Thank you all so much for coming out tonight. I know the rain and the traffic have gotten in the way a bit but its lovely to have all of you here. I Melissa Muscatine one of the coowners of politics and prose. Along with my husband brad grant was out of town and not here but wishes he were. I just want to say welcome to our union market store. I think some of you know this is our third politics and prose outpost, second outpost, third store. Its our newest store. We really love being here. We are glad to share this space with all of you. I also just want to say that because it is september 11 i thought we might take a few moments just to pause silently to remember that tragedy of almost 2 decades ago. [silence] thank you. It is such a pleasure for me to host Stanley Greenberg tonight. We all know hes rudeness book with times of phenomenal title, depending on your opinion, r. I. P. G. O. P. In case you start flipping to the actual text make sure you stop on the dedication page because he dedicates the book to the womens march and the resistance. Which is worth noting. I thought that was original and much appreciated by at least people like me. Stan and i cross paths in my previous incarnation as a speechwriter in the Clinton White house back in the Jurassic Period of american politics. He was then assessing voter moods and preferences in providing political strategy as the clintons chief poster. Helping an upstart young governor when the presidency and then becoming one of his chief advisers would be the High Water Mark for most political professionals. But in stans case just one of the many ways in which his influence progressive politics and policies over her remarkable career. Let me just say that one of his very very best moves politically and personally was marrying rosa delauro, who is here somewhere. There she is in the back. I hope you all know she is not only a smart and wonderful great woman. Shes also one of the most consistently progressive feminist voices in the United States house of representatives. From connecticut. Its great to have you here. Also great to have some other Greenberg Family members who are chips off the block when it comes to being active in trying to write the worlds wrongs. In addition to working with leading political figures here and overseas and founding Greenberg Research associates and two progressive organizations, democracy core and citizen opinion, stan also is a prolific author of bestselling books, perhaps the thing we care most part here. R. I. P. G. O. P. Is i think your tent book, is that right . I think hes in double digits. It really is a must read for anyone trying to make sense of the maddening politics of the current moment without driving themselves off a cliff. Stan will describe in more detail his theory of the case but in brief, its at the Republican Party beginning several iterations ago but now especially under donald trump increasingly out of touch with the realities of a multicultural multiracial more secular and more egalitarian, less tradition bound and much younger america what stan calls the new america and in clinging to an old and outdated version of america republicans will pay a price in 2020. He will explain, i think, i hope, that even the victory of a republican in the special election yesterday in North Carolinas ninth Congressional District its evidence of the new America Fighting back against trump republicanism. Stans insights are rooted in the politics of the past several decades often overlooked in current analysis and help them explain which voting groups will be a key to Democratic Victory in the president ial election and beyond. The colonization of this new america, he says bloodied the gop in 2018 and will finally crash in 2020. Because im the owner of the bookstore and we do care about generally care about debate and discussion, i will present although you probably know from my past experiences where my politics are, i will present a phase of neutrality that i will tell you that i was speaking to a good friend today and encouraging him to come to the event and i told him what the book is about and he said, just tell stan from his polling data to gods ears enter the polling booths in 2020. Stan, thank you for sharing for writing the book. Thank you for sharing your conclusions with us and being here at pnp, such a great pleasure to have you. [applause] thank you very much. Thank you lisa, thank you politics and prose. Everybody in this Community Knows him but is in fact our neighborhood bookstore here union market and members of our family are here we also have a Connecticut Branch and are part of the family are also visit back. This is our family bookstore wherever our family lives in washington area. And they look forward to know the world and have expansive view of the world. I should shout out to not just rosa delauro here dana milbank is here and Anna Greenberg and sadie and i assume other grandchildren are in the mix. They are what matter and actually in the acknowledgment i say this is the first book that wasnt dedicated to my wife or grandchildren. And i focused on the womens march and resistance and for reasons i think youll see. My wife is i dedicated the book in practice at the end i say this is her moment. She really is in the front line. Shes the one who had to go to the inauguration in the election of president trump. I skipped that day. But she is the one who carries on those fights and i do find that in almost every interview the interviewer will say, Stan Greenberg your married to the most fabless member of congress, rosa delauro, sometimes in error and sometimes not, but im stuck with it. I do want to thank thomas gone my publisher. Tom copyrighted the title r. I. P. G. O. P. If you look at the book the book that has a long list of