#RolandMartinUnfiltered - #MLKDay2021; FBI screens National Guard in DC; Army vet shot 15-year-old Black girl at Trump rally

Episode Date: January 19, 2021

1.18.21 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: National Day of Service in honor of #MLKDay2021; FBI screens National Guard in DC; Inauguration rehearsal was evacuated due to a fire at homeless camp; Army vet shot 15-year-old Black girl at Trump rally; CDC says the new COVID-19 strain could cause increased infections by March; Crazy ass white woman is pissed off about having to wear a mask; We remember Dante Barksdale, founder of Baltimore's violence prevention program who was shot to death in Baltimore yesterday.Support #RolandMartinUnfiltered via the Cash App ☛ https://cash.app/$rmunfiltered or via PayPal ☛https://www.paypal.me/rmartinunfiltered #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.

This is an iHeart Podcast. you there? No, it can happen. One in four hot car deaths happen when a kid gets into an unlocked car and can't get out. Never happens. Before you leave the car, always stop, look, lock. Brought to you by NHTSA and the Ad Council. I know a lot of cops. They get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. Listen to Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Clayton English.

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

Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or this MLK National Holiday. Roland Martin Unfiltered broadcasting live from Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington, D.C., where Washington, D.C. is on a major lockdown, 42 hours away from Joe Biden and Kamala Harris being inaugurated as the next president and vice president of the United States.

And, of course, 42 hours when that thug Donald Trump will be out of the White House behind me. Coming up on today's show, today was the last day that Senator Kamala Harris, representing the state of California, resigned her office today, now meaning there are no black women in the United States Senate. Also on today's show, we'll show you some of the festivities happening around the country virtually in celebration of the birthday of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Also on today's show, the Defense Department, they are vetting all 25,000 National Guard troops

to ensure there's not an inside attack after the deplorables attack at U.S. Capitol on January 6th. We've got a jam-packed show for you today. It is time to bring the funk on Roland Martin Unfiltered. Let's go. He's got it. Whatever the piss, he's on it. Whatever it is, he's got the scoop, the fact, the fine. Martin Unfiltered. Let's go. Just for kicks The best you know he's rolling, Martel. Martel.

Folks, we are broadcasting live from Black Lives Matter Plaza here in the nation's capital, Washington, D.C. We literally are right down the street from the White House. I'm going to step aside. Anthony's going to zoom in. You're going to see that there are people who are out here. You see all of those flags down there. Protesters have always been down here ever since this street was painted over, of course, after the death of George Floyd on Memorial Day in May. And so what you see here, you see those, you see, you get the music

down there, you see those flags down there, right behind them are the barricades that are keeping folks out of Lafayette Park. Lafayette Park is right across the street from the White House, but that has been blocked off for the last several months as a result of the protests that have been going on out here. And as you can see in the distance, you can see the White House, you can see the flag that is atop the White House that is flying there in 42 hours at 12.01 p.m. on Wednesday. Joe Biden will become the 46th president of the United States. Kamala Harris will become the vice president. And Donald Trump will be gone. In fact, Donald Trump plans to

leave around 8 a.m. that morning because he did not want to have to ask permission of Joe Biden to use the plane known as Air Force One to fly him to Florida. He wanted to be able to fly to Florida still as president on Air Force One. That's what happens when you have your ego. So they're planning some ceremony at Joint Andrews Air Force Base. That's what happens when you have your ego. So they're planning some ceremony at Andrews Air Force Base. That's what's going on there. And so that'll be happening on Wednesday. But again, as I said, what is taking place, folks, over the next couple of days, all preparing for the inauguration. Washington, D.C. is seriously on lockdown. In order for us to, literally, our offices are right here, folks. In order for us to come here, we're going to go to another location.

They have a back screen. It's all around Washington, D.C. Anthony, you might want to turn the camera around. What you see, folks, at the end of this block right here, what you'll see, turn the camera around, Anthony. You'll see the block right here all secured. You see all the barricades. This is all over Washington, D.C., what you're seeing right here.

These barricades are all of Washington, D.C. You have checkpoints all across the Capitol. Some 25,000 National Guard troops are based here in the nation's capital. You see them all over the place. Literally, it is on lockdown. You have to be able to show credentials, show your passes. Normally on this street is a very busy street of folks here who are out here. But everything is pretty much on lockdown.

There's a five to seven block perimeter outside of the White House. We're actually inside of that perimeter. And so a mayor, Muriel Bowser of Washington, D.C., what she did was she asked the White House to declare a national emergency in order for all of these barricades and the fencing to go up far earlier than they normally do. They went ahead six days. But because of the attack on the U.S. Capitol, there's been far more security that's been taking place all across Washington, D.C. Like I said, 25,000 National Guard troops are in the city. Plus, you have your federal law enforcement, Secret Service, Department of Justice, Washington, D.C., Metropolitan

Police. I mean, D.C. really is on a lockdown as a result of what took place on January 6th. This is not normal. You normally have, of course, mass security. You normally have fencing, but you do not have anything to this degree. It is all because of those white domestic terrorists who attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, all because Donald Trump sent them there. And so that's one of the reasons why you don't see much activity out here, because they have made it very difficult, folks, to really get inside of the nation's capital. When you're driving in, literally, you have entrances that are blocked. The entire National Mall is blocked.

And so beyond the White House, of course, you see the George Washington Monument just to the left of the White House there. And so the entire National Mall is shut down. The Lincoln Memorial shut down. The MLK Memorial shut down. There's massive fencing that's all around the MLK Memorial. You literally cannot even visit any of these memorials as a result of what took place on January 6th. They have said there will be no patrons allowed to be on the mall for the inauguration.

And so it's going to look a lot different than the inauguration of four years ago. I was, of course, on the mall in 2009 as well as 2013, both of those inaugurations. You know, Dan, well, I didn't even watch the Trump inauguration. I surely wasn't there. And so you see the huge difference that's been taking place in this city as a result of that attack on the U.S. Capitol. They want to ensure that you're not going to have any more of Trump's armed folks who are going to cause any mayhem on that particular day. One of the things that we're also seeing, we're seeing that Associated Press dropped a story to the Defense Department and the FBI are vetting all 25,000 National Guard

troops to ensure there's no insider attack against any of the dignitaries. And we know there was law enforcement and military folks who were part of that attack on January 6th. And so that vetting process is undergoing right now. We're going to have more on that later in today's show. Today, of course, is MLK Day, the national holiday for the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. And it's called a National Day of Service. In fact, I'm going to go ahead and sit here.

Like I say, just so you know that we understand what today is, I will be sure to wear my MLK Day of Service shirt on today. It's chilly out here, but I wanted to let you know that the Day of Service shirt is here. Now, because of COVID, all of the events across the country that took place today were all virtual, including the annual service that takes place at Ebenezer Baptist Church where Dr. King was a pastor. That was a virtual service. Of course, Pastor Raphael Warnock, soon to be sworn in to the United States Senate, presided. Bernice King, his daughter, Dr. King's daughter, and also Bishop T.D.

Jakes delivered the eulogy, excuse me, I'm sorry, delivered the sermon for today's service. Here is some of that that we streamed right here on Roland Martin Unfiltered. No, there will never be a Dr. Martin Luther King. That sound still rings in my head, the sound of that voice that arrested America, that stood the nation on its ear, that shook the apartheid in South Africa, that changed the circumstances in Selma, Alabama, that challenged Montgomery and fought off in Memphis

the voices that stood up against it. There would never be another Dr. Martin Luther King who filled Washington with thousands upon thousands, if not millions of people of color back at a time that we had to ride the Greyhound bus and come up on trains to get together. There may not ever be another one like that one, but that's okay because it is not, it is not one of us.

It will take all of us and so on this momentous occasion as we celebrate and commemorate and memorialize and appreciate the significance of this particular individual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who stood out from the rest

who blindsided America who stomped his foot and the whole world who stood out from the rest, who blindsided America, who stomped his foot and the whole world shook as we stand in pride and recognize that if there had not been a Dr. King, there would never be a P.D. Jakes. There would never be a Beyonce. There would never be an Oprah Winfrey. There would never be any of us whose names you might recognize

if it had not been for that boy with that bag of rocks that stood up and dared to think that he could get it done and do it without violence. He deserves our respect. He deserves our accolades. He deserves that we emulate the understanding that perpetuated an idea against the climate of the times with such power

that he in fact did change the world and I know you're not happy with where it is right now but trust me it's better than it was and I know that we are not there yet but we're further than we used to be and like Paul I count not myself to apprehend And I know that we are not there yet, but we're further than we used to be. And like Paul, I count not myself to apprehend, but this one thing I do, I'm forgetting that which is behind and reaching to that which is before. Understanding that I cannot reach without you.

