The main message are for us to prepare ourselves. You know, i had no idea. I thought i knew. I thought i knew about these things. I did not know. The ets, the aliens and what they did, i didnt know. They are preparing us for the end of the world. Theyre, i think, going to cause the end of the world . I dont know if thats supposed to be good. The aliens, these cute little deflated pillsbury dough boys aliens, theyre hidden right out in the open. That was a movie do we call these things a movie . That was a film that was released in 2019 at least 2019 when it was posted online. The same filmmaker also made this the year before. Now, in this, you will recognize some of the same dudes from the other movie. But in this movie they have different haircuts and they have different purported expertise. No tire tracks and no footprints. The germans had a settlement on the moon. They had a settlement on mars. And they were doing this as early as 1939. Between the age of 16 and 17 years old, i was transported to the moon. And after 20 years, i was ageregressed back in time and then returned to civilian life. This money is going into underground Military Bases and secret Space Programs with Technology Far beyond what many of us could even realize. At some point, this is all going to break open. The more you get involved, the more compromised you become. They may actually kill you. Did you see the giant skulls . The skulls of giants there at the end . The giants who were also maybe old rich dutch people who got their portraits painted. I know. Huh, huh, huh . You ever seen those together . And if you put those next to a turnip, ill tell you what. It turns out the giants may have done 9 11 and i think shot jfk. It was the giants or it was the aliens that did that. Maybe the giants got killed by the aliens after they shot jfk. Honestly, its hard to figure out. I will tell you, as this filmmaker has evolved over time, his aliens have gotten better looking. Theyve gotten more stylish, kind of cooler. Can we say his aliens are getting more hip over time as his movies about him evolve. They are certainly svelter in the mans later work, to be sure. I mention this and i introduce you to this filmmakers work because for the future of Oour Republic and one of our two major governing parties, its important to know that that guy, the aliens did 9 11 guy, has a new movie coming out this week. His 2018 movie was Nazis In Space and aliens killed jfk. His 2019 movie was aliens are eating our dna and free masons and watch out. And here comes the end of the world, but dont worry, the aliens are very peaceful seeming and theyll be cool with you if you watch these movies. Those were his previous works. His new movie which comes out this week is about the arizona audit, the socalled audit of the arizona president ial election result arranged by republicans in the state legislature. That is the subject of his next movie. He appears to be sort of the authorized documentarian of the audit. The movie does feature all the big players. The opening scene in the trailer for the film is ken bennet, the Arizona Republican official who has served all this time as the spokesman for the audit. There he is talking to the nazis on the moon, aliens did 9 11 filmmaker. Look at the background. Hes at the site of the arizona Recount Audit Thing at that arena in phoenix talking to the aliens did 9 11 filmmaker about the arizona recount. The movie also includes lots of footage and testimony from the guy who writes Treasure Hunting And Big Claim To Fame was creating a Bar Code Scanner shaped like a house cat. He claims to have secret technology he cant disclose to you which he called kinematic artifact detection. It is secret, but it is supposedly being applied to all of arizonas federal election ballots to prove to prove to prove that donald trump must have secretly won. Ask the secret cat scanner. The movie also includes, apparently, the ceo, maybe also the sole employee of cyber ninjas. Thats the firm, the guy, whos actually running whatever it is the republicans are doing with the federal election ballots in arizona. His name is doug logan, the ceo of cyber ninjas. He was shadowed out visually in the original trailer for the movie, but they used his voice. When local reporters in arizona recognized his voice, the filmmakers recut the trailer to make doug logans voice digitally altered. Then when everybody laughed at them for doing that they issued a third version of the trailer, this one with doug logans vision cut out entirely. But if you think you are ready to learn the truth about the 2020 Arizona Election results and you specifically want to learn that truth from the guy who finally figured out that it must have been aliens who did 9 11 and wow jfk too and watch out they might steal you and take you to the moon for 20 years, if thats the guy you want to learn the truth from about the arizona president ial election in 2020, he had some big news for you this week. You will not be shocked to learn that he announced this news on a Telegram Channel thats for followers of the qanon conspiracy theory. But thats where he made the announcement. You guys, you guys, his new movie is ready. He did the aliens movie in 2018. Did the different aliens movie in 2019. But his 2021 movie is ready. Its apparently shot on site at the Election Audit in phoenix. It is premiering at a church in phoenix this weekend, which i think means its time to the end of the