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Sway
Can Andrew Yang End Americas 2-Party System?
Can Andrew Yang End Americas 2-Party System?

Can Andrew Yang End Americas 2-Party System?

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Andrew Yang, Kara Swisher
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Sep 30, 2021
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0:00
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0:43
I'm Kara swisher, and you're listening to sway. You're also listening to my croaky voice. Sorry, but there isn't any rest for the wicked. That would be me. My guest. Today is Andrew Yang. He shared a stage with Joe Biden and Marianne Williamson in the fever dream. That was the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries and left. His Mark by popularizing, the idea of universal basic income this year, Yang through his method into a different ring.
1:10
So thrilled
1:11
to announce to you all that, I am running for mayor of New York City. And for a while, it looked like it was his race to lose so far. The candidate consistently leading, is the one with the biggest National
1:24
brand Yang is about to be the next mayor in New York City
1:27
shit, except. He's not after every, hibernation Yang's, political Ambitions, have resurfaced a few weeks ago. He announced, he was abandoning the Democrats and forming a new third.
1:40
Party, so, I wanted to ask him about his political future, especially in light of his recent loss.
1:48
Andrew, thanks for being here.
1:50
Hey, Kara, thanks for having me. I sound a lot better than you do. I'm sorry. Then cat, seems like
1:54
you. I got it from one of my latest children. This is what happens when school goes back, unfortunately. Anyway, so you've taken some time off since you're lost. You can see it in the first round with that round, 40 percent of votes that Eric Adams had, but you are really ahead early on, and very confident about it. I think you thought you'd win. I'd love you to take us through what happened there.
2:17
Oh, it was a privilege.
2:18
Running for mayor. I got to meet so many people were doing hard work on the ground and I did think that we had a great chance to win. But I believe that the overriding concern for a lot of New Yorkers, really was Public Safety and crime, and I think that favored Eric Adams, Even though. I was endorsed by some of his old colleagues. So wish him success, certainly wish New York City, the best leadership again, get moving
2:43
forward. Yeah, but that's an excellent. Politician's answer, but I would, I would like, is some
2:47
Ocean and self-reflection hear from you. How did you feel sort of when you were ahead because you weren't for quite a while that leader. What was the feeling like and what went wrong? I guess
2:59
when I was leading in the polls first, I never really took it for granted honestly, but the second thing is that my mind really was going towards how I would actually try and fix some of the problems that New Yorkers saw around us looked at real solutions and policies that we can enact that would make a difference. So that was where my intention.
3:18
Was in terms of why I think it didn't go our way. You know, I believe that there was some concern down the stretch around, having someone who'd been part of government for a longer period of time and that obviously doesn't really resemble me so much. Not at all. Not even like, the go ahead. So, I think that in the concerns around Public, Safety were two of the big
3:38
ones. All right, but I think part of the problem is that you like big ideas and there's a gap between ideas and implementable policy. I guess, for example Universal.
3:47
Basic income. Are you? Bi is a key idea of evangelizing. You should get all credit for that. But your policy proposal in New York wasn't actually Universal and didn't provide basic income. Your plan would have only benefited 500,000 of the poorest New Yorkers and given them two thousand dollars a year on average, Which is less than the median rent in New York on a single month. Talk a little bit about what happened here with Ubi, which is sort of your, you know, sort of your branded policy.
4:14
All the national level care. I think we're seeing that.
4:17
Possibly even basic income is the future and should be the present to majority of Americans support it. The child tax credit Has Lifted Millions out of poverty. It should be continued in perpetuity and should be enlarged and expanded to people who don't have kids. Now if you're running for mayor of New York City, you have budgetary constraints that aren't in place for the federal government and I did not think it was going to be realistic, even though I think most people know, I'd love to do this, to say I'm going to give every New Yorker thousand dollars a month.
