#RolandMartinUnfiltered - 7.23 NAACP unanimously supports impeachment of Trump; Derrick Johnson, Tom Perez; R. Kelly drama

Episode Date: July 24, 2019

7.23.19 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: @NAACP unanimously supports @RepAlGreen's resolution to impeach Donald Trump; Roland talks with @DerrickNAACP and @TomPerez from the #NAACPConvention floor; R. Kelly's Crisis Manager says he would never leave his daughter alone with the singer - #RolandMartinUnfiltered partner: 420 Real Estate, LLC To invest in 420 Real Estate’s legal Hemp-CBD Crowdfunding Campaign go to http://marijuanastock.org Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. to, yeah, banana pudding. If it's happening in business, our new podcast is on it. I'm Max Chastain. And I'm Stacey Vanek-Smith. So listen to Everybody's Business on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Sometimes as dads, I think we're too hard on ourselves. We get down on ourselves on not being able to, you know, we're the providers,

but we also have to learn to take care of ourselves. A wrap-away, you got to pray for the providers, but we also have to learn to take care of ourselves. A wrap-away, you got to pray for yourself as well as for everybody else, but never forget yourself. Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth. Never stop being a dad. That's dedication. Find out more at fatherhood.gov. Brought to you by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council. I know a lot of cops. They get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes.

But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. This is Absolute Season 1. Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. Listen to Absolute Season 1. Taser Incorporated on the get right back there and it's bad. Listen to Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Clayton English.

I'm Greg Lott. And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. Last year, a lot of the problems of the drug war. This year, a lot of the biggest names in music and sports. This kind of starts that a little bit, man. We met them at their homes. We met them at their recording studios.

Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Today is Tuesday, July 23rd, 2019. This is Roland Mark Dunn Filtered, broadcasting live from the NAACP convention here at Cobo Center in Detroit.

Got a jam-packed show for you. You'll hear from Derek Johnson, president of the NAACP, talking about their focus on the 2020 campaign. Also, Democratic National Committee Chair Tom Perez, he also will join us, talking about, again, their focus when it comes to candidates running for office and also talking about the first debate that will take place at the HBCU in September in Houston. We'll also hear from Congressman Al Green. He introduced the resolution on the floor of the NAACP calling for the impeachment of Donald Trump. It was unanimous vote. You will get to see exactly what took place as well. Also on the show, our Crazy Ask White People segment, you know some crazy stuff that's already happened,

and we have more for you. It's time to ring the funk. Rolling button unfiltered. Let's go. He's got it. Whatever the mess, he's on it. Whatever it is, he's got the spook, the fact, the find. And when it blips, he's right on time.

And it's rolling. Best believe he's going Putting it down from sports to news to politics With entertainment just for kicks He's rolling With some go-go-royale It's rolling, Martin Rolling with rolling now.

He's funky, he's fresh, he's real the best. You know he's rolling Martin now. Martin. All right, folks, we're here in Detroit for the 110th annual NAACP convention. Of course, it has been quite busy two days. Tomorrow, tomorrow, you're going to have a number of the presidential candidates running on the Democratic side who will be here for a presidential forum. But we'll get to that in a moment with our panel. But first, today, the NAACP delegates unanimously voted for the impeachment of Donald Trump. Representative Al Green of Houston, of course, member of Congress, but also a former president of the Houston branch of the NAACP.

He was here to actually introduce that resolution. And folks here made it perfectly clear they want to see Donald Trump impeached. This is what took place today in Detroit. Simply insult individuals. She said she sent an amendment. Question has been called. Cut off debate on the emergency resolution. All those in favor, raise your voting card. Those opposed?

Debate is cut. Debate has ended. We're now voting on the emergency resolution as amended. All those in favor, raise your voting cards. All those opposed, the chair declares that this resolution has passed unanimously. Yeah. Yeah. As I said, Congressman Al Green, he was here to actually read that resolution and introduce it.