arizona socalled audit. Whatever theyre doing at the audit is supposed to be wrapped up. And the big culminating event will be the screening of the official documentary of what happened in arizona and how the arizona audit will expose the trump truth of the the reason we know about any of this is because really good reporters, dogged reporters, at the arizona mirror, the Arizona Republic and local tv stations in phoenix and the arizona watch have been documenting this stuff for posterity. You otherwise wouldnt believe it. But a significant portion of the country, a majority of Republican Voters across the country say they believe that donald trump actually won reelection or at least that there was significant fraud and there were many irregularities in the last election. And when majorities of Republican Voters tell pollsters that, what they are thinking of is this socalled audit in arizona, right . Theres a recount there, right . And it sounds like theyre turning up stuff thats really, really bad. Well, now from the guy who brought you the movie on the left about the secret Space Program growing aliens deep inside the earth, were about to get what i guess is the authorized Documentary Expose of the arizona thing, including the support and involvement of the republican officials and contractors who are running it. And it would be hilarious it still is kind of hilarious, except for the part where this is the basis for republicans in huge numbers now saying that the last election was distorted and corrupted by massive fraud. And so nobody can have any faith in the election outcome. And therefore republican controlled legislatures across the country must dramatically restrict Voting Rights and change the administration of elections so we never have another election like 2020 again. I mean, it will also be the predicate for whatevers going to happen in our country in august when arizona says theyre going to release their findings after whatever it is the qanon cyber ninjas people did to the ballots and Voting Machines in arizona, their report on the socalled audit will be ready in late july or early august. And august is when trump says he will be reinstated as president. He expects in august to be reinstated as president , presumably, he believes, on the basis of what arizona is going to say they found in this thing that they set up in this local arena and had documented by the nazis on mars guy. This just doesnt seem like a healthful way for a mature democracy to handle the transition of power, you know . And it you know, maybe it all seems like Fun And Games until an angry armed mob storms your National Capitol to stop the Election Results from being certified. Or someone reporting to the protrump faction in your state Legislature Starts banging on your door demanding to know who you voted for, threatening that you seem like the kind of person or this seems like the kind of address that feels a little shady to them and is going to be reported as fraud. The watchdog group, american oversight, this week obtained a bunch of documents from the Arizona Republican who is set up and have administered the socalled audit there. Among the documents they obtained was this one. Reporting back, apparently, on a doortodoor canvas, quote, by a citizens nonpartisan grassroots project. They say they went doortodoor in Maricopa County and pima county, arizona, knocking on peoples doors asking who lived there and then asking about their vote in the president ial election in november. And then reporting up to Arizona Republicans that literally most of the addresses they went to seemed like likely fraudsters. 52 of those canvassed addresses required an affidavit for an irregularity. 52 . Really . A majority of households in arizona are seen as needing affidavits because of irregularities as reported by Volunteer Citizen Canvassers . This tracks with news we saw a week ago in the Arizona Republic, quote, people are knocking on the doors of county residents in arizona and asking how they voted in the last election, while falsely claiming to represent the county recorders office. According to Sheriffs Office officials. The mysterious doortodoor survey has alarmed local officials. It comes after the u. S. Department of justice warned Arizona Senate republicans against plans to canvass voters homes as part of an unprecedented review of novembers election. In fact, that warning is true. In may, the u. S. Justice department, a senior u. S. Justice Department Official wrote to Arizona Republicans warning them about what they were doing with the socalled audit, warning them ability strict federal laws that govern the handling of ballots and Voting Machines after a federal election. Arizona republicans blew that off and kept doing exactly what they had been doing before, which means the Justice Department apparently didnt mean what they said in that letter because they never followed up or took any visible action, despite the implied threat in that letter. But the Justice Departments letter to arizona also explicitly warned Arizona Republicans about what had been their stated plans, to go bang on peoples doors, to ask them about their vote in the president ial election. After doj sent that Letter Warning about the mishandling of ballots and Voting Machines, warning about plans to go doortodoor, Arizona Republicans responded to that part of it saying they didnt have plans to do the doortodoor stuff anyway. In this records