Watch The ReidOut Highlights: Sept. 23

tonight on the readout I would like to promise and pledge that I will totally accept the results of this great and historic presidential election if I win [Applause] six years after those remarks Republican candidates across the country are following Trump's lead threatening democracy about refusing to say whether they will accept election results that they don't lie also tonight what's next after a very bad week for Trump with a special Master telling his lawyers to put up or shut up and New York's attorney general exposing years of alleged fraud and as Kevin McCarthy makes this pitch for speaker President Biden reminds Americans exactly what Republicans want to take from you if they win things like Reproductive Rights and Social Security good evening everyone I'm Jason Johnson and for Joy Reed and we begin tonight with the cancer that continues to rot what's left of the desiccated corpse of the Republican Party moments from now the former president will stand shoulder to shoulder with Ted Budd North Carolina's Republican Senate nominee but has refused to say whether he would accept this year's election results only if he loses but voted against certifying the 2020 presidential election as a member of Congress just hours after the attack on the Capitol and he's not the only one from the Carolinas to California from Cancun to Grant's Tomb election denialism has infected the Republican organization because they barely act like a party according to the website 538 60 of Americans will have an election denier on the ballot this fall as the more than 500 Republicans running for office nearly a quarter of them have fully rejected the legitimacy of the 2020 election if you want a preview of just what life would look like with these kinds of folks in control just take a look at Georgia where election deniers are now using false claims to challenge the legitimacy of more than 60 000 voter registrations and it just happened I know this is shocking to be voters that are in counties full of black and brown people these challenges were brought about because Georgia Secretary of State the one who's pretending that he stood up for rights refused to overturn the 2020 election for Trump but State Republicans afraid of making the Maga King and all his other people look angry at them decide to pledge their allegiance and change state election laws to fix problems that don't exist earlier today the duly elected president United States Joe Biden just warned how dangerous this election denialism really is it's become a litmus test in their party to pledge loyally to Donald Trump by buying into the big lie you can't let the Integrity of our elections be undermined democracy can't survive it cannot survive not a joke can't survive when one side believes there's only two outcomes to an election either they win or they were cheated one of the most prominent election deniers he's referring to is currently running to control Arizona's elections Mark fincham is a republican nominee for Secretary of State he's currently a state legislator and actually tried to decertify the Arizona election results back in 2020 but he failed he's also a member of The Oath Keepers that right-wing paramilitary group and he attended the capital Insurrection according to Politico a fellow Republican in the Arizona house was shocked at fincham's success given that quote Mark is known as the guy that's probably the dumbest well there's a long list but one of the dumbest legislators in the house with friends like these look last night fincham faced off with his Democratic opponent Adrian Fontes the former Maricopa County Recorder who oversaw the 2020 election for really the entire country it was a jarring side-by-side of two vastly different perspectives one grounded in reality and the other grounded in the unhinged fever dreams of the big lie knowing what we know today there are certain counties that should have been set aside as irredeemably compromised Maricopa County was one of them when we have conspiracy theories and lies like the ones Mr fincham has just shared based in no real evidence what we end up doing is eroding the faith that we have in each other as Citizens later Fincher pretty much made President Biden's point when he said that the reason we can trust results of his primary and not those of the 2020 election was because he won was the August midterm election Fair were there any improprieties you saw no idea it is what it is what changed what changed yes the candidates while election day might be weeks away you can already vote in North Carolina Minnesota South Carolina I'm sorry South Dakota Virginia and Wyoming and joining me now to discuss all this is Adrian Fontes himself the Democratic nominee for Arizona Secretary of State thank you so very much uh I I I have to mention this Adrian I watched I watched that debate and reminded me of that old SNL sketch where the character's like how how am I losing to this guy like I just can't I can't imagine what it was like being on stage with someone like that I I just want to start with this you're running for secretary of state that is a a incredibly important responsibility what are the responsibilities of the Secretary of State in Arizona because it changes state by state so what would you be responsible for in 2024 thanks for having me the Secretary of State in Arizona is the chief election regulator uh Chief election officer in Arizona the 15 counties run the actual elections this secretary really kind of herds all of those cats we also have business services and public services inside of that office near and dear to my heart of the archives and libraries