4:48
Like that, that would have been mathematically impossible. And so we committed a billion dollars to lifting the most Indigent out of extreme poverty and I wanted to do much much more but I didn't believe that the federal policy made sense of a local level.
5:05
But do you think that was misleading voters by packaging? These these incremental policies which it was as big Ideas. I
5:12
think a billion dollars towards poverty relief even in a city. The size of New York City is a big
5:17
Dia and I hope that it still happens. The fact is that we're seeing that cash and people's hands, even in relatively modest amounts can make an enormous difference. And if you talk to people in those circumstances, you see why very clearly and quickly,
5:32
so other proposals that were that, I think got people's attention, but certainly were problematic. I suspect attracting Tick-Tock hype houses. You like
5:41
that one. I do not a campaign and
5:46
campaign unless tick-tock.
5:47
Houses, honestly and I think people would elect me and immediately but putting a casino and Governors Island, which is not legal, obviously, but you had heat on social media. Also for the bodega thing. The pro-israel Tweet, after the Gaza air strikes, you have a national audience in your opponent's, didn't do you think that hurt you? Because, you know, you're very free on social media, you like to put out all kinds of ideas. Is that a problem when you're running locally?
6:16
It's certainly true that when you are running for mayor of a city, that concerns are different. The policies are different, the approach is different. And what you could actually do as mayor's very different. And I think that those two things did intersect in various ways on the campaign where I did have a national platform and following and some of the things that I believed made sense for New York City, you know, might have seemed very different in other parts of the
6:44
country, right? Do you do
6:46
You think people perceive what you were doing as a lark and at all. At some point. I heard that from a lot of New Yorkers.
6:52
Well, I think that anyone who observed us saw that we were very serious about the work, we were putting in the policies were putting forward and I was willing to commit years of my life to doing the best job I could as mayor. That's not the sort of thing you do lightly, you know, it's like it was a massive commitment and anyone who thinks that I'm not the sort of person who can deliver on that, kind of equipment, hasn't been paying attention.
7:16
The last several years. I was completely Anonymous and I made Seven debate stages and mainstreamed Universal basic income. I think the reverse should be true. Which is, how is it that someone who no one had heard of several years ago, was a top Contender for the
7:32
mayoralty. That is kind of normal. It's like, where did this guy come from? Right? I don't think that's abnormal to think that a lot of people do come up in a certain way. And there is a system, especially on the local level, as people rise from one step to the next, you know, from
7:46
A school board to this and that. And if someone who actually did consider running for mayor of San Francisco. I was like, I just won't break through because there's all these people, you know, the waiting in line
7:56
idea. Yeah. Doesn't this answer your question. You should have done. No. I said no because I would have why? Why
8:03
didn't you you know, I was unqualified. I was unqualified. Is that
8:08
really a reason not to do it? Kara? I mean that the main thing is like, do you think you could have helped hundreds of thousands or millions of people?
8:16
Better Lives, I mean, if that's the case, which I'm going to suggest you would make a great mayor of just about any City, you know, I
8:23
carry special for male. I feel like I was
8:25
so, so hard lately. I was
8:27
completely unqualified and I think people worry that about you. I think that's the case. When you people break into the scene.
8:34
Okay, one of the big things that I think is leading many people to fear is that we're seeing folks, kind of come up through established systems and the big
8:46
Them's just get worse. And a lot of people are getting increasingly upset and angry and aware of that. And so, the question is, what is to be done mean? If you look at someone who's been within a system where they've ascended from school board, to council person to blah, blah, blah mean, like they're unlikely to really do anything that dramatic and that is in some ways part of their appeal, but that's one of the things that's going to keep us from getting big things done.
