bill. And what he said was we need a vote on both of these ASAP. So, you know, he obviously has the utmost respect for where the progressives have been in this process. He's worked really closely with them. He's brought them down to the White House. he's met with them many times, we've gotten their input, they've helped shape some of the key pieces of this package. But his belief is that we need to vote.

We need to get this done. This is what we promised the American people we would do. And, you know, we're seeing some really, you know, I just saw Congresswoman Jaya Paul on TV a few minutes ago talking about some of the key pieces of the framework that she's really excited about and that she thinks other progressive members will be excited about, too. So I think we'll get there. The president believes we'll get there. The president obviously put this forward knowing that or feeling confident that this is something that is a package that could pass both the Senate and the House.

So it's sort of a long way of saying, I don't have a date certain for you on when we'll vote, but we are moving toward getting this done. And this is what the American people expect us to do. Well, just for just for clarification. Now, you said that the president expects that they'll vote for it ASAP. So ASAP on the bipartisan infrastructure package could be right now because the text of that bill is already. laid out, whereas ASAP for Bill Back Better would obviously, we'd obviously have to wait for that text to be written. So is the expectation that we would wait for both, or is the expectation that as soon as we

could vote on one, which would obviously be the infrastructure package already, that we would take that vote? Well, the president's committed to getting both passed. And what he said today is he encourages, he asks for every Democrat to vote for both bills when the Speaker brings them up. So, you know, obviously he has the utmost respect for Speaker Pelosi to run her process. Nobody better at it than her. So he has said that he will allow, of course, allow her to make those decisions and allow her to do that. What he believes is that Democrats should vote, well, frankly, Republicans too, but that's really between them and their

voters, I guess. But that Democrats should vote for both of these packages whenever they come up. Now, with regard to climate specifically, what does the the final framework of this bill include? Yeah. So it is an incredibly robust transformative investment in fighting fighting climate change. It will reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by one giga ton in 2030. It includes clean energy tax credits designed to help people afford electric vehicles. It includes tax credits to help people put solar on their home.

It actually, one of the things that it does in terms of tax credits for solar is it makes tax credits for installing solar refundable, which means that even if you're a low-income individual who doesn't necessarily qualify for a tax rebate through your taxes, you can still get a tax refund for installing solar in your home. So it really makes a broad investment. It also includes the civilian climate corps, which is a wholesale effort to get people into doing jobs that are going to help, you know, transform the resilience of our infrastructure and really combat climate across the country. So, and then lastly, I should also add, it's a huge investment in environmental justice, too. There is money for resilience to ensure that communities that are disproportionately hit by, you know, by climate change, by weather events, have the money. the resources that they need to ensure that they're not devastated by those events, that their bridges, their homes, their roads are better able to withstand climate change. So there is a huge amount of investment, or I should say rather than huge, I should say there's

a transformative and significant investment in tackling the climate crisis as part of this bill. Now, the president wanted to have a signed Build Back Better Act, signed climate change bill by the time he went to the UN's climate change conference in Scotland. How does having a framework and not the actual legislation impact the U.S.'s moral authority on this issue? Like, will a framework be enough? Well, world leaders know where President Biden stands on climate change. He's made this an integral part of his administration from day one, taking a lot of steps through, you know, through executive action. So I think world leaders know that this is a fundamental commitment

of his. He talks a lot about how this is an existential crisis for us and for the world. So I think the progress that we've made on this framework demonstrate the commitment that he has for driving the process forward and getting this done. But I don't think that anybody at COP 26 or anybody on the world stage has any question about how committed President Biden and this administration are to tackling climate change. So he's looking forward to being in Scotland this week and continuing to push the world forward on meeting some of these amendments. mission standards that the U.S. is committed to and making sure that we are tackling this problem in a real and meaningful way because, frankly, we're running out of time.

Well, a lot of the president's top priorities were taken out of this bill, the priorities that he'd been working on in the run-up to the announcement of this framework. And that includes lowering prescription drug prices and paid family leave. What's the plan to address some of these outstanding issues? Well, the first thing I would say is that, you know, President Biden believe that consensus and compromise are a good thing, not a bad thing. Now, you're right. These are priorities. These are things he believed in. I mean, he put them in the first draft of the, of the legislation. He obviously wants to see them pass. We believe we need them. He's going to continue to fight for them. I mean, remember, we're not even 10 months into our administration.