request, thanks to american oversight, we know that happened. I mean, what Arizona Republicans have reported to them from these volunteer canvassers is that it was thousands of arizonans who got knocks on their door with random People Holding clipboards trying to appear like official something demanding to know about their vote in the president ial election. It happened in Maricopa County, it happened in pima county. It happened in yavapai county. The Justice Department explicitly warned arizona about doing this, warned Arizona Republicans because its against the federal law that prohibits intimidating voters in this way. They got the warning. They apparently did it anyway in three counties. Thousands of households. Is the Justice Department going to do anything about that other than their stern warning they sent in may followed up with no action in response . Anyone . Hello . Is this thing on . We dont know what, if anything, the white house and the Biden Administration, more broadly, plans to do to try to defend Voting Rights and to protect election processes against this unprecedented and still rising tide of pressure from republicancontrolled legislatures and republican state houses around the country. Today a reporter for vice news says she asked the Number Two Senate democrat, dick durbin, what would happen next after republicans filibustered the Voting Rights bill in the senate today. Elizabeth landers wrote, when Senator Durbin responded, quote, im not sure, meaning im not sure what will happen next. He then hinted that President Biden is, quote, doing lite of things that havent been announced publicly. Before too long, white house chief of staff Ron Klain Retweeted that, pointedly, literally with a little pointing emoji, seeming to endorse the idea that there may be actions President Biden himself or the Biden Administration more broadly is taking on this issue that we cant yet see. Okay. Im intrigued. Im looking forward to finding out about that. But whether its potentially Justice Department action to enforce federal laws around the handling of ballots and not intimidating voters or whether its Something Else theyve got in mind, when it comes to the law, when it comes to the path of legislation, it did hit that big expected speed bump today thanks to Democrats Unwillingness to reform the Filibuster Rules in the face of republican willingness to use the filibuster against absolutely everything, even Voting Rights. All 50 republican senators voted today that there should not even be a debate on the Voting Rights bill, the for the people act. That also meant that republicans didnt even consent to consider to even talking about a different version of the bill, like for example the significantly reduced iteration of the bill proposed by Conservative Democratic senator joe manchin of west virginia. Senator manchin has been the focus of so much attention on this issue because of the peculiar angle he took on this thing. It wasnt just that manchin said he didnt want to vote for a Voting Rights bill unless it had republican support. He said that, but he also expressed this relentless and sort of inexplicable optimism that some republicans would support Voting Rights in the end. When he wrote his oped in his Hometown Paper recently expressing his opposition to any Voting Rights bill that didnt have republican support, that was sort of an implicit criticism of his democratic colleagues in the senate for writing a Voting Rights bill that no republican senator could support. Senator manchin put his theory to the test though. He wrote his own version of the Voting Rights bill, showing his concept of the kind of bill he felt republicans rightfully should support and should be expected to support on Voting Rights. Senator manchin drew up his own proposal, what he thought should get republican votes. The republican leader in the senate, Mitch Mcconnell, responded by calling the proposed bill, quote, rotten. And then today republican senators, all 50 republican senators, voted to not even consider what joe manchin put forward. So, does this change Senator Manchins mind about any of this . Does it shift his idea that no Voting Rights bill should pass if it doesnt have republican votes . Now that he sees the way that republicans are approaching this issue in terms of deciding what theyre going to vote for, what theyre going to vote to debate, what theyre going to vote to hear, does this change his mind about whether or not a Voting Rights bill must have republican votes if it is going to be a legitimate approach to this issue that deserves his support . We dont know. Senators leave at the end of this week to go home for a twoweeklong oh july 4th recess. What senators hear from their constituents when theyre at home about the importance of Voting Rights, that may be determinative here as to whether this is now over or whether there might be a next step. At home in phoenix, arizona, today this was the scene at the offices of democratic senator kyrsten sinema. She is the other Conservative Democrat whos been a holdout on this issue. Also insisting since republicans ought to support Voting Rights, democrats should give up on it if they dont. I know, i know, i know. And her constituents clearly know. In addition to these visits at her office today, senator sinema is also facing ads like these ones running on arizona tv stations just blasting her for not being willing to get it done, for not standing up for