9:16
And there are more and more people around the country that aren't pumped about the way things are going in various
9:22
environments. All right, let's move on to your new book, which is aptly titled forward notes, on the future of our democracy. I should say I blurbed it because I liked it very much and I appreciated that you included Solutions there. That's one of the things I like, I like gearing solutions for lots of things and more creativity in politics. Give us a quick summary of what you were trying to do in the
9:41
book. As you say, the book is trying to point us towards real solutions and
9:46
And the problem that were faced with regardless of where you are politically is that at this point, we're descending into two camps that despise each other. Where 42% of people on both sides would characterize the other party as downright evil and both our media and our social media environments are exacerbating the situation. And if you fast forward, where do you think that's going to go? Some Scholars are measured it. Say that we're, at pre-civil War levels of political stress and the
10:16
Spec political violence to rise. So what are we going to do? The single biggest thing we could do is to try and change the incentives of our leaders. Because right now, the incentives actually reward polarization where if I send angry emails and I get ginned up and I characterize the other side as evil. I'm going to raise more money. I'm going to be more likely to win re-election. It doesn't reward reasonableness. Now the big counter example to this is Senator Lisa murkowski.
10:46
Kowski in Alaska, actually, coming out and saying, you know what? I think we should impeach Trump. He's done enough harm. She did that earlier this year. That was a massive gamble on her part politically, because she's a Republican and her approval rating among Republicans in Alaska, now stands at six percent. And, oh, by the way, she's up for re-election in 2022. So this amounts to political suicide, and it's something that you never see. Politicians do now, why did
11:16
Senator murkowski decide to do this. It's in large part. I believe, though. I haven't spoken with her about it because Alaska just changed its process where she does not have to go through a Republican. Primary for re-election. They have open primaries and ranked Choice voting starting in 2022. So that Senator murkowski can take her case directly to all the people of Alaska, try and get 51% instead of having to placate the most extreme.
11:46
Mmmmm 20% of Voters in her District. So if we can do what they've done in Alaska and more parts of the country than overnight, you would see our leaders become more reasonable, more even-handed less ideological and more willing to work with each other.
12:01
But the idea is difficult to implement. The murkowski took a big risk. It doesn't work around. Most of the country.
12:08
It doesn't work in most of the country, because they have not made this change right now. Congress has an overall approval rating of
12:16
Me a percent or so. The re-election rate for individual members of Congress is about 92% Now. Why that mismatch? How is it that three-quarters of us can be upset about Congress at any moment in time, but over nine out of ten get reelected. It's because of the nature of the closed Party primary system where if I'm a Democrat a republican in 83 percent of the seats around the country. It is a safe seat. I'm going to win if I get to the general.
12:46
So if you can change that, then all of a sudden you have people like Liz Cheney, who would have a much better chance of winning
12:54
re-election. Okay. So along with the book's publication, you just announced you're forming a new third party. I have to tell you, many people were upset. I noticed with this idea. Why do you want to do
13:05
this? Part of the problem really, is that you have this duopoly and then there's this reflexive like, oh, if someone does something outside of this than
13:16
It's going to help the bad guys win. And the movement that I'm kicking off is around open primaries and ranked Choice voting and reducing polarization, which I think that most anyone listening to this would be on board with. You can join this popular movement as a registered Democrat, or an independent or a registered Republican. It's inclusive. That's sort of the point. The point is that we have to try and liberate our leaders from the tyranny of the most
13:46
Logically extreme on either
13:48
side, but it's very heartening that you want to free Mitch McConnell for example, but this is the one question. Everyone asks me, when I said I was interviewing you is this real idea or just a gimmick to sell more copies of your book or just the Andrew Yang brand? And then if not, I'd like some more details of this part,
14:06
again people have to recognize that if you're going to commit years of your life to do something, you probably believe.