books that ive written near the bottom you will see one book that is named race and estate and Capital Development a comparative perspective. There is a cult following for that book but it is not shout out in the apartheid now. But might have had i talked to tom it mightve been different. What i discovered with the title is that if i leave the jacket at a table or cafc or my desk. People will come with abandon and come up to me and say, is it true . Are you sure . I hope you are right. If the last hotel of our vacation breakfast someone a man came up at breakfast walked up, ignored rosa as if she was not there, for the first time in our lives and said, have you finished it . Is it really true . If started carrying my book in the newspaper. [laughter] in order to be protected so its a long way from mason state and s. I want to thank cspan here book notes is filming and they will be filming my remarks and also your questions and answers as we talk about the book. I wrote this book as i wrote in the introduction because i had to. After trump selection i hardly wrote pieces oped pieces and the guardians and New York Times democracy journal democratic strategist, most of all the american prospect ab it really was the womens march joining the womens march and what happened that day which was electric and intense. And set amends things which also turned out to be true. What i wrote in these acknowledgments is when i woke up the next day and every day i asked myself what have i done today to resist and make sure donald trump is repudiated . I couldnt sleep most nights and it turns out reacting the same way . Get involved, they gave money descended on town halls, rushed airports to protect muslim refugees. I decided to write a book because of the resistance most of whom were painfully uncertain how this would all turn out. I wrote it because of the opposite, i believed Donald Trumps victory was the last desperate battle of the tea party dominated Republican Party to stop an unstoppable new america from governing and they would fail. Indeed, trump getting the nomination confirmed the story, trampolining the election accelerated this either this party battle against modernity would have it shattered. From governing would make the great majority of the country newly conscious of their own values, beliefs and priorities. People thought i was smoking. I hope you know im right. Nobody would believe me until the country was swept by a blue wave in 2018 but not then either. I couldnt even convince james carbo my partner so we will have to wait until 2020 blue wave to be truly convinced and what trump has left the office. When i finish this book and begin to think about these kinds of lectures and began think about what its contribution would be, i asked, what is it that is different about this book then others that have been written about this period . I dont just talk about the shattering defeat of the republicans. I read about the demise of the Republican Party. I dont just talk about the defeat and repudiation of the republicans talk about a new era of activist government. What is that based on . It turns out i learned a lot from writing the history reading and writing the history of the Political Party writing about using social sciences along the findings of Public Attitudes toward during that period and also my own Indepth Research with republicans who i listen to very closely on why they were doing what they were doing. What i discovered is, america really needs to be understood as confirming a whole series of historic junctures where social movements, protests, Political OrganizationParty Realignment came out of new major laws or court action that changed our social relationships. They made a whole series of them. So right, and abortion contraception, abortion being legal, contraception being legal, immigration expanding. All of the legislation, the court action as a whole each time made its freer more equal more democratic. Junctures where Political Parties were forced to choose. And what we found was that at each juncture the Democratic Party even though its was divided ultimately aligned with those changes, accepted those changes, that became part of its identity. At each juncture the Republican Party was a bait in the south expanded deep self that first clue so eventually into the more appellation and roll parts of the country with an evangelical base. With that resistance civil rights, resisted abortion and expansion of contraception in the sexual revolution and resisted legal immigration. All of which defined the two party in very special ways. Let me read from the beginning of the chapter on the history of the Republican Party. The Republican Party is trapped in an ever more desperate counterrevolution against the accumulative and is accelerating trend thats producing into america. A party defined and divided by its leaders unrepentant struggle in america thats more and more racially diverse, its also about all the slow growth secularism decline of the traditional family and the growing independence of women and their sexual freedom. Its a fight against the rising immigration and foreign presence. And its tea party and donald trump stage its a party pitted against the growing millennial generation, the young and against the growing metropolitan centers where very different values are taken for granted and now defended. The party was shaped through the struggle over civil rights and what the book describes in more detail more than i knew. How the two parties dealt with civil rights and the role of the equal rights affirmative actions for african americans. The book deals with most importantly i think with immigration. Which i came to see how essential it was and how important it was to a Republican Party that ultimately produced donald