That it is not enough to reach up if I don't reach out. That it is not enough to reach up if I don't reach out. And so as I stand here behind this sacred desk, privileged with this divine assignment, I make myself your servant at your disposal, understanding that the servant who brought the lunch ended up the one who killed the giant. And we cannot lead until we learn how to serve. And we cannot go forward as long as we have a private agenda. And we cannot get there as long as we become trolls of each other's destiny,

critiques and critics of each other, rather than understanding that in order to have a beloved community, we must have a common unity. We must focus on what unites us rather than fight about what divides us. The people of God say amen. Sisters and brothers, once again, it is my distinct honor

and pleasure to welcome all of you to this house of God. Pushed as we are summoned nonetheless by a great spirit. The spirit of one who lifted his voice because he understood that greater is the one who is within him than the one who was within the world, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. We celebrate Dr. King, of course, as the greatest civil rights leader of the 20th century, perhaps of all times. But Dr. King, in his own words, said that I am many things to many people, but I am fundamentally a clergyman, a Baptist preacher. to stand up for righteousness even in the face of death.

The depth of his commitment to building what he called the beloved community emerged from the wellspring of his faith. He was a spiritual genius. But he was not a singular genius. His was a faith passed on to him by others. Howard Thurman said, by some amazing but vastly creative spirituality, the slave undertook the redemption of a religion that the master had profaned in his midst.

He received a faith that had been worked out by slaves in the brush harbors of Mississippi and Alabama and Georgia, and it was passed on to him. A kind of spiritual genius where a marginalized people were given a faith. Some say they were converted, but in a real sense, they converted the faith. And transformed the religion intended to make them docile and obedient into a liberating faith. A faith that came to full flower in the prophetic voice of Martin Luther King Jr. And those who worked alongside him.

John Lewis grabbed hold of that faith, worked out over centuries in churches like this one. He had more than that backpack that you saw as he crossed that Edmund Pettus Bridge. The thing that he was really carrying could not be seen. And so he faced down, death, and won for us our vote and our voice. So my brothers and my sisters, as we embrace this urgency of creating the beloved community now is the time to be loved for as my father said hate cannot drive out hate only

love can do that love means understanding redemptive goodwill toward all which seeks nothing in return it's the unconditional love of God that flows in and through the human heart so be loved by implementing the demands of justice to eliminate the school-to-prison pipeline that has so many black children entrapped. Be loved by correcting voting policies that seek to suppress the votes of millions of black and brown people. Be loved and implement the demands of justice by transforming a society that is disproportionately violent toward black lives including

black transgendered lives and indigenous lives. Be love and correct false narratives and economic policies that continue to divide and pit poor and working-class black and white people against each other. Be love and implement the demands of justice where systems and structures are deconstructed and lead the way of living in community that reimagines just, humane, equitable and sustainable policies, practices and behaviors. Be love and as the Word of God says, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them who hate you, and pray for them that despitefully

use you and abuse you. Be loved and do justice and love mercy and walk humbly with our God while this may be our last chance. If we choose to be loved in the words of my father, we will speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics will be able to join in the words of that old Negro spiritual, free at last, free at last. Thank God Almighty, we are all free at last. Today is called a day of service. And in Philadelphia, President-elect Joe Biden and Jill Biden, they actually were committed to service today in Philadelphia.

Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and her husband, Doug, they were at a food outlet here in Washington, D.C. And so, again, many people today were committed to doing service. That's one of the things that President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama and others have encouraged folks in the past to do. And so today has become, in many places, a national day of service. What did Donald Trump do today for King Day? Not a damn thing.

Wasn't being seen, said nothing. But what was also interesting, you saw a boatload of Republicans actually sending out various MLK tweets. And if you want to know how trashed some of these people are, all you have to do is look at what they send out. One of the folks in the control room, if y'all could pull this up, Kelly Loeffler, Senator Kelly Loeffler, had the audacity to send out an MLK comment. This is the same woman who called Pastor Raphael Warnock a radical liberal, called him a socialist and a Marxist while running against him. Yet here he is pastoring the church where Dr. King was the pastor. How hypocritical of so many of these Republicans on this day.

People who did not stand with the issues of Dr. King, their voter suppressors as well. And so give me a break with them posting their comments on a day like this. I want to bring in my panel right now. Mustafa Santelgo Ali, who joins us formally with the environmental, first of all, with the EPA. Glad to have him on today's show. Is Julianne Malveaux there? I'm here.

Julianne there? All right. I am here. Julianne, President of Maryland Bennett College. Avis Jones-Weaver. Avis? I'm here, too. All right.

All right. Glad to have all three of you here. I mean, it's always interesting on days like this to see Republicans who all of a sudden love Dr. King, don't care about what he stands for, talking about how he must honor him and his service and his sacrifice when they literally are against everything. And one of the people who also sent out something was Kaylee McAdemy, the press secretary. And I was one of the people who said, Kaylee, go to hell. I don't want to hear a damn thing from you, Ted Cruz,

from any of these folks who don't agree with anything that Dr. King stood for. My deal is it's best for them just to shut the hell up on today and keep it moving. You know, Roland. A, what's your first? Since that 45 man has been MIA, he and his team need to continue to be MIA. They ain't got nothing to say, nothing to do. Here's what Dr. King said when he accepted the Nobel Peace Prize.

I have the audacity to believe that people everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds, peace and freedom for their spirits. This administration has undercut the ability to eat, the ability to educate, the ability for peace and freedom and for spirit. So they don't have nothing to say. Excuse my about it. They don't have nothing to say. Dr. King also talked about the meaning of education. And as you know, Roland, I'm the president of PushXL, which is the education arm of Rainbow Push. And Reverend Jesse Jackson honored me with that position. We did something today, a virtual celebration. But one of the quotes that I always get to is when Dr. King talks about education being a buttress against propaganda. Okay, so education is supposed to be the firewall against propaganda. Uneducated, you know what, fools who are basically inculcating propaganda as opposed to dealing with truth. Dr. King, you go back.

And that's why. And that's why Mustafa on this day. Julian, one second. That's why Mustafa on this day, we use it to call folks out because today is not just about honoring him and other civil rights leaders. It's also should be a recommitment to what they fought for. Yeah, I mean, Dr. King was a social justice advocate. He was a radical in many people's eyes until a little bit further down the road. So for these folks to say and to send out tweets in support and that they believed in Dr. King's message, then that would mean that they would have to be in favor of housing justice, that they would have to be in favor of education justice and economic justice and, of of course voting rights. All the things that they fight against so diligently are the things that Dr. King stood for. And you know a good alpha man also has the ability to

call you out on the legislation that you're not moving forward on. And I remember when Dr. King said that I cannot pass legislation to make you love me, but I can pass legislation to make you love me but i can pass legislation to stop you from lynching me so these are all the things that they have not stood up for that dr king not only believed in but he was angered in and and avis this is also a day and i make this point every single year this day is not solely about the reverend dr martin luther king jr. When he won the Nobel Peace Prize in that 12-minute acceptance speech, which we streamed earlier today on Roland Martin Unfiltered, he accepted it on behalf of the movement. Today is a day to celebrate all of those, known and unknown,

who put the work in in order to achieve freedom for black folks in so many areas. It absolutely is. And this is why whenever his quotes are selectively selected and propagated by those people who clearly fight against everything that he fought for during his life, who would have had they been around at that time, and if they were, they probably did, Fight against everything he was fighting for at that time and continue to this day. Fight against those elements of the movement that we still have moving forward today,

largely in the form of the inspiration for, for example, Black Lives Matter and how that movement has really taken the baton and moved forward in modern times. You know, they are just using that as a shield. They're using it as a shield and a diversion to try to look as if they are unbiased when we know precisely who they are and what they are. It is particularly enraging for them to, in essence, I would, you know, I hate to use the term I'm thinking, but basically they are using his

words to hide behind as they continue to push forward with their evil notions that, as was mentioned by Mustafa, actually goes counter to everything that he was fighting for in terms of things that they have the ability to move forward with today. You know, if you look at how you had the action against the anti-lynching bill, if you look at all of the things that they have done to just destroy voting rights in America, if you look at all the things that they have done to discount the value of Black lives, it is, in fact, insulting, not only to the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King, but to all of those who fought for the rights that we have today and for those who continue to fight for the rights that we still need and still need action on by today's legislatures and today's people who have

been elected to office. And that's what, look, it's an important point for us to recognize that. We'll keep talking about that a little bit later in the show. We're going to hear from Stevie Wonder, who dropped the video about today. Something else happened today, and that is Senator Kamala Harris resigned her Senate seat representing the state of California. Of course, she's going to be inaugurated as vice president on Monday, excuse me, on Wednesday. She was elected in 2016. And of course, she's often talked about, you know, what that meant. Her election was bittersweet because it was the same night that Trump beat Hillary Clinton. She released this video today to her supporters with regards to ending her tenure as a junior senator from the state of California.

