No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen - John Fetterman's announcement rocks the 2022 Senate race

Episode Date: February 9, 2021

Pennsylvania Lt. Governor John Fetterman announces his candidacy to run for US Senate in 2022. John discusses his platform, his message to Republicans ahead of Trump's impeachment trial, and - at 6'8" - his size.Written by Brian Tyler CohenProduced by Sam GraberRecorded in Los Angeles, CAhttps://www.briantylercohen.com/podcast/To donate to John's campaign: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/jf-social-cohenSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

So I promised a bonus episode this week, and here we are. A really important theme from here on out is going to be doing the work now to set ourselves up for success down the line. I'm a firm believer that if Democrats want to be successful in win races, we can't just start paying attention eight weeks before the election and expect to win. Georgia is a prime example of that. This has to be a year-round effort. So, with that said, my guest today is someone who you should know if you listen to this podcast, Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor John Federman,

and ours was the first interview he gave on. on this particular subject, which, I'm not going to lie, was pretty cool. So without any more delay, here's what John Federman had to say. We've got a special one today. Joining me now is Pennsylvania's lieutenant governor, John Federman, and his wife, Giselle. Thank you both for taking the time to come on. Thanks for having us.

Thanks for letting me crash. Yeah, of course. The running joke, and it's not even a joke, is she's everyone's favorite. So I'm actually the one that's crashing, I think. Just coasting on her coattails right there? Yeah, exactly. No, I mean, like, I'm just the arm candy, you know, and I'm happy with that. But thanks for having us back, really. Of course. Well, John, I know that you have something that you'd like to say,

so I don't want to waste any time. Floor is yours. Hey, well, thank you. I'm honored to be announcing that I'm running for the United States Senate here in Pennsylvania. It's not a decision that my family and I arrived it easily. But, you know, when we announced a couple weeks ago that we were expressing and interesting. We were exploring this. We had no idea the kind of response that we were going to get. We've raised, we're closing in on $1.5 million in a little over three weeks, 37,000 grassroots donors, you know, all 50 states, everyone of Pennsylvania, 67 counties. Thank you. Like, thanks everyone that has supported us, has reached out, has bought a shirt, has donated, has encouraged us. You deserve thanks, but you also deserve an answer. And today we have that answer. And,

I'm just honored to join the race. Awesome. Well, Giselle, you and John have been married since 2008. So your relationship has always been on the campaign trail in some form from Mayor of Braddock when you guys met all the way up until 2018 for the lieutenant governor race. Is it a good experience being on the campaign trail? Mostly, yes. I mean, you meet incredible people. You know, for me, politics is hard because I'm sensitive and I think politics can be mean.

But we need people to change that, right? So I can't say, oh, politics is mean, don't run. I have to say politics is mean, and you have to go and change that. Yeah. So I'm, you know, a huge supporter of his, even though I don't like to admit in front of him. It's true. Yeah, no, but yeah, no. And also, and with Giselle here, it's one of the things that, one of the reasons why I ran is, is immigration.

You know, Giselle's, you know, family origin story, you know, came. She lived for many years. She was brought here to this country when she was seven, her family fleeing a dangerous situation, violent situation in her home country of Brazil. And, you know, her story and her contribution subsequently and her family's contribution to this country has just reaffirmed to me that immigration makes America, America.

And, you know, it really just, I can't imagine anyone turning their back on America's origin story with immigration and, you know, Giselle is a huge part of that partnership here and just all these other issues that we're running on and would really crystallize it for me was these last two and a half, three months where our country was under siege

and, you know, I was called on to defend the electoral integrity of my commonwealth. And this idea that there was widespread fraud, that there was this conspiracy to deliver Pennsylvania to Joe Biden, how outrageous that is and how close we came to, having it devolved completely into chaos and actually was chaos in January 6th down in the

capitals. So it's early perhaps to be in this cycle, but there's just so much going on and the stakes are so high. And we just decided now is the right time, especially after the great encouragement and feedback that we received. Totally. And so I know that you spoke about the issues of immigration and obviously, you know, restoring a lot of the sanity that we've lost over the last few years, but what are the other issues that your campaign is going to focus on? I've been in Braddock now for 20 years. You know, I came to Braddock in 2001, and you try to think of what the Democratic Party was like in 2001. We were just a few short years after the infamous crime bill. We had just ended welfare as we know it as a party a few years earlier. And, you know,

I came to Braddock to work in a, as marginalized the community that certainly exists in Pennsylvania, and to rebuild and to try to confront this raging inequality, at least that I saw here in this country, and that it was a threat to the country that I love. And for the last 20 years, I fought for living wages. I fought that health care is a fundamental human right. I fought for environmental justice. I fought for community policing.