trump. Pat buchanan was the nationalist and outoffavor in his own party but in fact, much more aligned with the growing antiimmigrant trend of the party at the base of the party in california and brought 187 but abit was president barack obama who brought us all together. I used to think that was a stage in this process but i actually believe it all came to fruition for the rights of women, immigration all came together with the election of an africanamerican president with a Diverse Coalition of the new america. That was trying to expand government, activist government to deal with the deep recession. To produce the tea party battle wave movement, wave against it. And produce a decade of gridlock and government being blocked from addressing any problem. It was rooted in the election of barack obama and his reelection which said that the new america was winning and new america but the fact that reelected every american president said ultimately would win but what that produced was an intense battle against him. While the election of barack obama as president of the United States was celebrated across the country and the globe, his election brought to fruition the successes escalating battles of the civil rights, abortion, and immigration. He embodied the political triumph the new america and the Democratic Party that controlled all branches of government s activism was resisted by the tea party that carried the social mission into battle. Producing an explosive growth of racial and partisan mobilization that put a tea party dominated upn charge of most of the country for a decade. Most people dont recognize that it wasnt just a shellacking as obama talked about in 2010. And we didnt know it at the time. They brought government to a halt. They produced an imf like budget austerity of the federal budget click cut budgets across the states where they had control which was most of the states. They cut education spending. They block the government addressing any of the evolving problems. The government was imminent to address problems of inequality, and the loss of wealth, Climate Change, assault weapons, violence, problem after problem of government stopping its track from acting at the National Level the state level for a decade. And that has built off love you i do think we are watching it in a huge demand for Government Action seeing the support for Government Action at the highest level we seen in our polling and all peoples points. What would come to, i think, is a Republican Party where donald trump emerge through his control of the tea party his dominance in the Tea Party Coalition with evangelicals expanded it to conservative classics that liked his America First populism. In that coalition in that fight against new america theyve driven away moderate women, in particular independence. Theyve also driven away secular conservatives who hate the tea Party Dominance of the Republican Party. Now 70 in our current polls. 70 of the Republican Party now are the chief party the evangelical and observed catholic. Its a holy religious party, even more religious than its ever been with a tea party battle that is particularly focused on fighting government. So what that has produced is a moment where i believe we will see the demise of the Republican Party. The reason why i spoke of the debuggers of the party rather than just the idea that they are about to lose an election in a blue wave i think most people are looking at this in a linear and static way. When you read the book you will actually see in each area i focus on, every trend is accelerating. Every trend is interacting with each other, every trend is producing a reaction that is multiplied and the effects of this trump battle, trump republican battle against the new america. We are watching in demographic terms and ive updated both my last book but if you look at the growth and percentage foreignborn its accelerating its never been higher. But it is right now. Maybe donald trump in office but theres nothing he can do that can keep this country from being more diverse or secular, millennial, every trend is accelerating. Thats produced a reaction against republicans in reaction to the trends its meant that the tea party in evangelical block has grown stronger and driven out the more moderate secular parts of the party. The only thing left is a california type Republican Party thats worried only about the democratic problem and how to keep the new majority from using government to govern on their behalf. Then we have the reaction in each area. As theyve suppressed government from doing anything addressing any problems we see huge pros and the American People wanting to use government for public purposes. And thats reflected in reaction to candidate in the democratic primaries. We see a growth in support for multiculturalism but let me end on immigration. Because you would think that this story is able to play that card again, in the end as i wrote my New York Times oped people basically saying that race has come to matter at so many of these junctures and he somehow got elected in 2016 and we know that race was a significant part of what got him there. But hes implying immigration since he came in. In 2018 he waited that 2018 the election. One of the highest turnout election weve ever had sent 5000 troops to the border focused on the caravan coming to america. Hiding terrorists head and as with undocumented immigrants who had killed police officers. It was all out banner war in the 2018 election. They lost in a landslide. They also lost on that issue. If you ask about the immigration benefiting or hurting the country it was by 2020 margin people said it benefited. The margin was 8. 