Hi, everybody. I just wanted to let you know how honored I've been to serve as a United States senator from the place of my birth, the great state of California. Back when I was a sophomore at Howard University in 1984, I applied to be a Senate intern in the office of the then senior senator from California, Alan Cranston. And this kid from Oakland, I got years later, I would actually run the office where I was once a student, watching the incredible work that a senator can do, and especially a senator from California. It has been such an honor to serve with a team that has worked so tirelessly, a state team that has been there, where we have received thousands of calls from our fellow Californians, constituents concerned about whether they are getting their benefits as a veteran, concerned about FEMA protections during the wildfires, folks who have contacted us about helping them get support from various

federal agencies when they needed help most. It has been an honor to serve when we have done the work in the United States Congress of fighting for climate protection and fighting knowing that California has been a leader and we can do what we've done in California as a nation. It's been an honor to serve with so many extraordinary American leaders in the Senate doing bipartisan work, whether it was work to end cash bail or the work to strengthen our national infrastructure around elections or the work that we did to say that lynching

should be a federal crime. These are some of the things that we have done over the course of my four years, and you gave me the honor of being able to serve. And so I just wanted to say thank you. Of course, I'm not saying goodbye. In many ways, I'm now saying hello as your vice president. But I do want to thank you for the honor of representing the place of my birth as a proud daughter of California. Thank you. With her resignation today, there's no black woman in the United States Senate. Joining us right now is Chris Scott, the political director, national political director for Collective PAC. Of course, their focus is to get more African Americans elected to office on a federal, state, and local level. Chris, this is only two black women have been in the United States Senate in history.

Carol Mosley Braun, representing Illinois for one term, and now, of course, Kamala Harris for the last four years. And the governor of California, Gavin Newsom, has already said he is going to appoint Alex Padilla to her position. There are a lot of folks who were pushing him to appoint an African-American woman, whether it was Karen Bass or a host of others, to the position. And this is one of the issues that the Democratic Party is going to have to deal with, the fact that black women have been the backbone of the party, delivering votes, but not being able to enjoy the spoils of victory by having themselves represented in seats like United States Senate. Correct. Well, one, Roland, thank you for having me tonight. It is very disappointing to see a United States Senate without a black woman's voice there.

That is not a United States Senate that is accurately reflective of our democracy. My hope is that we don't have to wait another 16 years before we see another black woman go into the U.S. Senate. But it's bittersweet because we have Senator Harris moving on to be the vice president of this great nation. And we have Reverend Wealthy Warnock, who's only the 11th black senator ever to serve in the U.S. Senate. But again, to have a U.S. Senate without a black woman, it's really unconscionable when it comes to me. Of course, you had Erica Smith, who ran in the Democratic primary in North Carolina. Democrats got behind Cal Cunningham, who eventually lost to Tom Tillis in the general. In a couple of years, Richard Burr has announced he is not going to seek re-election.

And so there's an opportunity there for a black woman to run in North Carolina. That's the other issue as well, being able to get the support statewide. And so the pressure needs to also be on the Democratic Senate campaign committee because they chose who they got behind in a lot of these races. They picked candidates in Texas, in North Carolina, in Kentucky. They chose, got behind Amy McGrath instead of Charles Booker in Kentucky. She barely beat Booker in the primary, but she got crushed by Mitch McConnell in the general and so many other states as well. And so that's the other issue as well.

And so the work needs to be put in now identifying black women to seek statewide office, to seek these U.S. Senate races. So what is Collective PAC doing between now and when folks start filing late this year, early next year, making announcements, but running for the U.S. Senate in 2022? We've got seats opening up, like I said, in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and others. Well, I'm glad you brought that up. So the collective pack is being very intentional on that we do not want another 16-year gap. And so when we're looking at these 2022 races, I believe, as you mentioned, we have races North Carolina, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, I believe,

Florida as well, Kentucky. We want to see a Black woman as the nominee, regardless of what the DSCC is going to do. I think what we have seen after this year is that it's really a dawn of the black candidate when it comes to the United States Senate. And black candidates are now unafraid and unapologetic to step forward and say, hey, I'm good enough to run for this seat and I'm not going to sit here and I'm not going to wait for you to tell me that it's OK. But you can trust that the collective pact will be unapologetically working to make sure that we find at least one black woman to not only win the nomination, but be elected to the United States Senate by November of 2022. All right, Chris Scott with The Collective Packers.

Really appreciate it. Thanks a lot. Thanks so much, Roland. This really is a major issue, Avis, because it comes down to support. It comes down to being selected. It comes down to being able to raise the money. All of those are factors when it comes to running for statewide office. And Democrats must do a much better job of backing black women when they're seeking these statewide positions. You're exactly right. And when you look at specifically the sister who was running

for Senate there, a state senator who was very popular in the state. In fact, she was winning all of the statewide polls leading up to and sort of early on in the primary time beating the person, quite frankly, that the DSCC got behind and flooded with money. And also, I would have to say, seemed to be very involved with also trying to push her out of specific media opportunities that would help to spread the word beyond North Carolina in terms of helping her be able to attract alternative forms of funding. And so they were very active, I would have to say, in crushing her ability to really run a fair campaign, even though she had a very strong base. This needs to show a lesson to the Democratic Party that, along with the stellar performance

of Black women in terms of the presidential election and the latest runoff, that we have the ability to win elections. It makes me think, if she had been on that ballot in North Carolina, what would have happened instead? We saw the energy among Black voters when they have people on the ballot that they are excited about, such as what just happened in Georgia. By having this other alternative on the ballot, which ultimately ended up getting embroiled in a scandal there towards the end of the election, it really undermined the ability of Democrats to be able to come away with

a more decisive victory with regards to having a straight-up majority, full majority in the Senate, rather than now being 50-50 plus VP? Julianne, money, money, money. That's what comes down when you're running for U.S. Senate race. And so what it means is if Collective PAC or others are identifying black women who want to run for a Senate race, it's important for them to come out of the gate, being able to raise a million, two million, three million dollars to show they have that capacity because that's really what folks look to as to whether or not you can run for office. But it's not always about money. It's also how could you galvanize voters. Amy McGrath raised a whole bunch of money against Mitch McConnell, and she got crushed.

Gideon raised a whole bunch of money against Susan Collins, and she got crushed. Cal Cunningham, same thing. So you better be able to excite voters. You know, Roland, it's a combination of the money and the enthusiasm. Emily's List, a white woman-run pro-life PAC, Emily's List says early money is like yeast. And it means that the earlier the money comes in, the more likely it is to make an impact.

And I think that the collective PAC is on the right track with that to sort of say, let's get the money in early. But the money, you know, it's not that ain't nothing going on but the writ. It's like the writ and the enthusiasm. And there has to be an enthusiasm for candidates. And I think, you know, Avis is right about the North Carolina race. And here's where much of this has to lay is on the Democratic

Party, who has never fully valued the impact of African-American women. Oh, we're good enough to answer the phones. We're good enough to go to the polls. We're good enough to knock on doors, but we're not good enough to be elected. Stacey Abrams would be governor of Georgia if the Democratic Party had put the money behind her that they should have. We can look at any number of other races. When Carol Moseley Braun ran first for Senate, the Democratic Party looked sideways at her. They gave her the side eye. And she prevailed anyway. What we need to have folks understand is that black women are a force.

But we're now at a place where we'll enforce our power and don't play us. Don't make us the sideline. When we should be, and we have been the front line. Biden wouldn't be there if it weren't for black women. And let's just call the roll. Warnock, Ossoff, black women. And so why does the party

continue to sideline us? That's the question, Roland. Correction here. You said Emily's List is a pro-life group. No, they're a pro-choice group. So I just want to go ahead and correct that. Mustafa. It's all good.

I got it. That's what I'm here. That's what I do. Mustafa, again, right now, this is our, of course, inauguration is on Wednesday, but the whole focus really should be on preparing folks for 2022, getting ready to run, identifying folks right now, beginning to build their profile up, beginning to introduce them to voters. That's what it boils down to, to get ready for 2022, because look, a year from now, we're

going to be getting ready for the primaries in a lot of these states. Yeah, we've got to continue to build the bridges to get folks, you know, from the grassroots and those who inspire folks and make folks want to get engaged and come out and be supportive and then get them into those positions, get the training that they might need and then get the infrastructure underneath of them

because we know other candidates will have that infrastructure. We also just got to make sure that brothers are willing to support sisters, both in showing up not just with your vote, but also with the dollars that are in your pocket and pushing our organizations to be more supportive also. I don't want to take away anything from the organizations who have traditionally and historically been supportive, but we got to make sure that other organizations also understand the value of having Black women in offices at the highest level. And as we begin to have more and more in both the House and the Senate, then we can also push more to make sure they're also on the

Supreme Court. So we have to understand this holistic strategy of making sure that we are not undervaluing ourselves and making sure that we are showing honor and respect to those sisters who continue to stand up so much for us. Absolutely. All right, folks, got to go to commercial break. When we come back, we'll talk more about the inauguration on Wednesday. Security threats. What is the FBI doing about that? Also, what Bible is Vice President-elect Kamala Harris going to swear on? But before we go to break, this is what Stevie Wonder put out today on today's MLK National Holiday. We'll be back on Roland Martin Unfiltered, broadcasting live from Black Lives Matter Plaza, the nation's Washington, D.C. Dear Dr. King,

I met you when I was 14 years of age. You were a true hero and you became an inspiration. I've been blessed to write songs of love, hope, and motivation, many of them inspired by your life. More than any award that I've ever received, I want you to know that I'm thankful how you influenced my place of love,

which allowed me to try to push the needle of love and equality forward. It is painful to know that needle has not moved one iota. For 36 years, we've had a national holiday honoring your birthday and principles, yet you would not believe the lack of progress. It makes me physically sick. I am sick that politicians try to find an easy solution to a 400-year problem. I am sick of some people using God for a convenience rather than a commitment. I am sick of lies and deceit that dominate our reality.

