[CHEERS AND APPLAUSE] ♪ ♪ >>
Stephen: WELCOME BACK, EVERYBODY! LADIES AND GENTLEMEN.
MY NEXT GUEST IS A FORMER MIDDLE SCHOOL PRINCIPAL WHO HAS SPENT
TWO TERMS IN CONGRESS REPRESENTING THE 16TH DISTRICT
OF NEW YORK. PLEASE WELCOME TO "THE LATE SHOW," CONGRESSMAN
JAMAAL BOWMAN. ♪ ♪ [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE] WELCOME ABOARD. >> Congressman
Bowman: WHAT'S UP, WHAT'S UP! >> Stephen: TODAY MARKS THE THIRD
YEAR SINCE JUNETEENTH WAS MADE A NATIONAL HOLIDAY BY AN ACT OF
CONGRESS SIGNED BY THE PRESIDENT. [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE]
THIS IS KIND OF NEAT. YOU AS A CONGRESSMAN GOT TO VOTE FOR THAT
BILL AND I'M JUST CURIOUS WHAT THAT MEANT TO YOU AS A
LEGISLATOR AND JUST AS A PERSON THAT GOT TO DO THAT AS AN
AMERICAN CITIZEN, MAKE THAT HAPPEN. >> Congressman Bowman:
YEAH, IT'S HARD TO PUT INTO WORDS. I WAS ONLY IN CONGRESS
FOR A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME. PEOPLE WERE FIGHTING FOR DECADES
TO GET THIS PASSED SO IT WAS HUMBLING, EXCITING, INSPIRING. I
WAS JUST HAPPY TO BE ABLE TO DO IT, IT'S GREAT. >> Stephen: NOW
YOU -- OKAY, I WANT TO TALK TO THE FORMER PRINCIPAL HERE. ONE
OF THE BIGGEST FIGHTS -- CULTURE FIGHTS GOING ON IN THE U.S.
RIGHT NOW IS IN SOME SCHOOL DISTRICTS, GENERATE CONTROLLED
BY REPUBLICAN LEGISLATURES HAVE OUTLAWED THE TEACHING OF WHAT
THEY CALL OR CONSIDER CRITICAL RACE THEORY, LESSONS ON
DIVERSITY, EQUITY, INCLUSION. AS SOMEBODY WHO USED TO HEAD OF
SCHOOL, WHAT'S YOUR RESPONSE TO THAT? WHAT'S YOUR VALUE IF
KEEPING THAT IN SCHOOLS? >> Congressman Bowman: FIRST OF
ALL, REPLICANTS ARE BULLIES, MAN THEY ARE TRYING TO BULLY THE
ENTIRE COUNTRY INTO ONE SINGULAR WAY OF THINKING AND OUR STRENGTH
IS OUR DIVERSITY AS A NATION. THE FACT THAT WE COME FROM
DIFFERENT COUNTRIES, HAVE DIFFERET TOBACCOS, DIFFERENT
EXPERIENCES, WE NEED TO LEARN MORE ABOUT EACH OTHER BECAUSE
THAT'S HOW YOU BRING THE COUNTRY TOGETHER AND PEOPLE TOGETHER. WE
HAVE TO DO EVERYTHING IN OUR POWER TO PUSH BACK AGAINST THE
BANNING OF BOOKS, TAKING OVER A SCHOOL DISTRICT, FIGHTING BACK
AGAINST DEI. WE ARE NOT GOING TO BE OUR MOST ASPIRATIONAL CELLS
AS A NATION UNLESS WE EMBRACE DIVERSITY, SO THAT'S WHAT WE
HAVE TO DO. >> Stephen: OKAY, YOUR PRIMARY IS THIS TUESDAY?
IT'S THIS TUESDAY. SPOILER, THE POLLING IS A LITTLE ROUGH RIGHT
NOW. WE ARE DOWN BY 17 POINTS IN SOME POLLS. YOUR OPPONENTS HAVE
CRITICIZED YOUR OPPOSITION TO U.S. SUPPORT FOR MILITARY
RESPONSE TO HAMAS IS ATTACKED. THAT'S A QUESTION POSED TO
AMERICA RIGHT NOW ESPECIALLY IN THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY IN AMERICA
RIGHT NOW. CAN YOU CLARIFY WHERE YOU STAND AND DO YOU UNDERSTAND
WHY SOME PEOPLE HAVE GOTTEN UPSET ABOUT WHAT YOU SAID. >>
Congressman Bowman: YES, OCTOBER 7TH WAS INCREDIBLY TRAUMATIC. IT
WAS A WAR CRIME, IT WAS A TERRORIST ATTACK. WE CONDEMNED
IT RIGHT AWAY BECAUSE THEY KILLED INNOCENT CIVILIANS.
