#RolandMartinUnfiltered - Biden/Trump debate recap; Free the Vote bus tour; Beto O'Rourke talks 2020; #BMore mayoral debate

Episode Date: October 24, 2020

10.23.20 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: Biden/Trump debate recap; Free the Vote bus tour; Beto O'Rourke talks 2020; #BMore mayoral debate + Education Matters; After school mentoring amid a global pandemicSupport #RolandMartinUnfiltered via the Cash App ☛ https://cash.app/$rmunfiltered or via PayPal ☛https://www.paypal.me/rmartinunfiltered #RolandMartinUnfiltered Partner: Ceek Whether you’re a music enthusiast or an ultra-base lover. CEEK’s newly released headphones hear sound above, below and from multiple directions unlike traditional headphones where users only hear sound from left and right speakers. Be the first to own the world's first 4D, 360 Audio Headphones and mobile VR Headset. Check it out on www.ceek.com and use the promo code RMVIP2020 #RolandMartinUnfiltered is a news reporting platform covered under Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Today is Friday, October 23rd, 2020. Coming live from the Orlando, Florida office of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition. On today's show, we will talk with the founder of FRCC, Desmond B. Meade, about a massive rally taking place tomorrow. 24 simultaneous rallies taking place all across Florida to get those formerly incarcerated to vote in this 2020 election. Also, State's Attorney Aaron Marcelliallo, the first African-American state's attorney in Florida, will also join us today on Roland Martin Unfiltered.

We'll recap last night's presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden with our panel. Also, we'll hear from Beto O'Rourke on today's show. Also, the candidates for mayor in Baltimore will be debating right here on Roland Martin Unfiltered. And of course, our weekly Education Matters segment. It's a jam-packed show. It is time to bring the funk

here from Orlando on Roland Martin Unfiltered. Let's rolling. Best belief he's knowing. Putting it down from sports to news to politics. With entertainment just for kicks. He's rolling. It's Uncle Roro, y'all. It's rolling, Martin. Rolling with Roland now.

He's funky, he's fresh, he's real, the best you know. He's Roland Martin. Yeah. Martin. All right, folks, Roland Martin here. I am live in Orlando, Florida, at the offices of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition. They were the folks who were behind Amendment 4, which passed in 2018, that changed the Florida state constitution restoring the right to vote for those who are formerly incarcerated. Now, you might remember, Republicans, I said they were not going to take that lightly. What did they do?

They actually went back, created a new law that says that in order for them to get their right to vote back, they must repay all fines and penalties. That has been working its way through the court system, and an appeals court said that the Florida law could stand. In a moment, we're going to be talking with Desmond Meade, who is the president, the leader of this organization. Tomorrow, in 24 different places all across the state, they're going to have simultaneous rallies. Here in Orlando, there's going to be a massive get out the vote rally. Common is going to be performing as well. We're going to be

live streaming that particular event tomorrow. So lots of things happening. And in fact, before that event, a group of black women will be having an event. Anthony Hamilton is going to be performing from 10 to 1 on Sunday in the same location, the parking lot where Amway Center is, where the Orlando Magic play. You're going to have Ricky Smiley and Doug E. Fresh and others who are going to be hosting an event on Sunday. So Orlando is a center of lots of attention this weekend, all of these things happening. And so we are here broadcasting the entire weekend, giving you a sense of what's happening here in Florida. It was the battleground state in this election. But not just that. Monday, we will be in Columbia, South Carolina, on the campus of Benedict College, where Senator Jamie

Harrison is holding an event there, a Get Out the Vote event there. Common is also performing at that event on Monday. Tuesday, we will be in Atlanta, where Raphael Warnock is running for United States Senate. They'll be holding an event there in Atlanta. We'll be broadcasting from there as well. On Wednesday, we will be in Detroit, Michigan. I'll be interviewing Senator Gary Peters, who is facing challenger John James there, talking about that race. We'll be joined on that particular day by Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence, as well as Congresswoman Ilhan Omar out of Minnesota. And then on next Sunday,

we'll be in Jackson, Mississippi for a get out the vote rally for Mike Espy, who is running against Senator Cindy High Smith for the U.S. Senate in Mississippi. And so here we are, folks, again, 10 days, 10, well, 11 days away from the election. Go ahead and pull that graphic up, folks, where we're at now with this election. And so we are coming down to the wire. We are inside of two weeks for this particular election. So many different things are happening. Battlegrounds, more polling is coming out. Again,

10 days until election day on November 3rd. You have early voting taking place across this country as well. So many different things are happening. Let's go to my panel. Amisha Cross, political analyst, Democratic strategist. Michael Imhotep, host of the African History Network show out of Detroit. Dr. Niambe Carter, Howard University Department of Political Science. Misha, after last night's presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden, we see more polls that came out. The snap polls last night showed that Joe Biden won that debate against Donald Trump. New polling shows Joe Biden anywhere from a three to a seven point lead in Pennsylvania, in Michigan, in Wisconsin. They're also looking at polling out of Arizona. It's very tight. He's also up three to four points in North Carolina. Very tight, pretty much even here in Florida, here in Florida, but also in Texas as well. And so if you're Joe Biden,

you're sitting pretty right now. What do you think is going to be the closing argument for Joe Biden and Donald Trump in these final 10 days before November 3rd? Closing argument for Joe Biden is going to fall on three things, COVID-19, health care and race relations. He knows that this country right now is more divided than it has ever been. He's seen the ratcheting up. We've all seen the ratcheting up of racism from the Trump administration. And I think that Joe Biden has shown a clear path with him and Kamala Harris out of the devastation that we've seen from a president who ignores white supremacy. The other thing I definitely think is health care. We know that the Trump administration is doing its level best to try to get rid of Obamacare with the backdrop of a

pandemic, try to get rid of a woman's right to choose. And I think that, you know, the path forward for both Kamala and Joe Biden is to show people just how close we are to having that done. Should we not, should Americans not get out and support them at this point? And lastly, just COVID-19 in general. With President Trump, he has pulled every trick he has. He has fallen on the sword of xenophobia. We know that he harbors white supremacists. He is thrilled by them. He uses their language. If he's not one himself, he surely loves to count them among friends. We've also seen him separate families from their children at the border and claim that coyotes did it, even though this was the pathway that he chose to try to stop

undocumented immigrants, as well as those who are seeking asylum from coming to this country and finding safety at its borders. What we know right now is that President Trump isn't going to change. We knew that in 2016. Well, a lot of us should have known in 2016, but we definitely know it in 2020. And I think that what we learned last night was that President Trump is going to give more of the same. He did not announce anything that he hasn't already been doing. He's trying to re-invoke an economy that he thinks is strong. He's trying to reach out to black men. He's talking about how much he's done for the black community, the second coming of Abe Lincoln, if you will. All of that's

hogwash. And I think the American public is smart. I definitely know that black Americans are smarter and that we know what's at stake in this election. And from the numbers we've seen thus far, black people are really getting out the vote. Dr. Carter, not only with the presidential race, we're seeing what's happening in the Senate races. Jamie Harrison, the first candidate ever to break the $100 million barrier. He is raising $1.5 million a day.

It is a tight race in South Carolina. Many people are shocked that he is doing so well, according to the polling, in raising this kind of money against Senator Lindsey Graham. We also see what is happening in these critical Senate races all across the country. Arizona, where Mark Kelly is up against Martha McSally. Also, Colorado, Hickenlooper is up against Corey Sanders. Then, of course, you have the race taking place in Iowa. In Maine, the Democratic candidates are up, but we're seeing some softness on the Democratic side where it's a tight race for the Democratic Senator Smith in Minnesota. Gary Peters is in a tough race against John James in Michigan. Then, of course, we have Espy in Mississippi, Cal Cunningham versus

Senator Tom Tillis in North Carolina. You also have Hagar against John Cornyn in Texas. Republicans are having to defend a whole lot of turf. Democrats simply need to pick up three Senate seats. If they win the White House, Kamala Harris is the tiebreaker. They want to win at least five to six seats. And don't forget, Ossoff in Georgia leading against Perdue. Perdue, of course, screwed up, mocking Senator Kamala Harris's name. That has helped John Ossoff. Raphael Warnock has now jumped ahead in the polling of Senator Kelly

Loeffler and Congressman Doug Collins. And so this this map, how it's playing out. Democrats are competing in places historically they have not been able to compete. It shows you the kind of intensity on the Democratic side and how Donald Trump has also pissed off many older white voters, independent voters as well. Absolutely. And I think it shows sort of how short his coattails really are, because it was fine when it was looking like he might actually have a second term before COVID came. And then post-COVID, people had some explaining to do because many of these communities are hurting. And it shouldn't be the case that you have long-term incumbents being in dead heaps with relative newcomers to these places. So I think it shows that if you put in the work, I mean, this is what Jesse Jackson said in the 1980s, right, that Reagan won by the margin of despair. And I think Democrats

finally are getting that message in some of these places and saying, we've left these votes on the table for far too long. These states are actually in play. And thankfully, you had new folks coming on the national scene like Stacey Abrams and others who have been building infrastructures in these places to make them competitive. Now, Democrats have to press the gas here, right? They cannot do what they normally done and just sort of say, OK, well, we got this place. We're comfortable. No, you have the money. You need to spend it. And you need to spend it all and max out in these places to make sure that people are still turning out to vote. Because we have to remember, voter intimidation is also on

the rise in a lot of these places that we're talking about, not just suppression. So I think it's now the time for the Democrats to turn it on and go full out here in these places, whether it's South Carolina or North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Texas, for sure. They have got to pour it on and go full out here in these places, whether it's South Carolina or North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Texas, for sure. They have got to pour it on. And these down ballot races are critical, right, to what's going to happen with whoever becomes president. So they definitely have to make a play in all of these places because these are vulnerable seats that shouldn't be vulnerable, quite frankly. So that tells you that people are right to make a new choice. There are very few undersiders out here. Michael M. Hotep is really about turning out your people.

Democrats are turning out in significant numbers. Republicans, though, have listened to Donald Trump. They've been focused on voting on Election Day. Many people are predicting a huge surge of Republican voters. Democrats want to build up as large a lead as they can when it comes to mail-in voting and early voting as well. And so really right now, it's not about what more messaging you can put out to try to get people to come to your side. It's about how can you get your people out to the polls as much as possible. Yeah, it's about turnout, but also more than just about turnout, Roland. So, first of all, we see as of Thursday, October 22nd, Reuters is reporting 47 million people have voted early. OK, huge increase over 2016, this time 2016. But it's about turnout, but not just about turnout, Roland.

