Transcripts For CSPAN2 Books About Joe Biden And The 2020 Presidential Election 20240712

Of his bestseller, what it takes for this clip he recounts the aneurysm that mr. Biden suffered in 1988 following his failed run for that years democratic president ial nomination. And how it impacted his life and political career. Will you have to remember that joe biden i think was forced out of the race in september of 1987. By a series of revelations, none of which individually were kind of minor and almost laughable when you look back on them. But by the time they were digested to the great long snake of the Washington Press corps, it was an elephant of a character flaw. So biden had been drummed out. And he really did not come out speaking into the turn of the year, 1988 the early part of that year. It was february the first time he had been out, talking on a college campus. He went to the university of rochester as a matter fact. Were either . Guest out no i was not there. I was in New Hampshire with all of the good members of the pack. And joe gave his speech at the university of rochester and he took questions for several hour hours. When he got back to his motel room all the sudden he got bang hit like a brick hit him in the head. He was dizzy, he was nauseated, he could barely see and did not know what was happening thought it couldve been a heart attack. But he did not know what it was. He just knew that he could barely move. He did not seem to have any will to do anything for he lay down on the bed, and just thought if he could get home he might be alright. And he lay there a wake, and terrible pain all night. And finally dragged himself to the plane the next day. Got back to wilmington. And they literally had to carry him up his stairs at his house in wilmington. Has brother called, fortunately, the guys got a nose for trouble and a nose for his brothers in need and said just look, number schedule number anything, put them in the hospital right now today. In that very night, through a terrible snowstorm they took him by ambulance down to walter reed where a surgeon, doctor george decided there is no time to be wasted there is an aneurysm in his school they had to open his school and get at this aneurysm. I dont know if the audience will know what an aneurysm is, it is a weak spot in the wall of your artery. If it should burst in your school is thought that the loss of blood will kill you or but the force of the blood coming from the artery will literally start pulverizing your brain tissue. It pumps out like a fire hose. They didnt have any time to waste. They wheeled him into the surgery. It was going to before for nap hours. It turned out to be nine. The in your burst on the table fortunately outward away from joes brain. As a terrible mess and a critical time in his life. They literally gave him last rites there in the hospital. And fortunately, by grace of god, got him back together. He woke up being joe comic check this all out himself. He counted the ceiling tile in his room, multiplied them to calculate the area of the ceiling, spelled his name, spelled backwards. Tried to think how long he had been out. He found that he could think, he could talk, he could move his limbs. And then it dawned on him that had he been campaigning in New Hampshire, which he certainly would have been had he not been forced out of the race, he would have been dead because he would have been up in the mountains. Up there they never would have gotten him to doctor george in time. And what it did for joe it reawakened his own sense of destiny that someone has a plan for joe biden. It may develop better but what happened to him and that campaign. Stomach yet details of the ambulance ride going to the hospitals wife is with them . Guest thats right. His wife, his kids and ted kaufman who was his closest aide, is his closest 80 was right there. We would direct quotes of her saying some Strong Language to that driver get this guest they had an ambulance from wilmington. They were going down to walter reed. The wilmington ambulance guys did not know where dhec walter reed was on the washington beltway. Marilyn kopp source was a pick up at the state line and never met them. It was the middle of a snowstorm, beau biden the senators oldest son was riding shotgun. In the lead cop car. And he had a ball cap on and a parka. In the state cop leading them must have thought that bo was some kind of federal Swat Team Guy or secret service guy or something. They get into maryland and he turns to both who is at the time i think 18 years old and said where we going . And bo said i dont know where were going. You are the one who is supposed to know. Until they just stop by the side of the road. And finally jill biden was ready, the senators wife was riding in the back with joe started hammering on the back wall of that ambulance thing i dont care what you know, just get this damn thing going. She saw her husband in peril in his life lying there as theyre fooling around the radio and she was going to have it. The democratic and the partys electoral strategies prepped next jill biden reflects on the importance of her family and community. This is from may of 2019. So, during one of the Campaign Years people wanted joe to run for president , i was against it and i told joe i was against it before anyone came over to our house. I knew why they were coming, they were going to try to talk him into it. I was on the pool in the lower level and i could hear them upstairs they give got to do this you got to do this i was getting madder and madder, i was so angry parts i walk into the house. Versus thing is i was a magic marker. I had a twopiece bathing suit on. So i wrote know on my stomach. [laughter] and