I am sick that truth is struggling to be heard and defended. What we say has not been what we do, and this country must reconcile our words and deeds. Until we turn our mouth movements into righteous action, we're doing our nation, God, in your memory and in justice. Until what we say is what we do, there is no truth. It is just repeating and rewriting history, just as we have for the last 400 years. We must define the truth and the facts that support them and declare them absolute. Those who promote lies and false truth must be held accountable.

It is the only way we can move forward. It is time to formally seek the truth and formally declare facts. We need a truth commission that forces this country to look at its lies. I'm calling on President Biden and Vice President Harris to launch a formal government investigation to establish the truth of inequality in this country. This truth will validate the history in this commission or recommend reconciliation. Without truth, we cannot have accountability. Without accountability, we cannot have forgiveness.

Without forgiveness, we cannot heal. It is time for all to take the only stand. We cannot be afraid to confront a lie and a liar. Those in leadership who won't or don't acknowledge the truth should be held accountable. Dr. King, these times require courage as they did when you lived and paid the ultimate price. On this day, a day in your honor, I pledge to have the courage to say what I see and acknowledge what I hear.

In your spirit, I call on all those in the Senate to speak truth to what they know, they can physically see, and begin the steps of accountability, forgiveness, and then healing. With a heavy heart and a hopeful spirit, Dr. King, I am Stevie. You think about the fact that 2043, we are going to be a nation that's majority people of color. I've really focused on this a lot on television, on radio, in my speeches. That my focus is trying to prepare us to have demographic power while also having educational economic

power at the same time because there's nothing worse than having demographic numbers but then you still don't have that economic power that political power and education power well you know you and, and I think most people know and understand that education is what we've got to impress on all of our people. We've got to help people to understand that if you want a decent quality of life, if you want the kind of quality of life where you're not having to worry about your food and your nutrition and, know being able to pay your bills or buy a house then you've got to become educated the more education you have the larger the paycheck is and of course we've got to be involved in entrepreneurship taking

the talent that we have to create businesses and there's a lot of opportunity for that. I have the pleasure to present to you Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Oh freedom. I have a dream. My poor little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. That one day this nation will rise up, live out the true meaning of its creed. We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal. I have a dream today. I know you're asking today, how long will it take? How long? Not long. We are not about to turn around. Yes, sir. We are on the move now. Yes, sir. Yes, we are on the move and no wave of racism can stop us.

Yes, sir. We've got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn't matter with me now. Because I've been to the mountaintop. And I've looked over. And I've seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the Thomas Land and be free.

Hey, folks, welcome back to Roland Martin Unfiltered. We're broadcasting live from Black Lives Matter Plaza here in the nation's capital of Washington, D.C. Today, of course, is a national holiday for Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. His actual birthday was Friday. He would have been 92 years old on Friday. Of course, he was assassinated on April 4th, 1968 at the age of 39 in Memphis, Tennessee. It is always, always important on this day for us not only to remember him, to remember all of those who fought for our rights, the people who made all of this possible. That's one of the reasons why we actually broadcast on this day. A lot of other people, this is a holiday. Normally there are days off. It is a day

on for us because we felt it's important for us to be able to present these perspectives and these stories and these issues that happen on this particular day. It is also, we're two days away from the inauguration of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. It is bittersweet. This should be a huge, huge occasion. But the reality is tomorrow, there's gonna be a national memorial being led by Joe Biden for the 400,000 people who have died of COVID-19. There are a number of different events

that are taking place. Today was a day of service. The COVID Memorial is tomorrow. The inauguration is on Wednesday. There are other different events that are happening all virtually. They're taking place as well. Some details are also coming out with regards to the inauguration. Kamala Harris, she is going to actually use two Bibles when she is sworn in. First of all, she's going to be sworn in by Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. And so the two Bibles, one of the Bibles is going to be one that belonged to Thurgood Marshall. Of course, the first African-American on the Supreme Court.

And the second Bible will belong to Mrs. Regina Shelton, a woman who acted as a second mother to Harris and her sister, Maya. And so those are some of the details right there. We also now know that Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, is performing, but Garth Brooks was at it and he announced today that he is performing as a sign of unity as well. And so they also announced the University of Delaware, as well as the Howard University drumlines. Drumlines from both schools are going to actually be leading

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris into the inauguration taking place as well. There's a whole lot of stuff that is not happening as a result of the security issues, Avis. And it's quite unfortunate. Normally, this place will be abuzz with activities. Every hotel will be booked. We're literally across the street from a hotel here, the St. Regis. You've got, of course, you know, Capitol Hilton down here.

Down the street here, of course, across from the White House, where the vice president stays is Blair House. Also, there's another hotel a block away. And normally, again, we're prepping for balls, all sort of events happening all around the city. But because of COVID, none of that is taking place. And everything is going to be virtual. Some people are going to try some events, but the reality is there's a limit on events taking place in the city due to COVID as well. This memorial service tomorrow that President-elect Joe Biden is going to be leading, that really is putting in perspective really where we are now, how we still are being impacted by this national, this international pandemic, how COVID-19 is impacting so many people across the country

and the world. Absolutely. And, you know, it is unfortunate that this is unlike any other inauguration that any of us have lived through and that we won't have those more celebratory moments. But the reality is that we are facing a catastrophic reality here in the United States. I do a lot of political analysis about what's going on in America with Canadian national television. And oftentimes while I'm waiting for my hit, I'm hearing segments that they're having where they're talking about how they are dealing with COVID. And I just want to share what they're doing and not what they're doing, but where they are compared to us. So we can put this into some context. We're right beside each

other physically in terms of being landlocked right next to each other. You know how many people have died from COVID in Canada? 16,000. 16,000 people. And to hear them talk about it, it's like a five alarm fire. They're talking about potentially doing another shutdown. They're talking about everything that they can do to make sure that people get their vaccines. They are taking this seriously. And that's why you have Canada, a country that in many other ways is very comparable to us, with only 16,000 deaths. And here we are right on the precipice of 400,000 deaths. I think it's very important that Americans understand that in this country, we have done the worst, the absolute worst of any nation on this planet in terms of managing this health catastrophe. And the reason why we've done the worst of any other

nation on the planet is because this administration, which thank God is about to get kicked the heck out of office, has actually, from the very beginning, played politics with it. They've lied about it. They've politicized it. And then they've decided they don't want to do anything about it. And because of that, we are on the precipice of 400,000 people dead when our neighbors just to the north of us only have 16,000. That could have been us with competent leadership. So thank goodness we have a President Biden and a Vice President Harris who will come in on day one, on day one, working to make sure that we actually have a coordinated national strategy that is meant to save lives. Because clearly the psychopath in chief that is leaving the office literally didn't give a damn that you have nearly now half a million people dead on his watch.

Let's be real. Let's be real clear, Mustafa. We are at this point because of Donald Trump. As Ava said, the massive failure of Donald Trump, not just with COVID. The reason we're seeing all of this security here in the nation's capital is because of Donald Trump and his MAGA thugs, those domestic terrorists who attack the U.S. Capitol. This man is still in the White House claiming he won. He still is in denial. But the reality is he'll be flying his ass out of here at 8 a.m. on Wednesday because he's not attending the inauguration.

We don't need him there. Ivanka, now she's not going. And then you have Melania Trump, that birther, who also the first first first the first first lady in modern history not to even welcome the incoming first lady into the White House. When I say I can't wait for the thuggish Trump family to be out of that building is a severe understatement. He continued to be in denial all he wants to because the state attorney general in New York and a few other states will make sure that he comes back to reality pretty quickly over the

next few months. I'm fairly sure of that. You know, it's time to get to work. Over the last four years, the administration did very little work, if any work at all, in so many different issues. So we know that we've got work to do in relationship to COVID-19 that Avis just broke down for everyone. So let's get HHS and CDC and the other folks the resources and the authority that they need to be able to make change happen. We know systemic racism is running wild. It has always been here. But after all the gasoline that Trump threw on it, we know that we need a Department of Justice that is going to put justice back in the title and get the work done. You know, we know that we've got a planet that is warming up, that is literally on fire across the country.