It's also about speaking to the issues and concerns of the voter, African-American voters, Hispanic voters, whoever. And I think that connecting with the message, dealing with coronavirus, the impact coronavirus has had on communities, African-American community, Hispanic community, et cetera. We had 220, about 223,000, 224,000 deaths, 8.4 million cases. We just saw today is it set a record 81,000 cases, highest number of cases. OK, so while Trump is on the debate stage last night trying to downplay the severity and saying we're about to turn a corner around the corner is more deaths around the corner is more cases. So it's speaking to the issues, needs, and concerns dealing with getting coronavirus under control, expanding the economy, opening the economy back up,

his Build Back Better plan, 18 million jobs that his plan will create, 7 million more than Trump, things like this, green energy jobs, et cetera, speaks directly to the issues, not playing gospel music in the commercials, but speak to the issues and concerns of the voter. Well, again, that's exactly what this is all about. And so when we begin to look at this here, the impact, Amisha, is also on the down ballot races. You have, Airbus Ayala is not running for reelection, but an African-American woman did win Democratic primary. And so she may become the second African-American state's attorney here. You have a brother who is running for district attorney in Hamilton County there in Cincinnati. You've got African-Americans,

five statewide in North Carolina, who are running as well. That's the case all across the country. And so what was, you got a black woman who was running for the Supreme Court in Texas. And so what people, again, so much energy, Amisha, is always on the top of the ticket. But the reality is Democrats are hoping you're going to see that sort of come down and impact those down ballot races. And again, when it comes down to the margins, that's why, like we talked with Desmond Meade in a second, the formerly incarcerated, they made a difference for John Bill Edwards in Louisiana. Those 40,000 different people, 40,000 folks who had their rights restored, he won by a thin margin for a Louisiana governor. This is how you have to win. And so really right now, it's

going to be push as hard as you can, put as much money as you can on the streets, getting these organizations out here to connect with people, driving them to the polls. That's what's key. And again, emphasizing, don't wait until Election Day. If you've got a state with early voting, do it now. No, you're absolutely right, Roland. And the DNC should be thankful for black media, specifically shows like this, where you have said month after month, time after time, the importance of those down ballot races. Those are the ones that make the most changes in the everyday lives of African-Americans and other minorities across this country. So we're talking about those attorney generals. We're talking about those things, those roles that exist within the state that not only control criminal justice reform, but also different ballot referendums that make sense for your community and your district. And I think that, you know, the turnout that we've seen thus

far has been amazing. We're already seeing tons of records be shattered by the millions who've shown up to vote, but that's not the end of it. We know that there are millions more that need to get out. Vote early. Vote as early as you can. Make sure that if you are doing your vote by mail, that you're also paying attention to the rules and regulations of the area you happen to be in. Make sure that you're signing it. Make sure that you are reading it specifically before you actually take it and drop it off at the post office or drop it off at a ballot box. One of the things that we need to be very certain of is that the closer we get to November 3rd, the closest we get to Election Day, we have a president and we have a constrained Trump administration right now that is on the ropes and fully recognized that not only are their

seats about to be up, those positions about to be up, but also the Senate and also a lot of Republican-held seats at the state level. And that's something that they are willing to do anything and everything to stop. So we're going to see amplified voter suppression. We're going to see amplified voices of negativity. And we're going to see a lot of those negative ads and ads that don't make sense that come about during social media, as well as in your inbox, some of them triggered by Russia, some of them by other foreign entities. But we're also going to see a lot of voter intimidation from physical human beings at these polling places on election day. That is something that the Trump administration, something that conservatives want to see happen. It's something that they have been planning on. And it's one of

the reasons why they are, quite frankly, very frustrated at the numbers they're seeing right now in terms of the early voting totals. Because as Roland mentioned a moment ago, they're counting on Republicans coming out on Election Day. But should you so not be someone who has not already cast your vote earlier, isn't planning on casting it early as a minority, as a black person, as a person of color. Rest assured that if you're in one of these battleground states or a southern state or a state that is consistently voted red, that is now poised to turn blue like Georgia, then there is going to be quite a bit of amplified, amplified nonsense that you're going to see on election day. When you talk about those down-ballot states, that's, excuse me, the state races, that is huge, Dr. Carter, because what's happening here, Republicans right now control 29 state legislatures, meaning they control both houses. Democrats could very well win in Arizona,

control the Texas, Arizona House. They could win also in Texas, first time in 20 years controlling the Texas House. That matters with redistricting. And so what you're seeing here, when Governor Grant Abbott put forth to stop the mail drop boxes limited to one in each county, that wasn't about Biden-Harris. That was about maintaining control of the Texas House because they are getting crushed in the suburbs in Texas, and they're desperately trying to hold on to those positions. And so what we're seeing here, we are seeing, again, the anger against Donald Trump is fueling the Democratic side, and Republicans are trying to hold on because they want to be able to

maintain that level of power because they know if they lose this election and you recreate that multicultural alliance of also young voters combined with older white voters elected Obama twice. Republicans know they have a problem in the next several elections for a very long time. Absolutely, which is also why they want to end the census early, because that's the day you need to do the redistricting process, which happens at the state level. State legislatures have a lot of power. That's why those offices are so prized. And that's why you see the balance of power so out of whack in this country, because Republican values, quite frankly, are becoming the minority in this country. But they know that if they can control these state legislatures and the redistricting process,

they can control our process and our politics for at least a decade at the state level. And if they can get, of course, gubernatorial seats and, of course, they can get presidential seats, then they can get judicial nominations that are also really important. So Republicans have been thinking about this for a long time, which is why they have been so aggressive at the end getting these down ballot races, because with relatively little money, you can flip these seats and you can control a state's politics for a very long time. And in that time, you can do a lot of damage to the communities that are most vulnerable and most easy to dissuade from showing up on election days. So they know what's at stake here and they're going to fight tooth and nail.

I agree with Amisha. They're not going to let this go easily. So there are going to be a lot of challenges, not only to the modes of of election, but to actual election results. I feel after this moment, because they know if they lose now, then this is probably, you know, lights out for them, which is why the judicial nominations they made have been so critical, because it could happen at the judicial judicial level. Another way to reinstitute them into the power they currently hold in these states. All right. Hold tight one second, folks. We've got to go to commercial break. When we come back, we'll talk with Desmond Meade. He is the president and founder of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition. They were very successful in 2018 to pass that amendment to change the state constitution to restore the voting rights for upwards of 1.4 million people. Republicans have been fighting that effort because they see what is happening here in Florida. We'll talk to him next as Roland Martin Unfiltered broadcasted live

from the FRRC offices here in Orlando, Florida. We'll be back in a moment. I didn't really hear a lot of people talk about Bowdoin growing up. It wasn't a conversation. It was always who in office. But you never knew how they got there. They just like, see, they done put this man in office. And I'm like, who is they? Put him in office. That's all I used to hear was, they put this man in office.

There ain't nobody in office for us. OK, but so how did they get there? It was always they. They. But they was never defined. It was never defined. And did anybody even own up to I'm part of they? No, it was just a they in the office,

they ain't gonna let us, them look what they did, them folks there. It was never like who are them, they, and those? Who are these people? And when you grow, I didn't even find out about voting, which is oddly enough how important voting was. I found out about how important voting was in prison. Dead serious.

Dead serious. you. The guy in the White House is a mortal, not a god. The members of the Congress, they are mortals, not gods. Bowing down is not enough. We will stand up again. We will march again. We will preach again. We will organize again. We are black. We are white. We are Latino. We are Native American. We are Democrat. We are Republican. We are independent. We are people of faith. We are people not of faith. We are natives and immigrants. We are business leaders and workers and unemployed. We are doctors and the uninsured. We are gay. We are straight. We are students. We are parents. We are retirees. We are America. And we're here. And we ain't going nowhere. Hey, it's Alfre Woodard. Listen, I know there's a lot that must change in our communities.

And sometimes it's hard to imagine things getting better. And no, voting won't solve everything, but it is a step forward. So remember, in Texas, you can vote early in person between October 13th and October 30th. Plus, if you need a free ride to vote, use the code VOTETOLIVETX in your Lyft app. Visit VOTETOLIVE.org for information. Paid for by Collective Future. As I said, folks, we're here in Orlando, Florida, at the office of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition. You see these signs behind me, let my people vote and free the vote. That is that is the slogans they have used.

It was 10 years, 10 years. They worked on the effort to pass Amendment 4 here in Florida to change the state constitution, restoring the voting rights of formerly incarcerated folks. That passed overwhelmingly by two thirds majority here in Florida in 2018. But they are still battling the Republicans in this state because they then went and passed a law saying you had to pay all of your fines and penalties before you can get your right to vote. The guy, of course, who conceived this, he has been leading this effort. He and his wife, Sheena Meade, Desmond Meade, joins us right now. Desmond, how you doing, man? I'm fine, man. Welcome to Florida, bro.

All right. Glad to be here. And so it has been a crazy last two years. You thought it was going to be a little bit easier than it's supposed to be. But the fact of the matter is, ain't nothing easy for us. You're right about that. But that's one thing I can say, that we are resilient people. And we'll always find a way. So whenever right about that, but that's one thing I can say, that we are resilient people, and we'll always find a way. So whenever they throw obstacles, we just take those and turn them into opportunities to grind and keep

grinding, and eventually, they're going to back away. And so, when we talk about this Free the Bus tour that you're going to be on as well, tomorrow, what's happening in Orlando, but all across Florida? Yeah, so tomorrow, if I could use street slang,

tomorrow, we're about to clap back, right? We're clapping back against anybody that's trying to intimidate us. If they're trying to discourage people from voting, if they're trying to block us from voting, even with these fines and fees obstacles, we're clapping back, and we're responding

to that by showing up in even greater numbers. So we're asking returning citizens in over 30 cities throughout the state of Florida to bring their family, their friends, their community to come and vote with them and celebrate the expansion of democracy and show the powers that be that we don't scare easy. And when you talk about that, so what's happening here in Orlando, the Amway Center, where the Orlando Magic play has been used as a voting location. But the rally taking place tomorrow is going to be what? There in the parking lot area? Explain what's actually happening here in Orlando. Yeah, so we know we've been working with Orlando Magic, of course, more than a vote to really have arenas, sports arenas, throughout the state of Florida,

somehow or another, be polling locations. We were able to be successful with Orlando Magic, and so we wanted to really highlight that commitment that Orlando Magic had, even with the communities that was right next to it. Paramore was one of our poor communities, one of the communities where we have the highest concentration of people who are disenfranchised who benefited from Amendment 4. And so we said, let's party at the arena right right next to this neighborhood. And we're going to go out there and we're going to bring the people to the polls and we're going to celebrate with them.

We're going to have a stage set up right across the street. We have people like Common come down and and other artists that's going to be coming down and performing. And we're going to have a very important discussion that I believe you're going to be leading about the Ocoee massacre, right? Because it really relates right back to what we're doing now about how in the past so many people have tried to stop us from actually participating in democracy.

And they have went as far as to burn down a town and to murder people to prevent them from voting. And so we're going to show, by showing up in over 30 cities in Florida and in over 27 cities in 13 states throughout the country. So in Texas, North Carolina, Michigan, Wisconsin, Alabama, and Louisiana, we have returning citizens that's going to be leading other formerly incarcerated people to the polls, right, to show that as people who have struggled, who have been incarcerated,

we're not backing down from these intimidation tactics because our forefathers went through way more than what we went through. Also, I see some of y'all comments. Y'all might want to calm down. We are more than six feet away from each other. And so we're doing social distancing here. So that's why normally the interview, we're right next to each other. So y'all settle down. People are like, y'all need to have your mask on. We got this.

This ain't our first time doing this. Desmond, talk about, look, y'all have been going into places a lot of campaigns don't go into. Share with our audience what the reaction has been like talking to these brothers and sisters who thought they would never have an opportunity to vote. You yourself. And you're trying to make me cry, Roland, right? That's what you're trying to do, right? Well, I ain't trying to make me. That's what you're trying to do.