Voting Rights. Now, i dont know how this is going to end, but i do know that republicans in the states are going maximalist with their position on this issue. To the point where they literally arent ashamed to have the dude who makes movies about nazis on the moon and aliens doing 9 11 becoming the official documentarian for their effort to promote Election Fraud narrative to bolster not only disrespect for election Broad Strokes but specifically to bolster republican efforts in all republicancontrolled states now to rescind Voting Rights. And make voting harder. They are going for a maximalist convention here. Senate republicans in washington know that as long as the filibuster is there, democrats have no options in terms of backing up Voting Rights. Clear on that the Republican Party being clear on that in terms of whether theres going to be federal protection for Voting Rights clears the field for republicans in the states to go maximalist and shamelessly as far as they can on this issue. To make voting as restricted as possible, to target Voting Restrictions and the administration of elections in a way that is maximally partisan to their advantage. And so they proceed. Unless democrats can figure out, can get their heads around the fact that this is what theyre up against and fight the this same kind of fight on the same kind of terms. Minnesota senator Amy Klobuchar is an original cosponsor of the Voting Rights bill that stalled today in the senate. She said her next move is to take the show on the road. She said shes going to start doing Field Hearings in the states documenting stakes and taking it to places where the feig is being waged. Senator klobuchar joins us next. Stay with us. King at its best taking metamucil everyday can help. Metamucil psyllium fiber, gels to trap and remove the waste that weighs you down. It also helps lower cholesterol and slows Sugar Absorption to promote healthy blood sugar levels. So you can feel lighter and more energetic metamucil. Support your daily digestive health. And try metamucil fiber thins. A great tasting and easy way to start your day. Do you have a Life Insurance policy you no longer need . Now you can sell your policy, even a term policy, for an immediate cash payment. Call Coventry Direct to learn more. We thought we had planned carefully for our retirement. But we quickly realized that we needed a way to supplement our income. Our friends sold their policy to help pay for their medical bills and that got me thinking. 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Every day in business is a big day. Well keep you ready for whats next. Get started with a great offer, and ask how you can add comcast business securityedge. Plus, for a limited time,ask how to get a 500 prepaid card when you upgrade. Call today. Across the nation Constitutional Rights are being assaulted, and i fear that if we dont act as a body in this moment we will have crossed a dangerous rubicon in our nation. Why are some people hiding . To what end . For what purpose . At whose behest . We were reminded on january 6th that it is up to us to protect against threats to our democracy. Honestly, i would love to get some support from The Other Side of the aisle, but we have to be honest. I dont expect were going to get it. So, my republican colleagues, this is not the end of the line for this bill. This is not the end of the line. This is only the beginning. Senators Raphael Warnock of georgia, Amy Klobuchar of minnesota were among Many Democrats today who spoke out in support of s. 1, the for the people act, the big Voting Rights bill ahead of this afternoons vote. Its passed the house. If it can pass the senate, it will go to President Biden and he will sign it into law. But that effort to get it on to the floor today for debate failed. All 50 republican senators voted against even starting debate on the bill. This was a filibuster. They required 60 votes to get this thing onto the floor and republicans insisted that would not happen. Republican Senate LeaderMitch Mcconnell promised to make sure the bill stays dead, that it never goes anywhere. He vowed today to, quote, put an end to it. But despite todays defeat for proponents of the bill, a chorus of Democratic Senators said this fight is still beginning. Theyre not letting this go. Senator klobuchar chairs the Rules Committee in the senate and announced her committee is packing up and going to georgia to hold a Field Hearing on the Voting Rights to hear first hand from voters in one of the states where election rules and Voting Rights are being radically restricted in the aftermath of president trumps reelection loss last year. Vice president Kamala Harris is technically the president of the senate. In that capacity, she presided over todays vote. Afterwards, she also promised that this is not over. The issue here is is there actual access to the voting process, or is that being impeded . And the bottom line is that the president and i are very clear, we support s. 1. We support the john lewis Voting Rights act. And the fight is not over. You can hear the reporter at the end there saying, whats next . Whats next . Which of course is the key question. Joining us now is minnesota senior senator, the chair of the Rules Committee in the senate, senator Amy Klobuchar. Senator, its great to have you here. Thank you so much. Thanks, rachel. Whats next . Where does this go . Whats next . Were going to georgia. The Rules Committee