6 percent. If you look at his job approval yesterday, his job approval which was dropping to 30 but his job approval and handling immigration was lower. Somehow people think if you only get the immigration thing it will somehow come around. The immigration issue is taking him down because what happened with his election is that the American People became engaged, we sought in the resistance but theyve also become more conscious of their values. Weve gone from 50 believing country benefits from immigration to 65 percent now. In reaction to what hes doing. Look at what happened in North Carolina where they used immigration to try to drive the elections with a 10 point swing compared to 2016 in that seat. Exactly what would happen in 2018 election elsewhere in the country. It does not work. Immigration hurts it. And the challenge i think the Republican Party coming out of this is how are they the california Republican Party . The california Republican Party battled the demographic problem, they lost every office and have only become more extreme if you look and see who has taken positions in the state legislature in california. How does the party react to being beaten despite their focus on the demographic problem and immigration when the country is saying, we are a multicultural country. The more you make the battle the more we accept our history and our diversity. I think we have two challenges, a challenge for the Republican Party, what did they do next . I used to think it was a battle between aband the tea party. But theyve driven those segments out. I dont know what happens the day after. The question will be, do democrats look at this moment as well and take advantage of the opportunity . This is not a moment for bipartisanship. This is a party in disrepute. It is a party that the losing members that would be civil and able to be part of any kind of bipartisan effort. This is a period in which the public is desperate for a government that would address the problems. This is a period in which people want a government that excepts we are a multicultural country with equality for whole range of groups, a whole range of problems, but if you have a Republican Party that is no wonder relevant, our democrats opt to the scale of the challenge that comes with taking on an activist government at this point. Thank you very much. [applause] if you have questions, because cspan is here we have a microphone i will get to you as fast as i can. Its good to see you again, congratulations on the book. Couple of questions, one is, the question about competition for the Democratic PartyGoing Forward, what kind of resolution do you see Going Forward to make sense for the countries as a whole . And the other one that i think smarter profound issue something bothering me, i think many of us very much agree with United States moving in a multicultural direction, diverse direction. One thing which i think might help those who are not completely convinced by that is if we could eject some element of new areas where we could unify the country. Where are the areas of unity. What is it that brings the country together at a time of such great diversity. I think those elements will be important. I think we call recall president clinton once said that one of his roles is to try to make change say. This might be a way to help make that kind of very fundamental change seems safer for people who are wondering, who are all these people coming here . What unites us as a country . I think what unites us is a desire for america to be a country in which there is a middle class that can prosper and that the next generation can have a future. And this can be a country again that have the kind of ambition and unity and patriotism that came when working people of all types were able to prosper. For me that means not that we have a unity that goes across party. I think we are in a moment in time, for me this looks like the whigs, like the populist era where you had populous parties it looks like 1932 and 36 when theres a Democratic Party. This is the time to govern. Weve had a decade of not being able to address a massive rise of inequality. Weight stagnation, Climate Change, gun violence, massive gun violence, slaughter. We been infinite politics has made it infinite and we are desperate to address those problems. We actually had our very unified on one new address those big problems. If you look at democrats this is the democrats abif you look at democrats they want to address these problems as their economic, cultural and the unify democrats. If you look at the democrats about 75 to 80 on any issue that you put out on the table they want us to address. They want the political leaders to address. After they been blocked by governing i think by a Tea Party Evangelical revolt, to keep them from governing i think we been stopped for a decade, trump has taken it to the most extreme to keep us from governing. I actually think its a moment to be empowered and performed a period for reform. I havent mentioned the corruption thats essential the big money that was also aligned with this. The anger with how big business has come its influence, the role of big corporate money and politics, all of which have made people believe politics does not work for the average person. I think its a reform period at the moment for reform action disruptive change, i think its a moment for that kind of engage. Congratulations. Two questions, the first is, there is so much about trump and that he should be beatable. At the same time, a lot of discussion that there are divisions among democrats and a lot of tensions and netiquette undermine the ability to win in the next election. Id be interested in your take on that. The other thing, he made an interesting point about religion and how thats playing. You have a Republican Party that is looking more and more extreme in a Democratic Party that