You're trying to do, right? Well, I ain't trying to make you try. You're trying to make me cry. Listen, for real. I can't tell that story without talking about that sister in Oslo, Florida. And we worked with her to get her eligible to vote. And when we came back to register to vote right before that, her doctor gave her six months to live. And she started crying as she was filling out her voter registration form, saying how she never thought that she would ever get that opportunity to vote because of her drug addiction and because of a felony conviction. But there she was now filling out her voter registration form. And when she went to sign it, she asked our canvases to pray that God would allow her to

live long enough to be able to cast a ballot. Roland, she was given six months to live, and she wasn't trying to go to Disney World. She wasn't trying to go to an exotic place or meet a celebrity. She just wanted to vote. She just wanted to cast a ballot and see how it felt to be like an American citizen. And that hit me right here. And then when I reached back out to her, maybe about like two weeks later, come to find out her health took a turn for the worst. The family had to rush her in the hospice. And four days after getting in the hospice,

she passed away. And that just ripped my heart apart because that's all this woman wanted. And I know that her story is indicative of so many people. We had a brother this morning that's reached out to me and said how he was faking the fuck all these years, being apathetic about voting, saying, oh, my vote don't matter, it didn't count. And the whole time he couldn't vote. And yesterday he voted for the first time, and he revealed that all that time he was really jealous of people that were voting. He was really jealous of that. Just think about that.

And so he voted for the first time in his life. You have so many people that's doing that age of 71, 78, in their 60s that have never voted before. And so these are stories of returning citizens throughout the state of Florida, actually throughout the country. The sleeping giant has awakened. Reverend Dr. William Barber has talked about that. He's talked about the poor, 75 million who did not vote. 91 million total did not vote in 2016. That's eligible to vote.

Now we start talking about those who are incarcerated. And you have people in this country who still want to keep them in prison. I say it's a prison without shackles, saying, oh, you did your time, but now all of a sudden you still can't vote. y'all passed amendment for uh have you seen in even greater intensity pick up across the country uh folks who now realize that's not the way to go the governor of isle republican restored the voting rights as well she you know republicans that didn't want to do it but she said this is the right thing to do and with no fines and fees requirement right with no fines and fees requirement and we've seen you know we got our brothers and sisters in California right now. They have Prop 17 that's on the ballot that would extend the franchise to people while they're on parole or probation. You know, you're seeing efforts in Kentucky. You have returning citizens that are leading the effort to help register folks

that have been reenfranchised by the governor there. And so, yes, it is a growing movement throughout the country. And more and more people are understanding that the only people that don't want people with felony convictions to vote are the people that have taken that position for purely political reasons. It doesn't make any sense whatsoever. When you have Maine and Vermont, you know, which ironically, the majority of that population don't look like me and you. Right. But in Maine and Vermont, you know, which ironically the majority of that population don't look like me and you. Right. But in Maine and Vermont, they could vote from prison and jail.

And that's never been an issue. And I think that we can go as far as that. Right. I think that no one should ever lose their rights. Right. I have four sons. And they do some stupid things every now and then. But no matter what they do, they never stop being my sons.

When you strip voting rights away from a person, you basically strip them of their citizenship. We're not relegated to second class citizenship status. And so I don't think a person should ever lose their citizenship. And we should always be able to have our voices heard. You're counting for the census. You're making money off of it. We're paying taxes. so why can't we vote? Absolutely. Again, 24 states, 24 locations all across Florida, but also you said 13 other states?

No, man, you sure changed this, man. I was checking. Over 30 cities in the state of Florida. I just want you to repeat it. Over 13 states in the country and 27 cities in the country, and folks are really showing up. I think it's so beautiful because you know as a person that's been through recovery one of the

things I learned in Alcoholics Anonymous is that the most important person in the room is that person that just got off the street, that person that just got sober and right now at polling locations all across this country the most important voter at their polling location are those first-time voters. People who've gotten their rights restored, people who have never voted. And we need to make sure that that experience is not a traumatic experience,

but a lively, exciting experience. And that's why we're throwing down, man, we don't have a big party, right? Because we need them to know that voting is something that they should want to do and enjoy doing rather than feeling it's a task that they have to do. Last thing for you, which one of the cameras he should look into? I want you to look into that camera.

There's a brother who's watching. There's a sister who's watching. They have they got friends who they know. They got family members who say voting is a waste of my time. I'm not. It's a chooser of the lesser evil they're coming up with all these excuses uh how long it was how long did you not have your right to vote oh for me i haven't voted it's the first time i voted in over 30 years and the first ever presidential election

that i'm voting in so for that person so for that person who's watching who says, man, I ain't trying to hear all that. Man, first of all, let me tell you, if your vote didn't matter, you wouldn't have so many people trying so hard to stop you from voting. There is some value there. But even when you talk about that, people are not paying attention to your issues. I can't pay attention to your issues if I don't even know you there. And the only reason people are going to know you there is when you show up to the polls and vote. That's when that power manifests itself.

But as long as you stay at home, as long as you're making excuses, then guess what? You will always experience these issues that we're experiencing today. And another thing, don't get caught up in the candidates, right? There's no such thing as a perfect candidate, but you should be going to vote for the most important person, and that is you and the one you love. You talk about you'll fight for the one you love. You're willing to die for the one you love. You need to ask yourself, are you willing to vote for the one you love? Because if you don't, there's going to be somebody's neck on yours pretty soon. That's what I mean. I appreciate

it, my brother. Look forward to the event tomorrow. Listen, I'm looking forward to having you, man. We turning up. All right, then. Desmond, I appreciate it. Thanks a bunch. And of course, y'all, I will be rocking my Let My People Vote shirt tomorrow.

We're going to be live streaming the event. It starts at what time tomorrow? Two o'clock. We're going to be live streaming the event on Roller Mark Unfiltered tomorrow, 2 p.m. Y'all want to let everybody know we'll be right here. So, Desmond, we appreciate it. Thank you so very much. Michael, I want to start with you.

The point that Desmond made right there, again, there are brothers and sisters out there, especially brothers who say, man, this is a waste of my time. But the reality is you can't change anything. You can't change anything in this country without public policy. So you can't say I want to see stuff change if you don't vote for the folk who are in position to actually change stuff. Well, you know, our role in politics is the legal distribution, the scarce wealth, power and resources and the law. Can you hear me? Can you hear me? Live. You're live. Go ahead. Okay. Yeah. Politics is the legal distribution of scarce wealth,

power, and resources, and the writing of law, statutes, ordinances, amendments, and treaties, the adoption, interpretation, and enforcement. So politics impacts every aspect of our life, from the water we drink to the air we breathe to the food we eat. When we look at the protesters over George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery, you have to have people in office to properly respond to your demands and your protests. Well, how did they get in office? Okay, they were elected in the office or they were appointed by somebody who was elected. And then the other part of this, Roland, as you talk about, is that on the other side of the election, we have to have the engagement. And we also have to understand how oftentimes we're financing our own dehumanization. of Black America and you had Reverend Al Sharpton as one of your guests. Reverend Al Sharpton talked

about how money managers take our pension fund dollars and loan them to real estate developers. The real estate developers come into our communities and gentrify us out of our communities with our own dollars. So oftentimes we don't know that we can contact our money managers, find out where our pension fund dollars are invested in, and redirect them into other areas that are not doing us harm. So on the other side of voting, we also have to leverage our economics to enforce our politics. As one of my teachers, Dr. Claude Anderson, would say if he were here right now. Um, I want to now go to Dr. Carter again, I keep trying to explain to people voting is not the solution.

It is a part of the solution. And I get people out there who have grown frustrated when others have said, you've got to vote, you've got to vote, you've got to vote, as if that was the only thing you have to do. It's not the only thing you have to do to change our communities, but it's something, Dr. Carter, you got to do if you do want to see change in our neighborhoods. Absolutely. And I think Michael's point is exactly right. You can't stop at that moment because really all your vote is, is the beginning of a conversation. And if you think of the people that you elect as making you a promise, then anybody else that made you a promise,

if I loan you $20 today and you said you're going to have it back to me in five days, you better know I want my $20. Well, you have to treat these people the same way. You're giving them your vote with the expectation that something is going to happen. But nobody is incentivized to do anything if you just sort of let them leave them to their own devices. We have to show up. We have to go to the city council meetings. We have to be in their face. It's our duty in some cases to know their records better than they do. And don't just go to them expecting them to have all the solutions. We have the

solutions. We know what works well and doesn't work well in our own communities. So we have to be empowered, one, to take our demands to those people and to do it consistently. But two, we also have to be prepared to be the leaders in our own community. Because I know everybody's bailiwick is not necessarily policy. But let's be clear, elected officials weren't elected officials until we chose them. So we can also be the leaders in our own community. And if we don't like who we're seeing on the ticket, then let's put ourselves on those tickets and represent our communities and our interests,

because we also have that power as well. So I don't want people to think that it's always somebody else, that everybody has the agency and we have none of it. We have a lot of it, but we have to remember that it's an act that we always have to invoke. Our vote is not a passive thing we do every year, every two years or every four years. It's something that we have to invoke every single day because your vote gives you space in the room. And if you don't show up on the polls, believe me, the people who do show up, they're going to be the ones that get to make decisions about your lives. Because whether 20 people show up or 20,000 people show up, an election will be decided one way or the other. Amisha, on that particular point right there, again, I go back to the race here

two years ago in this state between Andrew Gillum and Ron DeSantis. I remember the Tallahassee Democrat put out a story and they said where the votes came from. And the chart was amazing. And that is literally the first 12 to 13. It was about the highest turnout among counties. You had to go down 13 or 14 counties before you got to a blue county. And the turnout was 70-plus in the northern Florida, older voters, and it was like 72, 74, then we had lower, lower, lower. I think it was Broward that was the first one. It was around 57. And I sat there and said, the first one. It was around 57.

And I sat there and said, then Miami-Dade was around 54. Basically, folks, this is what that chart said, Amisha. White folks voted. Massive turnout. Where black people are, much lower turnout. Gillum loses about 30,000 votes. That was the difference right there. If we voted our numbers, Gillum is governor.

DeSantis is not governor. And then guess what? That bill the Republicans passed doesn't get signed into law with Amendment 4. And so that's how we have to understand. And for the folks who also get caught up in, well, I don't like this person, that person, I am not saying to anybody vote for Biden and Harris because they're the greatest people in the world. We all have policy differences. What I am saying, I know who is dead set against us, and that's Trump-Pence. But we have to say, what are our issues that we care about, and who do we align with when it comes to those issues? No, that's absolutely true. I think that the black agenda, so to speak, and what black people want to see on in terms of policy, how they want, how we want our world to change, how we want our lives to change, the things that we want for our kids in the education system, as well was quite frankly hurt. Though I was born in Chicago, I was raised across the South, and I spent a great deal of time in Pensacola and Pace, Florida,

Santa Rosa and Escambia County, to be exact, in northern Florida. So I know what that turnout looks like among white people, and the minute that they see a black person on the ticket, specifically statewide, they come out in droves to stump that person into the ground. So Andrew Gillum was up against a lot from the beginning. I do think that for African-Americans, you have to look inwardly and say, what are the policy issues that matter to me? And look at the campaigns that we're seeing run right now, not only at the top of the ticket with Biden-Harris, but also looking down ballot

in states like Florida and really being that vocal sense of change. And by vocal, I mean, getting your feet to the polls. But in addition to that, to what Dr. Carter said a few moments ago, it does not end there. I get tired of people complaining and complaining and complaining about how much their vote doesn't matter. Well, guess what? Voting is step one. Step two is holding people's feet to the fire, making sure that the things that they ran on, the policy issues that got you excited, the things that you want to see them do in office, that you are making sure that they do that. You're making those calls. You're writing those letters because they work for you. They are paid by the taxpayer dollars that come from you. So it is up to you to not only ensure that those

people get into office, but to make sure that once they get there, they're honoring the things that they ran on and the things that are necessary to make your community look like that shining beacon on a hill that you see so often from communities that don't look like us or have people that represent us. That is the secondary part of your job. A functioning democracy only works when you fully participate. So it's not just about voting. It's also about organizing and that organizing doesn't stop. Sad to tell you, black folks, that just because you voted early or because you vote on Election Day, that's not your only duty. You have to make sure that you're having those constant conversations. You have to make sure that you are checking things off the box and seeing, hey, did said election said elector X do what they said they were going to do on that campaign trail? What are some things that I now want to see change? Having those meetings, having those conversations,

blasting them on social media, whatever you have to do to ensure that these people actually get the job done. That is your role. That is the role of every citizen. All right, then. Amisha, Michael, and Dr. Carter, I appreciate y'all being on our panel today. Folks, we got a jam-packed show coming up next.

