Governor, thank you. We are sorry you couldnt be here. Im sorry too, but im here celebrating in South Carolina and it is an amazing place. It is an amazing place. I hope we can be together soon. Amanda i think it is probably a lot warmer there. Give you a couple minutes to start off with opening remarks. Gov. Patrick thank you very much for the privilege of joining you and letting me do so remotely. I am here in South Carolina on the occasion of the mlk weekend. A fitting occasion for todays conversation given how hard dr. King and others worked to enable our american democracy to function as a democracy for so many have been marginalized. For a long time, we have treated thedemocracy hyperpartisan gerrymandering, is in politics today. Our member after the 2016 election after a report of the amount of money each campaign had spent, over a billion dollars over the course of it, and one of our daughters turning to us and saying, what i am sure we have heard from so many others. Just imagine how much good that money could do in some other way. So much time tearing each other down. Along comes the Citizens United decision that has made all of that worse. The influence the influence of lobbyists and controlling and influencing legislation. Democracy is, our not producing democratic outcomes. That is why we put out what we described as a democracy agenda. It is about a systemic focus on improving the functioning of our democracy, eliminating hyperpartisan gerrymandering, limiting the amount of money, so much of it dark in our politics, dealing with voter suppression, which has only gotten worse theirthe Supreme Court in decision invalidating large making everything better and we can move on to a bright new day. This is personal to me. I started as a civil rights lawyer for the naacp. I was head of the Justice Department in the clinton administration. We were responsible there for enforcing the provisions of all of the civil rights laws, but in particular the Voting Rights act. Fact, got to know bill clinton when i sued him as governor clinton in a Voting Rights case, the outcome of which became the bones of what law whento the voter he became president. We have all kinds of ways that we have made it harder than it should be for people to participate, and i believe that we have to bear down on this. Therefore, the democracy agenda would be the very first ease of legislation i would trial as president , because frankly, so much of the outcome of the big ideas that i and others have, that the American People have, depend on getting our democracy to function like one. I also put a provision in there to expand national service. Indeed, by a short period of time, over the next decade, i would like to make that universal. Why . Yes, it is true that we are politically divided. Yes, it is true that we seem to have a president waking up every day thinking of new ways to divide us. But it is also true that is so needed easy. It is so easy because we do not know each other anymore. So what i am encouraging and what i will fight is opportunities through national service, civilian or military, to bring americans together nmet national an u need, and give us the opportunity to get to know each other from different backgrounds, different parts of the country. Because i think frankly, it is less easy to divide people who have come to understand each other better than we do today. So that is how i am thinking about making and helping and that our, frankly, democracy functions like one, that it reflects the best of who we are and the best of what we have, and im looking forward to the conversation because i am sure there are many, many good ideas that you have as well, and we can share from my time as governor as part of the conversation too. So thank you very much for having me. [applause] governor, a super pac has been formed to support your campaign. It has already started airing ads. Most of the democrats have sworn off support from super pacs. How do you reconcile your support for campaignfinance reform with accepting help ultimately from a group that can take unlimited donations and was basically allowed to exist because of the because of the Citizens United position. [inaudible] governor, we are having trouble understanding you and i do not really know how to fix this. We cannot actually hear you. Gov. Patrick is this better . That is better. Gov. Patrick [indiscernible] hmm. So, this is not working. Do we have someone who knows how to fix this . Gov. Patrick good you hear me when i was we could. During your opening you were great. Gov. Patrick should we hang up and call back . Yes. We would like you to hang up and call back. Ok. Sorry about that. Well, while we do not have him on the line, do we have anything we can throw in . We are sorry for the technical problems. Getting people livestreamed in is tricky. Gov. Patrick any better . Right now. Gov. Patrick so the question was about the super pac. Is a just saying, look, it perfectly fair question, and it is something that candidates cannot do much about, but president patrick can. One good thing is i have understood from the flyer, or the announcement that went out, that this pac will disclose all of its donors. In an ideal world we have publicly financed campaigns. We limit the amount of money that an individual could contribute. I am not accepting any pac donations, corporate or otherwise, into our campaign. I have made that pledge and im going to keep it. Are the only you africanamerican candidate who is left in the race. Both senators booker and senator harris said part of the reason they ended their campaigns is essentially they ran out of money. Do you think our campaignfinance system right now makes it harder for africanamerican candidates, latino candidates, candidates who come from workingclass backgrounds or poorer areas, doesnt make it harder for those candidates to run . Gov. Patrick of course it does. I think there are two candidates who came in close to the New Hampshire filing deadline, me and mayor bloomberg. And i am the only one