i walked through the meeting. [laughter] [applause] [laughter] so anyway they got the message. [laughter] they said i think you made your point. [laughter] host you spoke of, we sell this in the video which was beautiful. At the beginning of the book you quote the poems, the childhood friends. The title of your book is taken from that poem. But there is one line in the book that i was very curious about. Dont turn your head, keep looking at the bandaged place. And i was just curious, this seems very significant to you and i am curious what that specific line means to you . The bandage place i think is making your self, when you are vulnerable, when you are hurting. When you experience loss like we have in our family, what that means is you are looking at the wound, at the scar. Dont believe for a moment that you are healing yourself. And that is what i found through loss. Is that i never could have made it through without friends and family. Many, many, many of you in this room who supported me throughout. Have supported joe. With your notes, your cards, your thoughts and your caring. I think really, you know i teach at a Community College. And i feel the same way about my school. About the Community College that really, it is a larger community. And it is always it is helping one another get through the tough times. Whether that is your english class, through loss, through illness, or whatever youre going through. I think it is that sense of community that helps us. That we lean on one another. And thats what helps us to get through. Host you also talk a lot about your close relationship with your parents and your sisters growing up. And you referred to this as the circle of loyalty, which i thought was beautiful. And then later you talk about joe and the boys. And you say, when all the others turn the back and walk away you can count on me to it stay. That was their bond. Shared memory of grief, absolute trust. It was them against the world. And they were asking me to it join that sacred circle. And it seems like with joe and the boys you found something that is very close to the relationship you had with both your parents and your sisters. And it seems like this is a very strong theme that seems to run to your life. And i am just curious parade when creating these types of relationships in your life, how did that inform you once you got to washington . Did it help you in terms of navigating those new . Guest yes sure. Our families very closely when i met joe i thought bo and hunter and joe had a very close circle. And then i felt that love as they opened up that circle and allowed me to it come in. And i think that our family, we have always and everything together. We have sort of circled the wagons. I think when you are in public life you need that. You need that loyalty, you need that love, that caring. And so as we go forward in our next journey, we will devote like we have always done. I think loyalty is really an important traits. So i think i had that growing up with my own sisters. Tell the story in the book that i and the oldest of five girls. And so my younger sister came home and said to me, she was crying and she said jill, drew always rose worms on me at the bus stop. She was crying about it. I said alright, this was a bully in our neighborhood. So i went up the hill, gray who were road, downtown. I went up to his house and i knocked on the door. And he opened the door. And i pulled back and i punched him right in the face. [laughter] and i said dont you ever throw worms on my sister again. Then i was so scared iran all the way home. [laughter] and my father was home. And iran in and i said daddy i just punch drew in the nos. And he said good for you julie being. So is that kind of loyalty we took care of one another. Stu maxey spends coverage of the Democratic National Convention Starts this monday. And book tv is taking a look about books in president ial candidate joe biden. Next in 2010 on joe bidens life an early political career. Tell me just a little bit about this book. You probably all know the stories about why this incredible beginning in politic politics, county counsel and delaware then three years later running against an entrenched republican senator, for his seat and upsetting him. Two weeks after he was elected to the senate and before he was old enough to serve in the senate and that was at age 30 in the interim is a week before christmas and three school age children, two boys and an infant were a terrible car accident outside of wilmington. A huge truck plowed into their car. Biden was totally crushed. Was thinking of abandoning going into the senate at all. It had to be persuaded by his family and also by the Senate Majority leader at the time, Mike Mansfield and other leading democrats like Hubert Humphrey to come to the senate. Some argued to do that nothing else as a therapy for the debt in his grief. I was only by that pleading that members of the family urged that they did so. You may recall stories about joe biden always featured his commuting on the amtrak between wilmington and washington. It began at the time of the accident. He was determined he was going to be with the boys. They were then toddlers. And so he did every night. Every morning he would get on the train for washington. And on that night go back on the train to wilmington. In fact he was sworn into the senate at the hospital bed of vote biden who was still in the hospital at the time. And he continued to do that incredibly for 36 years. Other members of the three delaware congressional delegation often fell in line accompanying him they turned out to be so close, it was a split delegation with at least one republican and the three