Our talk with State's Attorney Aramis Ayala the first African-American state's attorney in Florida. She says black folks are in a domestic violent situation with police. In the second hour of the show, we'll also talk to the two candidates who are running for mayor of Baltimore. They'll be debating right here on Roland Martin Unfiltered. And we'll hear from Beto O'Rourke about how Democrats could win Texas and turn that state or return it to being a blue state. Lots more to do as we broadcast live here from Orlando, Florida, in the offices of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition.

You're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered. We'll be right back. I think as we get so hung up on the big picture, you know, the big picture matters, but it only matters when we all do small things. That's how it happens. It's not, hey, let's just post on Twitter and post on Instagram because, yes, social media is huge. We know it, but we have to actually get out there and walk the walk. Hey, South Carolina, it's Magic Johnson.

In 2016, almost 7 million black men didn't vote in the election. And I get it. It's tough to believe in a system that keeps letting us down. But we can't push for progress if we don't vote. Bros, please vote early, before November 2nd. If you need a free ride to vote, use promo code VOTETOLIVESC in your Lyft app. Visit VOTETOLIVE.org for more information. Paid for by Collective Future.

Hey, Florida, this is Rashida Jones, and I have three quick things to tell you. One, you can vote early in person between October 19th and November 1st. Two, if you need a free ride to the polls, use the promo code VOTETOLIVEFL in your Lyft app. And yes, voting is easy and secure. So please visit VOTETOLIVE.org for more information and to make a plan to vote today. Paid for by Collective Future. Hey, folks, welcome back to Roland Martin Unfiltered, broadcasted from Orlando, Florida,

the offices of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition. Four years ago, she was elected state's attorney, first African-American state's attorney in Florida. A lot of people, a lot of people were excited by that. Then when she made the decision to say, I am not going to prosecute death penalty cases, man, that ticked off Florida Governor Rick Scott and others. And she was in a constant battle with folks in this state. She chose not to seek reelection, but she is still fighting on behalf of constituents. I wrote this interesting piece on B.T. dot com where she said black people are in essence in a domestic violence relationship with police.

And she sent it to me and said, I would love to chat about it. And I said, well, let's do so right here on the show when I come to town. And we're here. So glad to see you here, State's Attorney Ayala. How you doing? Good. Thanks for having me. So explain this concept that you lay out, that black folks, we're in this domestic violence relationship with police.

So when I originally ran for office, I ran on a domestic violence platform. In Orlando, close to 20% of our cases, our homicides are connected to domestic violence. I also ran on a platform to try to bridge some of these gaps between the community and the police. So over the years, I started looking at the dynamic, and I looked at the power structure. And when you study domestic violence, you understand that it is a wheel. It is a power and control that starts with the tension building. It's then it ends up with the climax. Then it goes to the honeymoon. And then when George Floyd hit, the light went on. I realized that we are constantly battling the harassment. We're constantly battling this fear, this dynamic that we need the police, but we are being harassed and harmed by the police. And that I looked at all the correlations and there are

way too many that we can't even get in today, but some of them have to do with the fear that the victims have. You know, when you look at an encounter that law enforcement has, when a person is stopped, even me being stopped in this community, you know, it doesn't matter how much power you have that the fear and the trepidation that is, that goes know, it doesn't matter how much power you have, that the fear and the trepidation that goes on, it doesn't matter what's in your car, what's not. You understand your life is in danger. That's exactly how domestic violence victims feel when they are encountering privately their abuser.

Additionally, we look at the dynamic of jealousy. You know, they never want them getting attention. So when the whole Black Lives Matter movement, they were getting the attention. They were getting the dignify. And then guess what happens? Blue Lives Matter. We deal with that. And one of the most profound ones, correlations that I saw, was that in domestic violence, everyone thinks the highest of the person.

They've got this charismatic personality. And just like law enforcement, they are loved. And privately, like on stops during the street, there's the harassment, there's the abuse, there's this lack of humanity and treatment. But then when they get found out, they act like it's an isolated incident. That's exactly what happens. The few bad apples. The few bad apples. We act like it. And we keep having this conversation as if it is isolated. Maybe it might be 10 officers, but if all of those 10 are assigned to the communities, that's 100 percent of them.

So we've got to look at the dynamic of not just how many officers are being affected, but how many members in the black community are being affected. It's interesting you lay that out there because, again, when folks talk about, oh, these various officers and then as if the community is saying, no, no, no, no, hold up. But that's not our, that's not our relationship. That's your relationship. And so it's sort of like the person who abuses their wife. Phenomenal at work. Oh no. Absolutely. Jim is great. He's awesome. He's great to get along with. Yeah. But you ain't living with Jim. You're not living with him. But also in the article, I talk about it not just being the individuals, but being a culture.

The the culture of policing gets us away from finding the good ones and the bad ones, because the culture of policing, when you understand the roots of it and the slave patrols and, you know, going into lynchings and covering those things. And now we're in the era of mass incarceration. We are perpetuating a culture that is dangerous to black people, to all communities of color, poor people, but in particular black people. So when we don't address the culture that begins to dominate, you know, I wrote in the article, there was a research that was done, and 60% of families who are law enforcement officers,

they are affected in their own individual homes by domestic violence. So 40 percent. I'm sorry. So you're looking at a large number of people who are working in the culture of law enforcement when they have their own abusive issues in their home. Then they go into a culture that perpetuates this this power and control, this domineering instead of the service. Law enforcement is a public service agency that the people should feel served. And if you do any type of analysis, you do polling, I can assure you that black communities do not feel served by the officers who are supposed to be there. I remember the video when the officer pulled you over and uh you were in the car and someone else was in the car with you i was in i was i i taught at famu's law school coming home that night i was in the car by myself you don't call by yourself he pulls you over and

you literally like why are you pulling me over knowing full well the law and he's sitting here uh being nice being cordial um but i'm sitting'm watching it going, is this his reaction because this is a black female? Would that be his reaction if it was a black male? Because we know some examples of folks walking up with their hand on the gun. And then when you begin to ask questions and he's still trying to give this reason, you're going, uh, really? None of it is fitting. And I know you bring up the point about black men, but let's not forget Sandra Bland. Right.

So had I had a different attitude, a natural attitude, I will, versus understanding the danger that I was in, despite the title, despite the degrees, despite the level of power. Because your title wasn't on the back of your car. It was not. It was not. However, they ran my tag. And it is a it is a stateued vehicle that it comes back to nothing. So it was a blank tag, which is how they justified the stop.

There were no traffic violations. The state vehicle has a legal tent. There's nothing that had been wrong except where I was driving. I didn't get on the highway from the law school. I went through the area that they patrol extremely highly. And the point that you made about in terms of how it responds, because remember, every time I break down that Sandra Bland video, I mean, literally, she comes out of the parking lot. He flips the car around, and he's waiting for her to make a mistake. He's waiting.

Not, you did something. No, I'm going to wait for you to make a mistake. The craziest thing that happened, I did my show, Riding North Carolina, on Tuesday. And so I drove from D.C. to Raleigh. What was interesting is, I'm driving, and I see a police officer. I'm on the phone. I'm talking, headset. So I see the cop. All right'm on the phone. I'm talking, headset. So I see the cop.

All right, we slow down. Natural reaction. I see him getting in his car, hop out. So I'm like, hmm, either he's for me because I knew I was going about 75. I said, either me or someone else.

So let me see. So he's coming up, coming up, coming up, coming up. I'm looking in the rearview mirror. All of a sudden, he comes up. He literally pulls up on the side of me. Not where I can i can see him but so i'm okay i don't know what he's doing what we're doing here so i slow down i've

dropped down to 65 i've dropped down to 60 he's still i'm like all right i'm like damn i don't know the speed limit i've dropped to 55 he pulls me over i have never in my life had a cop pull me over to say you were going too slow. I said, I'm sorry, I was going too slow? He said, yeah, because typically there are people, they're flying 80, 85, 90 on this freeway. And if someone's going that fast and you're going 55, they can slam into you. I said, no, I was doing 75. He said, but you slow down. I'm like, yeah, I saw you. Right. And, you know, that's that's the other thing that I didn't I didn't share with you is when people are stopped by law enforcement, it increases not just the possibility of a fatal encounter, but a resisting charge. You know, in Florida, it's not resisting arrest. It's resisting

an officer's lawful command. So if he says, get out the car, you have to get out. It doesn't matter. You're going to end up with a charge. Correct. You now are resisting. And that's what the, when the officer in Texas told Sandra Bland to get out of the car and she resisted, that's when he was like the hell with the ticket. I'm putting you under arrest because he knew. So I created a diversion program for resisting. We looked at 63% of our standalone diversion cases, meaning those that have no other charge associated with it were black people, despite in this county, us only representing 22.8% of the population. So significantly higher. And that didn't even include Hispanics, Latino community either. So when you're looking at it, what I did is we're just going to watch a little video and understand the safety of it.

We're going to understand that you are in danger and we're going to eliminate this. So people aren't going through the criminal justice system because they defied a law enforcement officer when no violence was used. No other crime was used other than the fact that they got stopped, especially when the Supreme Court has already said the pretextual stops are legitimate. So pretext stopped legitimate. Now I end up with a resisting. That is not justice in anyone's mind. That may be an agenda, but the agenda is not justice. You chose not to run for reelection.

What's next for you? Let's be clear. I didn't run because I'm scared. I did not run because of any other issue. I'm not interested in killing people with my signature. A lot of people can talk about what somebody deserves to do. I'm not interested in using my signature that the good Lord gave me to justify starting the wheels of death. So that's why I decided not to run. The court said I had to, not into it. The court said you had to prosecute death penalty cases. I had to consider killing people. And like I said, you can sit around a table and talk about it.

But the day before I became state attorney, that would have been conspiracy to commit murder. Now I get a title, and now it's actually legal, and the Supreme Court says that I have to do it. I'm violating the law. Let's not even open up that can. I understand that it is an issue when it comes to death penalty, but I said what I said. I believe what I believe in. And until you have authority to kill somebody, don't tell me how you would have handled that authority, number one. But you asked what is next. Once you get in this field, once you are pursuing justice, seeing justice rolls, seeing the answer to a lot of

prayers and cries, and seeing the dreams realized from people from the past who have passed on, you don't stop. So it may not be in this realm. I'll be sure to keep you posted with where it will be. All right. Well, we certainly look forward to it. Thank you so very much. Congratulations on all the work that you've done.

It certainly inspired a whole new generation of folks to see you elected and see you take the stand that you took. Thanks for what you do, Ronald. I appreciate it. Thanks a bunch. Folks, got to go to a commercial break. When we come back, we'll talk to the two candidates who are running for mayor of Baltimore.