We've got many years to go to continue fighting for these priorities that are critically important to him. All that being said, he ran for president promising to bring back the ability to find consensus, to compromise, to get things done. Because that's the way to actually get things done. Because a bill that you can pass that makes some of the transformative investments that this bill makes is going to have a real impact on people's lives. A hypothetical bill that you can't get passed that you don't have the vote for doesn't do anything for anybody. So what he's done is really work here to get us to a place where we are driving forward on transformative investments in climate, in elder care, in child care. And that doesn't mean that he's not going to

fighting for the other things that he wants to see done while he's in office. Building on that, on continuing to fight for some of these priorities, if certain Democratic holdouts like Joe Manchin and Kirsten Cinema didn't vote for it now, when we've got our one shot at reconciliation with a simple majority, how is it going to get passed when there's a 60-boat threshold? If we've learned anything, it's that there's no issue that's important enough for Republicans to vote for that isn't trumped by their desire to just hurt Democrats. Look, I think, you know, the president has shown a

ability to drive us forward on a very bold and transformational agenda. He knows how the legislative process works. He has been, you know, he has been working very close. He was obviously in Congress for 36 years and has spent time here as president making sure that he's engaged in the process, that he's hearing from people. He's hearing from progressive members. He's hearing from moderate members. He's on the infrastructure building, hearing from Republicans. That's the way you get things done in Washington. And if you can't get things done, you know, all of the great policy on paper

is not going to have a real impact on people's lives. So he's going to keep fighting for these, he's going to keep fighting for these priorities. They're critically important to him. And this is really what his presidency is all about is getting these things done for working people. It's why he ran. He said he ran to rebuild the backbone of the country

and that's what he's committed to doing. Now, we've seen Republicans take popular issues like Infrastructure Week and run on them. Now, whether they're competent enough to pass them is another story. But clearly, the promise still has some impact when it comes time to get their voters out. So with Republicans seeing how popular lowering prescription drug prices and paid family leave is as a mobilizing issue, is the White House concerned that if we don't get it done, that the GOP can run on it in 2024, again, regardless of whether they have any intention

of actually getting it passed. Well, they should step up and do it. I mean, this is the moment. I think that people will hold them accountable if they do not vote to get these things done. I think voters are tired of a lot of talk in Washington, a lot of talk from Republicans. And so I think if they have an opportunity to get these things done for people and choose not to and vote against them, I think they're going to have a really hard time going home to their constituents and saying, You know what? I had an opportunity to vote to, I mean, look at the Bill Jack Betterville.

I have an opportunity to vote to make your child care less expensive. I have an opportunity to vote to tackle the climate crisis. I had an opportunity to vote to make, you know, elder care less expensive. And I chose not to. I mean, that's the case that I don't think the American people are going to be really open to. So, you know, if president's going to keep fighting to get this done, I think if Republicans choose to go home to their constituents if the empty-handed, then that's the question that they're going to have to answer for themselves. messaging is clearly just as important as the bill itself. Republicans are up against a media apparatus that will just outright lie about what's in

this bill and how it'll impact people. We've already seen it. We saw it with the American Rescue Plan and it doesn't show any signs of stopping. So how does the White House plan to promote the Build Back Better Act once it actually passes? Yeah, absolutely. So we will be in a full court press from the time we passed the bill until the end of President Biden's second term. We are going to spend a tremendous amount of time out traveling.

The president will travel. The vice president will travel. The cabinet will be out explaining to people the impact of the bill, what the actual programs are doing in their lives. You know, we really, we don't think about it in terms of dollar figures or, you know, hypothetical scope of the policy. We're really going to spend a lot of time making sure people understand how this is going to make their life better and how it's going to impact their day to day.

So we will be, that will be a huge focus for us. You know, we spend a lot of time in this White House and this communications office. Focus on local media. It's actually the media source that people still trust the most across the country. So we spend a lot of time making sure that we are talking to local TV, local papers, local radio, so that folks are hearing from us in the space where, you know, they turn for trusted information. So we're going to be out talking about the impact, talking about how President Biden is delivered on what he promised to do and how Democrats are

making your life better. Well, taking a step back here, we'll finish with this. After this bill passes, you know, we're still contending with a party that's gone all in with the big lie, a party that has systematically purged itself of anyone who doesn't sign on to the whole MAGA authoritarian worldview. You know, this is a dangerous party, and I don't think it's hyperbole to steal a line from Joe Biden. And I don't think it's hyperbole to say that democracy is on the line in 2022 and 2024.