has not gone on the road for 20 years, and that is just the beginning because my colleagues maybe should have learned a lesson in georgia, my republican colleagues. And that is i smiled when i heard the great senator warnock speak, the guy who said it all in probably one sentence. This is all summed up that some people dont want some people to vote. And guess what . When the people of georgia saw what was happening back in early january, when they saw the big lie being perpetrated on them, when they saw their elections being undermined by the Republican Party, they turned out and they voted. They didnt just vote in one democratic senator, they voted in two. So, we had the people on our side on this big time, rachel. Democrats, republicans, independents. The bill polls at 78 for many of the provisions. We have a united party as you saw by the vote today. So, we are not ending this fight. And one of the ways we do that is getting out of this capitol dome and heading out to the states so we can hear from people and so my colleagues can hear them because its hard to hide when you have people talking about standing in 10hour lines without food and water or people trying to find one dropoff ballot box in the middle of Harris County texas of five Million People or the discriminatory Voting Practices or six states still requiring notarized signatures from Notary Publics just to get an application for an absentee ballot. Thats what theyre going to hear when we go out there to states across the country. And is it your expectation that that kind of pressure and that kind of public support for the Voting Rights protections in this bill, is it your expectation that that will peel off republicans who will decide that they want to align themselves more with Public Opinions on this. That they see the light on this, and republicans will feel supported . Or is it your expectation that democrats in your own caucus will decide that this is important enough and theres enough public support for this that this is worth a new approach for the senate rules that allows this to be passed without republican votes . I would take either. But the point is that im not giving up, and senator warnock is not giving up, nor is senator merkley. We are not giving up. And i favor abolishing the filibuster. And i came to that decision after years of inaction, after seeing how important legislation on things like climate change, immigration reform, things where there was bipartisan agreement got stopped because of archaic procedure. And i dont think our colleagues should be able to tyrannize us and the country and hold the country hostage. I dont think you should be able to filibuster our democracy. Thats what i believe. Of course, yes, we have to convince our colleagues to make changes. Theyve been open to reform. Youve heard Senator Manchin talk about the standing filibuster, and we can proceed that way, and we can also put pressure on republicans. But the point is there are so many provisions in this bill, including, by the way, the disclose act to go after dark money in our politics. That is overwhelmingly popular. And i would like to see my colleagues on The Other Side vote against that or my honest ads act which simply says that social Media Companies have to put disclosures and disclaimers on these ads so we know exactly where the moneys coming from. All of these things are going to be on the ballot as we move forward. I mentioned a few minutes ago about an exchange with Senator Durbin of illinois that a reporter from vice news had with him today in which he told her he wasnt sure what was going to happen next procedurally. But he also said that it was his understanding that President Biden and the Biden White House are doing a lot of things on this issue that havent been announced publicly but that might be materially relevant in terms of what happens next. Do you have any idea what hes talking about . Is there someplace else we should be looking in terms of next steps and what else should be available . For Voting Rights protection. Theres a lot of things. Were working on an Infrastructure Package right now. Theres the Bipartisan Group thats negotiating hard, but theres also going to be a second package, and we can include election infrastructure in there. When it comes to the Justice Department, youre looking at people like benita gupta thats over there, people like kristen clark. These are experienced leaders who understand Voting Rights. This is not your daddys Justice Department or should i say your daddy William BarrsJustice Department anymore. These are incredible forceful leaders who know what theyre doing. So, i cant tell you exactly what theyre going to do. But what i can say is theyre going to make sure that these states out there who are even thinking of impinging on peoples right to vote, theyre going to go after that because you cant do that in america. This is a fundamental right shared by democrats, republicans, independents, anyone that wants to vote in america, something that our whole country was founded on, the simple idea of democracy. And these guys, whatever they are, cyber ninja, whatever they are, they are messing with us right now. And people in this country dont like that. Look at what they did in georgia back in january. So, weve got major, major work in front of us on many fronts, rachel. So, i dont want to take away from the work weve got to do in the coming month on infrastructure and build