They'll debate right here on Roland Martin Unfiltered. See, that's why you got to have black-owned platforms because, see, you ain't got to ask anybody for opinion. We can do this, two black candidates right here discussing the future of Baltimore. We'll be back on Roland Martin Unfiltered. I didn't really hear a lot of people talking about Bowdoin growing up. It wasn't a conversation.

It was always who in office, but you never knew how they got there. They just like, see, they didn't put this man in office. They don't like, who is they to put him in office? That's all I used to hear was, they put this man in office. They ain't nobody in office for us. OK, but so how did he get there? It was always they. They.

But they was never defined. It was never defined. And did anybody even own up to, I'm part of they? No. It was just a, they in office. They ain't going to let us. Look what they did, them folks there. It was never like, who are them, they, and those? Who are these people?

And when you grow, I didn't even find out about voting, which is oddly enough how important voting was. I found out about how important voting was in prison. Dead serious. Dead serious. Dead serious. All right, folks, we talk about elections around the country, national elections, state elections, also local elections in Baltimore. There's a mayoral race taking place. You might remember, of course, the previous mayor went to federal prison as a

result of corruption. Jack Young, who took her place, lost in the primary. Joining us right now are the two candidates, Shannon Wright, as well as Bob Wallace. They're both running for mayor of Baltimore. Folks, how y'all doing? Doing well, thank you. And yourself? Doing great, doing great. So let's do this here. Each of you have an opportunity to make an opening statement. Shannon, we'll start with you. So I'm running for mayor of Baltimore because the last several administrations have failed. We are dealing with high crime, failing schools, diminishing population,

lowered quality of life because of the policies of the last several administrations. In my administration as mayor, we are going to prioritize public education because that is the one surefire sustainable way out of poverty. We are going to get back to doing things that we know make our streets safe. We are going to require the police department to do some house cleaning itself before it can come into the community to try and get some things done there. We are going to do the things necessary to bring resources in for small black and brown businesses so that they can continue to create the jobs that need to be created and make those businesses a partnership with the city, not just something that has to be tolerated or accepted. There's a lot of work to do

and in my administration, we're going to hit the ground running day one, and we're going to run strong and we're going to run hard and we're going to get it done. We also have, of course, independent candidate Bob Wallace who is running. Bob, what is your opening statement? Well, when I first made my announcement that I was going to run, I talked about Baltimore being a tale of two cities, right? So you have one city that is affluent, that is safe, that is clean, that has wonderful opportunities, neighborhoods that are deteriorating, school system that does not work, predominantly African-American. The next mayor of this city has to be able to take those two cities and to put them into one.

And so my job as the mayor, the next mayor of Baltimore City, is to do just that. And in three, I have to work in order to make that happen, in my view. Number one, and this is a big part of my platform, is we've got to be able to build the economy in Baltimore City by creating jobs and economic opportunity. One of the things you'll find in Baltimore City historically is that African-Americans, the African-American community, has not been able to participate in the prosperity and the growth of this city. That's why the economy and expanding the economy in Baltimore City, creating 100,000 jobs in my first term as mayor and attracting at least a

billion dollars of new investment in my first term as mayor is essential in the implementation of what I call my Nehemiah economic plan for Baltimore City. Tied to the economy and jobs, of course, is education. Education in terms of educating our children to be able to be competitive on a national and a global level. Right now, 85 percent of our babies that come through our school system are not graduating at the level where they can read and do mathematics at a level that is competitive with other jurisdictions in the state. That has to change a priority for me in my administration. And then the third area, which is just as important, but they're all connected, is the crime, the crime and violence, right? So we know that crime and violence is a symptom to a deeper root problem.

The root problem in Baltimore's case is twofold. Number one, the economy in Baltimore has not benefited the African-American community. Secondly, the educational system in Baltimore City has not benefited the African-American community. Consequently, many of our young men in particular are out on the street with no job, no skills, and thus they turn to crime and violence. So these three things are interdependent. And in my administration, there will be a major focus of how we turn Baltimore around. There are a total of four candidates who are running for mayor of Baltimore. You have working class party candidate David Harding, who's also running,

as well as city council president Brandon Scott, Democratic nominee for president. We did invite both of those candidates as well to participate in this conversation. They declined. And so it's important for us to also say that. I got to ask you the question for you, Shannon, before I go to some other questions that were sent to me. Baltimore is a heavily Democratic city. Brandon Scott is considered the heavy favorite to win this. How do you make the case in a heavily Democratic city that you as a Republican should be the mayor of Baltimore? So in order to make that case, the statistics in Baltimore kind of make some of that case

to that point on their own. Crime is up. We're heading to the sixth straight year, 300 plus homicides. Half the failing schools, literally half in the state of Maryland are in Baltimore City. Our population is the lowest it's been in a long time, if not ever. Jobs are leaving, infrastructure is crumbling, and the quality of life is dwindling. Now, that's not something that is political or partisan. That's something that just comes from neglect. And in Baltimore, as you've said, being a heavily Democrat city, there has not been a Republican mayor since 1967. So the issues and the ills and the policies and the legislation are from the folk that have been running the city. So in order to get different for the city, you've got to vote different for the city. And that, to me, still recognizes that we have a two-party system and that the resources coming from the state and the federal will come from either of those two parties and very little from the middle.

So it is time for this city to stop just sitting out there with his hand saying, please, sir, may I have some more, and taking the crumbs and the scraps from folks that they let drop on the floor for you while they assume your vote every four years. And if nothing else, make the Democrats earn the votes. Let the Republicans show that they have a different solution and a different way of thinking about it. But honestly, removing all of that, it's about quality of life. That quality of life has dwindled under the last six Democrat-led administrations in the city of Baltimore. That's not my thought. That's facts. That's statistics. That's numbers. Bob, same question to you.

You're running as an independent. Baltimore, heavily Democratic city. How do you break through to get voters say, we'll take a chance on you to be mayor of the city, being an independent candidate? Well, see, Roland, I think that's the power of my role as a candidate here. Because versus being a candidate of the Democratic Party or the Republican Party, I'm a candidate of the people.

I'm an independent thinking man who can stand on his own and can think of ideas and pursue his destiny. I don't need permission from anybody. I'm unbought and I'm unbossed. And so I think that that is very attractive to many people in the city who have felt over the years, quite frankly, Roland, that the Democratic Party takes us for granted and that the Republican Party tends to ignore us. And so we as a people need to stand up on our own feet

and decide who we are and what we want to be as an independent-thinking people. And so I feel that as an independent candidate, I can pull from the Democratic Party, Republican Party, any of their plays that make sense to solve the problems of our city. I am free to do that. I think the second reason, Roland, I would say that's critical here is timing. It is timing. You and I both know in business that you can have the best idea, the best strategy, the best approach that you want.

But if the timing is wrong, then that deal will not work. The timing in Baltimore is such that the pain is so great. I mean, every day, we are losing our babies to violence in the streets. I mean, just this week, we've lost five of our young people shot to death. I mean, you know, the leadership in this city has just failed the city. And as I have walked through the city in my Walk with Wallace campaign, where I'm walking through all 32 zip codes in Baltimore City, over 100 neighborhoods, the one thing that I hear from the people in the streets, they say, number one, Bob, you're the only one out here talking with us and walking in the streets,

touching our hands. And so they feel that they're seeing someone who cares about them. And I'm the only one that's doing that. The second thing they say is that we need to change the leadership. We need to move in a different direction. And the people that have been leading us have failed us. And now it's time for a change. So I think me being an independent, quite frankly, is a strength. And I'm very encouraged by that. First of all, we set this up in partnership with Divine Nine there in Baltimore.

And so they also sent in some questions. I'm going to ask some of those questions there. This question here is, what are you going to do to help provide job training for areas that have high crime and unemployment areas in the city? Bob, you first. Absolutely. So my whole Nehemiah plan is based on this part, Roland. It says, like in the profit Nehemiah, right, we're coming back to the city, and we're going to divide the city into neighborhood economic development zones.

Now, once these zones are in place, we're going to develop specific economic development strategies for these neighborhoods. In the past, we tried to do one strategy that would cover the entire city, and that does not work. It hasn't worked. So my plan is to develop economic development strategies based upon the neighborhoods that people live. Secondly, we're going to go out, once I'm mayor, we're going to go out,

and I'm going to raise a billion-dollar-plus fund to come back to invest in Baltimore City to rebuild the 17,000 vacant properties that we have in Baltimore City. And we're going to do that by investing in neighborhoods and in the people in those neighborhoods. And our first level of focus and development there is to make sure that every neighborhood has a grocery store, that basic. We have so many neighborhoods in Baltimore City who are food deserts. The people have no place to go to get their food. So we're going to cover the basics, the bare requirements,

food, shelter and clothing. This fund will be a public-private fund, Roland. It won't come from the feds or from the state. I'm going to the public markets to raise this fund in New York on Wall Street, Silicon Valley in California. And we're going to use that money to rebuild our city. And we're going to rebuild our city using people who live in the city, using our children who are in our school system, who are studying to be carpenters, plumbers, electricians, solar technicians, even cybersecurity specialists. We're going to use these young people to help rebuild the city.

And we're also going to use our local minority businesses, African-American owned business, Latin, Latino owned businesses. We're going to use the people in the city to rebuild it. And not only that, we're going to provide some financial engineering here. What I mean by that is developing programs that will make it possible for low-income and middle-income people to become home owners. Because what we know in the city of Baltimore is that our home ownership among African Americans is on the decline. And we know, you and I know, that the cornerstone of wealth in America is your home and real estate. When I started my business 30 years ago in IT and energy, my first bit of capital was a second mortgage on my home. And so home ownership becomes critical,

not only to building wealth in our community and stabilizing the job terrain, but it also stabilizes the neighborhoods. Because what we're seeing now is that our neighborhoods are deteriorating. And so this is my approach or how we're going to use technology and finances to create 100,000 jobs in my first term as mayor. Shannon. So when you look at the strategies and the things that need to be done in the city, first of all, you have to bring resources in. And although it is a great idea to create

public-private partnerships, when you have declining schools, increasing crime, lower quality of life, it is very difficult to attract the kind of investment that's going to be necessary to create one job, much less a larger number. That's number one. Number two, when you talk about creating home ownership, in theory, it's a great idea, but in practicality you have to actually know how to do it. And I am the only candidate on this field that has actually written legislation on the local, state, and federal level with regards to how to do that, how to turn around the blight, how to create that new class of homeowners and be able to work with some of the existing programs to be able to actually make them work to the benefit of the residents of the city. Now, I'm not going to tell you I'm creating a new program and I'm doing this and I'm doing that because, quite honestly, the pieces that we

need are already there. We just don't have leadership either in office or on the ballot that knows how to fit the pieces of the puzzle together. So that being said, we're going to work with HUD and some of the programs that they already have on the books for homeownership in terms of the Habitat for Humanity style of program, where we take folks from phases, from homeless to individual homeowners. It is a three-year process. During that time, they are getting assessments on their academic levels, on their academics, their employment, and whatever their family structure may be and what issues and strengths that they need. The idea is to not just put someone in a home, but to teach them how to take care of that home, how to take care of their finances,

how to plan short, mid, and long term, so that once you get in that home, you can actually maintain and keep that home. So that we can take this conversation from survival and maybe thriving to generational wealth. It's not just enough to own your home. It's how do you use that to be able to grow, to reinvest in your community, take advantages of the quote zones that everybody wants to talk about, also called opportunity zones, and be able to actually invest in the zip codes that need the most investment in the city

in a way that benefits the residents of the city, not the big developers that rape, rob and pillage the city, which is why it's in the decline that it's in. All right, folks, I'm going to put a timeline on each. No, no, no, one second, one second. I'm going to put a timeline on each one of you. I want to get as many questions in as possible. So the answers are running two to three minutes long. So I'm going to put a one-minute time limit on each one of those.