14:16
It's the right thing mean, certainly. I believe that Universal basic income is the future and should be the present. I devoted years of my life to trying to bring that message to Americans. And I'm happy to say that. Now, a majority of Americans agree with that and we're seeing the positive effects of it very, very quickly. And it's possible that just as some people when I first started running for president who said, give everyone money. That's preposterous have come around to that. It's possible that when I say Open primary
14:46
I'm ranked Choice voting and every District around the country. Some people react to that negatively. But I have a feeling that over time, they're going to see. Wow. This really would solve a lot of problems would improve incentives would fix things and anyone who's going to devote years of their life to something, you know, like who on Earth would devote years of their life to something to try and sell a couple more books. I mean, that's, that's superdumb. Okay. Let
15:09
me just paint you a picture of a dinner party. I was just out in DC and when you announced this, I said, so that's great. We
15:16
need more of their bodies when we should other countries have them. I've never been more tact than I was as if, you know, I had lamb chops, added tore. My head, like, he can't do this. He's ruining it. For the rest of us. We have to stick to the plan. We can't hurt Biden, etc. Etc. Well, as
15:31
the numbers guy, right now, sixty percent of Americans say that both parties are not really connected with the needs of the people and want a third party, which is the highest in a long time. And so you have this very strange.
15:46
Section where we have a fixed duopoly and a majority of Americans want to change. But it turns out that changes structurally, next to Impossible because that is just the way it's been set up. And if I saw another path to open primaries and ranked Choice voting, like, I would embrace it. I'll do anything that help solve the
16:03
problem. So, maybe your vagueness is contributing to the cynicism. So, let's fight this. Give me some details. Does your party have a name yet?
16:11
Yes. It is the forward party which part which people probably would have guessed in the book.
16:15
And you knew that. But the forward party, it's not left or right. It's forward. It's about Solutions. Fixing the process and incentives fact-based governance modernity. And also not just Solutions, but also a degree of optimism because so much of politics today is about getting us angry at generally someone and a lot of people are disengaging as a result or they're becoming depressed and more radicalized.
16:46
So what are its Central tenets and I really want details here.
16:50
Although there are six core principles to the Ford party. Number one is open primaries and ranked Choice voting. This process change is the key to everything. So that's number one. Number two is modern and Effective Government where try and hold government speak to the fire died. Try and speed up and modernize the third one. I think people will at least some people will appreciate this its Grace and tolerance. It's that.
17:15
We don't see anyone as our enemy. We don't see other Americans as our enemy. Certainly. Our enemy is a system, that's rewarding people for pitting us
17:24
against each other. So, is that the Marianne Williamson policy?
17:27
Ah, I love Mary Ann, you know, I think she called it the politics of love. I call it, if I called anything. It's just the politics of
17:34
humanity. Okay? For
17:37
the number four, is fact-based governance, which is the fact that you can have different policy goals that you're driving towards, whether it's small business for me.
17:46
Send in marriage rates or education or health care, but you just need to put up a scoreboard and say, okay, like this is where we're going to try and go V will surprise. Absolutely nobody, which is universal basic income and the sixth is a human-centered economy. We right now, measure our economic success and progress based upon Capital efficiency, stock market prices, GDP, and none of those things corresponds to are generally deteriorating way of life. And so
18:15
if you have the wrong measurements on your dashboard, you're just going to end up spinning your wheels into a ditch more and more. And so we have to have the right measurements where you see that people's lives are shorter and more difficult. Like all of the these Basics that we've been getting wrong because we're just paying attention to economic measures that we came up with 80 years
18:37
ago. Okay, so why not push for these things within the Democratic party? You have a higher profile. Now, you have powerful friends. Why do you need a party?
18:46
The big change. We have to make is open primaries, and ranked Choice voting. And so the question is, how can you make that happen in both blue and red States as quickly as possible? In 24 states, you have ballot initiatives. So if you get enough people in that state together as happened in Alaska, you could potentially see this process happen. And so if you're going to operate in states of every political alignment and you want to raise a movement of tens of millions of
19:15
Of Americans to help flip this switch. Then this is the path to do
19:19
so. Okay. So, who are you trying to recruit for this new party? Besides me, obviously clearly you're doing that,
19:24
Jeff. I got you. That would be a cuckoo. Kara Swisher forward. You are very
19:29
forward. No, I'm going to end up a Hermit in the hills of Hawaii, someday. That's my whole plan. That's my political plan. But what
19:36
who are you trying me? A lot of foreign party members have that ambition, Caruth? Yeah, what you
19:41
trying to recruit for this new party? I want some names. Liz Cheney.