men delegation. As a result of this behavior, the schedule he had, biden was not very well known in the senate by the other senators for quite a while. He went home every night. All the others would eat and drink together and socialize together. All during the week. Also the fact in the always is a teetotaler. Just didnt have much to do with the social circuit. He bragged often that he never went any receptions. Its pretty much been the same now that he is Vice President. A little more so hes been seen around washington a little more. But he and his second wife, jil jill, go back to their home in wilmington just about every weekend. What did other senators learn from this . Its what everyone in delaware do. Biden had an uncommon commitment to the state to his family, to his catholic religion. I was a center of his life from the earliest days as a kid scranton, pennsylvania, bluecollar town. Thats not a cliche to say that faith and family saw through biden in his early tragedies of his life. It has continued to be a main clutch for him throughout his career. Were taking a look at books about democratic president ial candidate joe biden in anticipation of next weeks nash convention. 2019 book tv talked with the washington post, Steven Livingston about the working relationship between Vice President biden and president obama. As we all saw the working relationship is pretty powerful for receipt of the pictures. Them messing around together, having a good time for the also works very well together as a team. It was a unique relationship. The fact that they were a very strong working team, but they also developed into a friendship that we have never really seen in the white house. You wrote the book they were wary of each other at the beginning. Speeches they were wary. Barack obama came into the senate in 2005 as a shiny new item for the Democratic Party. He was a big celebrity. He was the man on the move. He was the coolest thing the Democratic Party and seen for a long time. Barack obama was something completely different. I mean joe biden was something completely different. Its been the senate for more than 30 years. He was a man of the senate, he basically grew up there. He believed in the hierarchy. He believed in late the way the system works. He was little bit wary of obama. Obama was the guy on the move. He wanted to slow obama down a little bit and have them show some respect for the institution he just entered. So they sort of circled each other a bit. Host how did biden change the role the Vice President . Cheney expanded it. Did biden feel that as well . What did he do for obama . Guest biden wednesday to be very different type of Vice President. He wanted to be obamas chief counselor pretty wanted to be the guy who is the last guy in the room whispering in obamas room when Big Decisions had to be made. He really fashioned his vice presidency on a prototype that Walter Mondale had created under jimmy carter. And mondale understood the Vice President was a guy who is not somebody who worked at the discretion of the president but was selected with the president so could not be fired. He was the man who had to stand up and tell the president the truth. Had to speak truth to power. Biden understood that as well and wanted to follow mondos footsteps. But also expand the role. Host what did obama think of bidens media gap throughout the years . Guest there quite a few as well though. They are still occurring today. I think on the whole, obama was very generous about them. They didnt really mean that much to obama. He was able to look past them. Obama was looking at the long game. He wasnt thinking about the ups and downs of the day or the moment pretty one to see what he could do for america longterm. So these little blips in the road that occurred because biden misspoke or biden got ahead of him a little bit on some issues were not really that important. Because in the big picture, obama had someplace he wanted to get. And he did not want to get distracted by the small step. Was biden always i need presidency as a vp . Guest i think thats a hard question for think it was in his mind all the time. It was in his mind before he became Vice President pretty ran before and did not do too well. The presidency has always been something that is been in his heart. He is always wanted to be president. Could be almost unfair to say he wasnt thinking about it will he was Vice President. But he did not make that obvious at all. And it didnt distract him from doing the job he had to do is Vice President. He was very loyal, helpful, helpmate to obama. She went white he think president obama has not endorsed Vice President biden for president yet . Guest its really politics. While they really adore each other. And i think they still do. It is a marriage of politics. It is a political marriage. Obama wants to be sure, i think that we elect a democratic president. And for him to endorse anybody at this point before theres an actual bona fide candidate would be sort of jumping the gun. He has one big shot. That bigshot has to be the biggest shot he can take. So if he were to endorse a biden or anybody before we have the true candidate, we do have that candidate anything he says will be diminished a little bit. Wouldnt have the strength that it would have when he says its for one final time. Steve livingston was rock obama and joe bidens relationship unique for president Vice President . Guest i think it was completely unique. I dont think with ever seen a president Vice President behave the way they did. They enjoyed each others company. They went out together. Their families were close. Bidens obamas children and bidens grandchildren spent time together, had overnights