HOWEVER, THE RESPONSE HAS BEEN COLLECTIVE PUNISHMENT. TENS OF
THOUSANDS OF CIVILIANS HAVE BEEN KILLED AND THAT'S WHY WE CALLED
VERY EARLY ON FOR A CEASE-FIRE. FOR A PERMANENT CEASE-FIRE, IT
MEANS STOP THE FIGHTING, RELEASE THE HOSTAGES, GET HUMANITARIAN
AID IN THERE BECAUSE FAMINE IS SETTING IN AND CHILDREN ARE
STARVING TO DEATH, AND PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, LET'S FIND A
PATHWAY TO PEACE. BECAUSE -- [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE] THIS IS --
AND THIS IS NOT JUST ABOUT GAZA AND ISRAEL IN THE MIDDLE EAST,
THE ENTIRE LIFE IT SEEMS LIKE WE'VE BEEN ENGAGED IN SOME KIND
OF WAR AND CONFLICT. WE CONTINUE TO SPEND TELLINGS OF DOLLARS
KILLING PEOPLE AND WE CAN'T EVEN FIND ENOUGH MONEY TO PROVIDE
FOOD AND CLEAN WATER TO CHILDREN ALL OF THE WORLD. MY HOPE IS
PEACE, MY HOPE IS A TWO-STATE SOLUTION, BUT WE HAVE TO PUTTHE
GUNS DOWN TO COME TO THE TABLE TO NEGOTIATE FOR PEAC THE TABLE
TO NEGOTIATE FOR PEA PEACE. [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE] >>
Stephen: AND WHAT DO YOU THINK -- -- WHAT DO YOU THINK -- THE
WORLD SEES WHAT'S HAPPENING IN GAZA RIGHT NOW AND THEIR HEART
BREAKS FOR THE TRAGEDY OF THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE AND THE
INNOCENT PEOPLE WHO HAVE DIED TO. AND THEIR HEART BREAKS FOR
THE HORROR THAT IS INFLICTED ON THE ISRAELI PEOPLE ON OCTOBER
7TH. WHAT DO YOU THINK THE UNITED STATES IS ROLE IS IN
EXERCISING MORE POWER AND INFLUENCE WE HAVE TWO MAKE THE
PIECE COME ABOUT OR TO ACHIEVE THE TWO-STATE SOLUTION? WE'VE
BEEN TRYING FOR SO MANY YEARS, WE'VE BEEN INVOLVED FOR SO MANY
YEARS. IT ULTIMATELY COME OUT WITH YOU THINK OUR JOB IS AND
HOW CAN WE BEST USE OUR POSITION? >> Congressman Bowman:
WE HAVE A FOREIGN POLICY THAT FOLLOWS THE IDEA OF PEACE
THROUGH STRENGTH AND WHAT THAT MEANS IS WE HAVE A VERY STRONG
MILITARY SO THAT WE CAN SCARE OTHER COUNTRIES INTO DOING WHAT
WE SAY. I WISH WE WOULD USE OUR WEALTH AND OUR RESOURCES AND OUR
MEANS TO LEAD WITH DIPLOMACY. THAT'S WHAT I WISH. [CHEERS AND
APPLAUSE] WE ALREADY HAVE THE MIGHTIEST MILITARY, CAN WE USE
OUR RESOURCES TO FIGHT CLIMATE CHANGE? AND WE USE OUR RESOURCES
TO MAKE SURE EVERY CHILD HAS CLEAN WATER? CAN WE USE OUR
RESOURCES IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE TO ACTUALLY BUILD THE
PALESTINIAN STATE THROUGH POLICY, BUT ALSO THROUGH
RESOURCES? DON'T JUST TALK ABOUT IT, TAKE THE STEPS TO ENSURE
THIS TO FOUL TWO-STATE SOLUTION SO ISRAELIS ARE SAFE AND THE
PALESTINIANS ARE SAFE AND HAVE SELF-DETERMINATION. >> Stephen:
WE HAVE TO TAKE A QUICK BREAK THEM UP BUT WILL BEE WILL BE
RIGHT BACK WITH MORE CONGRESSMAN JAMAAL BOWMAN. STICK AROUND. ♪ ♪