back better. But i can tell you there are a number of us that see the evil thats out there and were not just going to pretend and go away. Thats why im bringing the Rules Committee out on the road. Minnesota senator, share of the Rules Committee, senator Amy Klobuchar of minnesota. Its great to have you here. I know that this is the start of a different kind of fight here. Thanks for keeping us apprised tonight. It was great to see you. Thanks rachel. All right. A little jarred by the whole daddy william barr thing. Im just going to take a quick shower. Ill be right back. Its time for sleep numbers lowest prices of the season on the sleep number 360 smart bed. Its the most comfortable, bodysensing, automaticallyresponding, energybuilding, duallyadjustable, dadpowering, wellnessboosting, footwarming, temperaturebalancing, recoveryassisting, effortlessly lifechanging proven quality night sleep weve ever made. And now, the new queen sleep number 360 c2 smart bed is only 899. Only for a limited time. To learn more, go to sleepnumber. Com. Did you know that every single flush flings odors onto your soft surfaces . Then they get release back into the air, so you smell them later. Ew right . Thats why febreze created small spaces. Press firmly and watch it get to work. Unlike the leading cone, small spaces continuously eliminates odors in the air and on surfaces. So they dont come back for 45 days. Just imagine what it can do with other odors. Watch the Olympic Games on xfinity root for team usa and feel the energy 7000 plus hours of the olympics on display with xfinity you get every hour of every day different sports on different screens, you can watch it anywhere and with the voice remote you never have to leave your chair show me team usa. All of this innovation could lead to some inspiration and you might be the next one to represent our nation this summer on your tv, tablet, or any Screen Xfinity is here to inspire your biggest dreams a year ago my very good, very old friend, a producer on the show, steve benin, published a book that is basically a i mean, its not a Reference Guide. Its a narrative. But i have since used it as a frequently referred to Reference Guide for how to understand todays politics and how to understand whats not the same between the two parties. The book is called The ImpostersHow Republicans Quit Governing and seized American Politics. The basic thesis is that the Democratic Party is different from the Democratic Party in one very specific way. They are postpolicy. Whatever they may have been in the past or whatever they may have been driven in the past, the key insight you need for understanding them today is that they are not working on policy anymore. They are not working on governing. Theyre working on power. Theyre working on messaging. Theyre working on all sorts of other things that benefit themselves. But governing, policy, running the country, not a functioning dynamic inside their party at all. And a postpolicy party uninterested in governing is of course a very nice, very empty vessel that can, with shocking ease, be taken over by, say, a demagogue with no goals beyond his own power and ego. Heres a little piece of it. This is from a brandnew afterword to The ImpostersOut Today In Paperback. Among the hallmarks of post policy thinking is the rejection of data, evidence and the expertise. In the case of the 2020 president ial election, the data showed trump losing the race badly. Even experts rejected the president s utterly ridiculous claims. Indeed, Christopher Krebs, the nations top Cyber Security official at the department of Homeland Security celebrated the fact that the elections were the most secure in American History and with were untainted by irregularities. President trump responded by firing Christopher Krebs for having told the truth when even attorney general william barr said the Justice Department couldnt find the evidence of systemic fraud. Trump parted ways with him too. It would have been awful enough for an american president to borrow the playbook used too often by foreign autocrats, but the calamity was made worse by his partys willingness to endorse trumps assault, with limited exceptions, Congressional Republicans cheered the president on while he tried to overturn the results of his defeat, unmoved by trumps apparent madness and the toll it was taking on the integrity of the countrys institutions. And of course that effort has only grown in pace and scope since then. The effort to undermine the results of the 2020 election is now the animating force within the Republican Party, which more than anything is working on rescinding Voting Rights and seizing partisan control. Of the administration of elections. It shows no sign of slowing down, quite the contrary. Heres one very important point that steve makes in his book. And this is part of why i love steve and have worked with him for so many years, since literally we were kids, at least i think of us as kids. He also writes about the fact that it is not inevitable that the republicans are a postpolicy party. It is a choice they are making. And you can prove it. Steve says, quote, it would be a mistake to assume republicans are incapable of effective Policy Making. When utilizing Gerrymandering Techniques to give republican candidates unfair and undemocratic electoral advantages. For example, republicans have demonstrated an uncanny ability to carefully utilize evidence in pursuit of