together when out together. Vice president of president dont normally have a very close relationship. As we know through history Vice President only exists for the purpose of taking over the president for whatever reason. So that is not the most Fertile Ground to create the most intimate relationship. Because you know the Vice President is there for one reason one reason only. Kennedy was always a little wary and nervous run lyndon johnson. It may have been just johnsons personality and other things. Johnsons sort of drew that to fruit and summed it up one day in his colorful language were he said every time im in the presence of john kennedy, i feel like a god damn raven hovering over his shoulder. So theres that sense of pretension between a president Vice President that always existed. But somehow barack and joe broke through for its maxi spence coverage of the Democratic National Convention Starts this monday. Both tvs look at president ial candidate joe biden continues with a portion of the recent program by Symone Sanders a Senior Adviser to his campaign. Here she talks about why she decided to work for mr. Biden after working for senator Bernie Sanders in the primary. When it came time to decide if i wanted to go back on the campaign trail not, for a long time i wasnt sure he wanted to go. But i did not want to spend this election cycle, sitting on a panel thinking about the work other people were doing. For me that was enough because i am a official campaign staffer. I wanted to do everything i could too have an office. I felt everything i could was not sitting. I would happily go back to my paddle okay, another day would happily go back. And no fault of the agents listening. [laughter] but i wanted to go get in there and do the work. And so i knew a lot of people personally because they happen because running for president there are a lot of folks. I sat down Vice President biden it was like i had known him for years. And what he was saying was staring me in the face articulated we are in the battle of the soul of the nation that charlottesville is not Inflection Point for all these people around america it was for him. And what we are seeing from the white house from the administration, cross the administration throughout his abuse of power. You have to check and abuse of power. Unlike me Vice President biden said i didnt want to spend this election cycle thinking what if i wouldve ran for president i was like me to it. And you know, i feel like i believed him when he was saying. If right. I physically got it right he is the democratic nominee. But i will say my values is a person and a lot of folks have their political ideology was they believe their political values whether its senator sanders or joe biden for whomever, i actually dont find that productive. I think we have to summing that angers us. Like what i believe doesnt change who it worked for. I still believe in equity. I believe in fairness. I believe we have to fix our Justice System so as a system that serves young people and does not further harm them. I believe in equity. I believe we have to do something about the wealth and inequality in this country part i believe the president has completely mishandled the coronavirus pandemic. And what was once a Public Health crisis is not economic crisis because now donald trump was complacent. I still dont know what is doing in january forever of 2020. Maybe he will let us know soon. So my political ideology is wrapped up in my values and what i believe. Thats why can work at the convention, i can work for senior advisors, i can work for a progressive. I know some people wont understand it doesnt compute for them. But a peace of advice i give in the book is you cannot make decisions based on what other people going to think about you. Because if i live my life worrying about what other people were going to say i would literally never make a move. So the end of the day, i think i made the right decision. I feel good. Host as you should print and want touch on that last point a little bit. I want to talk about that point yourself. I get a bit in Democratic Politics long time. I know one of the favorite storylines was democrat disarra disarray. There is a storyline that there is still some lingering hesitation by people who were with senator sanders or senator warren signing on with the Vice President the former Vice President of the campaign that they dont feel like he is pure enough for that. Youve been on both sides of that. You were with senator sanders, now youre with the Vice President. What is your message to those people who are still harboring doubts . Is there a way to win them over . How was the Campaign Going to actually make sure the parties fully unified . I would say three things. One is out they look at senator sanders. Senator sanders wholeheartedly endorsed Vice President biden. It wasnt a paper endorsement or tweets. They had a very long and wide ranging conversation about the issues. Or senator sanders stood before a lot of widely lauded and told people what he was supporting Vice President biden. Why we need to get behind him, why would a rally together and how they plan to Work Together for think its very powerful. For people who truly believe in what bernie is saying, if you believe Bernie Sanders is telling you why hes gotten by joe biden. But if you believes like biden believes is going to take all of us we are going to defeat donald trump and build on this bold progressive vision. Secondly jose Vice President biden himself for a long time that he needs these young people that senator sanders brought in. These folks that may be distant genuine, disk connected from politics. But they inspire them and we need those