19:46
Marianne Williamson, I don't see them in the same party somehow. I
19:50
mean, I hope Mary Ann super into this, but I think that a lot of Democrats going to hear this and be like, oh wow, Yang is making sense. A lot of Republicans going to hear this and say, oh wow, like that would be good Independence Independence. You should be ticked off that you can't vote most of the time in your, in the primary. How many people are registered for party. Just to be able to participate, in aren't particularly pumped about that party. I mean, you know, someone told me that
20:15
Just yesterday. We have a very, very strange deranged system and it's making us deranged Cara and we need to free ourselves. And most Democrats and Republicans will agree with everything I'm saying. There's going to be a tiny band of partisans. Any party that are not going to like what I'm saying. And so, we need a popular movement to help bring those people to the table and say, look, this really is going to make your life better
20:38
too. So, does this mean you'll be running as a third-party candidate and the 2024 presidential election?
20:44
I am dedicated to building this party into the healing liberating force in American politics. And I will do whatever. I think is best to reach that
20:55
goal. Is that a yes or I'm not sure what that is
20:58
genuinely right. Now. I'm just trying to, you know, focus on the stuff in front of us. We have a hopefully ballot initiatives in 22, you know, like that. That should be the first order of
21:11
business. Okay. Do you think Trump is running again?
21:14
By the way,
21:15
it seems like he
21:16
is running again. And what do you think?
21:20
I think that people should take his run. Very, very seriously. I think that he'd start out as a front-runner and certainly the Republican Party. He'll probably sweep the field.
21:33
We'll be back in a minute.
21:47
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23:16
Okay, so third parties, tend to get blamed as spoilers then elections because they detract from the two major parties. There's been a long line of third-party proposals, or third-party candidates over the years. John Anderson, Ross Perot, Ralph Nader, etc. Etc. So are you worried? You'll be hated for this. If you make trouble in that regard,
23:36
what butter? I do want to insert here. The thing that would remedy that is just ranked Choice voting, you know, all of a sudden and Saints of already done this where
23:45
If you have minor party candidates, and I'm going to say to anyone listening to this who's just, you know, sympathetic towards any political, dynamism or minor party candidates. Ranked Choice. Voting would enable people to be able to vote for a minor Party candidate first. And then, you know, Joe second. And if you had ranked Choice voting, Trump might not have won the Republican primary in 2016. And so, if you change the process, you change the results in really profound ways.
24:15
The entire spoiler thing is just intellectually lazy. Like I want everyone to look it up for a second. Like, just be like, oh, he's gonna mess it up for like, you know, like the other party. It's intellectually lazy. Just change the process and let's make it so that we're not concerned about frankly, like the greater of two evils all of the time and, you know, I mean, I don't love the Democrats chances. No matter what I do mean, you know, like Joe's going to be like Meandering it like the mid-40s range is going to be
24:45
81 years old, like, you know, like I think it's going to be a tough case, Kamala polls, five points worse than him. So, that's a tough case. And then after that, like you have to go to a competitive primary, you can't just like a point someone so they don't like what's the devil's plan? Let you know to me. It's like, you know, like you'd have to let you know. It's not like I'm like, like a spoilers going to screw up a sure thing. That's for sure.
25:10
Yes. That's a fair point. That's a fair point and row. So let me ask you who so you will be running then.
25:15
His party. The forward part of you will be a candidate of the party.
25:19
Can I just said that we're focused on something, you know, right in the here and now and there are so many things that would have to
25:26
happen. Could be a lot of candidates within that party. Correct in various places.