I want to start. I'm going to come up to Shannon and go to you, Bob. That is in 2000. We've seen the previous stories. Lack of air conditioning, lack of heat in Baltimore public schools. Maryland raises a ton of money, half a billion dollars from casinos. How are you going to confront the issue to ensure at schoolhouses once kids return to school after COVID, they're not going to be sitting in high classrooms or sitting there freezing to death.

You can't learn if you're sweating or if you have the chills. Shannon, you first. Absolutely. So what we're going to do is understand the problem that that is not necessarily the amount of money that the city gets, but how it's allocated, how it's spent. So what we're going to do is we're going to lobby the state to introduce academic savings accounts to give parents more options. We're going to increase the voucher program, again, to give parents more options. We're going to lobby the state that the difference between the actual tuition,

which should be around $10,000 a year per student, and the state-allocated funds of $17,000, that difference stays in the city for the 80,000-some-odd children registered in the district so that they have the resources to be able to put heat where heat is needed, cooling where cooling is needed, and heavens to Murgatroyd, get the resources in the teacher's hands to get the resources in the classroom for the children. By doing this, you actually fix the public schools, you increase options, and you decrease class size. You're able to offer more educational options in terms of

traditional, meaning from elementary to middle to college, or vocational and trade entrepreneurial opportunities so that the system works better. The teachers can teach, the students can learn. Got it. Got it. Bob, you go. Dr. Rowland, the money is there. What we need are men and women on the board of education in our city who have relationships and the power to get the money in the hands of the people of Baltimore City. So my first step as mayor will be to reconstitute the board of education in Baltimore City with men and women that can make things happen. But to Ms. Rice's point about the economic development of our city, my plan does not rely upon the government or any government programs. My plan relies upon the private sector and investors who know that Baltimore is a gem to invest in this city.

I already have two or three companies that have already committed to me that when I'm mayor, they're going to move the operation to Baltimore City, and they will create hundreds of jobs in that process. This week, I met with investors from Hong Kong and Taiwan right here in Baltimore City, and they are prepared and ready to partner with local minority businesses in Baltimore City and bring billions of dollars of capital to help rebuild our city. So while I think the government programs are a good thing, and if they can work, that's fine, but oftentimes those programs are slow and they're inefficient.

So I'm going to the market to help make this happen, to build my Nehemiah plan for Baltimore City. Excuse me. All right. Can I respond? Okay, so 20 seconds before I go to the next question. 20 seconds. Appreciate that. Thank you. Now, first, okay, 20 seconds before I go to the next question. 20 seconds. Appreciate that.

Thank you. Now, first of all, let me explain something. To think that you can bring in a billion dollars worth of business to increase jobs in that rate of speed with a failing education system, crumbling infrastructure, poor performing jobs, and crime off the charts, that's what the last mayor said. She's got a pretty orange jumpsuit right now. Because when folk come in and they bring that kind of money, knowing the infrastructure the city is, they're ready to rob it. So unless

that's the next setup for the next mayor, we already been there, done that. That's poor leadership. Bob, let me, one second. Bob, let me ask you this question here. Baltimore has a significant homicide rate that, of course, in 2019, 309 shooting deaths.

Already the city has 243 shooting deaths this year. But you also have massive mistrust with the police department. The police department is under a consent decree. increase in the homicides in Baltimore, while also confronting the community's distrust of the very people who should be preventing homicides, or at least solving those that actually take place? That's true, Roland. Oh, the way that you deal with crime and violence is the best way is to prevent it. And if you can't do that, the second best way is to attack it. And so talking about programs, where we open up the communication between the African-American community and the police as a unit, I've got an idea to create a truth and reconciliation commission in Baltimore City that will allow the police and the people in the community to talk to one another.

Right now we're talking past one another. Right now, we're talking past one another. So we're also talking about community policing and having more of a community-oriented approach to public safety. So that is how we prevent the violence and crime. Now, how do we respond? My approach as mayor is to attack the hot people and the hot spots. And what do I mean by that? The hot people are the small percent of people who are committing the majority of the crimes. If you look at the people in Baltimore City who are committing the crimes, they are a very small group. And they're on a list that we call the ASI, the ARI group, you know, the very at-risk individuals. So we know who they are.

We know where they live. The hot spot approach is what parts of the city are these crimes occurring? So once again, we know where they are. So what we do, we focus on the hot people and the hot spots. And we bring the resources of the police department and the resources in the city to focus on those individuals who are taking guns and taking lives through violence to focus on them in a way that they are held accountable. Now, our first step in doing that, though, is to meet with them, Roland, and to look at how we can...

Bob, Bob, you're waiting. I got it. Okay, again, I need you, again, one minute. Shannon, go ahead. So I, too, had an idea two years ago. I now have a plan. This crime situation in the city will not wait for thought or woulda, coulda, go ahead. So I too had an idea two years ago. I now have a plan. This crime situation in the city will not wait for a thought of woulda, coulda, shoulda. So what we're going to do and have already started to do is to reach out and communicate with the police department,

the seasoned officers that have spent two decades in the streets and ask them, you are the expert. What's missing? What, where did you see the breakdown? So we know what we have to do is reimplement community policing, number one, bring back bike patrols, number two, and reestablish community network partnerships with the police so that the civilians can actually communicate and start to rebuild those bridges of trust with the police officers so that they can be more effective in keeping our streets, getting our streets corrected. Let me correct that. Getting our streets safe and then keeping them safe. This isn't textbook. Baltimore has some issues that real folk need to understand how to play real grown folk games and get the job done. It's not time for an idea. It's time for a plan. All right, folks, I want to go to the next question. Shannon,

this question is going to go to you. We've got about five minutes left, so please keep that in mind. And that is transportation. People want efficient, fast, and safe transportation to jobs created in North and South Baltimore. And then what they say here, the question that was submitted says that downtown Fells Point, Under Armour and Amazon locations where public transportation is scarce or nonexistent. And so if these are the areas where they're hiring, how are you going to get residents to those areas via public transportation? Shan, I'll start with you. So I took some time to actually instead of trying to make up answers to questions like these, actually talk to folks that develop transportation plans. There are some very good ideas on how to be able to expand existing routes and connect them to the places where the actual jobs are. That's what we need to do. We're not in

a place where we're going to have large amounts of money, discretionary cash, and we can just sink into new pilot projects and throw some at the wind and see if it works. We're going to use what we have, we're going to expand it, we're going to actually bring it to where the job hubs are. It's not rocket science, it's common sense. This is where the jobs are, this is where the transportation needs to go and make it happen. All right, Bob, go ahead.

So, Jerome, we need to have a regional approach to transportation. Baltimore City cannot do it by itself. So my Roland, we need to have a regional approach to transportation. Baltimore City cannot do it by itself. So my approach will be to work with the surrounding counties to put together a regional approach where we can work together as a region. Secondly, I see this as an opportunity to where we can create entrepreneurs and business people that provide transportation on a very detailed, oriented manner to meet the needs of the people. Right now, we have mothers who are on the buses five hours a day getting back and forth to work. That will not work. And so we need to have a system that I think can be driven by entrepreneurs to provide that service. All right, folks, let's see here. We got time for a couple of more questions.

Let's let me ask this one here. This is a very good one here, and that is if Congress passes an infrastructure bill making money available for cities like Baltimore, what would your top shovel ready priority be? Number one, give me just one. Shan, I'll start with you. Schools, new innovative ways of schools so that the schools are actually preparing our students for their next steps. They're bringing in a need for urban gardening and farming. We're incorporating vocation and innovation into the schools by using a community school model. So my answer would be schools.

Bob. Bob, go ahead. That would be wonderful. I got two things I would do. Number one is rebuild the 17,000 vacant properties that exist today in Baltimore City. My second major project would be to provide WiMAX Wi-Fi coverage to our entire city. I had that idea for Baltimore City 20 years ago, and leadership could not see it. But now, me as mayor, we would provide complete coverage, Wi-Fi coverage, for the entire city of Baltimore. All right, folks, and here is an opportunity for both of you to make your closing thoughts. I'll open with Shannon.

I'll allow Bob to speak first. Bob, you got one minute. Thank you, Roland. The world is watching Baltimore City right now. The world is wondering what will we do as we prepare for our future. Mr. Scott, who you invited on the show, chose not to come, and he has not participated hardly at all in any of the conversations about the future of Baltimore City. The people in the city are tired of that kind of leadership. They're tired of a lack of performance. They're tired of a lack of accountability.

And I think that now is the time the people of Baltimore are going to surprise Mr. Scott, and they're going to elect me as their mayor, because they see me as a person that can bring jobs, that can bring technology and opportunities to this city that we have never seen before. And I'm asking for the voters of Baltimore City to give me a shot to prove that I can lead this city into the future and make us a better city. So I'm grateful for the opportunity, and thank you for this time.

All right. Shannon? They say— what is that? Copy and folk is one of the sincerest form of flattery. It almost warms my heart to hear so many of my positions and policies coming out of my opponent's mouth. But I will say that sometimes those of us that actually originate the thought can actually bring it to fruition a little bit better. In terms of Wi-Fi, which has been a signature piece of my campaign, there is already a company that is bringing Wi-Fi to Baltimore that has been providing free Wi-Fi in the city

for over two years. And this coming week, we are going to be announcing their plan on how they're going to be able to expand that citywide for our students that are currently restricted by distance learning and our small black and brown businesses that need to make that leap from brick and mortar to a brick and mortar hybrid and be able to create that online network and universe to be able to grow. And lastly, I will say this. Y'all need to hear me, voters in Baltimore. Bible says you ain't got because you ain't asked. I'm asking. I'm asking for you to vote in the best interest of yourself, which is Shannon Wright for mayor of Baltimore. And the reason why is very simple. They say the tide lifts all ships, but the boats with the hulls still sink. And when we're talking about where resources and power come from,

some folks say it come from a seat at the table being a Democrat's table. Other folks say it comes from a seat at the Republican's table. But I'm going to tell you this, true power comes from a seat at both tables, not a stepstool in the middle as an independent. All right, then. Bob Wallace, Shannon Wright, I certainly appreciate both of you. Thank you so very much. Running for mayor of Baltimore. Thank you, sir. Have a good evening. Thank you very much. Folks, got to go to a break. When we come back, our Education Matters segment with singer Whitley Phipps. We'll talk about his annual fundraiser for his U.S. Dream Academy. That is next. Roland Martin Unfiltered, broadcasting live from Orlando,

Florida, at the offices of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition. We'll be back in a moment. I thought I caught my first felony when I was 17 years old. I felt like basically I just, I didn't count. My probation told me, you can't vote. You got a felony. It just made me feel like I wasn't wanted or I wasn't supposed to be involved. My mama told me like, son, you need to be, get involved. There's a lot of things going on in the world. Your voice matter. My mama told me, like, son, you need to be, get involved.

There's a lot of things going on in the world. Your voice matter. And I'm like, I can't, I ain't got no voice. I can't vote. And she was like, oh yeah, yes you can. So I called my lawyers, because I wanted to make sure that I wasn't doing anything wrong. And I figured out I qualified.

I just felt like, damn, let's do this. To me it was an accomplishment, like, damn, let's do it. To me, it was an accomplishment. Like, damn, I graduated high school or something. Look what we done so far. It still need to be ten times better, but we gotta vote. That's what changed the rules. That's what changed the laws. I really felt good voting, like, because I was told I couldn't. Or I was told I wouldn't be able to clean up or get away

from my past. And look where I'm at now. I voted. And I was able to be a part of where I live, which is here at home in America. My voice matters. Hey, South Carolina, it's Magic Johnson. In 2016, almost 7 million black men didn't vote in the election.