folks. We need that enthusiasm, we need those ideas we cannot do this without them. Our campaign is easy one. We welcome you. Thats really important and the third thing i will say engagement to these as genuine. We go organization by organization prewhat i like to call ticketless surgical precision and our progressive engagement. Because i think thats what it takes to truly show folks, not to show intel but we are actively demonstrating to a number of our progressive friends that we are in this for the long haul. We want to know where it is we align and how we can build and expand upon that alignment. When it comes to young people we are launching, what week is it, we are launching were coming out with her young brand im very excited about it not breaking news here tonight. Just look out for next week, ladies and john one. That is a culmination of a project that folks inside our campaign up and since last summer. With the input of young people and High School Students from some young professional folks and young officials but some have been with us from the beginning. Is not beating down on trump progress. Whats happening down does not have to be this way so lets do everything we can to get on a road to what we are calling a biden recovery. We wont win them all but we have to try. That is what we are doing. So my last question for go to the students. Look, running against an incumbent is hard. There is a reason why not many are defeated, loosely modern er era. Its got to be really harder, much harder when youve got to redefine what it means to campaign because we are all stuck in our homes. They cant go out there and do rallies. Your canisters cannot go doortodoor printer morning how you are reimagining campaigning and how you tackle that real challenge will so get the message out. Guest you heard Vice President say recently is on good morning america. He says George Stephanopoulos asked in this very question. He framed it as, is it hurting you cant get out there . Vice president said to then and he said we reject the notion that the fact that we are in a Virtual Campaign world right now, because everyone is at home during covid19 its hurting us. Were doing pretty good if you look at some of these polls because we are actively engagin engaging. Doctor biden have been doing virtual travels if you will. Last week he was in florida. Doctor biden was at michigan and pennsylvania. We are prioritizing local media. During National Media were doing roundtables wording snap chat the other day part of the snapshot show doubled as a peace for vanity fair magazine prayed we have had to get creative. But we fully believe Vice President biden was breaking through. Message in the campaign that people are receptive to. Because joe Biden Stockman biden recovery. Joe bidens highlighting elevated voices of workers. Not just on what what you do as president right now, if you are president right now but what he will do when he is elected. People want to see a forwardlooking, for thinking vision. And not that thats what Vice President biden is giving them food will be like to get out there and campaign out of the world . Absolutely. Its like President Biden said in the injuries chomping at the bit to get out. But we will go when it is safe. Will be informed by the sciences unlike the people that work at the white house. Up next in our look at the Democratic Party and the upcoming president ial election is nebraska Democratic Party chair jane cleave who weighs in on the parties engagement with rural voters but here she is from february of 2020 in lincoln, nebraska. As you know im chair of the Democratic Party. And being chair of a red state is not easy, right . Its not easy in nebraska, actually more difficult when you are in the room with fellow democrats. Especially democrats that are on the coast. Because i hear all the stereotypes, right . Why would you care about rural voters there going to die anywa anyway . Who cares about rural voters because their voting against their interest, and why should they have a say in our politics because there are less of them and more of us . And every book that i picked up about Rural America, was sad. It was depressing. It was usually about people being drug addicted, racist, and coming from broken homes. And that exists in Rural America. That exists in our big cities as well. But those pages never reflected the people i know in rural nebraska or in rural West Virginia every single state has rural communities. In the rear john reality is as a Democratic Party the of population will be electing 84 of the senate. We think well thats messed up jane, that is not fair. Maybe thats not fair but that is the u. S. Constitution what can changes how the Democratic Party talks with, stands up for and listens to rural voters. We used to win a Rural America part in that song go even in our state nelson was elected in 2006 and served until 2012 for a talk a little bit why didnt run for office again in the book after he passed obamacare and how essentially and allowed the republicans is false narrative that he was doing some kickback for our state. As a red state governor he knew the kid not have an Unfunded Mandate in obamacare. He needed to have language in there as a placeholder to say that all states can expand medicaid but the federal government should be putting money into that as well. And if the Democratic Party cared about rural and red state states, they would have stood with senator nelson and they didnt . So i tell a lot of those stories in this book. And really the first half of it it is a decades long fight that we are still fighting and we wont ever give up on. And we wont ever turn our backs on the farmers, the ranchers, the tribal