happened ever in america. i guess the repudiation of some of the big, as you call it, waving the bloody shirt election deniers and this election could do two things. one, it could cause republicans, like many of you at the lincoln project, former republicans, to say, hey, let s fix this party, let s fix it and the mold of liz cheney, of adam kinzinger, of conservatives who would like to be conservative, but have a normal party, and like democracy, or could shift it in the direction you just indicated. people who don t wave the bloody shirt but still don t really support the democracy that we need in this country. yes, just to be clear, at the lincoln project, we are not trying to say the republican party. we are trying to burn the republican party to the ground. because i think that is the only way that you are ever going to be able to rebuild a sane, center right party. pain is the teacher here. and that is what is that is the only thing that will make these people try to
for your analysis, and the work that you and your colleagues have been doing to save democracy in this country. it looks like all of us who have been doing that are a little closer to our goal tonight. stewart stephens, we appreciate it. i want to bring in matthew dowd, chief strategist for the bush, cheney presidential campaign. to call you write would be an understatement. i think it is closer to clairvoyant. you have been making this argument about the centrality of democracy to this election for months now. well, thank you. as you remember, and i was listening to everybody throughout this thing, msnbc column in may saying that history was not going to be determined in this election, because of various factors that were taking place. not the least of which the economy and joe biden s job approval in the data was showing that they were not going to be determinative. i reminded people, reminded people, reminded people throughout this that people were looking at a bigger issue.
of what you re talking about? so you have to slippery out who the hearings were directed towards ultimately. they were people like all of us and msnbc viewers and democratic party activists. the average voter who s going about making a living and not paying attention to anything until after labor day, discarded by inflation, they re not tuned in. you did not see much change in polls. but they had a great mobilizing effect on the democratic base, and when they were out there knocking on doors, making those calls, they had passion behind them, because they knew that democracy was at stake, and that sense of mistake was high-end by the january six hearings. i think historians will say that they were very important in these election returns. that history is still being
of conservatives who would like to be conservative, but having normal party, and like democracy, or could shift it in the direction you just indicated. people who don t wave the bloody shirt but still don t really support the democracy that we need in this country. yes, just to be clear, at the lincoln project, we are not trying to say the republican party. we are trying to burn the republican party to the ground. because i think that is the only way that you are ever going to be able to rebuild a sane, center right party. pain is the teacher here. and that is what is that is the only thing that will make these people try to run more normal candidates. what do you say when you have a guy who attempted to overthrow the government of the united states, and they wouldn t vote to convict him? there is no saving this party. you can only try to defeat it, and doing so save democracy, and rebuild from all the ashes. stuart, it is simone, i just
learn to keep a lid on it? i m afraid that might happen. but what you just alluded to with herschel walker s drawing power, and jim marchand who is a really dangerous candidate, who ran for secretary of state, and adam laxalt, who is also an election denier, it is not that they were suddenly this repudiation by the republican party, and they lost in landslide. they both came close to winning, as did other election deniers in this state for the legislator, and four other statewide offices. we would all like to think, this has nothing to do with partisanship, anyone who cares about democracy would like to think that there was a pivotal way from these people who tried to undermine the system that they want to be a part of. but i try to be optimistic, ali. i am not so sure that they don t do what you just