but we really are sort of a ministerial office the secretary of state does critically certify the election results that come out of the canvases of each of Arizona's counties and I think that's uh the main point of discussion for today and and so the certification process that would be you look at all the different counties they give you their election results and it's your job to evaluate if those are legitimate it's your job to rubber stamp what they do how is that certification process actually work well it's not really a rubber stamp uh a good secretary will work with the counties as they are building their canvases we'll review them ahead of time before the County's actually uh perform the canvas do the vote that certifies and then sends to the secretary's office good teams don't just rubber stamp they make sure to work together along the way through the entire process so that it is smooth so that we do have free and fair elections so that we do have predictable government a rational government and not just weird chaos which is what my opponent is presenting and we just we just want things to work normally right and that's really how the process is supposed to work exactly your job is to scrutinize what is delivered to you and then make sure it's fair for the entire country and and frankly Arizona will be one of the states where the entire country's eyes are going to be on you with that being in mind I want to play you some sound here of your opponent um the country was all focused on something that he was involved in last year I want to get your thoughts about it on the other side do you think Arizona voters want their Chief elections officer um at a riot at the U.S Capitol to overturn an election is that what you think Arizona residents citizens voters want the last time I checked to be at a place when something's happening is not illegal I'll be honest with you uh if I was at something that turned into a riot I would have left I would have condemned it if I'm at a party where there was like drinking going on that I was in high school I left I was that kid so I guess I have my my standards are too high for someone running for office but what are your thoughts about that it's not only someone who's going to be responsible of holding a sacred oath of counting the ballot in the state of Arizona what are your thoughts about running against someone who was basically a participant bare minimum I'm an observer in an attempted coup of the United States government it was a crime scene and he claims to have been a law enforcement officer although the Do Not rehire from Kalamazoo Police Department speaks a little more to that um it was a crime scene and it wasn't just annual crime scene or any old Riot this was an attempted overthrow of the government of the United States of America where they had a Gallows set up to hang Mike Pence and Nancy Pelosi this was an attempted coup and for him to minimize it like that is not just callus it's obscene as against the Constitutional order of the greatest democracy this planet has ever seen and folks like this are all over the country and they're dangerous in their delusion and the delusion is that it wasn't that big of a deal and that this is just some kind of political gamesmanship their lack of capacity to understand the gravity of the moment and the destructive nature of their advocacy for this unpredictable chaos that's that's bad and it's really a negative reflection uh on the rest of us that we haven't fought back with back with a lot more Vigor uh that we haven't held them to account uh with a lot more disdain that we haven't moved more quickly to hold those who committed acts of violence that resulted in the deaths of Law Enforcement Officers by the way to hold them accountable so shame on us for not going harder against these guys shame on us for not swinging back with the strength that they are coming at our democracy with shame on us for not standing up like so many other Generations have for our own voting rights and our own democracy with the midterms now just 46 days away we actually have some breaking news uh just released now and Arizona judge has just ruled that the state can enforce a near total ban on abortion a near total ban on abortion this just coming from a judge in the state of Arizona uh right in time for leaders of both political parties to be sharpened their messages to voters look this is a serious serious issue and something that's going to be of concern to many voters throughout the country so while Kevin McCarthy is trying to make his pitch for speaker of the house and introducing the Republican committee the Republican commitment to America and his agenda in Pennsylvania he's also got to deal with the fact that you've got more and more Republicans and more Democrats and more Americans who are concerned about their future but he figures he can cover all that with the predictable Maga Republican buzzwords on our very first bill we're going to repeal 87 000 IRS agents we can build an education system that has a parent's Bill of Rights we should ensure women only compete in women's sports yeah in case you missed it yes that was none other than Marjorie Taylor green said it directly seated directly behind McCarthy a short time later on Washington President Biden rebuked McCarthy's plan as goals with little or no details and laid out for voters a clear contrast between the parties running for office this fall for 46 days America is going to choose Republicans win control of the Congress abortion will be banned but if you give me two more Democratic senators in the United States Senate I promise you I promise you we're going to codify Road