nations. And yes the liberal progressive environmentalists and climate advocates who all became Unlikely Alliance standing together. The Democratic National Convention Starts this monday and we are taking the opportunity to show some programs about president ial candidate joe biden the reason i wrote the book was i think there is nothing more important than winning this election 2020. But i was never more convinced that when this election was not enough. Think one of the main things it drove me to it write it is too Many Democrats in washington and around the country think that donald trump is an aberration. And ive come to the conclusion that he is a logical extension of the Republican Party of the many, many years. Particularly since barack obama was elected. And all the forces allowed someone like donald trump to be president will still be present when he leaves. So we have to beat them. But then we have to take a very aggressive effort to fix the problems in our politics and allow someone like donald trump to be president. Host the beginning to talk about a difference between voters on ideologies and those who focus on policy. Can you tell us why you make that distinction . Its been too sure. Im watching as you all are from the 700 democratic debate i think everyone of them has been in credit sadly substantive weather will have medicare for all, medicare for some, or Green New Deal or whether we need to get 50 commissions by the state or that date, and thats great. Because substance is important. I think progress for political conversation were having substantive debate with the political party. Its a little different. I think with that conversation when a little past the graveyar graveyard. Because i think our politics, both the institution of politics have been known for a long time. Plus a very ruthless strategy put in place by the republicans have a politics or rigs against the use of majority in america. We dont tackle political reform first assert eccentric and medicare for some, medicare for one Single Person problems with the sent with the structures Voter Suppression we dont deal with that. It doesnt matter what politics we have. I want to focus on how to get things done to when we can. Host was talk about when we initially talk about trumping aberration extension seems like racial politics have allowed trump in this way. He talked about the importance of racial grievances . s boomac the way to understand politicians is much more simple than you would think. You basically have to stay in office. The Republican Party is dependent upon a shrinking almost entirely white base. And so the way in which the only way they can win is to get as much support of that base as humanly possible paired with they have discovered is the best way to do that is with racial grievances better attend rhetoric. To scare white people about nonwhite people. That is people taking their jobs, terrorism, all across the board. That is the long history of the Republican Party since the passage of the Voting Rights act. I think you can see it in the southern strategy. You can see Ronald Reagan going to mississippi with the yea rights speech which is about as subtle as the hammer to the head. You can see it in george h. W. Bush running his campaign a horton ad which is an ad so racist all future righteous ads are referred to as Willie Horton ads. And the reason i think we have to be this serious about it is with every passing day the majority of the country becomes younger more progressive. Which means he progressive seemed more and more out of that white base. Which means the racial grievance rhetoric is going to get worse and worse. They get away that because of things again to reduce the political power of young people and people of color in this country. Until we address that they will continue doing what theyre doing. Host they should be as intense boomac i refer to this is the paler shade of orange politics should be we white truck . And the answer to that is definitively no. I think just because they want to look in the mirror in the morning but also that strategy does not work for democrats, right . The republicans are trying to get, as i said, as many people a group of people who are likely to turn out to turn out to turnout. They want as few people dont often turn out to turnout. Democrats can also field works for them. We need hope and inspiration because we have to get our Standard Base in the me also need to convince new voters to become voters and become democrats free we need to convince people who may be turned off by the process. Weve got cynical strategies, we will reduce democratic turnout we will lose. Host s to think people still have hopes that people for like the train ended in the obama moment. [inaudible] [laughter] that people are worried about hope is actually immobilizing strategy for people. Guest i think we have to recognize that a lot is said as barack obama said yes we can into thousand eight. The way i described in the book as i think democrats have to be with john f. Kennedy are referred to his Foreign Policy , idealistic without allusions. I think we have to be hopeful in the idea that the country can be more unified. But very clear about who the republicans in washington are. The idea that republicans are going to have an epiphany or what Mitch Mcconnells going to do is not going to happen. I think we should try to aspire to something better. With got to be tough and strategic about political power and thick weve been as strategic with political powers in the past. Talk about that when we do about the party . You know in your book during the obama years we lost a lot of governorships who lost people in congress. Seemly something happened