He and I sat down and explained why he wanted the NAACP to be on record for the impeachment of Donald Trump. Hey, folks, Roland Martin here. We are, of course, in Detroit for the 110th annual NAACP annual convention. And right now, of course, they're about to vote on various resolutions. Joining us right now, a former president of NAACP branch in Houston, now congressman from Houston, Al Green. How are you doing? I'm doing quite well, better than I deserved it, brother. Thank you for all that you do. Many people don't know of your great works in the human rights, civil rights movement to the extent that I do. I want the world to know that I appreciate you.

I appreciate it. Thank you so very much. Let's get right to it. You just finished speaking on stage, speaking to a resolution for the NAACP calling for the impeachment of Donald Trump. Why is it important, even though the NAACP is a nonpartisan organization, why is it important from your vantage point that they support that resolution and pass it? Well, thank you.

The NAACP is maintaining its position of being nonpartisan. That's a nonpartisan resolution. It's not about Democrats. It's about democracy. It's not about Republicans. It's about the Republic. And it's important to have the NAACP's name associated with this endeavor because the NAACP's name associated with this endeavor because the

NAACP brings a level of credibility that no other organization can bring. It's the oldest civil rights organization in the country, and it will have some influence on people who actually vote in the House of Representatives, knowing that the NAACP is on board. Obviously, you had less than 100 folks who voted for it. But since you have an additional number of Democrats who come out for this as well, Robert Mueller is testifying tomorrow as well. Do you think it's important for people to also continue to put pressure on Speaker Nancy Pelosi to have hearings so people can actually hear the various details in that Mueller report, as opposed to what we've seen thus far, just Attorney General Barr giving his synopsis?

I think hearings are important, but I also know this, that the president has said enough in the public domain for us to move forward. The president can be impeached for his bigotry. Andrew Johnson was impeached for bigotry in 1868. I believe it would be far better for us to impeach him for his bigotry than obstruction of justice. Now, I was the first to call for his impeachment for obstruction of justice on the House floor. But I understand now that this is an opportunity for us to send a message to those who will look through the vista of time in terms of how we attack bigotry. Those who tolerate bigotry perpetuate bigotry.

We should not allow it to perpetuate. We can actually impeach a president for it. We just have to demand it. I assure you, if this president behaved this way and he were a certain other president, let's just call him President Obama, he would be impeached just for what he has said. Do you also believe that this emboldens him by having essentially no repercussions against him for his actions? You are so correct, eminently so. When he sees that there are no guardrails, it does embolden him. He has become now a president who believes that he can do pretty much anything that he wants. And by the way, that's what he's doing. When he says go back, that's a trope that you and I understand has

been used many times against us personally. And it is something that sends a message to another group of people in society who didn't want us to be here in the first place. Those people then become activated. He incites hate. We must not allow him to finish his presidency without our having had our last word, which is impeachment. Last question for you. I know you have to get back to Washington, D.C. Let's talk about just your thoughts on the cowardice of Republicans who are unwilling to really stand up in significant numbers. Only four voted for the Democratic resolution to condemn his racist tweets. Many are offering all kinds of excuses. That to me, again, shows exactly where the Republican Party is today in 2019, that they as a party will not condemn clear, undeniable

racism from this man. History will not be kind to the Republican Party for its lack of standing up for the American people. You're not standing up for black people. You're not standing up for brown people. You're standing up for the American people whenever you take on bigotry and hatred and a president who has obstructed justice. This is all about whether anyone is going to be above the law. We all say no one is above the law. Well, if you're a president, you'reed justice. This is all about whether anyone is going to be above the law. We all say no one is above the law. Well, if you don't take a stand against what the

person is doing that is against the law, then you're allowing that person to be above the law. We ought not allow this to happen. I don't think history is going to be kind to Republicans. Now, having said that, I have to say this. We need the spirit of 1868 in the Congress because, and that's when Andrew Johnson was impeached, because we cannot allow this to become just Republicans. Democrats have got to get on the impeachment bandwagon as well. While I would love to have Republicans, we have 235 Democrats. We can do this without a Republican. I would love to do it, but we can't.