Obviously, with 2022, giving the Republicans a House majority, for example, would allow them to then refuse to certify an election in 2024. So is this enough? Is it enough to pass a few bills as transformative as they may be while the GOP is out there dismantling the foundations of our democracy? And yet we've yet to pass a single voting rights bill. We've yet to confront partisan gerrymanders and the fact. filibuster is still fully intact and there's been no discernible movement on our side thus

far. I think we should not underestimate how much people want to see, want to feel the sense that government is on their side, that it understands their problems, that it has their back. And I think that that's what these bills do. I think, you know, what President Biden did was look at what are the biggest problems that middle class families in this country are facing. It's things like the cost of child care, things like the cost of elder care, things like the cost of health care. I mean, those are things for people who are working day in and day out, you know, they're going home. They're looking at their bank account and they're saying, you know, am I going to be able to send my kid to the activity that I want my kid to be able to go to this weekend? I'd be

able to afford that. I mean, these are the things that people are grappling with. And I would not underestimate how much people are looking for a sense that their president has their back, that their government has their back. And so, you know, I think we are going to be able to demonstrate. I think President Biden is going to be able to demonstrate that government can deliver, that, you know, the things that he said he would do when he ran for president, he was able to do. And if you look at how people feel about the build back, better agenda,

it's incredibly popular. It's overwhelmingly popular. This is the kind of thing people want to see their government do for them. So, you know, certainly if we pass these bills, we are going to be out aggressively talking to people, reminding them how this has impacted them, and that their government was able to deliver for them. And I do think that's incredibly important. And we shouldn't underestimate how much people are looking for that because it's been a very long time since that's happened. Totally. I completely agree. And now, will voting rights and that whole fight become a priority

for the administration once this spillback better act is actually passed? President has been, and the vice president, have been pushing on voting rights since they came into office. You've heard the president talk about it in really profound terms. He views it as as an existential threat to our democracy. And he is going to keep pushing for voting rights reform. No question. It's something he's worked on his entire career. You know, he pushed to get the Voting Rights Act expanded when he was in the Senate. He actually got Republican votes. Imagine that. Remember a world when, you know, when Republicans could actually step up and we get things done in a bipartisan way. So this is something the president has fought for his entire

career and now it's no different. Great. Kate Bettingfield, thank you so much for taking the time to talk. I appreciate it. Thank you. Thank you. This was a lot of fun. Thanks for having me. Thanks again to Kate Bettingfield. Now we've got the mayor of Richmond, Virginia, LeVar Stoney. Thanks so much for coming on. Thanks for having me. So we're recording this on Friday, October 29th. We're only days away from Election Day in Virginia on Tuesday. So with all eyes on the gubernatorial election between Terry McAuliffe and Glenn Yunkin, what's the state of the race in Virginia right now? Well, we are locked into a tight battle, Brian. This is predictable in Virginia that follows a year after the presidential election. As you know, in Virginia, Virginia normally

goes the opposite way of the incumbent party in the White House. And so we're in another tight battle for the soul and the future of the Commonwealth in Virginia, but we're feeling optimistic going into November 2nd. We've had thousands of people knock on doors. We've had a nearly 900,000 people turn out early already, and I think all that votes well for Democrats on November 2nd. Well, I'm actually glad you mentioned that. Do we have any indication of how early voting is going thus far? Like, I know voters in Virginia don't register by party, but usually high turnout equates

to a better showing for Democrats. So is there any indication as to how the turnout in this election relates to previous elections? You know, this is the first time we've had an early vote opportunity in a gubernatorial election. When Governor Northam was elected in 2017, we didn't have 40 plus days to early vote. This is the first time as being used in the gubernatorial election. And from what I've seen, it looks, the early vote is higher than any absentee ballot turnout in 2017. And we see it's high in areas that Democrats have done well in the past. We believe by the time early vote closed on

Saturday that we will reach nearly a million voters that voted early. That's nearly probably 40% or so of the overall turnout. We look forward to seeing on election day. Yeah, that's phenomenal. Now, with that being said, there was a recent Fox News poll showing that McColliffe and Yon were, had effectively flipped their positions with Yonkin now leading 51 to McColliffe's 46. Now, of course, other polls still show McColliffe in the lead, so it's likely that that Fox poll was an outlier, but are you seeing any indication that the race has been tightening or is even tied at this point? I've definitely seen an indication that we are certainly in a tight race. Whether you go into the suburbs, you know there's some tightness there. And this will come

out to simply turn out. I think our campaign will turn out voters in the urban areas in the Crescent, Northern Virginia, Hampton Roads, in central Virginia, where I represent the city of Richmond. And I think that will be the saving grace for Governor McCall from the Democratic Party in this go-around. It's likely that the California recall race hit an inflection point when polling had come out, showing that Larry Elder had a lead, you know, at which point Democrats became really activated and engaged and obviously pulled off a huge victory. Do you think that a poll like the one that we saw out of Fox News might be the kick in the ass that voters need to turn out? Well, you know, I know Democratic voters in Virginia very well, and you have to scare them half to death and kick them in ass a little bit.