I fought for LGBTIQIA protections. I officiated the first same-sex wedding in Pennsylvania, even under threat of legal sanction when it was still illegal in it. As crazy as it sounds that it was illegal to wed to people of the same gender. We did it in our home, and I have a great memory from that. Our oldest, Carl would have been, well, 2013, so Carl would have been five. Five. And, you know, John performs a lot of weddings as mayor.

He has. And so I said, Carl, today's a really important wedding. And he's like, Daddy marries people all the time. Like, what's the big deal? And I said, well, today it's two boys. and he was like, and he walked off. And it was such a simple, beautiful response that I think we're missing from so many people. Yeah, totally.

Yeah. And also on, and I alluded to earlier immigration, environmental justice, you know, climate change. You know, we live across the street from the last steel mill in the region, you know, finding a balance between jobs and the industries that we have, but also acknowledging that we have to transition. away from the fossil fuel industry as well, too, and transition to green energy. And we can create millions of jobs, union jobs, while respecting and honoring the transition that it's going to take for us to get there in the meantime and not leave anyone behind and not throw any workers to the wolves and say, hey, you can learn how to code or you can

go work at Google or something. So it's really just this whole litany of issues that I've been running on for the last 20 years, that level of consistency is where the Democratic Party has evolved to as opposed to where we came from some 20 years ago when we came, when I came here to Braddock. And I know a big issue for you specifically is the legalization of marijuana. I know that Pennsylvania Republicans passed a law banning the flying of the pro-legalization flag and you have promised to replace the flag if anyone takes it down. But John, you're six foot eight who is going to go on to your balcony and take down your flag like if you came up to me and you decided to take my car keys that car would be yours let me be clear i would never you like

i love you i would never take your car keys or anyone's but but you know it's really it's really this it's really the the poor state employees that are caught in the middle of it the the the republicans wrote the law and and they said well hey are you know are you going to you know like you got to enforce the law and they're like okay we're sorry and then they took my flags down. They fold them nicely and they put them away. And then I'm like, I put them back out again. And then the Republicans are like, you know, hey, they're back out again. I mean, like put this in perspective. You know, the Republicans gave Representative Green a standing ovation. I mean, after, you know, like Jewish space lasers and all kinds of crazy, awful things.

But the Republicans in my state passed a law literally banning me from flying a weed flag and pride flags on my personal office balcony to affirm my support for these issues. You know, it's the party's dysfunctional in that regard. And like these are two things that are fundamentally, I believe, just equal protection under the law for that community as well as ending a big part of the racist drug war in this country, not to mention billions in revenue. And I'm, I'm proud to say when I ran first time statewide in the 2015-16 cycle, I was the only candidate running for national office that was for 100% legalization,

the only one at that time. So that's this kind of part of the issues that. I'm proud to say that I feel like we're on the right side of history, and we, you know, and I'm also the only candidate that may theoretically get into the race here in Pennsylvania that is also won and run statewide, too, as well as because we all know what an important race this is going to be for control of the Senate. But also, how shocked was I to know that they could pass a law that quickly, right? I mean, there's so many things you could pass a law.

Yeah, almost makes you think that if their priorities were in order, we'd have, we actually might have a functional government. It's amazing. You think of the world we could build if they passed the law fast enough to get rid of my marijuana and pride flags, you know, for that. That's a great point. That is a really, really good point. So I know that people like to put candidates in boxes, moderate, progressive.

How would you describe yourself? Large. Honestly, like, I don't put myself in any box. I fundamentally believe that I'm running on what I believe I know to be true, you know, as I mentioned, these past 20 years. And if somebody wants to say, well, I think that's progressive or I think that's moderate or I think, I mean, I've never been called a conservative. But my point, though, is that I think these are universal things.

I mean, you know, mathematically, you know, no one can live off 725 an hour. Right. You know, we all know that every human being is going to require health care in his or her lifetime. It's a fact, you know, not to mention like to live a quality life, let alone to save your life. And why do we pretend that that's not a fundamental human right? You know, why do we pretend that we don't have raging inequality, you know, in communities like my own compared to other communities as well, too? You know, we acknowledge that we had a crisis in our policing. We have environmental crises and issues with climate change.