constantly being asked questions about being too late, even though most people are undecided. I keep making the point, it is not late until you vote. We are awash with money and we keep score on who is making progress based upon the amount of money. The amount of money raised and the amount of money spent. And when i think about how much of that money has been spent in order to generate poll numbers and so forth polls, by the way, which we should know by now since 2016, we should not trust. To that how hard it is to get onto ballots, how varied the rules are in all the states. We have a democracy to all the talent we know exists in every community in our country. Ad if we are going to build successful,. Pluralistic democracy, we have to make that access real. Ms. Terkel i wanted to go back to something you said about the super pac. He said as a candidate there is not a lot you can do about it, which is true because they operate independently so they can do whatever they want. But you can say i do not super pac supporting me, and unless i am wrong, i have not heard you say that. Gov. Patrick i have not said that. For once, i think they have been helpful in not having been in the race so long. But if you would like me to say that and tie another hand behind my back, i am willing to do that. Thatt does miss the point we have a great, talented field of candidates, all of whom have ideas. I have results. And i have results in the area of making voter voting easier as well. I signed legislation as governor that made it easier to register, sameday registration, and illuminated so many of the our ballot in massachusetts. That is the kind of leader i have been and will be. Ms. Terkel do you think certain kind of Campaign Donations can corrupt politics . Whether they come from certain sectors, whether it is money where we do not know the source, things like that . Gov. Patrick look, i think it is important that we know the source. What concerns me is when i think about my friends in the congress or the senate, where they spent 50 , 60 of their time raising money instead of doing the peoples job. And it should concern them too. To have as much transparency as possible. I do not think we should have foreign money in our elections, any more than i think we should have foreign influence. And i think we should have less money in our elections. But we are all going to have to do that together. It is not going to be about one party or the other, it will not be about one candidate or the other. It is about how we set rules that make sense and are fair, and that can stream the excess in terms of money and politics today. Ms. Terkel i wanted to talk you a little bit about judges, and if you could talk a little about what you would be looking for, say, if there was a Supreme Court vacancy. What would you look for in a nominee . Gov. Patrick you know, we have so many talented judges and practitioners who bring a progressive approach to interpretation of the United States constitution, which more needs to have the original intent of the constitution. It was always meant to be the case that there was tension between our reality and our ideals, and that would be advocates who would stand up in based on thess fact of the day that we move closer to our ideals. Does not mean the constitution has anticipated everything. There are things that we need to, and we have in our history, have considered for amendment. But we have provisions around freedom and privacy that are embedded in the constitution, and i want judges what we have today are masquerading as conservatives. Theres absolutely no way you can call yourself an originalist and find an individual right to bear arms or describe a corporation as a person for purposes so, i think we have to get folks who understand the lived experience of modernday america, and who can look out beyond washington, beyond privilege, beyond your own experience, and understand that there are people in this country who are depending on our moving every day closer to american ideals, equality, opportunity, and fair footing. Ms. Terkel i wanted to go to the audience now, and we have a question from sarah ferguson. Hi. Can you see me now . [laughter] i wanted to introduce myself as someone who comes from a long line of democracy seekers. I come from a long line of suffragettes, and freedom fighters, people who gave their lives and shed blood in world war i and world war ii, and in the civil war, for rights for a ll. A survivor fellow with every town, and i am city and state lead for moms demand action. Gov. Patrick thank you. Thank you. An honor and a privilege to be a part of that. Is, being thatn my family has fought so hard, as have most people in this room likely, have fought so hard for these rights, as president , how a leader to restore confidence and participation in our elections, ending active voter suppression, and voter purging, and restoring the rights of formerly incarcerated people, and ensure everyone is able to cast a ballot, regardless of a past felony conviction . And if i may add, whether their social economic status prevents them from doing so as well . Gov. Patrick thank you for the question. Been doing this work for decades. Court andn active in as an advocate on behalf of folks who have had their access to the ballot compromised. As i said earlier, i was head of the Civil Rights Division and responsible for enforcing the Voting Rights act, in an administration that actually cared about the subject. And i was active in the florida ballot initiative, most recently to restore the right to vote to felons who have finished their sentences. Saw how quickly after the Supreme Courts most recent Voting Rights decision, the number of states went right back to their same bad habits. In some cases, using even more sophisticated and insidious means of doing so. Purging, asea of some sort of housekeeping matter, has struck me as shocking. When you consider the number of people who do not go to the polls because they do not feel that matters. But it does not mean that they