And we have, you know, polls are not the center of our campaign. We obviously are running on a message that I think elevates Virginians, whether it's a public education, whether it's on more affordable health care, whether it's on voting rights. Those are issues, I think, will generate interest. But obviously, you do have to kick voters in the ass, particularly Democratic voters in the ass, in an off-year-election. like the one we have in the commonwealth. Well, that's a great point that you brought up, that you guys are not focusing on polls and more focusing on the issue.

So I know you had mentioned a couple. What issue have you seen that seems to be resonating most with Virginians? Well, we've made a ton of progress as a state over the course of the last, I would say, you know, eight years, you know, under Governor McCaworth, at the time was the most progressive governor we've ever had, and now followed up with a Democratic majorities in the House and the Senate alongside a governor, we have pushed forward on voting rights, on criminal justice reform,

on expanding Medicaid to voters as well. And so we've made some serious progress. And what this election is about is the possibility of that progress being snuffed out by a Republican Trump agenda. We're running against an opponent who is against vaccine mandate. So keeping our children and our employers, employees safe. He's against abortion rights, reproductive rights for women. He's for sister's ship as well, banning books like Beloved in our schools. And so we really take a real right turn if Governor McCollop is not reelected. That doesn't just apply to the gubernatorial race. Of course, we have, you know, all of the state legislators that are up for re-election as well.

And obviously, the implications are, the implications are so big that we can see exactly what's happening in places like Texas. What's at risk if, you know, if we're not to re-election. elect Democrats. I've been on the trail here in the Commonwealth asking voters, do they want Texas-style government? Do they want Georgia-style government? Do they want Florida-style government? You see in Texas with Greg Abbott, the Republican governor team with the legislature, they have initiated an assault on women reproductive rights in Georgia. They have had an assault on voting rights, particularly for black and brown communities. And you see DeSantis in Florida

is against all types of protocols that will keep our children and our workers safe. And so that's what's at stake here. Do you want to be Florida? Do you want to be Texas? Do you want to be Georgia? Those are the short-term impacts, obviously, right now.

What about the longer-term implications as far as the Republican Party and the 2022 midterms are concerned? Well, you know, all eyes are on Virginia for a particular reason. Not only are we the first test after the presidential election, but folks start to look to the midterms

in 2022. And a lot of those battles in 2022 will be fought in the suburbs. Suburbs, very similar to Northern Virginia, to those in Richmond as well. And so I think folks are looking, trying to read tea leaves and what happens in Virginia. But also I would say for the future, specifically to Virginia, this is about putting our government in the hands of a far right-wing Republican Party. This is not your grandfather's Republican Party. That was a moderate party in Virginia prior to democratic leadership. We're talking about Trump-led Republicans leading the government here in Virginia. That's what this is all about. Yeah. And I think the implications are clear, obviously, in terms of giving Republicans the validation that they've been looking for as they continue to run

on things like the big lie, basically, you know, as anti-democratic a party as you can possibly find. So with that said, Mayor Stoney, thank you so much for taking the time. And thanks for what you're doing in Virginia and keep it up. Hopefully we have a good outcome on Tuesday. Thank you, Brian. If someone's listening, turn out the vote. Thanks again to Mayor Stoney. Two quick notes. First, Virginia, Election Day is Tuesday. So please, if you haven't yet cast your ballot or if you know someone who hasn't, please make sure that your voice is heard. Virginians have made so much progress over this last decade. Don't let complacency turn back the clock there. And lastly, my Don't Be a Mitch Fund is still going. We've just surpassed 600,

thousand dollars. So if you want to help expand our Senate majority, so that we can pass the rest of our priorities and not be at the mercy of two centrists who like to set things on fire just to see them burn, then please consider donating a few bucks and helping register voters in some must-win states like Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Florida, and Texas. Okay, that's it for this episode. Talk to you next week. You've been listening to No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen. Produced by Sam Graber, music by Wellesie, interviews captured and edited for YouTube and Facebook by Nicholas Nicotera, and recorded in Los Angeles, California.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe on your preferred podcast app. Feel free to leave a five-star rating and a review, and check out Brian Tyler Cohen.com for links to all of my other channels.