If you saw all the wildfires and hurricanes and heat waves and all these other types of things. So we got a chance now to get to work and have the Environmental Protection Agency and some of these other departments and agencies to do the things that they need to do. So for me personally, you know, the balls are great, but they're not necessary in a moment when we got to get to work. At the end of four years, then we'll celebrate because then we'll be able to point to a set of accomplishments that honor that work that needed that needed to be done. And that was completed. Julianne, when we look at, again, where we stand, you look at how Trump and his minions are doing their best to muddy the water for Joe Biden. These idiots are trying to install one of his political appointees to be the general counsel for the National Security Council. Speaker Nancy Pelosi is saying this is wrong. I mean, they're leaving in 42 hours, less than 42 hours,

but they're trying to install him into a civil servant job, making it harder for Joe Biden to fire them. I mean, this is the kind of nonsense these people are doing. They want to create mayhem going out the door. They have executed five people in the last couple of weeks because they want to create this level of mayhem. These are thuggish people, and I have no respect for any of them, and I hope every person who worked for this man can't find a job anywhere.

You know, Roland, this is a high level of burden, but you've been pushing on this for a long time. For the past four years, all the chicaneries, these people have been involved, removing various and some of the Obama executive orders, diminishing the power of workers, diminishing the power of people in terms of their environmental rights. Now, these last out-the-door appointments can be reversed. And all I have to say, Joe Biden, if I were to sit in the room with you, be bold, Joe. Be bold by it. Don't take this step. Because that's what it is. It's not.

We have seen an unraveling of social fabric in terms of labor rights, in terms of education rights, in terms of women. We've seen that all unraveling so somebody like you can unravel it for what? And so you have the best of the boys as a boy in his 60s, running education. And so you have to avoid running into cases.

We have Joe Biden and Kamala Harris with the opportunity to opt in right away. We talked about executive orders. Some of it will take a minute. Some of it will take an hour. But you should be clear that there was a vision that the Obama, the Republican, that he now has claimed. And we also, the nation has mediated everything that that man stands for. Everything that he stands for.

For rolling your rights, for challenging. You know, he's got less than 48 hours to six, I don't know. How much damage did a fool do in 36 hours? About to see. Gotta ask y'all about this here. The FBI, Associated

Press reported this. The FBI is conducting insider threat screenings of 25,000 National Guard troops to ensure a safe inauguration. The extra precaution comes after a number of insurrections stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, and that included actual active service members. Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy said none of the troops helping to protect the inauguration have been flagged so far, but the government will continue to vet National Guard troops in order to prevent another coup attempt. What does that say about Donald Trump and how he has unleashed these white supremacist domestic terrorist thugs on America? Mustafa, I'll start with you. Well, you know, we've talked about how hate crimes have

increased under Donald Trump significantly to the highest levels. We've talked about how the militias have grown. And we also know the historical context in our country that white supremacists and white nationalists have been a part of law enforcement in the military, you know, for hundreds and hundreds of years. You know, we know what the black codes were all about and that they hired many of the folks who were in the Confederate Army to actually begin to impact and to brutalize black people in our country. We saw the same thing in the civil rights movement, where we had law enforcement and others and even National Guard, who sometimes were engaged in those types of behaviors. And we know that it even moved to today. So they needed to make sure that they're going deeper and they need to make sure that there's real criteria,

you know, before someone goes into the military of actually looking deeper into the background. There are no background checks, but they can go deeper on that, along with both Capitol Hill police, the National Guard and many of these other folks who get to carry guns and get to make a decision whether you live or you die. So we have to get really serious about this. And I can speak because I've worked with all kinds of law enforcement over the years. And I've worked with a number of the black law enforcement inside of there who've told me the stories about individuals, you know, who are in there. By no means is it everyone. So I don't want to get, you know, folks sending in messages to the show saying Mustafa said, you know, that all law enforcement is not doing the right thing but we know of active

duty military members being a part of uh potential uh insurrectionist activities well i'm just glad they're finally you know acting based on the reality that we've known for years uh as we've mentioned over and over again on the show, the FBI has said decades ago that police departments across this country are infiltrated by white supremacists. We know, too, that historically white supremacists have actually intentionally gone into the military just to receive tactical training. So obviously there will be an element in those institutions that could very much sort of side with the insurrectionists. We know, too, that there were several off-duty policemen who were, in fact, arrested as being part of that, you know, crowd of terrorists who invaded the Capitol and attempted the coup. We also know the woman that was shot and rightfully shot as she was going through the door that they had just knocked the window out of

trying to breach the secured area where the legislators were. She's a former Air Force person. So it makes sense that they would vet these people. But, you know, I believe, unfortunately, they're not going far enough in terms of the breadth of the vetting. I just saw today a report that a couple of busloads of volunteer NYPD officers are coming down to help. And my first thought was, have they been vetted? You know, this is a very dangerous situation. And it would be very easy, quite frankly, comparatively, when you compare to the general population, for someone who is on the inside, so to speak, who have a weapon at their side, who is trusted to be in close proximity to these dignitaries, to be the ones to carry out the violent acts. So I say, thank goodness they are vetting them. And, in fact, I hope they vet even more, even those who are claiming to volunteer.

Julianne, Reuters is reporting that Donald Trump plans to partner or commute the citizens of more than 100 people. One of them is Lil Wayne, who pled guilty to federal gun charges. According to Reuters, he does not plan to issue a self-parton after it was explained to him that that likely is not legal. Granted, the president has a wide latitude when it comes to granting pardons. New York Times had a story over the weekend, basically how a bunch of rich folks were paying people upwards of 50 grand to $2 million to secure pardons for them from Trump. You know, this has been the most corrupt administration that we've ever seen.

That man has used our nation as his personal piggyback. We've seen it, piggybank rather. We've seen it in terms of any number of things. The granting of a trademark to Ivanka, his daughter. The pardon of his son's dad. But they have used this as a piggy bank. So we're not surprised about anything. What I'm disturbed about, as opposed to surprised about, is what will happen on Wednesday. As Avis said, there are people coming down to volunteer. What are they volunteering for and who are they? We know that from the Brennan Center of

Justice, they did a report a year ago that talked about the unholy alliance between law enforcement and white supremacists. And we know from our own history as black people that basically law enforcement, half of the sheriffs in the South were Klan members. They basically, and half may be an overstatement, or it might be an understatement. But what we know about that is that oftentimes we saw people lynched with the full concurrence of Southern sheriffs.

So we know that this is not our space. It's not our time in terms of what they're doing. And we have to be extraordinarily vigilant. The pardon situation, every president, you know, even ones we love, President Obama, President Clinton, they pardon people that we raise questions about. The biggest question I have is whether or not 45 will pardon his children. And if he pardons himself, guess what? He is admitting guilt. You can't pardon people for something that they didn't do. So if he's pardoning himself, he's admitting guilt. And I think his advisers have been correct in dialing him back on that. But, you know, I think that at the end of the day, he's you know, if you dance to the music, you got to pay to the piper.

At the end of the day, he's going to pay to the piper, whether it's Tish James in New York, was Cyrus Vance in New York, whether it's Carl Racine in D.C., whether it's someone else who says, dude, you ain't getting away with this. Well, I think it is safe to say we are dealing with gross corruption in this administration. And I think, Mustafa, in the first six months, we're going to find out how corrupt these folks are. Once the team Biden gets in there and begins to examine things, they're going to discover real fast the kind of sick things these folks have been doing. You know, from an environmental standpoint, how they have absolutely destroyed the EPA,

how they have destroyed the Department of the Interior, how they have absolutely destroyed the EPA, how they have destroyed the Department of the Interior, how they have destroyed the scientists in the USDA. I mean, the attack on science over the last four years is mind boggling. We're going to find out all the lives that have been lost beyond the COVID-19 moment that we find ourselves in. We're also going to find out how all these dollars, these federal dollars, have flowed to a whole bunch of folks who they probably shouldn't have went to, contracts, subcontracting opportunities that not enough folks have paid attention to and looked at who may have been Trump friends or supporters and others. So there's going to be an

accounting, and folks are going to pull out all this malfeasance that has happened. And there's going to be additional charges that are going to happen to a whole bunch of folks. Not only that, this is some breaking news here. The U.S. will lift travel bans that have kept most visitors from Europe, the U.K., and Brazil away since last spring. This is Wall Street Journal just sent that out. White House plans to lift these restrictions. This is what they say. The restrictions apply to any foreigner present in those countries for the

two preceding weeks, with a few exceptions. A public health official said the restriction came too late and were too porous to meaningfully slow the spread of the coronavirus to the U.S. as the virus has already arrived in New York and parts of the West Coast, carried by American travelers returning from abroad. What you're going to see here, Avis, you're actually going to see, I think, in the next 40 hours, you're going to see Donald Trump try everything he can to make life difficult for Biden and Harris. Don't be surprised if they actually issue actions up to noon on Wednesday. Absolutely. And I think that the thinking is two-pronged on that. He's trying to infect as many agencies as he can with his just spoiled

appointments and doing everything that he can to pull back, you know, pull back regulations, just make things horrible, in an attempt to proactively sabotage the efficacy of the incoming administration, because he understands that with Biden and Harris administration, that once they get going, they will actually be able to demonstrate to the public in short order how absolutely piss poor his administration has been. But I also think that there is a couple of other motivations behind this. I think that another motivation is he's trying to put in people, particularly in certain departments, like if we're talking about sort of defense, for example, he's trying to put in people, I believe, who will try to cover up his activities.