the dnc just adopted a resolution lifting up the unaffiliated and making clear that thats an important moral point. They are clearly feeling pressure to speak to the nonreligious. It was kind of interested in your comment on how the religion a. [multiple speakers] i didnt spend a lot of time talking about the new america because i have a chapter on how the democrats let donald trump win because people have had huge struggles weve had loss of wealth, enormous financial strength. Structural changes issues with loss of healthcare, childcare, housing, that make it very hard to get by. People are really at the edge. And the religious issues are not so much religious issues. For most people its survival, people at the edge looking for a government thats on their side. Thats a pretty fundamental change they are looking for. But the reform that corruption is a big piece of why they turned away from trump and the fact that the bailout of the banks and nothing done for people with their houses and their mortgages. Kind of defining moment democrats were part of the problem. Democrats were not seeming to get it and understand how big of a struggle it is. They are looking for leaders to understand how big the struggle life is how correct politics have been. The need to break the nexus of business and politicians that keeps government working for the average person. These are big issues that have all been bottled up, not to mention Climate Change and issues and gun violence in the Opioid Crisis but government has done nothing for decades purposely. Its been a tea Party Dominance and has purposely posed the empowerment of government and argue that progovernment is powerless to address these problems. Its so clueless and small when people are looking for Big Government thats activist and addressing their problems. Rip has an idiomatic meaning. But Irish Catholic girl latin scholar here says abare they going to be peaceful . Are they going to go peacefully . Thats what worries me. I like the concept. You raise a serious issue with loss of data and lots of evidence. On the way people react to these trends and losing power. And trump losing power. I think it will be symbolic in the same way that barack obama getting elected was symbolic. Weve already seen reactions going out, im worried about those reactions. There really does need to be a Republican Party when people ask the question there really does need to be Republican Party thats an opposition to the democrats. But i dont know how you get there given the california experience or how you get there in the short term. But i look at the democrats it took us about four National Elections before we elected somebody that could win nationally. And i work for bill clinton but we had a lot of internal balance battles in the party. I remember when bill clinton was running and there were a whole range of unions that were supporting him that had no good reason to support him given where his dad was on nafta and other issues. They just said, weve got to win. We cant be out of power. Weve got to win, the stakes are to atoo high. What happens to the coalition, what happens to fox news . This election and another election in which the current contours play out. When they were divided down the middle between socially liberal and the key Tea Party Evangelical it wasnt easy but they will have a battle over what the party stood for. Its much harder when you driven those orders out and how you get them back. You had parole, pro voters i think ultimately came back to the republicans so maybe in the process there is something that brings them back. The issue is, how do they become relevant in the party when you have working families, you still have a party that is fighting contraception. You can look at the budget the federal budget next year and they are still trying to defund the sex education. They are suited against the Affordable Care act on such a a they have not accepted the sexual revolution. Not just abortion. They will obviously be a prolife party. But they have to find a way, they used to have childcare policies and healthcare policies. They no longer have childcare policies because it looks like it privileges work over homeowners. They been fighting the social modernization of the country. The have to fight in a way thats become more and more extreme its proven away their own voters, independent voters and consolidated democrats determined to boat against them. There has got to be a process on the republican side. Otherwise it will be incentivized. I want to build on ellens first question about the positioning of democrats. I want to do it by making a statement but id like you to treat it as a question. When you listen to the first two debates the description of the division between the democrats is that its characterized as having progressives and moderates. Somehow or another i dont feel comfortable with that description. When i was listening to the debates i was trying to figure out who are the real differences between the candidates and take healthcare, which obviously i care deeply about and which was a top issue in both of the debates. If you think about the spectrum of democrats, all of them care about achieving universal coverage. May be different methodology but they all care about universal coverage. They all care about getting the cost down. So im just wondering, in terms of the positioning of the democrats whether the current team that has been developing about progressives and moderates, how well or how early that serves the Democratic Party in terms of the upcoming election. Had been uncomfortable with it and if you read the New York Times oped that i wrote and begins in my discomfort with the commentators talk about driving away moderate voters with overthetop plans for government or driving