substantive goals. Appeals court found republican officials drew boundaries that targeted black voters with, quote, almost surgical precision. It was part of a racist scheme to undermine democracy, but it was also a reminder that when republicans are willing to set their minds to it, they are willing to roll up their sleeves and do work in pursuit of their goals. Their goals are sometimes abhorrent but the party at least has the capacity, meaning theyre pneumorat, right . They just dont choose to be when it comes to things like bogus Election Fraud games. When it comes to drawing maps for Election Fraud gain, they can do that. Laws aimed at making it harder for certain people to vote and easier for republican officials to overrule Election Outcomes they dont like up to and including tonights united Republican Senate blockade against even debating a new Voting Rights bill. Republicans are showing they can set a goal and work toward it. Its just that the only goal they seem to have right now is making it harder to vote and undermining faith in american elections. Joining us now is my friend steve benen, a longtime producer of this program, the author of The ImpostorsOut Today In Paperback with a brandnew afterword. Steve, congratulations, my friend. Great to see you. Great to be here, thank you so much. This is the part where we remind people that you were also the first ever guest on the first ever Rachel Maddow show, where you were sitting in front of a fake bookcase. Now 13 years down the road youre still my guest when i need to talk to you. But those are real books and theyre at a jaunty angle. Im annoyed by the fact when i look back at that original interview you look the same and i dont. And that seems terribly unfair. Its a wig. Thats pretty much how i do it. Thats my secret. Steve, i want to ask you about what we saw today and the conversation i just had with senator klobuchar. Seeing republican unanimity against even debating the Voting Rights bill, seeing senator mcconnell define this as something that a hill hell die on and this is not a problem and it needs no solutions and republicans will entertain nothing on this issue. How does that fit into your broader understanding of what the Republican Party wants and what theyre good at . Well, what theyre good at is acquiring and maintaining power. And that is really their only principle focus, their only principle goal. I think today we saw evidence of that. What democrats did was approach this as a policy matter. They saw a problem in need of solution. They relied on data. They relied on evidence. They turned to experts and they put together a credible governing solution the way a Governing Party should. What did we see from republicans . We saw the opposite. We saw them discard the data. We saw them discard the evidence. We saw them focusing on their political goals, their ideological goals. Thats very much in keeping with this postpolicy thesis. A Governing Party would approach this debate entirely differently. That asymmetry where democrats are approaching one way and republicans another, that asymmetry is the defining problem in my mind of American Politics today. You and i talked about this idea, this insight into this difference between the parties for a long time before you wrote the book and weve been talking about it ever since and now with the new afterword, i feel like the conversation keeps getting deeper but were in the same place that we were and we still have the same pressing issue in terms of what the country needs which is what do you do about it . We still dont have a playbook for what to do when one of two major parties in the country gives up on the idea of governing and decides to work essentially just on holding power. Do you feel like your understanding of this phenomenon has advanced to the point where you can be prescriptive as to how democrats should approach combat with their partisan counterparts here given the differences between the two parties . I think that some Democratic Senators make the same mistake that some voters make, which is that for years we can make the assumption that there were two responsible and mature governing parties. Folks make that decision all the time, assuming that both democrats and republicans have the Technocratic Wherewithal to solve problems. And the point im trying to emphasize in the book is that that assumption is badly in need of reexamination. To assume our Governing Party is to overlook this radical transformation that weve seen in the party over the course of the last 12 years. And so when we see some Democratic Senators, people like west virginias joe manchin, they make this assumption theyre sticking to this Old Fashioned assumption that republicans are the same as they were. Theyre not. Theyve made this transition to being a postpolicy party. Theyve abandoned the pretense that Policy Making matters altogether. And that means that theres no point in arguing policy with them essentially. Exactly. That the field of combat once theyve designed it is power only. It has to be power politics, right . Exactly right. When republicans focus exclusively on the acquisition and maintenance of power and treating them as if theyre a member of a Governing Party, that leads to breakdowns. Weve seen several of those breakdowns just this year on things like the first debate of 2021. On the democrats relief package. But we see from republicans a preoccupation with dr. Seuss and the months