We have immigration. You know, we have all these different issues. And I believe those are fundamental truths. And if that's progressive, if that's whatever, I, you know, some people think I'm an establishment because I'm already. like the lieutenant governor and i'm like i don't consider myself establishment i just feel like i'm just you know running on these issues regardless of what the platform is i'd put him in a cute box oh that's that's that's just plain that's the clip that's going up you know that right yeah i know i i don't i don't this whole interview the only the only clip

that's going up is that one that was kind of like but but but anyway um yeah i mean it's compassionate Yeah, legislation. I mean, you know. Earing on the side of compassion, I don't feel like that's a progressive value, although increasingly it more seems that way. But like I always would want to err on the side of compassion, whether it's immigration, whether it's wages, whether it's, you name it. Right. And by the way, there's no reason why, to your point, why that should be a democratic value. I don't think anybody on the conservative side of the aisle would ever say like,

oh, we strive to not be compassionate. We strive to not care about. people, you know? They just do it naturally. John, to your point, you'd mention your size. What do you say to people who've noticed that you won't exactly look like the typical Democrat in the Senate? Yeah, I mean, much has been made of the fact that, you know, I don't like to necessarily, I'm not sharp dressed like you. I don't, I'm just kind of like who I am. And my response after the last, you know, last month is, I promise if I'm elected to be your next senator to be 100% sedition free. You know, like I, you know, like, you know, I'm not going to be worried about what I wear or my, you know, and I'm not going to get up on the floor of the Senate and claim that Pennsylvania ran a rigged election.

I'm not going to, even after I'm driven out of the very chamber, I'm a member of by my own supporters that I've helped in sight to say these terrible things and exchange political capital in the moment, at least what you perceive as your own political capital, to damage the very fabric of our nation and to damage, almost destroy the peaceful transition of power. So I would hope that people would find that most distasteful. And, you know, my, my, atypical appearance, whatever you want to call it, less jarring. You know, like I, like I said, I, you know, 100%. Before, you know, we'd go out and people would recognize him more now. But for years, everyone thought he was my bodyguard. Like I would be at mall, I'd be anywhere. And people would say, who are you?

And I'm like, nobody. Why? And they're like, why is there a bodyguard walking home? To your point, though, I mean, if anyone out there is looking for a bodyguard, guard and John Federman showed up, I think that that would be a well-placed investment. Well, if anyone finds me unorthodox, one thing I can promise you is I will be 100% sedition-free as a United States senator, which unfortunately we can't say that these days. Right. Speaking of that issue, we do have Trump's Senate trial coming up now.

The likelihood of 17 Republican senators defecting and holding Trump accountable is unlikely. So what would be your message to them? I would say, look, you know, while you're clutching your pearls and talking about how this is that or that, it's like, remember, your party impeached President Clinton over an improper relationship with an intern, you know, and you seem to have no qualms about doing that, your guy incited a riot that resulted in the deaths of brave capital police officers and nearly could have gone much. worse than it did, why have the whole process of impeachment on the books if this doesn't apply to it? And, you know, everyone knows that it's got, it's dead on arrival. But this idea that a party, you know, some 20 years ago can vote to impeach someone over an improper relationship and then now can say, well, you know, what's a little sedition among friends? It's just part of, it's just part of, you know, the magic of today's GOP, the magic, the magical thinking.

Yeah, really well said. Well, so I want to jump back into Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania largely swung to the left throughout the entire state from 2016 to 2020. But there were a number of counties in Western Pennsylvania, Clarion, Indiana, Clearfield, and Southern Pennsylvania, like Green, Fayette, Bedford, Fulton, where Republicans actually gained ground. And that was during a pandemic, during an economic recession during a jobs crisis. And by the way, in Philadelphia, too, Republicans gained a few percentage points. It did. Yeah. How do you make up that ground? How do you get those voters who even amid such a terrible backdrop went to the right? How do you get them to come back to your campaign? Well, I keep returning back to that theme of like, I'm just going to run on what I know to believe

is true. And I would also point out that when the governor and I ran together in 2018, we We actually ran one Pennsylvania by 852,000 votes. That was a swing of 900,000 votes between 16 and 18. So I think there's a lot of people that are reachable. Now, without a doubt, Donald Trump is a unique individual with a cult-like following. That's undeniable. But I also don't think that there's another Republican that can assume that mantle and generate that kind of devotion either.

We saw that in our race with a wannabe, you know, kind of Trump-like version, and it was a crash and burn. But I can't change what I believe and what I know to be true. And I've already, you know, I'm the most progressive candidate that's won and run across Pennsylvania statewide. And I never had to compromise what I believe in. I never had to compromise my principles. And I've said this on the campaign trail. if you think, you know, you should be excluded from first, you know, equal protection under the law because of who you love or how you identify, don't vote for me, you know? Yeah.