independent looking for bipartisanship. Im conscious of that. I actually think that there is much broader unity in the way you are talking about it. If you stress what biden proposes senator harris proposed, warren sanders. They are all very big new government playing a much bigger role in healthcare bigger than obamacare. By a lot. This is a new stage. Government playing a much bigger role. I think the debate will refine weird immigrants go and not worry about it. There is a survey that was conducted by morning consult, its being released tomorrow. I read the results today. It asked whether the Democratic Party of social democratic whether conservatives whether liberal or moderate. Only about a fourth said it was conservative. Only about 20 said social democratic. But about 60 said it liberal and 60 said moderate. What they are concluding as they were both liberal and moderate. I think what you are saying, and what im saying is that this distinction is a commentator distinction. Its not a voter distinction. Certainly not a distinction amongst democrats. Its a survey of democrats. I think they do our party at both liberal and moderate and there comfortable. I think candidates will find a way of getting to a gold posture because thats where their starting point is. Bold in almost every area. Thank you for your talk. It was quite inspirational and the vice chair by county Democratic Party in a pretty conservative town, county in ohio. I like to get like the title of your book tattooed across my chest. [laughter] i wonder how you would react one of my great concerns going to the 2020 election which is Voter Suppression efforts another political machination like we saw in North Carolina ninth or georgia lieutenant governors race, how much democrats are going to have to win by more than they really should have two . And held the senators position as well but theres no doubt the voter depression was permanent. We gained more control of State Government so there is less room for doubt. The stakes are so high that Voter Suppression is going to be carried forward im sure in florida and georgia at a great rate and maybe texas. The stakes are very high so we will have to win by a much bigger margin. You look at the margin in the 2018 election was 8. 6 but we are looking at a 10point spread when you look at whos voting, who says they are going to vote in the democratic primaries in republican primaries. Its like 47 and 37 . Look at the gap on approval and disapproval of trump you are looking at over 10 points. So i think we have to push to that scale. I do think there will be some price and our candidates and whether they appeal broadly and deeply and its critical that we win the senate. This would be a tragic collection with Mitch Mcconnell still in control of the senate. Right now if you look at the different president ial candidates, you basically have died in at 10 or 12 points ahead of trump. You have other candidates ahead by eight or seven i think was the recent poll on average. Now thats a bigger lead than obama had in 2008. But its not the big the biggest possible. Maybe she grows in her position. She is clearly grown over time but we have reached a point where democrats are so consolidated that almost any candidate starts with a sevenpoint margin and up but do we need it bigger to overcome whats happening to legitimate voting to make sure we win the senate. Something you just said triggered a question which is how important are independents going to be in 2020 . It sometimes seems to me in the elections democrats focus so much on getting independents that they dont focus enough on getting the base of how important is that going to be . I have become a base person because i believe thats how trump one and i think thats how hillary did not win. When you read my book you will read the emails going back and forth with john podesta and the Hillary Clinton campaign and sanders voters were not consolidated in trying to get them to Pay Attention to them. 45 of democrats voted for sanders coming into that and i recall they voted that and we were losing 17 . They were very liberal voters and we were losing 17 and they did try to consolidate the vote. I believe what has happened with the salvation of democrats and high turnout, the democratic race including independents is 40 . Right now in her pulse we are winning over 90 of those who voted. Those voters if you ask whether they disapprove of trump 87 of democrats disapprove of trump and 67 of republicans strongly approve. Our voters are much more engaged and much more antitrump. I think its the reason why most every democrat is doing well. You do have 10 but i think the starting point is a base that believes the changes coming and i think our candidates are getting that now frequently. When you look at independents the margins for trump on his approval is minus 15. Biden was winning by 10. Warren was winning i5 and we were winning independents but it varied by candidate and it wasnt at the highest level possible given how they viewed trump. So there was still room to make gains in independents but there is a bigger gain that comes with consolidating 40 of the electorate and they are being intensely involved. Also there is a level of engagement we have never seen before. We asked the question one to 10 scale, 10 being following politics extremely close, it only goes up at the end of the election october and november and then it dropped sharply. And then it goes up month by month until you get to the end of the election and it hits its high point and then it drops. In 2018 in the off year election that number in our polling was higher than the president ial level in 16 so people were following much more closely at the end of the election than they had in the president ial election. Was that a