have surrendered their citizenship or their right to vote when they feel it does. Purgingwhole idea of always raises questions in my mind. We need to ensue restore and enhance the Voting Rights act so that it is powerful enough for todays circumstances, todays ingenuity. And i say this as a democrat who does not think you have to hate republicans to be a good democrat, but increasingly it seems republicans have decided they cannot win a fair fight, so they have just decided we will jerryrigged this whole system so that whatever outcome is people, itshe people, completely frustrating. So, i believe not only do we need to restore and strengthen the Voting Rights act, but the civil rights and all related. We need to have the resources and personnel and directions from the oval office to get the job done. Ms. Terkel thank you. Now we have one more audience question. This one will be from vern. Hi, governor patrick. Thank you for being with us, sharing your thoughts, and also listening to us. A retired minister and also university teacher. Cencus, states are census, be 2020 states are going to be required to withdraw district. Gerrymandering, as we know, worse in some parts of the country than others. A majority of people are against gerrymandering, which gives the advantage to the party that is in power, and works against the voter strength for the opposing power, or party. In fact, we know that seven states now have legislated so that gerrymandering is ended in those states, and they have established independent, citizenled commissions to do the task of drawing the lines of districts. What would you do in order to also toymandering, and ensure that redistricting is done fairly . Gov. Patrick thank you for the question. I thinkare right, everyone is using the same language to describe what is going on today with the elected officials choosing the voters instead of the other way around, and that has simply got to stop. Oftopped short, vern, requiring independent citizen commissions for just one reason, and that is when we redistricted in massachusetts recently, we had a very transparent, very ofsured Committee Legislators who got it done. And at every stage there was input, there was bipartisan approach, lots and lots of and basically the point was excuse me, sorry. Were neutral there principles agreed on and were enforced, and in this case the legislators responsible for it took a very transparent, as i said, and very noble and dutiful approach to it. That will not always be the case but i have seen it done, is my point. So where i want to be is to be clear about those neutral principles, and if states have different ways to accomplish that, sometimes it will be independent citizen commissions, sometimes it will be committees of legislators. But so long as there is fealty to those principles, i can accept that. What i cannot accept is what we have today, which is officials choosing the voters rather than the other way around. Ms. Terkel thank you. Everyone, thank you, governor patrick, for being with us today. [applause] left, and ispeakers am now happy to welcome Entrepreneur Andrew Yang up to the stage. [applause] mr. Yang hello, everyone. I forgot i am amplified. Hello. Thank you. I know you are all here for me. Back, ijoking in the was looking at my grades from represent us and other organizations on democracy reform, and i got straight as. It may be very happy. We were joking in the back that if the Big Companies wanted someone to do their bidding, they would never have sent the anonymous asian man that no one had heard of 12 month ago. Realizing n up uprising of the people. Million, allr 16 individual donors. My fans are almost as cheap as bernies. Everyday americans knowing we can do better for ourselves. Donald trump is our president in part because Many Americans have given up hope that thats not an irrational concern, because the Feedback Mechanism truly has broken down. Corporate interests and lobbyists have the ear of our legislators and we are all looking up wondering what has happened. There was a headline in a satirical publication that said that we should hire our own lobbyists to represent us, because that is the only way anything would get done for us anymore. Money is speaking very loudly in our Nations Capital, and that is what we have to try to change. I know you are here today because he believe Citizens United was a grievous error that has damaged our democracy very badly, and i could not agree more. We need to overturn Citizens United, but then we have to go even further. Because the fact that orbit money had its run of d. C. Before Citizens United. So how do we counter the almighty dollars influence in our Nations Capital . What we do is we unify the people and the money. Right now, 5 or fewer of us donate to political candidates and campaigns. So what we have to do is put money into our hands, democracy dollars, that only we can give to candidates and campaigns every single year. 100 democracy dollars, use it or lose it, that you can give to whoever you like, each calendar year. If we did this, what percentage of americans would get to candidates and campaigns . Lazy,0 , americans are but you would certainly get it up from 5 . To what . 20 , 40 , 50 . We would wash out all lobbyist cash by a factor of four to one. Money talks in this country. The problem is it is speaking for the companies. We have to have the money speaking for the people. If we have democracy dollars in our hands, this is how we can restore democracy to ourselves, and give us the knowledge that legislators respond to us because it is in their financial interest to do so. 10,000 of us is 1 million for that legislator, when a company says i have 25,000 for you, they say i do not want to turn off my 10,000 voters. This is the only way we will make our government responsive to us again. Thank you very much. I look forward to taking some questions. [applause] so, you have a lot of proposals to reform government, to reform lobbying. One of the proposals that you have out there is a plan that wo