For the folks who don't understand the Constitution, House impeaches, Senate convicts. Exactly. So the reality is, when you say impeached, he could be impeached in the House. That goes down, obviously, of record. The conviction comes in the Senate. That's where the removal comes in. Absolutely correct. And Andrew Johnson, who was impeached, did not win his next election, by the way. Bill Clinton was impeached. His heir apparent did not win the election. Impeachment is an indelible stain that is placed on a president. The House does it. We can do it with 212 votes, assuming all members of president voting.

218 votes, all members president voting. We in the House can take up this with or without Republican support, and we can pass impeachment with or without Republican support. And again, first of all, your job in the House is to do the business of the House. When you hear Speaker Pelosi say, well, the Senate's not going to convict because it's a waste of time, that to me is the equivalent of saying, well, you could pass a bill, which Democrats have done in the House, and McConnell doesn't take up. So what does that mean?

You don't take up any bills in the House? We have passed many bills in this session that he has not taken up. So what does that mean? You don't take up any bills in the House? We have passed many bills in this session that he has not taken up. He's not going to take up minimum wage, the last one that we passed just before we left. We must do our job and let the Senate do its job. And I like this. If the Senate doesn't do its job, then you'll know what senators we need to take a second look at. Also, if the Senate doesn't do its job, then I believe history will show that the Senate itself was on the wrong side of history. Thank you very much. Congressman Al Green, you got to go.

I appreciate it. Thanks a lot. Thank you. Thank you. All right, folks, let's break it down with our panel. We have Kelly Bethea, Communications Strategist, Dr. Jason Nichols, Department of African American Studies at University of Maryland. And Malik Abdul. That's right.

Not Malik. Malik. He's back, of course. Look, you knew I was going to mess with you, so let's not act like that wasn't going to happen. Of course, Malik, Vice President, Black Conservative Federation. All right, Malik, I'll let you get started first. NAACP unanimous supporting Representative Al Green for the impeachment of Donald Trump. Your response? Oh, it's not

surprising that they would do something like that. I imagine that this time next year when we have the same conversation about the NAACP convention and Trump declines to show up again, you know, you only have to look at this to see why just he probably shouldn't have gone in the first place, because I don't know if they would have done that had Trump. That's nonsense. No, that's that's nonsense. First of all, first of all, I guarantee you the resolution would have still actually taken place had Trump come. I actually interviewed Derek Johnson and talked to him about that. He's going to explain later exactly what took place. Donald Trump really did not want to answer any questions, Jason, from this body. That's what

the real issue was. He wanted to come in here and give his usual spiel. And they said, no, you're a candidate. But you'll hear more of that from Derek Johnson a little bit later. But Jason, on this resolution, again, it was unanimous. The membership, they stood with Congressman Al Green. Your thoughts? Yeah, I agree with Malik that actually, you know, this this was expected. And it's the right thing to do. I think that there's so much evidence. I think tomorrow when we hear from Bob Mueller, he's going to illustrate it and make it come alive again, that the president obstructed justice, that that's unbecoming of a president of the United States. He's racially divisive. And an organization that has been devoted to racial justice should condemn him and not want him to be our commander-in-chief

any longer. So this was no surprise to me. And I think the organization did what was right. So, Kelly, when you look at this resolution, my line is, if you listen to Congressman Al Green, he wasn't just talking about what took place in 2016 with Russia. He talked about the bigoted comments from this particular president, his behavior, how he has acted. He said that's what he should be impeached for. Your thoughts on this NAACP resolution? I couldn't agree more with it. I mean, we have not just like Al Green said, we have years now of behavior and lies and situations in which if there were any other person in this office, he or she would have been impeached by now.

They probably wouldn't have even been elected by now. So the fact that we are this far along and still nothing has been done, we are getting closer, according to what I recall Al Green saying, we now have more votes than the last time there was a vote regarding impeachment. So we have more coming together in terms of making this an initiative. But I think we're behind the ball on this as Democrats. This should have happened in 2016 before, you know, we had this mess. Well, but here's the deal, though.