president ial level. We have now done two polls in january and july. The number has gone up 10 points he didnt go down. It in every election and the number drops after the last election. The number today is higher than it was in 18 when we produced the highest turnout. So groups we work with are now going out early and talking to registered voters and seeing are they really engage . And women in particular are following very closely. Trump motivates and engages them and hes in their face every day and is impacting the election in ways we have never seen before. I think theres going to be an expensive electric diog would we have ever seen. This is driven by the belief that finally theres going to be credible change. I think it will be heavenly to heavily driven by the base that we are winning independents but the question is by what margin. You had mentioned what happens in 2020 if the republicans still hold the senate. If that does occur what does that do for the death of the Republican Party . Well look we are watching a trend that is not changing at the state level. We watched major changes happen getting back governorships control of secretary of state and the number of legislative seats. Thats going to continue to knew reapportionment so the trend at the state level and at the executive level will continue particularly if we elect a new president which i presume will happen and obviously theres a lot of room for use of executive power if you are blocked again. Hopefully we are not doing that but if you are blocked again. But i think it will be incredibly dispiriting. Im not sure about the Republican Party. What would have happened if hillary would have won them been blocked as president . Would we have gotten smarter than the last election and with that control reapportionment . It would have been painful Going Forward. Our people will be very dispirited if we end up being blocked and arent able to pass any legislation. You cant raise taxes and you cant raise revenue in fundamental ways you can address the problems. I signed bloomberg that a description of what would happen to the wealth of the richest globally of billionaires and it was cut to one third of what it was. They looked at it and said be warned i looked at it and said isnt that reasonable . Obviously to use them for doing important things but i think as being innovated in a government depends on acting in bold ways. Its very hard to do it unless you have the senate. I think it will be in effective more than the republicans. They still wont have a way out and they are in some ways just blocking. Maybe there will be some new segment bipartisan coming out of that but i doubt it. I think that trump facts will be more dominant. Im going to have the honors of the last question unless somebody else hasnt had a chance but first of all thank you again for coming. I have sort of a polling question. I wish you were at the breakfast table every morning to interpret all these polls that are coming out. We all have to decide and interpret them. I know a lot of people who say oh polls are drawn in the previous elections and we can trust them. They dont mean anything so can you just give us a quick little primer on how to read polls now and which ones to Pay Attention to, which ones that matter in which dealt and whether we should believe any of the figures . A good question. First of all the National Polling was not that far off in terms of that the states polls polls are very uneven in their quality and you frequently go through long periods with no pulse at the state level and so thats where they got it very wrong. But it was also related to failing to represent enough workingclass voters in those polls. If you believe the exit polls that had a much larger educated torsion of the electorate. Turns out those were wrong. Most of the average was in the census and the exit polls on education. After the 2016 election we just went with the census which gives you a workingclass population of 63 of registered voters. So keeping in mind there such a large portion of the electorate is working and they played disproportionate role in 16 and theres no reason to think they wont do well in the election. Thank you so much. Can we give more one more round of applause 273. [applause] books are available up at the register if you have not purchased them yet in he will be right up here happy to sign them at the end of the day those Founding Fathers never realized they were questioning bill clinton, george w. Bush the first black president Barack Hussein obama and they never imagined donald trump would be there but i stand on those pillars that my Founding Fathers put in place. My story is your story. Im is going to find out how my daughter got killed and it was all these leniency programs of these kids like they had the first kid before school he was a dangerous. They first tim and he wasnt allowed in. Thats how dangerous he was. He threatened to shoot the school up and was arrested. Threatened students lives and was never arrested. We are still debating whether a 12th grade education is enough. All of the signs in the economy and the labor market show that is not enough but now unlike our predecessors who were able to respond to that with economic signs pressing okay lets educate our young people, we are fighting about it and turning it into questions of identity and snobbery and politics and partisanship when clearly there is just a sign that our young people need our support in need your help need more education and need more credentials and more skills in order to survive. [inaudible conversations] good afternoon welcome to the cato institute. Im the director for the center of global liberty and prosperity here at cato. The title and the style of the book we are featuring today socialism sucks