to the infrastructure of the party did not serve us well will be got trump. What we do about that . With the Obama Administration did they just dropped the ball . One, terrible economy. They knew that election was a disaster. And unemployment was at 10 , it was coming two years after bipartisan bill. The economy was recovering much more slowly than it had. People forget, Citizens United decision happened in january 2010. Which meant the democrat ability to keep up and that spending election when out that day. And our candidates were washed away like Koch Brothers incorporate fund money in the end. Having said that it what it argued for the book wasnt democrats and to be less obsessed with the white house for a new let the crazy thing to say is was here today. But, theres focus on us, from congress from the democratic donor base the races it happened down ballot. Political power comes from down ballot, right . If you control the state legislature and governorship you can make people easier to vote. Republicans took over and over big swing states after 2010. The very first thing they did was voter id laws, get rid of very specifically getting rid of the days on the calendar that were the most africanamerican voters. When they got represented they randomly picked one out of the hat. States that had democratic governors and legislatures have lives say. Republicans would not expand medicaid people lost their live lives. Raise the mineral wage, protect civil rights. We have to restructure the party and put some ideas for that in the book. That makes it easier for the party to focus on those things. It is a real mentality shift. One of the good begun disease in 2016. The Democratic National convention errors this week on cspan, beginning on monday and culminates with joe bidens acceptance speech on thursday. Next in book tvs look at books about the democratic president ial candidate, and the dncs efforts to win the white houses political strategist paul on his thoughts with the parting is to do to in the election parties join in conversation by former Democratic National chairwoman. Stu met the presidency is still a job interview. A summons a horrible person but could maybe do a really big job, i didnt connect it up to the retiree in pennsylvania. Or the Office Worker in michigan. Or the farmer in wisconsin. Until that be worse. Its absolutely true. About three weeks after the election, and i am not kidding. It was the hardest election and postelection of ever gone through. And generally am a happy person. I was miserable. My joke was a sleep like a baby, wake up every two hours crying. So when i come i am so woke until my wife was an army brat their families or Dairy Farmers in wisconsin predict figure it out, i figured it out. We ran these ads in wisconsin about trump talking about and they saw that. That life, ethel turned to harold and said we can vote for men like that. Because they are decent midwestern allamerican families. And he rolled cigarette we cant. Riverbed about three days or for the election harold turns back to ethels as you know apple, hes not gonna grab you by the privates, but he says hes going to open up that factory where they laid off our son harvey. So maybe its worth a shot . So i didnt connect it up to harveys life, to ethels wife to harolds life, i simply left it that hes a horrible person, which he is. I dont democrats to do that again. Not to excuse his bad behavior not to accuse his dismal appalling sewer level character. But to make it about voters not about trump. This is a trump trap referred to every narcissist once the conversation to be about himself. What i failed to do, what i want democrats to do now is turn the camera away from trump and back to that farm family. You know i wrote a whole chapter on Rural American i sent to him. And he loved it. That meant a lot to me. Simply telling the trumps the pig select 88 days. You write the book that trump wants to make this about him but we need to make it about the voters as you just mentioned. But still a major issue in the news. Can the democrats learn anything from 2016 and really focus on those issues that matter not continue to focus on donald trump . Guest i hope. I hope. But covid changes everything. Think this is the First Political strategy since covid. I did two things, a graybeard and i wrote a book pretty think its the lighting in your donna, don and ive been talking so we know. Select im checking it out. We go back 33 years so i wrote it during covid. And its more important now. Stacey abramson said and many others voters if your life depends on because it does. It really does. Politics is not any longer but he said when a call that show business for ugly people. It is a real thing it is a real life. In todays a good example. Today, donald trump is out says hey maybe ill give my Convention Speech from the white house. We all get her panties in a wad its a violation, it is is criminal. Its appalling. But has no effect on harold life back in wisconsin. So i think what democrats ought to say please know we shouldnt give it at the white house with one or 60000 dead he should give it a covid ward, he should give it at an icu, he should give it at a mortgage, he should give it at a cemetery because that really embodies hiss presidency far more than the white house. They get that back to peoples lives. Its hard to do because he distracts us. All good people are raised when they hear something that is misogynistic or racist we say will cut that out. I think he uses that division as diversion that people die before their time on his watch. Spew a bit in his book you say trump superpowers what is our kryptonite . Will god help us cope and makes it a lot less tech. Its