The reality is, well, first of all, in 2016, Democrats didn't control the House. OK, so Democrats didn't get control of the House until 2000 after 2018. So this wasn't going to happen in 2016. Republicans certainly were not going to do it. Now, of course, you have Robert Mueller is going to be testifying tomorrow. And so people are going to actually hear from him about what his report said, not an analysis, not an opinion from William Barr, Malik, but actually from the guy who actually led it. And the White House, of course, is trying their best to stun it. They have sent a letter saying that he cannot answer any questions that go outside of the report claiming executive

privilege. What the hell is that all about? I'm not really sure what's the standard or really why he would answer. There is none. They're making it up. Yeah, but I'm just not sure why he would answer. He's there to testify about his, you know, a couple of year-long investigation, and I'm just not sure what benefit there would be for him to talk about things outside of the investigation. So I don't necessarily disagree with what the White House is pushing back against in that sense. But what I will say.

Are you serious? Come on. Come on, Malik. Are you serious? But look, they have been trying to extend executive privilege to every person, even people who don't even work for the White House anymore. OK, so they're trying to extend this in areas that are nonsensical. Yeah, I mean, and I don't, again, you know, I haven't followed it closely enough to see what, you know, what things they're actually claiming executive privilege over. But I just don't know why would Mueller answer questions

that are outside of the investigation, because that's the only thing that we're talking about, the investigation. So I'm just not sure why he would answer questions outside of the investigation, because that's the only thing that we're talking about, the investigation. So I'm just not sure why he would answer questions outside of that. Well, fine, Jason, leave it up to him to answer whatever questions he wants, but to have the Department of Justice weigh in, telling him what he can and cannot answer shows this administration wants to control everything. And they're frankly going really way beyond what the law says. Absolutely. They are 100% very scared that Bob Mueller is actually going to be speaking. But to be honest, Roland, I think what's in the report is enough.

I think what Americans actually hear, you know, because people heard the spin, they heard, you know, news organizations try to show both sides. They heard the White House talking points from from other organizations. They heard the president saying he was totally exonerated. This is going to tear the skirt off and we're going to see the bare naked report coming from the man who wrote it. And I think that that's going to be enough when people see how this man obstructed justice. Of course, he's always going to have his cult-like followers, but there are people out there who are going to be swayed by hearing Bob Mueller's voice actually say what was in the report.

So I don't even think we actually need to hear any extra dirt that's lying under the carpet. I think that there's plenty on the surface. All right, then, folks. Again, also here in Detroit, I had a chance to talk with Tom Perez, who is the chair of the Democratic National Committee. He spoke to the NAACP delegates, and here is our conversation. Joining us right now folks is Tom Perez. Of course, he is the chairman of the Democratic National Committee. How you doing? Take a seat right here, sir. Good to have you here.

Glad to be with you. Glad to see you, first and foremost. I just finished chatting with Congressman Al Green here. Your thoughts on his continuing push calling for the impeachment of President Trump and trying to get this body to actually pass a resolution endorsing that. Well, I think tomorrow's going to be important

because we need to hear from Director Mueller. I was a prosecutor at the Department of Justice for a long time. I had, and I did public corruption cases, Roland. I had a lot of people who would come to me and say, you've got to indict this person tomorrow. And I understood that instinct because there was frequently a cloud of uncertainty that hung over it. I'm a big believer, and this is based on 13 years at DOJ, that I have to marshal the facts, I have to gather the facts before I move forward with something. And that's exactly what they're doing on the House side.

That's why tomorrow is a seminal day to hear from Director Mueller. I did a lot of public corruption cases where the defendants were stonewalling, and I had to go to court. And that's what our House leadership is doing right now, and we're winning every time in court. So you believe the process that Speaker Nancy Pelosi is on is the right one in terms of taking this thing slow as opposed to immediately going to hearings or immediately taking an impeachment vote? I agree with Speaker Pelosi.