that followed on infrastructure. On january 6th commission, on Voting Rights. Again and again, the democrats are talking past one another because the parties are not just asking theyre not just offering different answers. Theyre asking different kind of questions. Steve benen is a producer on this show. Hes the editor of maddowblog. Com. Theres probably Nobody Writing on politics in a daily way that has more influence on the way i think about politics than the great steve benen. Steve, congratulations on the paperback. The book is called The ImpostersHow Republicans Quit Governing thank you so much for your time tonight. Its great to see you. Thank you so much. More ahead. Stay with us. Out weighing it do . Try pantene daily moisture renewal conditioner. Its colorsafe formula uses smart conditioners to microtarget damage helping to repair hair without weighing it down. Try pantene. The light. It comes from within. It drives you. And it guides you. To shine your brightest. As you charge ahead. Illuminating the way forward. A light maker. Recognizing that the impact you make, comes from the energy you create. Introducing the allelectric lyriq. Lighting the way. Start your day with crest 3d white and from mochaccinos to merlot, your smile will always be brilliant. Crest 3d white brilliance. 100 stain removal, 24 hour stain resistance to lock in your whitest smile. Crest. The 1 toothpaste brand in america. Start your day with secret. Secret stops sweat 3x more than ordinary antiperspirants. The new Provitamin B5 Formula is gentle on skin. With secret, outlast anything no sweat. Secret. Polls are now closed tonight in the race to be the democratic candidate for mayor in the largest city in the country. And even if you know absolutely nothing about New York City politics, even if youve never been to New York City, you probably know that the democratic primary for mayor in New York City is essentially the whole ball game. New york isnt what it used to be, and whoever the republicans pick in their primary, that person dollars to donuts will not win the general election in november. The democratic candidate will have a huge advantage. It just means whoever wins todays democratic primary will likely be the person who goes on to govern the city who has a population larger than roughly 40 of the 50 states. Its a consequential thing. The field is great. Former president ial candidate andrew yang, the Borough President from brooklyn, lawyer and Civil Rights Activist maya wiley. Thats just to name a few. Thats a minority of the candidates who are running, but whether or not you care about whos ultimately going win, this is going to be fascinating to watch, because this is the first time new yorks using ranked choice voting. You dont just vote for your candidate. You pick your top five and list them in order of preference. One, two, three, four, five. If your first choice doesnt win and gets knocked out, your first choice gets reallocated to the second choice, third choice, fourth choice, fifth choice. Its complicated. At least the tabulating is complicated. Right now were getting the first numbers on who voters ranked as their first choice. We expect to get more of the first choice, first round numbers tonight. But nobody gets 50 . They keep going until somebody does. The ultimate tabulation of who wins the democratic primary is expected to take until next month before we actually know. Our own Steve Kornacki is watching this complex data. As it starts to come in tonight. Hes going to be giving a full update to my beloved colleague Lawrence Odonnell live in the next hour so youll want to stay tuned for that. Stay with us. Did you know prilon stop frequent heartburn before it begins . Heartburn happens when Stomach Acid Refluxes into the esophagus. Prilosec otc uses a unique delayedrelease formula that helps it pass through the tough stomach acid. It then works to turn down acid production, blocking heartburn at the source. With just one pill a day, you get 24hour heartburn protection. Prilosec otc. One pill a day, 24 hours, zero heartburn. For deb, living with constipation with belly pain was the same old story for years. Trying this. Doing that. Spending countless days right here. Still came the belly pain, discomfort, and bloating. 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Queenie, my brothers about to hurt a lot of people. Were gonna have to stop him. [ ominous music playing ] youre not the only one with a family full of eccentrics. Get the hand break for me would you darling . So much for granny shifting. [ chuckles ] all right. Thats going to do it for us for now. Overnight tonight, of course, were going to be watching Election Results come in, in new york, including the new york mayors race. And also the very interesting question who will replace cy vance, the manhattan Criminal Investigation of former President Donald Trump and his business. We will have coverage of all of that and more here on msnbc. Continuing now, way too early with kasie hunt is up next. This is about the american peoples right to vote. Unfettered. Its about their access to vote in a meaningful way. The bottom line the president and i are very clear, we support s1 and the rights act and the fight is not over. Vice president Kamala Harris on a key piece of legislation. After hitting a blockade, the question is what comes next . And President Biden expected to address the epidemic of gun violence today, the question is