But I think authenticity, like we have a ton of Republicans that will write and say, I don't agree with you in anything, but I believe you. So I support you. Totally. Right? So I think the authenticity is what people have been craving for so long. And that's enough to cross an aisle. And I believe there are enough reachable ones. I mean, I'm not talking like, you know,

70 or 80% of her. I'm talking, you know, there isn't enough of them, but I'm also principal where it's like, if you believe that immigrants, like my wife's family, when she came to this country, should be treated like, you know, like they're just demagogued and locked in cages. I mean, you know, my wife, when she was brought to this country at seven years old, could have been locked in a cage under the kind of regime that we had the last four years. If you think that's what America is about, vote for the other person. It's not going to, it's not going to be me. But I think enough people, a majority of people, would reject that kind of way of thinking. And that's the kind of campaign that I'm going to run on. And I don't feel like I have

some manifest destiny that, you know, this seats, I'm entitled to anything. I am going to run on what I believe to be true. And my record will show that. And to Giselle's point about having bipartisan support. I think there are enough people that I respect that. And also, weed is a very bipartisan thing too. Libertarians, fiercely, fiercely supportive of legal weed. And a lot of Republicans are too. And I really believe that there are a lot of issues. It's not urban versus rural. It's urban and rural. And there is more facts that unite these places than not. And that's what I plan on reminding people. Our campaign slogan, our core value is every county, every vote, you know, whether it's a 5,000 little Cameron County,

person county, or one of the biggest cities in the country like Philadelphia. So I want to switch gears here to your personal life. I'm fascinated by where you live. It's a renovated 1920s former car dealership. Whose idea was that? How'd that come about? The space became available we kind of, I think, walked in, we're like, this is home. Yeah. I think it came at the same time. It's, it's, you know, there's pictures online. It's just, it was, it's such a beautiful building.

And we hope that it would be a metaphor for abandoned and forgotten communities where you can take this building that was, was almost assuredly going to fall into abandonment and eventually be raised and turned it into, I think, an example of the possibility if, if investments are made and flags are, planted. And, you know, we had this amazing restaurant, have this amazing restaurant downstairs, Superior Motors, named after the dealership, which prior to the, to the pandemic closing it, you know, national awards, national recognition. Anthony Bourdain shot one of his final episodes there before he tragically took his life. We have a black box theater in the rear of the building, too. So it's a really special place. And I think it's, we're trying to challenge perspective. You know, my view out the window is the mill. And people will say, I would never want to live across from a mill. But for me, I love, you know, I look at that mill.

I think of all the immigrants who built that milk, who died in that mail, and the stories and the lives they gave. And it's like my personal tea light, because there's this huge flame that comes out at night. So I think it's challenging perspectives. You know, our kids can ride their bikes or rollerblade in the house. And because it's an old car dealership. So it's, I think it's pushing that idea that this place mattered, as well as did our community, as well as to people and not leaving anybody behind. That's a really, really great answer. I do have one more question, and this is going back to the campaign,

and this is an issue that has kind of followed you, John. There's one more subset of people that you have to work to reach, and it probably won't be an easy subset, and that is the Wawa voter. For those who don't know, Wawa is a convenience store. It's mostly found in the tri-state area that people have to go there, man. It's a convenience store. People in the Tristan area, like myself, who grew up in New Jersey, have an unhealthy obsession with, kind of like how Californians love in and out. New Englanders love their Dunkin' Donuts. Fox News host, they love fearmongering about immigrants. So everybody has their thing, right? John is a pretty avowed sheets guy. So how do you plan on bridging the gap? By being honest, Brian, by being honest. And I want to be clear, I've never badmouthed wah-wah. Wawas are great. If you're you're 50 miles or more for machines.

That's really a good rule of thumb how I operate when I'm on the road. I think I'm the diplomat here because I lived in New Jersey too and I love Miss Malwa as well. So we can come to the table. We could have told me this before we got married. We could, we can come to the table together and find peace. Well, I don't agree with that. I'm a stealer's guy and I'm a perfect answer. And the first thing John says, I don't agree with that.

Yeah. And I hope, I hope that Wawa team Wawa wouldn't hold it against me that I'm, I'm, I'm duty bound to be honest about the truth of sheets being better than Wawa. You know, I would hope that that would, they would respect me for telling my, well, the truth, not my truth, but the truth. We can agree to disagree on sheets and Wawa. There you go. We'll leave it there. So, John and Giselle, thank you so much for taking the time and best of luck on the campaign trail.

Thanks for having us on, really, honestly. Thanks again to John and his wife, Giselle. If you want to donate to John and support his candidacy in Pennsylvania's upcoming Senate race, where Republican Senator Pat Toomey has already announced his retirement, I'll put that link in the episode notes. There was already no reason why we shouldn't flip this seat. But with John in the race, the people of PA have a candidate they can be proud to vote for. Okay, that's it for this bonus episode.

Thanks so much for listening. 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.