I fully believe. I can't wait until an investigation happens and is very thorough about what just happened with regards to that insurrection attempt, because it's my belief that he was involved. It's my belief that he had people throughout government in certain high levels, high decision-making positions, who actually helped that effort and who led to some of these decisions that were made that led to the lack of preparedness that we saw on that day. And I believe that he thinks that if he can get his people in there at the last minute, they can help to cover up his mess for him. And I would

just say one more thing. Thirdly, if he is not removed, quote unquote, if he's not found guilty by the Senate with regards to the impeachment proceedings that is likely to occur in short order, he will have the ability to run again. And so, you know, I believe that from day one, he's already said, he's already said that he wants to run again, really. And a lot of what's going on right now in terms of the lies that he has propagated is setting him up for that. It also provides him further ammunition to run again if he does everything in his power to, in essence, gum up the system, to not only cover up his criminal behavior and activities, but also to make it that much more difficult for an effective Biden-Harris to be able to do what they need to do in order to be able to deliver to the American people everything that he was unable to.

Julian, I think it is safe to use the word sabotage. What Trump is going to do. We have never seen, first of all, black people knew this. We try to tell everybody, but we have never seen somebody this corrupt, this thuggish, this hateful, this spiteful, this petty, being president of the United States. No sense of respect for history, no sense of decency, no morality, no values, no principles. He does not care. It's all about him. And he will do as best that he can to screw with anything and everything tied to Biden-Harris.

This fool even tried to issue an executive order declaring January 22nd to be National Sanctity of Life Day. You're not president after Wednesday. He literally issued a press release

declaring January 22nd National Sanctity of Life Day. Really? You know, Roland, if I had been able to construct an alternative universe,

I would not have been able to construct this. This is not a fool or a big fool, but a GD fool. And we know that. He has attempted, as Ava said, he's attempted to basically salt the soil for the Biden-Harris administration. But both of them are time enough for him. Anybody he's appointed in these, you know, the law says anything you do in the last 60 days, which we know that President Obama was stymied by with some of his executive orders,

they're not going to stick. So this is whatever day it is. It's not going to stick. None of these things are going to stick. But Biden has to be bold. Biden and Harris have to be bold. They have to be willing to say, oh, hell no. We're not putting up with this. We're not dealing with this. No to the no to the no to the no. This man, I mean, he never had a mind in the beginning, but a little bit he had, he has lost. He wants to go out the back door of the White House and have a 21 gun salute, which in the military you only get when you have served honorably. He has not served honorably. He wants, you know, he's going to do this 100 pardons probably tomorrow, and we'll see who he pardons. But again, it is basically the desecration of our democracy and also of our constitution. Now, the question is not about Democrats or Republicans, but about who loves this country. And I've got to give props to folks like Ms. Cheney, props to folks like Mitt Romney.

But when this stuff comes up, we've also got to say no to the no to the no. So I'm not speechless. I'm never speechless. I always got something to say. But this really baffles all of us to see the ways that he has decimated. Mustafa talked about EPA. We could talk about the Labor Department. We could talk about the Commerce Department, the Small Business Administration. There are so many ways that this man has attempted to disrupt government as we know it. I mean, Mustafa, really? An executive order declaring a day when you're no longer president? I mean, you talk about, and again, what he's trying to do is, he's trying to appeal to his white conservative evangelical base to get them upset, mad,

if Joe Biden chooses to ignore January 22nd as this national sanctity of life day, do whatever. Trump has been pimping America since he came down that escalator and people started buying into, you know, his foolishness, his his vision of America. And, you know, he can't leave quick enough. The problem is that there still will be these ripples that will continue to move across the federal space based upon many of the things he did. I'll send a message out to all those folks who work for him. Donald Trump is not going to protect you. I'll give you an example. Look at Flint, Michigan.

Look at how the governor and a number of those folks who knew what was going on and participated and were complicit are now catching those charges. So for all those folks who were secretaries and administrators and depth sex and all the way down, your time is coming. They are going to be investigations and you may find yourself in the places where you continue to try and send black and brown folks. One of the things that I want to ask all three of you, and that is presidents of the United States, typically based upon their successor, receive intelligence briefings. There are many who say, and I agree with them 100 percent, that Donald Trump should not be granted any intelligence briefings at all. Anybody disagree? Absolutely not.

I mean, first of all, he's not intelligent, so what would he do with those intelligence briefings? He'd do nothing with them. For real. I mean, for real. He don't understand what's going on. He don't read that stuff. Listen, what he would do, though, is he would sell it to the highest bidder.

We know who he is. We know that he's in money trouble. That's come out. We have no idea how deep that rabbit hole goes because he still hasn't shown his taxes. He owes a lot of people a lot of money. And we know that this latest stunt that he pulled in terms of what's going on with the whole insurrection attempt has hurt him in terms of his brand. His many future business deals that he may have had have just gone kaput. And so he's going to need money. We also know from his actions that he doesn't give a damn about America or Americans,

and he would sell us out the river at the drop of a dime. So absolutely not. The last thing and the most dangerous thing that could happen is to continue to give this man, quote unquote, intelligence briefings when he would do nothing in the world but sell us out? No, to say intelligent briefings to him is like oxymoronic. I mean, intelligence briefings, Trump, really. But we know his relationship with Vladimir Putin is one that we've never been able to get to the bottom of. There's something really weird going on there.

And I'm not speculating. I'm just saying. This is the only time in American history that we have been in bed with our oppressors, with a country that has vowed its disdain for us. And so, and we, Avis is right. I think that much of this has to do with who he owes and who owns him. And why would he not sell us down the river after he's had a two-month tantrum about he won the election? He really won the election. Y'all know he really, really, really,

really won the election. And so he's basically putting that out there. I don't think he should get anything at all. I hope, I pray, that Nancy Pelosi takes those articles of impeachment to the Senate tomorrow, Tuesday, when they come back. And I hope and pray that they'll begin to deal with them, because then that puts him out of the circle. And that's what he needs to be. He needs to be out of the circle. And even as a former president who has not been impeached, he has certain entitlements. And he doesn't deserve any of those entitlements. He should not have any of those entitlements. So, no, he should not have something that he cannot understand, but that he can sell. An intelligence briefing. an intelligence briefing.

Mustafa, it's real simple. Donald Trump is an intelligence risk. Anyone who's worked in the field would share with you. And many of our top intelligence folks have shared that with folks over the last, I'd say, three and a half years. So no, any of the rights that have normally been given to a president who has left have to be stripped from him. If you do not do that, you will always be putting the United States of America in risk. All right, folks, got to go to a break. When we come back, crazy-ass white folks, what's up with these people just refusing to wear a mask? But I want to show y'all how the black officer treated her,

but when a white cop rolled up, he acted like a cop we used to see. That's next on Roland Martin Unfiltered, broadcasting live from Black Lives Matter Plaza here in Washington, D.C., less than 40 hours from now, the inauguration of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Back in a moment. What would you say to a young person who says, look, I'm trying to change our society, trying to change this world. Man, I ain't got time for this church stuff. I just don't think y'all legit. Oh, man. I would say just because you see an artist in music that you don't like,

do you stop listening to hip-hop? No. It's, like, ridiculous. You see one artist do something that is what their choice was, has nothing to do with the whole industry or the whole art form of hip hop. You don't throw out hip hop. So the same way, if you see an artist that you don't like do that, I would ask you don't do the same thing with the church.

Because just because you see one minister, one man or woman do something that you don't agree with, don't use that as an excuse to demonize an institution that could actually help save your life. You know, I am who I am because I was raised in the church. You know, all the things that I'm able to do in the world are directly related to being brought up in a healthy church environment where I learned how to develop my gifts. I learned how to communicate. I learned how to deal with other people. I learned how to lead. All of those things that help me and other people become successful in society. You can learn in the church. So I would say to somebody that's young, I would, I would challenge them. Everything that's in you, if you're trying to, to get it out, get into a good church because that church will be a fantastic incubator for all the gifts that

are in you. And when you find the right church, you will find that the others that you may have been looking at were the wrong people to look at in any profession. I don't care what it is. You're always going to find people that you can point out that may not represent that profession to the best of their ability. But when you find those that do, then you begin to see what it really is about. I have a dream. This nation will rise up. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream.

I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream.

I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream.