also turning the camera back. I love him anyway but i went and really studied barack obama. Both of whom were subjected to terrible personal attacks. And in each case they refused to ride rice debates. Barack obama took him months, years before he released his birth certificate. Not because he wasnt born in honolulu. But because he knew it was a trap. They are simply trying to steal the election away from healthcare and jobs in the issues he was writing on. And he explained that i think very well. He hold up that attack. This is a kryptonite and is a wise trump saying this . In joes case is gonna come after his son, we know that. Why is he attacking my family . Because he hasnt done anything for your family. And believe me, win or lose my families going to be just fine. The question is what your family be just fine . If he allows you to be diverted think about my son who is a fine man, dont fall for. Keep the focus on your son, your daughter, your granddaughter. I think that is the way to do this. I say this only because i failed to do it last time. And president clinton was nice enough to read the book. Painted he reminded me that was a first love politics. Politics is always about people not us. 20018 you write in the book , that the democrats were able to flip 41 houses that trump had. How do democrats do that . Guest if there is a hero in the book in terms of string up lesson because the heroes is nancy pelosi, oma got a love that woman. All of the big shots a says shes terrible, shes terrible. No, no, no preachy let us out of the wilderness. She began with recruitment. In her recruitment began with diversity. And again a republican, right wing friends we have a lot of them come at the blessing. They think our commitment to diversity is about kumbaya of touchyfeely weakness but its not. Its about bringing in the best team. The new cspan the talent pool, get more talents. Nancy knew that from the jump. She recurred were democrats in ever put on the fort ever. And recruited people with security background defense background intelligence background really cool, interesting diverse backgrounds as well as genders and race. That was the first thing is recruit. She also, barber was a social worker before she was a senator. She said social work you meet people where they live, right . She met people where they live. She didnt run. Aoc ran in aocs district. She didnt run in other districts. As a former nfl Football Player civil rights lawyer. Hes asking an american man who represents george w. Bush white rich texas district best terrific breed thats terrific. He didnt campaign on muller and impeachment he campaigned on metal healthcare and prescription drugs parades are diversity first. Matching the districts. Monitoring and moderates districts, progressives ran a progressive districts. She phoned them did all the nuts and bolts rights. That to me, became a title way. But she didnt make it about trump. In 2010 they all ran ads attacking president obama and the republicans in the house. Democrats and do that. They read as about you. About healthcare about prescription drugs for even though trump was not popular they got elected with mandate for change instead of just hating on trump. I just think shes a genius. Host one thing paul coming on i both know this parade we customarily argue about charging the White Working Class versus mobilizing. In the book you address both of these issues. Why is it so important that we get it right this time . You have to do both. I think don it was reverend jackson who first told me this that a plane has have a left ring and aye ring. Will why . He is in arguably correct in that. These primaries this week were these dynamic impressive, cory bush i did know anything about her. With william lacy clay, she is amazing. The party needs new blood. I dont really care if it comes from the left ventricle or the right ventricle, we need new fresh blood. We have to do both. We have to energize people with color, young people, women especially unmarried women, thats a rising america. You also need to reach out to people in pain and turned to donald trump because they wanted a wrecking ball. Then emphatically represented them anymore. We just have to lose a little less. If we could get back to the White Working Class levels with barack obama not even though clinton. Just do as well as obama did, joe will win big. Because the truth is, ive looked this up, we lost, not with covid weve lost 71000 people to Drug Overdoses. Now some of them in the cities, some are in the suburbs, some around the country. This is not a thing that discriminates by race. We lost 38000 people last year. The death by Drug Overdose was high. Death by guns, handgun violence 38000 breed some in cities, some in suburbs, some on the farms. The pain is the same. And it is our job to stitch that back together whether it is a farmer, god for bid his kid is addicted to opioids. Or to mom and the intercity its a same pain. I am looking for ways to stitch them back together. I dont think we should be at war, cities and suburbs. That wraps up our look at democratic president ial candidate joe biden and his Party Strategy to end the 2020 election. All the programs you seen can be viewed in their entirety booktv. Org. washing saturday august 29th future programs with conditions. Binge watching tv on cspan2. Youre watching book tv, on cspan2. Every weekend up with the latest nonfiction books and authors. Cspan2, created by americas Cable Television company is a public service. Brought you today television provider. The house of representatives will return session on saturday. Speaker nancy pelosi is calling members back to washington. Legislation concerning the u. S. Postal serce