25:31
Oh, so this is where it gets interesting. Even the presumption that I would be, the candidate might not be right. I mean, there could be a forward Party primary with all sorts of people throwing their hat in the ring,
25:42
right? So is it possible then you're talking?
25:45
About the idea that you don't necessarily have to be elected. Correct. And reang, doesn't have to be the candidate.
25:51
I think if people have kept up with me, like, I'm not someone who grew up thinking, like, oh, I need to, you know, be president someday. Like, I don't really care about that stuff. I just care about trying to make positive changes that are going to help people live. Better lives as quickly as possible. Now, thanks to the Yang Yang and a lot of other people that supported me. I'm in position where I might be able to make some really positive things happen. And I'm gonna do my
26:14
best.
26:15
First of all, this with your run for president and mayor that issue you were running for office. He realize that, oh, I
26:21
was running for office. But you know, like I don't think anyone who came to me after my presidential would have found me like heartbroken. I wasn't president mean I was pumped that we mainstream Universal basic income which was very much the
26:34
goal. Okay. So, what did you think about you campaign for President Biden? You were in talks with his administration about a few possible roles. Would you be happy working for an Administration? Which is a
26:45
Among the non forward party.
26:47
I'm gonna do anything. I can to help but right now I genuinely think a main thing I can do that's going to improve our country's path and our destiny is to unlock us and our leaders from these polarized incentives, that are turning us against each other and making it. So that every other problem is unsolvable anyone who's ticked off right now that, you know, Joe manchin's, most important person in DC. You have to look up and say like, yeah, why is this? It's because we have these 2.
27:15
I can't get anything done. So I think this is my highest good and I'm going to pursue it to the best of my ability.
27:23
Would you work for Eric Adams? If he wins? He's the Democratic candidate for New York city,
27:27
mayor. Same time. Dilation cars. Like how many people are going to help? How much good can I do? But I'm really, really excited about building the forward party. I think this movement is going to transform American politics for the
27:36
better. Alright, next year's the midterms the House and Senate are at stake here. Should we expect to see you out in the field that quickly or your party on the field
27:44
will be the
27:45
Losing candidates for sure in this
27:47
cycle, right? Which would be Democratic and Republican? Presumably correct.
27:52
Anyone who's for open primaries? Ranked Choice voting fact-based. Governance Universal, basic income. Human-centered economy, Grayson tolerance, modern, and Effective Government. Please do apply for endorsement and we're trying to help you
28:04
win. So are you going to take stances on other social issues? For example, like SBA? There's so many other things will forward take a stand
28:13
here.
28:14
We're focused on the reforms that are going to enable our country to actually solve our problems. You know,
28:21
I'm not wade into the more controversial ones like that.
28:24
No, I think, if we can unlock our legislators then I think you'll see things improve on multiple
28:32
Dimensions. What has happened to the Yang Yang.
28:35
Now, the Yang Yang is pumped. I believe for this next step, because a lot of them see the same systemic.
28:44
Willems? I want to help fix them. Are you leaving that name behind? You know what? We'll see you forward. Gang becomes a thing.
28:53
It doesn't it doesn't have quite the same ring to it. But it is a little more broad when during when you were running and one of your advisors for the Mayoral race Bradley Tusk called you an empty vessel, which I think he meant it in a good way. How do you think about that? You take it as a compliment? Do you think we have to just completely empty ourselves and
29:14
Move to a new place or do you think that was saying that you don't have conviction? I
29:19
guess, but years of my life, mainstreaming a big idea and Universal basic income. People know what I'm about. I'm going to spend years of my life, mainstreaming open primaries, and ranked Choice. Voting as the key reform that's going to set us free. Bradley's a friend. Like we have a laugh about it later.
29:37
He tends to say things, doesn't he? So you also wrote in this book, a bit about the government's covid stimulus.
29:44
Points which are kind of a version of Ubi. The Census Bureau analysis estimated. The first two rounds of stimulus checks kept eleven point seven million people from falling below the poverty line. Do you think pandemic prove that this work, or was it just an expensive bill for a crisis?