I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. I have a dream. But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that our individual funds contribute to the opportunity of this of opportunity so we've come to catch this deck a deck that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security All right, folks, welcome back to Roland Martin Unfiltered, broadcasting live from Black Lives Matter Plaza here in the nation's capital, Washington, D.C. Folks, an army veteran has been charged with attempted murder for shooting and wounding a 15-year-old girl in a Trump rally in Des Moines, Iowa, last month. year old Michael McKinney was wearing body armor, toting a pistol, had additional loaded magazines on his body, another gun covered with Trump stickers in his car when he shot the teen. The teen and her friends were engaging in an argument with Trump supporters when McKinney

says he shot the victim in self-defense. However, the mother of one of the teens told the Associated Press they had been surrounded by Trump supporters who were shouting racial slurs and threats right before McKinney opened fire, wounding the teen. He is currently in jail without bond, and if convicted, a 25-year-old will face 25 years behind bars. These are the kinds of people that Donald Trump has radicalized. He has actually opened the door to these type of folks. This is not going to be the last time we see this. Mustafa, we already see the people who are being arrested all across the country by the FBI. Every single day they're being arrested, including one woman who stole a laptop from the office of Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office, told a friend she was going to sell it to the Russians.

I mean, insurrectionists, domestic terrorists, however you want to label these folks, you know, many of them have training and they have connections through their training. And folks just need to be aware of that. You know, I have a lot of folks in my family who come who've been in the military. Some still are have huge amounts of respect for it. But I also understand the shortcomings that are in that space. And we have to address it. You know, lots of times when we see these these, you know, these these killings that happen around the country. People sometimes have military training, you know. So once again, as we said earlier in the show, you have got to do a better job

of vetting folks. You have got to have a psychological analysis also before we allow folks into the military, before we allow folks into law enforcement to understand if they are easily radicalized. You know, it's not like Donald Trump came into their house and whispered in their ear every night in a physical form. He's done it through his tweets. He's done it through the dog whistles and other things. But we also got to make sure that, you know, we're not allowing individuals to have literally people's lives in their hands who are not prepared for that set of responsibilities that come in being in law enforcement or the military.

But you know what, Ms. Sopko? Some of these people, some of the people who are screening people, they're screening their cousins. I mean, you know, these people are related. I mean, even if they're not their cousins, they have a shared belief pattern. So when you talk about, well, we have to vet them, well, who's going to be vetting them and who's going to be vetting the vetters? There is a history of, for example, I'm a native San Franciscan. In Oakland, they were basically recruiting Klan members. Did I roll my neck enough? Klan members to join the Oakland police force back in the 40s and 50s.

And that's why you got the resistance to the Black Panther Party in the 60s and 70s. These were people who were predisposed to hate Black people. If you asked them to vet their cousins, they wouldn't tell you their cousins were okay. So when you start to do... Racism is baked in the cake that's called America. And unpacking that cake is like taking a piece of bread and say, I'm going to take the gluten out of it. And it doesn't work that way. So when you talk about we have to be careful, but what kind of careful and who's careful?

I'm just raising the question. I don't have the answer. But I find it very disturbing that we would kind of say, well, you know, we can fix this. No, actually, we can't. Well, if I could respond to that real quickly, if you look at, I'm sorry, go ahead, Avis. Yeah, go ahead. Mustafa, go ahead. Mustafa, go ahead. Mustafa, go ahead, then I'll go to Avis. Go ahead.

Well, if you look at the movement for Black Lives and when folks are talking about defunding police, when they're talking about restructuring the system, then they are also inside of that is actually how do we put these stopgaps and these accountability measures in there? And a part of that is making sure that we have folks who are watching the folks, if you will. So, you know, that is a part of those broader conversations that have to happen to make sure that we are going to have a 21st century law enforcement or a 21st century police force where there are checks and balances that are in there and that folks are not, as you said, sort of the fox watching the chicken house, if you will.

Yeah. And I'll just say that's exactly what's needed. There needs to be multiple layers here because that problem is sort of baked in, as Dr. Malveaux brilliantly suggested. Because and also, you know, here's what we know. We know that if they want to address this issue, on this show a couple of years ago about all of these racist Facebook posts that the study exposed that police officers had put on their personal, they were bold enough to put it on their personal Facebook account years ago. And then police district by police district by police district did nothing. Yet at the same time, we have all of these people who were involved with the Ferguson protest ending up dead under mysterious circumstances. You can't tell me that all those Black Lives Matter activists who ended up dead under weird and suspicious circumstances, like supposedly setting themselves on fire inside their own car, like supposedly lynching themselves on their own clothesline. You can't tell me that all of those

were quote-unquote suicides. You know, so what I'm suggesting here is that when this country wants to take out what they believe is a threat, they can and they have. And we can go back decades, all the way back to the Panthers and even before to give you examples of that. What has happened, though, is that with this threat, they have allowed it to fester. They have allowed it to grow. And now, unfortunately, the chickens are coming home to roost. Folks, let's talk about this sad story out of Baltimore, where Dante Barksdale, who well-known for being the face of trying to stop violence in Baltimore, led a violence prevention program in that city called Safe Streets, was shot to death early Sunday morning. The shooting took place in a public housing complex around 11.15 a.m.

He was shot in the head. Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott called Barksdale the heart and soul of Safe Streets. Scott said, quote, My heart is broken with the loss of my friend, Dante Barksdale, a beloved leader in our community who committed his life to saving lives in Baltimore. His death is a major loss to Safe Streets, the communities they serve, and the entire city of Baltimore. There's going to be a virtual candlelight vigil taking place in a little bit. If you go to Mayor Scott's Facebook page, you can actually watch that.

I mean, this is just one of those, you know, sad stories, Julian, where here's a young man who's trying to stop the violence in Baltimore, who himself gets gunned down, shot in the head Sunday morning. No idea who did it. No idea what the circumstances were. But lots of folks in Baltimore simply shocked and stunned by his death. You know, Roland, this happens all too often to our young people who are trying to make a difference. I had a young lady working for me a few years ago, Sharnice Milton, standing at the bus stop. I got in the middle.

She didn't do anything, but she was a victim in the drive-by. This happens to too many of our young people, and we have not been sufficiently focused on dealing with them and the quality of life. This young man was a blessing. He was, as the mayor said, the heart and soul of safe streets. But he was also somebody who was out there in the streets and somebody didn't respect him. We have a lot of work to do with our young people because even as we talk about police brutality we also

have to talk about the brutality that happens in our own communities and the things that we're doing or not doing to deal with our young people we the baby boom generation has not done we have not done our work we have not done our work and that's why this stuff happens and mustafa uh when we talk about, that was the case of those mothers in Chicago who went on street corners trying to stop the violence. One of them was gunned down there as well. I mean, we have seen this happen in other cities.

And so Baltimore is certainly in shock by this young man's death. Yeah, prayers go up to Dante. I didn't know him super well when I was doing some work with Root, reaching out to others together, Kenny Barnes Organization on Gun Violence. I got a chance to meet and learn and work with a number of the young brothers and sisters around the country who are focused in this area. You know, for me, this goes back to the dehumanizing

that has happened to us from others. And then we have sort of integrated that, unfortunately, into ourselves in the way that we, you know, will just take lives for literally no reason. You know, it's been written, you know, that Dante had recently been, you know, giving out coats and other things to folks, along with a whole bunch of other actions that folks have been doing there in Baltimore. We've got to learn. You know, we started out the show with Dr. King talking about love. We've got to learn to love ourselves, to learn our communities and to value each other. And it's so easy now for someone to pick up a gun for the smallest things. You know, you see folks in, you know, in the club or in other places, somebody steps on somebody's shoe. People want to fight.

People want to take somebody's life over very, very minimal types of things. We've got to get back to actually loving ourselves and loving our community. And this is also why we must have people to speak, turn

folks in who commit this sort of violence. This young man was trying to save lives. And unfortunately, it was he lost his. Yeah, this was so heartbreaking, absolutely heartbreaking. When I read the story about this horrible murder, it just once again showed that he was someone who loved his people. I would argue that he gave his life for his people. And he spent years dedicated to his community, trying to make life better for others, trying to make a way for others to live. You know, but once again, you know, we know that these horrible things happen

on a daily basis, almost unfortunately, in cities all across the nation. However, one thing I will say struck me as strange as I read that article. What I found out when I read the article was that when the police came and found him, they said, they mistakenly gave the wrong address in terms of where they were with regards to getting medical attention. And honestly, this sort of, once again, it raised red flags to me. I don't know what's going on here. I do remember that this was a police department that essentially stopped work in protest of the charges that were mounted against police officers in the Freddie Gray murder and literally just stood by and allowed the crime rate to increase in Baltimore during that period. And, you know, it just seems strange to me. So I'm not going to

jump to any conclusions about how he ended up dead. But, you know, either way, any way that it happened, it's tragic because this is a man until his very last breath was fighting to make a better life for the people in his community. Absolutely. And so we will certainly provide details as we find out more. All right. Y'all know what time it is. No charcoal grills are allowed. I'm white. I got you, girl. Illegally selling water without a permit. On my property. Whoa! Hey!