And I think we, you know, I've always been a believer, you know, ready, aim, fire. And also the thing to understand is the only way to defeat this president is at the ballot box because the U.S. Senate, if this president is impeached, you know, they don't do anything for, they're a lapdog for Donald Trump. And so I want to make sure my focus as DNC chair is I got 489 days till the weekend. And my focus every single day is to make sure that we are organizing people. That's why we're here at the NAA conference. That's why we're coming back next week for the second Democratic Party debate. Places like Michigan, Detroit in particular, are critical to our success.

We're organizing early. And that's what we have to do to win is to get into every community, articulate our values, listen, and fight for those issues that matter most to people. Let's talk about the presidential race. Obviously, you have a ton of people who are running. I think it's 25, 26. I know Congressman Eric Swalwell has dropped out. You've had some people critical of the rules. I just saw Governor Bullock on ABC this week on

Sunday when I was on complaining about that. Is that winnowing process important, establishing who doesn't meet a certain threshold? Because again, at the end of the day, if you've got 10, 12 people who are not even getting 1%, does it make sense for them to be on the stage? So talk about that winnowing process that you have. Well, let me talk about our North Star first. Our North Star principle during this primary process has been we want to be fair to every single person who's running. We want to be fair in facts, fair in perception. And so back in January or February, we set forth the rules for the June debates.

And they were inclusive. And I'm proud that they were inclusive. Because early on, I don't want to just have a polling threshold, Roland, because, you know, that just measures name ID in many cases. So we did something unprecedented. We gave people a polling pathway to the debate stage, and we gave people a grassroots fundraising pathway. We said for these first two debates, 1% in three polls or 65,000 donors.

And we wanted to return power to the grassroots. From a certain number of states this way. Including at least 200 from no less than 20 states. And we got that from the 1971 uh campaign public campaign finance law that congress passed so so you're trying to show breadth of one's uh appeal and also if you want to win the presidency you've got to connect with the grassroots one of the most prolific grassroots fundraisers in politics right now is donald trump and uh i've i've heard some criticism from some candidates saying that, well, this is too hard. And with all due respect, if you can't connect with the grassroots, then that's a real

problem. And so we've set forth those two, the threshold for June and July. Now in September, it moves up. And that happens every debate cycle, every primary cycle. The closer you get to Iowa and New Hampshire, the higher the bar is. And so for September, you need 2% and, not or, 2% and 130,000 unique voters, including 400 from 20 states. And if you've got 100,000 today, all you need is another 30. It doesn't go back to zero. So let's talk about the September debate that's going to take place at Texas Southern University, my hometown in Houston, HBCU there as well. So explain to the folks, I know we've been communicating. So it's also happening on the Thursday and the Friday, same time as Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, ALC.

So explain to folks who have no idea, was that a DNC decision? Was that an ABC decision? How did that come about? Right. We were in contact with the CBC Foundation in connection with this. And here's the challenge. We have a network, ABC, that's willing to give us two weeknights in a row. The challenge with September is...

Two weeknights. Two primetime weeknights in a row the challenge with september is two week two prime time we might win the tv new tv season starts and that's the challenge so if you look at september you got september 11th we're obviously not going to do something on 9 11 you've got monday night football and thursday night football which we we want to maximize eyeballs and then when you get into the middle of September, that's when the new season starts. And it's frankly impossible to find two weeknights in September after the 15th where any of the networks would have, any of the non-cable networks would have done it. And there were criticism in 2016 that you had debates on the weekends. So that's also there. And that's, we're sensitive to all of that. We want to make sure that you get to be a farmer

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So listen to Everybody's Business on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Sometimes as dads, I think we're too hard on ourselves. We get down on ourselves on not being able to, you know, we're the providers. But we also have to learn to take care of ourselves. A wrap-away, you got to pray for yourself as well as for everybody else.

But never forget yourself. Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth. Never stop being a dad. That's dedication. Find out more at fatherhood.gov. Brought to you by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council. I know a lot of cops. They get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. Listen to Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Lott. On the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. We met them at their homes. We met them at their recording studios. Stories matter and it brings a face to it. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an iHeart Podcast.