30:00
I think the pandemic sped things up, but anyone looking at the effect of Castle Leaf sees that it's working at a higher level than any other policy that's been an active in terms of improving people's lives.
30:14
Improving children's ability to learn 400 Economist just signed a letter saying we should keep it including Nobel Prize winners because the effects are so clear. I wish it didn't take a pandemic for us to reach this kind of poverty, relief effort, but certainly we should make it permanent and expand it from
30:33
here. So, covid relief is coming to a close. Unlike what you had proposed and it's kind of ripping a Band-Aid off moment. For a lot of people. Some Democrats in Congress are trying to prolong stimulus checks.
30:43
And unemployment checks, but there's an uphill battle given the politics of DC. What do you think should happen? And what would you have done if you were president? How do you keep this going? Because it's very unpopular to keep it going.
30:57
The the child tax credits actually, very popular last night burning. I mean,
31:01
among politicians.
31:02
These are listen to voters. If I were president, I would be having a party on the White House lawn and encourage every representative to do the same. Every time a child tax, credit payment went out the 15th of each month.
31:14
This is the most direct and concrete thing that about 70 million Americans are seeing from the government on a monthly basis. And if they saw that someone was trying to take the rug out from under them after providing it for this number of months. I think they'd be very animated around it. This should be a permanent policy, a hundred
31:35
percent. And what about the stimulus checks? And unemployment checks.
31:40
I'm a fan of the stimulus checks. I do think that time.
31:43
Paying money to not having a job is not the right direction. I'd rather just give people a money and then if they get a job, then they can keep the money on top of it. You don't want to give anyone like a negative condition. If you're going to attach relief in my
31:57
opinion, right? But in the retail industry, the restaurant industry jobs were dead end or unpleasant or unsafe for many people. People don't want to go back to these jobs. And if they don't have to, they can't does this prove out the idea of people get money there.
32:14
Going to try to work. I mean that's that's what the Republicans say.
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I don't think the data indicates that and the fact is that the Employers in many of these cases should be doing more to get Workers back in terms of paying more and have a better
32:30
conditions. Yeah. Yeah, so there's polarization and endless tussle in DC and we're seeing the Democratic party Under Pressure progressives and block by Centrist like Mansion or Cinema. Where do you see this going with the Democratic Party?
32:44
We are unlike the edge of a like a knife in terms of the democratic majority and I'm not sure many people listening to this realize, just what the landscape is, wary of 15,000 more Georgians had voted for David Perdue. He avoids a runoff and Mitch McConnell, still the Senate Majority Leader and think about that, 15,000 people. If forty thousand voters, had voted differently, even in the presidential, then that might have gone another Direction. So, you,
33:14
The barest, majority one can imagine, and the Democratic party right now is such a big tent party that there are people that have very different points of view, on a lot of things. I dearly hope that they do pass very substantial legislation while I have this window. I think that the Biden Administration is relying on it and this window is not going to remain open forever. They really should be taking advantage of this
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time, but they are, it is what it is, right? It doesn't seem to be moving at all. The end of the filibuster or anything else.
33:44
Is that would cause this to happen, say your president Yang. What would you do right now? Besides having Joe manchin over? First take, I don't know. What. Oh, you
33:52
have to try to bring people around the things that they can agree on. So I think the infrastructure bill was a nice First Step, but this is one of the problems again that I'm now trying to address is that bipartisanship is such a rarity or unicorn at this point in part because the incentives lead us that direction the
34:14
As if you do compromise, the other side, you're more likely to get painted as ideologically in pure. And so if we change the mechanics in the process, then you'd actually see more laws
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pass. Okay. Andrew, this has been great. I really appreciate it. As usual as an idiot.
34:31
Thanks guys. Great, spending time with you. As always. I hope your voice recovers, you know, very quickly, so it
34:37
will
34:48
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35:14
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