I'm uncomfortable. Any shock that Donald Trump is going to be moving to Palm Beach, Florida? Well, these are the kind of people who are there. 62-year-old Cindy DeCorato just lost her damn mind because she refused to wear a mask. Well, this particular bagel shop called the cops. Cops showed up. But I want y'all to see all of her drama with the black cop. But then watch what happens when the white cop rolls in there.

Roll it. Get your hands off of me. You are kidnapping me. I will personally. What is your name? I'll give you my name. No. Take your hands off of me.

You don't have the right, sir. Get your hands off me. I've done nothing wrong. I am not a criminal. Get your hands off of me. Get your hands off of me. Get your hands off of me. That's a violation. Take your hand off of me. Sir, you need to read the Constitution. You need to read the Constitution. Get your hands off of me. You don't have the right to do this.

You're taking a picture of this. This is so illegal. You take your hands off of me, sir. I am not a criminal. I've done nothing wrong. And I'm asking you to get your hands off of me, sir. I'm not a criminal. I've done nothing wrong. I'm asking you to get your hand off of me. I'm asking you to take your hand off of me. I'm asking you to take your hand off of me. Take your hand off of me. Take your hand off of me.

Take your hand off of me. I don't want your hand off of me. You're violating my person me. You don't want your hand on me. I don't want your hand off of me. And I'm telling you. You're violating my personhood. I'm telling you. I have my first amendment rights. Look at this. You get this? Yes.

You get this? I'm asking him to take his hand off of me. He has no right to kidnap me. This is kidnapping. I'm not kidnapping you. You are. Let go of me. I know.

Let go of me. I'm happy you step out. This is because the police department are ignorant of their constitutional rights. This is why this man has his hand on me. And he's on my personhood. And I have the right to protect my personhood. No, sir. Take your hand off of me. Take your hand off.

Don't steal my purse. Now you're stealing my purse. I have done nothing wrong. Take a picture of these guys. Get their names. Get their names. Can I have your back badge ID please? Yee-hoo. Can I have your badge ID? You see this?

This is illegal. I don't see no badge on you sir. Shame on you, shame on you, shame on you. Let go of me, shame on you, let go of my purse. Are you filming this sweetheart? Yes I purse. Are you filming this sweetheart? Yes I am. Are you filming this sweetheart? Stop it, you cannot arrest me, I've done nothing illegal, I have done nothing illegal.

Stop it, stop it. Put your arms back, stop resisting. Let go, I am not under arrest, leave me alone, I am not under arrest. I am not under arrest. I am not under arrest. I am not under arrest. I am not under arrest. I am not under arrest.

I am not under arrest. I am not under arrest. I am not under arrest. I am not under arrest. I am not under arrest. I am not under arrest. I am not Let go, I am not under arrest, leave me alone. I am not under arrest. I can't breathe, I can't breathe. I am not under arrest, you did not arrest me.

Just stand back on the sidewalk, okay? You didn't say I was under arrest. I'm free to- Stand back on the sidewalk, please. Let go of me. Let go of me. No, honey, come here, get my purse on the sidewalk, please. Let go of me. No. Honey, come here. Get my purse.

She's trying to steal my purse from me. Ma'am, can you sit back? Ma'am, stand on the sidewalk. Ma'am, she's trying to steal my purse. Ma'am, stand on the sidewalk. This is a false arrest. They didn't even say I was under arrest. This is a false arrest.

They didn't even say I was under arrest. They have no right to arrest me. Let go of me. Let go of me. No. Come get my purse. No, don't touch my purse. Don't touch my purse.! Come get my purse!

No! Don't touch my purse! Don't touch my purse! Come get my purse, sweetheart. I'm scared to hurt me. In the name of Jesus. In the name of Jesus. I come against these principalities and powers, this lie, this abuse.

This abuse. Honey, come get my purse i'm scared what is my cause? What is my cause? I've done nothing wrong. In the name of Jesus. In the name of Jesus. In the name of Jesus.

Now, she should have been arrested for that outfit. Avis, here's the one that cracks me up. The black cop was trying to be calm. The black cop knew it's a white woman in Palm Beach County. But when a white cop rolled in, he's like, yo, she out of here? He just snatched her ass. And that's why you notice when they went outside, she turned to the white cop, you should be ashamed of yourself.

You should be ashamed of yourself. What she was really saying is, how turn to the white cop, you should be ashamed of yourself. You should be ashamed of yourself. What she was really saying is, how are you a white cop and you snatching a white woman like me, Avis? Exactly. That's exactly what she was saying. She was shocked that her Becky privileges did not apply, apparently. But, you know, this is what happens. I think the psychology of what's going on here.

You know, unfortunately, my Ph.D. is not in psychology. But if it was, I would conjecture the following. Number one, white people aren't used to following rules, period. Period. They are not used to following rules. Remember the ruling that there is no law that a white man is bound to respect, for example, when it comes to black people. So there is still that mentality that is seeped into our culture. The challenge is that when you have that sort of mental defect that is woven into millions of people who have been infected by the lie of white supremacy in this country, and you

mix that with the propaganda machine that the Trump administration gemmed up around COVID, making people believe that wearing a mask was somehow a sort of liberal white ring, liberal sort of conspiracy against them, and therefore they needed to show their, quote unquote, freedom by not wearing a mask. It presents a situation like this, where this one idiot could be putting the lives of dozens of people in danger in that establishment, which is exactly why the owner of that establishment called the police. It is a dangerous, dangerous situation that we're in, that unfortunately she is not a one-off type of person that will act like this. Long after Trump is out of the White House. And as we continue to try to get this pandemic under control of this country,

he has poisoned the minds of millions who continue to put our lives in danger because they want to act a fool just like that when they're in public. I'm sitting here laughing, Mustafa, because and then come get my purse. And they're like, we're going to back your ass up. I mean, again, this notion that we can do whatever we want. Don't you dare grab my purse. Don't you? And all that, the Constitution.

Again, the black cop was sitting here. The black cop knew that if he dragged a 62-year-old white woman out, what folks were going to say. But when the white cop rolled up some more stuff, he was like, she the one who's out? He goes, yeah, homeboy, snatch that arm, got to go. Yeah, I mean, she tried to weaponize her privilege. It just ran out when that other cop came in. But I was paying attention to some of the other things that were going on.

I mean, Ava's just broke it down for you. So I'm not even going to talk about how Trump set the precedence for this stuff. But if you listen to the daughter, when the white cop came in, she was saying that the black cop didn't have a badge and that she couldn't see his badge. So therefore, he must not really be a real cop who's grabbing it. And then I hope y'all also peeped out once she got bent over that car and she gave out that, that what I call that Southern scream, hoping that someone would come and save her. You know, that is a, that, that, that's a historical scream whenever a black man is in the presence of certain white women. So y'all got to understand all these dynamics that are playing out. She played all of her cards. None of the other cards worked. So she said, let me

give this Ellie Mae scream real quick and see if anybody comes and saves me. The white woman tried everything. Juliana, the white woman, she tried everything. She tried everything. She says in the name of Jesus. In the name of Jesus.

All principalities. She's going to go to Jesus. Like Jesus is going to save her behind. I thought she was going to be like Paula White. So I called her from African Angels. Jesus ain't going to save you. After you done showed your behind down to the crack, now you want Jesus?

No to the devil. Nah. Nah. You know, Amy's really broken down all the way, but I mean, the Jesus thing reminds you of these Southerners who, you know, when you cuss about, they say, oh, bless your heart.

And it's like, and it in the name of Jesus. And really what they mean is, Lord, get me out of this mess. But you started it. Put your mask on, Hapra. Just put your mask on. That'sra. Just put your mask on. That's all. And while she was praying, Jesus, while she was calling, while she was calling, while she was calling, Jesus was like, I'm busy.

I'm busy. I'm going to holler at you later. Hey, y'all, we want y'all to join our – that's it for us today, folks. We want y'all to join our Bring the Funk fan club. Please support Roland Martin Unfiltered by joining us. Of course, our goal is to get 20,000 of our fans contributing 50 bucks a year, which allow us to fund our operations to bring you the kind of news you're not going to get anywhere else. Cash out, dollar sign RMUnfiltered,

paypal.me forward slash rmartinunfiltered, venmo.com forward slash rmunfiltered, and of course, send an email to Zale, roland at rolandsmartin.com. And so, I certainly want to thank Avis, Julian, and Mustafa. Folks, we are Black Lives Matter Plaza. 40 hours from now, we're going to have us a new president. The People's House.

The People's House will be filigated. We filigated, and then we will not have to deal with Donald Trump and his thuggish minions anymore. And so that is the case. So you see the White House in the distance there behind the protesters here in Black Lives Matter Plaza and, of course, Lafayette Park. And so I can't wait to have a new president where all the scaffolding comes down, where they're not scared of the American people. Folks, we will see you guys tomorrow right here. Roland Martin on the filter.

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you guys tomorrow from the nation's capital in Washington, D.C. Holla! You say you never give in to a meltdown and never fill your feed with kid photos. You say you'd never put a pacifier in your mouth to clean it and never

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