And I get it. It's tough to believe in a system that keeps letting us down. But we can't push for progress if we don't vote. Bros, please vote early before November 2nd. If you need a free ride to vote, use promo code VOTETOLIVESC in your Lyft app. Visit VOTETOLIVE.org for more information. Paid for by Collective Future. Hey, it's Alfre Woodard. Listen, I know there's a lot that must change in our communities, and sometimes it's hard to imagine things getting better. And no, voting won't solve everything, but it is a step forward.

So remember, in Texas, you can vote early in person between October 13th and October 30th. Plus, if you need a free ride to vote, use the code VOTETOLIVETX in your Lyft app. Visit VOTETOLIVE.org for information. Paid for by Collective Future. All right, folks. Welcome back to Roland Martin Unfiltered. The U.S. Dream Academy has worked with more than 10,000 kids in the after-school program. These are children who have incarcerated parents.

It was the idea of singer Wintley Phipps. He joins us right now on Roland Martin Unfiltered. Wintley, how you doing? How's that? Wintley, say it one more time so I can make sure I can hear you. There we go. There we go. I got you.

I'm doing great. I'm actually here in Orlando, Florida, at the offices of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition. And they, of course, have been fighting to get formerly incarcerated folks their right to vote back. You're working with the children of incarcerated parents. And so what was it that caused you to say, I want to launch this U.S. Dream Academy? Was it one particular incident? Was it coming across for a child? What was it? Well, a couple of things, actually. The first is I was on an Amtrak train one day from Baltimore to Philadelphia. And on Amtrak, when you don't want somebody to sit next to you, you learn how to camp out. You put your papers in front of you, your food all around you.

And you send a message, please find someplace else to sit. Well, I got on the train and there were other seats available. But this man, I was looking at him, he had camped out and he looked really low and discouraged. And my heart is always drawn to people like that. So I said to him, is anybody sitting next to you? He said, no. And he pulled up his papers and his briefcase. Roland, the man's name was Chuck Colson of Watergate fame, who went to prison for the Watergate scandal.

And while in prison, his life was changed. And he made a decision that when he got out of prison, that all he was going to do for the rest of his life, and this is what he did for the rest of his life, he tried to help children whose parents were incarcerated and the prisoners and their families. That's what he was completely devoted to. And so he began to take me with him to the prisons and he would speak and I would sing. But there were two moments that changed, changed my life. The first is I was in a prison in Ridgeland, South Carolina, you know, where they filmed the movie Dead Man Walking. And I was greeting all the young men who were there for five, 10, 15 years sentences.

And just for a moment, Roland, I felt like I was at Morehouse. It looked like a black college campus, except it was prison. And then another moment that just changed me. It was an Easter Sunday morning. I was at a prison in Marion, Florida. And I sang at the men's prison. I remember, you know, I sang this song, Amazing Grace, and I began to hum it, and all the male prisoners stood up at attention like they were listening to the national anthem. And ever since then, I call Amazing Grace the national anthem of

sinners. And then I went over to the women's prison. And when I finished singing Amazing Grace over there, a young lady came up to me pregnant, about to have her baby in prison. She said, excuse me, sir. She said, your wife named Linda? I said, yes. She said, that's my aunt. We didn't know that my wife's brother's daughter

was in prison and about to give birth. And then we began to look at the family dynamics. And all of my wife's seven brothers and sisters have been incarcerated at some point in their lives. Her oldest sister had six children, five of them have been in prison. And so I began to dream, what can we do to break this cycle of intergenerational incarceration? And that's when the dream was born in my heart. Actually, we studied the problem for a couple years first to figure out what is it?

What can you do to break that cycle? And the two things, Roland, that we found that were most effective to break the cycle of intergenerational incarceration, number one, you have to increase the density of caring, loving adults in the life orbit of kids when the family disintegrates. You have to mentor children whose parents are incarcerated. Then the other we found was interactive tutorial academic support.

Roland, I'm going to give you a statistic that kind of pointed me on my way, but a lot of people don't realize. By the age of 30, 60% of all Black boys in the United States of America who do not graduate from high school will have spent time in prison by the age of 30, 60% of them. And so I just began to build this program to focus help, tutorial help, academic help, character building, mentoring on this strategic group of young people, children whose parents are incarcerated and children falling behind in school. And that's what I've been doing for over 20 years now. And it has been the joy of my life.

We live in a country, you talk about Chuck Colson, so one, of course, for the president of the United States, he goes to prison trying to rebuild his life. But we live in a country where people have a complete lack of regard for those who've been incarcerated and their children have to deal with that. It is like it is a scarlet letter for life. We are here talking about restoring the voting rights. What do you say to those folks who just don't care about those who have been fully incarcerated? What do you say why they must care about them but also their families if we truly want to see people rehabilitated?

You know, there's a little quote God gave me some years ago. If your path becomes one of privilege and you do not remember the innocent you have left behind, your privilege will cease to be a blessing and become your greatest curse. Let me say that again. If your path becomes one of privilege, you know, part of our problem as people and as a society, and often many people of faith, they don't realize that better off doesn't mean better than. Right? But if your path becomes one of privilege and you do not remember the innocent you have left behind,

your privilege will cease to be a blessing, and your privilege will become your greatest curse. And that's kind of what we've seen happening here in this country. Because those who have wealth, those who have privilege, have forgotten those who have been left behind, because of that, their wealth has become a curse. Their privilege has become a curse. And until they see that, they won't be able to change the negative impact. You know, I have another little quote God gave me that blessings without character will destroy you.

It's the reason you don't give a 16-year-old kid a new Corvette. You know what I mean? Blessings without character will destroy you. And if you do not respond with patience and understanding to people who have been incarcerated and their families, if you do not respond with not only patience but self-control and kindness, you know, dimensions of character. If you do not respond with love, and what's love to me, I have two definitions of love. Love is when you choose to be at your best when the other person is not at their best.

And the second one is even more difficult. Love is when what you want is never important, and what the other person needs and wants is always more important and paramount. You are ministering to the needs of other people. And if you don't do that, you don't have character. Yes, I said it. If you do not respond with love, if you do not respond with understanding, with compassion, with kindness, you do not have character. And the blessings that come to you without character, they will destroy you. You know, for many of my years, Roland, I traveled with Jesse Jackson. Some of you may remember in 1984, I sang after his speech at the Democratic Convention. You know,

you remember Run, Jesse, Run. I sang Just Ordinary People. And Jesse told me something one time, I'll never forget. I was traveling with him. I'm in my 20s, he's in his 30s. And Jesse said to me, I was telling him about a man who wanted to help me with this and help me with that. He said, yeah, he said, but beware of people who can afford their fantasies. I've never forgotten that. But again, it's the same principle. Blessings with our character will destroy you. And that's what's happening in America.

If we do not have leadership with character, if we don't have a nation that where character is part of our DNA that we're building into this generation and the next generation, our blessings will become our curse and our blessings will destroy us. How can folks help the U.S. Dream Academy? Where do they go? Absolutely. www.usdreamacademy.org.

And if you want to, I'd recommend just go to YouTube and put in U.S. Dream Academy Virtual Gala 2020. We just had our gala this past Monday, a very successful gala, but you'll be able to see with a lot of real understanding what we have been doing for the last 20 years. Just go to usdreamacademy.org or go to YouTube and put in US Dream Academy Virtual Gala 2020. And Roland, can I say, brother, keep the fight

going, my brother. We love you. We respect you. As a matter of fact, I'm going to give you a couple of things I hope will encourage you. The first one, first is, again, God gives me all these little quotes, man. People feed pigeons, but they shoot at eagles. When you're a little pigeon picking up crumbs off of somebody's table, nobody bothers you, brother. But when you stretch out your wings and try to soar and try to go places others haven't gone before and do things others haven't done before, just remember, God said, people feed pigeons. But they shoot at eagles.

But thank God, underneath your eagle, when you're flying high, underneath you are his everlasting arms. He's got you, brother, and he'll protect you. So thanks for all you do. Keep on keeping on, man. I certainly would appreciate that. So just a couple of things. One, I'm looking at it. Y'all did stream your gala.

And so I saw it did about 386 views. So here's what we're going to do. And this is also what happens when you have your own platform and you can do what you do. So I'm going to instruct my folks and we're going to this weekend. We will restream at least twice your virtual gala. So all of the folks on our platform will be able to actually see that. And so we're certainly going to help out there uh and uh one of my jackie clark is my booker she's like oh my god

that voice i know we're over time i still gotta play this 20 minute beto o'rourke but i gotta ask you to sing a little something something i mean something well well some of your folks may remember I sang at Congressman John Lewis's memorial service at the return of the 20 million cumulative views that I've been able to get on just that song where I explain the black keys on the piano that all Negroes... No, I tweeted

that out. You killed it on that one. Yeah, but hey, but I'm glad. Let me just do my theme song, man. Amazing grace How sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me I once was lost But now I'm

found was blind but now I see and you know, when you were growing up, they would say in the church, that boy can sing.

I appreciate it, my brother. Thank you so very much. God bless you, buddy. God bless you as well. I certainly appreciate it. Thanks a bunch. Folks, again, this weekend, we will restream the U.S. Dream Academy's virtual gala. So people have an opportunity to see their work and support what they do.

Folks, the election. I told you we are almost done with today's show. I had a chance yesterday to catch up with a former U.S. Senate candidate, former congressman who ran for president as well. Beto O'Rourke. We talked about Texas and how that could flip blue. Here's our conversation. All right, Beto O'Rourke, Texas. It is, a lot of people are very shocked with how well Joe Biden is doing there. It is an airtight race there. And what I keep explaining to folks is that Texas used to be a state where Democrats dominated all statewide offices. It shifted when George W. Bush beat Ann Richards, and it was solidified when he ran for re-election in 1998. But because of the population shift, 500,000 moving to the state every single year,

that's played a role in changing the look of the state. That's absolutely correct. And the electorate is changing at the same time. In a typical four-year cycle, you'll see 700,000 Texans get registered to vote. In the last four years, 1.9 million Texans have gotten registered to vote. And it's contributing to the blowout numbers that you're seeing in Harris County, home to Houston, Texas, where on the first day of early voting, 128,000 people cast their ballot, which was double the high watermark in the last presidential election early voting total and more than all the ballots cast in the state of Georgia. And it's not just happening in Southeast Texas. In North Texas, Denton County,

Collin County, both beginning to trend blue, are turning out at record numbers, more than 100 percent greater than the 2016 total. So you're right. Population growth, electorate growth and then amazing candidates up and down the ballot, especially at the state house level where primarily you have women, women of color and black women in particular, who are running and exciting an electorate. And I think instead of helping them, they are going to be the ones who help to bring Joe Biden across the finish line on election night. I want to talk about that point right there, because Reverend Dr. William Barber has often said one of the reasons why Democrats fail in the South is because they don't even bother to campaign. I remember 2008. That was significant. I mean, I remember sitting on the set of CNN

and my family telling me about the lines stretching from the elementary school to the highway in Cedar Hill, Texas, on the primary night voting for Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. And I was on the air telling that story. And Texas Democrats were just really excited. Obama wins and then nothing. It just sort of fizzled. And what I kept hearing from folks in my native state, they were saying, look, you can't just come in for a fundraiser, pick up a million or two and go back. You've got to actually grow the party.

You've got to actually build it. You've actually got to fund it. You can't you're not just going to just wake up tomorrow and say, oh, we can compete. No, you actually have to construct it. And people forget Republicans did that by running for those lower tier Board of Education seats and other seats before they begin to take over the larger statewide seats in Texas. That's absolutely right. And the county commissioners, the local county governments, we have 254 counties in Texas, and those Republicans built a bench over the last 30 years that moved up to the state house, U.S. Congress, U.S. Senate. The last time a Democrat

won statewide in Texas was 1994. But I think because Democrats are beginning to understand, and when I say Democrats, it's not the national party. It may not even be anybody in control at the state level. It's these individual candidates running for state house right now who in some cases, you know, in 2018 had a 20 to one deficit in funding, you know, 10, five to one, and still came within five to one points of winning. Now they have the fundraising prowess, the organizational structure and the experience from that last run. And I'd put the money on them. We're nine seats down from winning a majority for the first time in 20 years. And in nine of those districts, we need to pick up. I actually won more votes than did Ted Cruz. So we know those voters are there. We know more voters have been added to the rolls since then. And then again, I would hand it to

these women who are running and again, women of color who look like the communities that they want to represent. They're the reason that so many people are registering to vote. They're the reason that so many people are turning out to vote. And if Joe Biden claims 38 electoral college votes from Texas, becoming the first Democrat to do so since Carter did it in 76, it will be owing to those women who had the courage to get out there and run these races in the first place. And to your point, they will begin the process of building that bench that allows us to win congressional U.S. Senate races. And really, Texas take its rightful place in directing the course of this country's political future for the better with Democratic control. So so a big, big election for Texas and for the country right now.

And I remember, and again, for folks who don't really understand how these elections work, I remember when you had Democrats. I remember John Cruz, a longtime judge in Dallas. Republicans swept nearly all county-wide positions in Dallas County. Cruz had to run as a Republican in order to get reelected. Then, all of a sudden, the shift began to happen, and all of a sudden, Democrats began to wipe out Republicans across the county. Same thing happened in Harris County. And the Republican legislature got scared to death. You talked about those nine House seats. That's why in 2017, they got rid of straight ticket voting because they saw how Democrats have been mobilizing and organizing.

I was there in Houston in 2018, traveling with those 18 black women who all got elected on the judicial side. And so Republicans, and I dare say, I believe that the actions of Governor Greg Abbott to say only one mail drop box. I believe that has less to do with Biden, Harris versus Trump, Pence and more to do with those nine House seats. In addition to that latest voter suppression tactic, he just announced this week that he's going to spend seven figures shoring up those Republican incumbents for the state house. So, you know, make no mistake about it. Republicans understand where all the marbles are right now. It's not necessarily the top of the ticket. Even the U.S. Senate race, as important as both of those elections are, it is the state house.

This is their last chance to hold on to power for a decade because if Democrats win, as you know, in 2021, they will be at the table when redistricting takes place. There you go. Because of the 2020 census, we'll pick up at least three new congressional seats. And we either continue to racially gerrymander Texas, not my words, but the words of a federal judge in 2017, or we begin to draw people back into our democracy. And that's what I think this is about. And that's why I think these races are the most exciting on the ballot right now. And absolutely, because what I've been emphasizing to people is that you cannot overestimate when you look at that map. The reality is, again, I remember sitting on the CNN set in 2010 after being on that set in 2008 and the

euphoria and then watching what took place to that midterm. And I remember Eric Erickson, far right wing conservative. He was with the red state dot com was seated next to me. And he was just sitting here going, wow, wow. What he was looking at was all of those Texas, all of those legislatures and gubernatorial mansions that were flipping from either being run by Democrats or being a split legislature to Republicans running both of them. And then what did they do? Put in gerrymandering, put in voter I.D., put in voter suppression. Right now, Republicans control both chambers in 29 states. And I think for so long, and now it makes it even worse because, you know, you know, conservatives on the Supreme Court, oh, we can't decide political gerrymandering. And so they basically said that

state Supreme Court, which is weird to me because they just made a decision yesterday ignoring the state Supreme Court in Alabama that allowed curbside voting and saying, oh, no, no, you can't do that. And I'm going, so, oh, so you now picking and choosing which state Supreme Court rules you like and don't like. And of course, Republicans even in Texas tried to stop curbside voting and drive-thru voting, which to me is just the dumbest thing in the world. What's the difference if you can't walk in versus voting in your car? That's the madness and how they want to use the court system to reinforce their political games. That's right. And then the mother of all court decisions, the 2013 gutting of the Voting Rights

Act. And as we are still in mourning for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, we remember her fiery dissent. And she basically predicted exactly what has taken place in Texas and other southern states, where within minutes of that decision, you have the imposition of the most onerous voter ID laws in the country. You exacerbate the gerrymander that existed. Roland, I know you know this, but 750 polling places have closed in Texas since the Shelby decision, most of them concentrated in the fastest growing black and Latino neighborhoods. 750 is two to three times the amount closed in the closest state, and that's in a state that is growing faster than any other in the country.

So they are doing everything they can. Washington Post on Friday said Texas makes it harder to vote than any other state. So for me, the great story is these voters who are turning out record numbers, Texas goes from 50th in voter turnout on the eve of the 2018 election to number one in votes cast in absolute terms and number one in votes cast relative to 2016. It's those candidates, it's the voters, it's the Texas Organizing Project and other grassroots organizations that have been organizing for the last decade. So I think you are so right about the Republicans' ability to see this out 30 years ago, but we are starting to catch up and we're starting to be a lot smarter about how we run. A couple of things I want to ask you about, and that is first,

I remember 2012, and it was election night. It was election night. And I was talking to then Congressman Chris Van Hollen, one of your former colleagues in the House, who's now in the Senate. And I said, Congressman, if y'all would invest or work with your major donors and really invest, I said, 50 to 100 million bucks, Georgia, Texas. I said, you got to get those 2.1 million eligible but unregistered Latinos registered. I said, the model was sick and core when others did and other groups did in the 1960s. He basically blew off Georgia ever turning away from red. And same as Texas. I said, what are you talking about?

The numbers are there. So what do Stacey Abrams do? What do they do there in Georgia? They put their work in. They go there. She goes, gets within 30,000. Really, she knows she wins because of voter suppression by Kemp. I argue the same thing. I believe

you can't focus on trying to register Latinos in Texas and those black folks who are unregistered in Texas only during the campaign season. I think you've got to move in armies of people to South Texas, to West Texas, to East Texas. They've got to live in those communities, as Ella Baker said, touch the stick, take your college clothes off, put your overalls on, and go listen to those folks. I think it has to be that sort of intensive effort to say, if we target those 2.1 million, or now that there's

2 million, even if you are able to get half the register, that's a million, if you look at the numbers in Texas, 70-30 Democrat-Republican, that can absolutely solidify the future, but you've got to put that level of investment in over a two, three, four-year period for the payoff in the presidential year.

You're absolutely right. And I would give credit, I mentioned this group earlier, the Texas Organizing Project, they essentially work to register and then turn out low propensity Black and Latino voters in Harris County, in Bexar County, in Fort Bend County, in Dallas County. So they're very targeted on four metro counties. And look, there's a strategy to this, and I'm sure it makes sense, but I really see Biden-Harris chasing that white voter in Pennsylvania who may have been a lifelong Democrat, may have voted for Barack Obama, then voted for Trump, and we're trying to get them back. Maybe we will, maybe we won't. But these voters in Texas are our voters if we will only invest the time and the attention.

One hundred percent. Show some respect. Yeah. I mean, look, I've been saying that for the longest because, again, who are you more likely to persuade? Someone who's already probably going to listen to you versus somebody you're going to put over. And again, numbers don't lie. You look at the delegate, you look at the Electoral College in Texas compared to Pennsylvania. You don't need Pennsylvania or Ohio if you win Texas.

That's right. And here's the other thing that I don't think enough people have thought about. Pennsylvania, we learned from how long it took them to count the votes during their primary. It may take days or weeks for us to know the total after November 3rd in Pennsylvania, where we're all investing so much money. Texas, which did not expand mail-in voting. Texas, which counts its mail-in ballots starting on October 30th, Texas will know the numbers on the night of November 3rd. And if it's called for Biden, 38 electoral college votes, to your point and to the math, it then becomes impossible mathematically for Donald Trump to claim victory or try to steal the election or contest it in the courts or take it up to Amy Coney Barrett on the Supreme Court. It is over. And Texas has that power. And you could spend a fraction of what you're investing in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Florida, and put that into Texas because of

all the great work that others have done. And you can get there. And you saw the Quinnipiac poll, 47 to 47 yesterday. The Morning Consult poll today, 48 percent Biden, 47 percent Trump. Doesn't mean it's a slam dunk or a sure thing. I know that. What it does mean is that this is this is possible with a little investment. Well, and that's why the last last point here before we got to go, that is this is where I wish you had Democrat funders. I wish you had a Democrat Sheldon Adelson. I wish you had the two conservatives down there in Wiley, Texas, who fund everything. To me, these these these super rich Democrat donors have to sit here and, yes, listen to what you just laid out when I'm talking about and say, wait a minute. If 40 million, 50 million or to the group you mentioned, if they had a hundred million dollars over three years to hire, yes, hire a thousand people to move them into communities, pay them and do all that deep organizing, you literally will see the payoff in multiple ways, as opposed to, again,

yeah, keep chasing that white suburban female, okay, who ain't going to give you time, because trust me, if Trump loses in 2020 and Nikki Haley runs in 24, that woman's going to love Nikki. I mean, it's just, it's mind-boggling. And so I wish major Democratic donors would see the chessboard. I love that scene from Who Searched for Bobby Fischer? Knock the pieces off. Now read the board, because that's what Republicans are doing. They are seeing what's going. They are seeing a more diverse America is a death knell for their party, which is why they're trying to lock down the courts to control whatever whatever a multicultural America passes in the city, county, state, school board, and Congress. If they control the courts, they say we can actually control the laws. Your final comment. No, you are absolutely right. And that's why I think so much rests on our

ability to win in Texas. It's the state legislature, which determines districting for the next 10 years. It's the composition of the courts. And it's the presidential. I really think if you want to avert that constitutional crisis that Donald Trump will provoke, if you don't want him calling white nationalist terrorists into the streets to contest this by force of arms, you've got to invest in states like Texas. And I've got to tell you this, Roland, I always think of you as a national figure who's helping the country understand what's happening throughout the United States. I forget how deeply immersed you are in Texas and how you understand this down to

the county level. And I think that kind of knowledge has to be passed to these national democratic operatives. They just don't get the opportunity right before them here in Texas. And so I appreciate you having me on to talk about it today. Well, my mom and daddy, they are both 73 years old with dad 73, mom be 73 in November. They have worked elections. They are poll workers. They were not scared by Rona. They're actually working the polls right now. My sister, her daughter, they're poll workers. And so I grew up watching them run campaign, run call centers for Kathy Whitmire when she became the first woman mayor of Houston. They worked on Mario Gallegos and Al Luna, those campaigns. And so I lived it, had no choice because we had to put the signs up in order to eat. And so they still are involved.

I'm still registered in Texas. I was voting in Dallas County just a couple of weeks ago. And you're absolutely right. Folks need to understand if you want to win, you got to listen to the ground and what's happening there. Beto O'Rourke, I appreciate it. Thanks a lot. Thank you. Have a good one. Take care. Bye-bye. I always had to be so good. No one could ignore me, carve my path with data and drive,

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