America's going to face a choice Republican control the Congress Social Security will be on the chopping block but if you support the Democrats I promise you this Social Security will be protected period joining me now is Mara gay MSNBC political analyst and member of the New York Times editorial board and Victor she strategy strategy director for voters of Tomorrow co-host of the igen politics podcast and a 2020 Biden delegate thank you all so much for joining me this evening I'm going to start with this uh just your reactions to this new ruling from an Arizona judge allowing a near total ban on abortion in the state of Arizona I'll start with you uh Mara what do you think this does for voters in the state of Arizona right now if they were having any questions about whether they want to participate what do you think this is going to do yeah I mean first of all I'm thinking about women pregnant people uh in the state of Arizona right now just the Heartbreak I know as a woman that comes uh when you know that your government does not protect you and in fact is seeking to control uh the decisions that should be made between you and your health care provider these are life and death decisions so unfortunately we're going to see more tragic stories I fear coming out of yet another state as women's rights are being Stripped Away I think the political impact is pretty clear if you look at what the movement that really started in Kansas at the ballots this year it's clear that American voters not just Democrats and not just women are they see what's happening and they see that not only are women's rights under assault but really basic fundamental American freedoms that we have come to enjoy in this country though imperfectly are at risk no matter who you are because of the move to really start controlling Americans lives and I think that Americans don't like it and I think that's why the Republicans aren't talking about it because they know these are unpopular with voters who are not in their deepest red base and they're hoping that American voters forget come November that they are the ones that are uh taking our rights away Victor you know with your work and your organization you're dealing with new voters the youngest voters first-time voters when legislation like was actually not legislation when rulings like this come down how does it hit sort of first-time voters is this the kind of thing you know after they deal with the shock after they deal with the offense the fear the the Heartbreak as Mara was just talking about does it tend to mobilize them or does it frustrate them that the systems need to continue to ignore what their needs and desires are as American citizens so I think it's that frustration and anger that is really turning out young voters come this November election this is why young voters are so mobilized and so engaged this election in the past we've seen the young voter turnout really tick up but I think in this election you're going to see that really change because Republicans are clearly coming after our lives Dobbs that decision overturning uh Roe versus Wade and uh access and limiting the ability for young people to access abortions and women to access abortion that was a key decision because that's the first time that people in my generation saw a right literally get overturned by the Supreme Court and then you have States across the country like Arizona today that are seeking to impose a ban on abortion this is something that young people know all too well especially young girls who are who might be seeking abortions they cannot access safe and legal abortions and that is what's riling up a lot of people in my generation we feel the anger we feel the frustration and I think you're going to really see that turnout come November and I'd also like to point out one thing which is that this is going to happen if Republicans win in 2022 and you just have to listen to someone like Senator Lindsey Graham it's not just in the states the federal government wants to do this so Senator Lindsey Graham comes out and says he wants to impose a nationwide ban on abortion I think voters really have to pay attention to that I think that young voters especially this time around aren't oblivious we understand what's going on and I think we're going to act on it Mark I want to play you some sound from President Joe Biden talking about abortion and how in particular affects Women Voters in these midterms Justin Lido said the women can decide the outcome of this election well he ain't seen nothing yet [Applause] I don't believe the American Republicans have a clue about the power of American women [Applause] more of the data is there that there has been a huge uptick in voter registration first-time voters amongst women especially women under the age of 30. the question is we've seen in many times in the past that while there may be an uptick in women voting they don't necessarily vote for candidates who are always about protecting abortion rights there are large numbers of white American Women Voters who vote for Republicans who want to restrict their rights but at the same time want to vote but to protect those rights how do you think these new numbers that we're seeing now how do you think they play out is is Joe Biden right is this are the power of Women Voters is that going to protect abortion rights this fall or do we just not know until election day because we don't know how the women are going to vote yeah it's a great question first of all I don't think any of us can take anything in our democracy for granted right now so uh the elections in November will be won uh not just at The Ballot Box but by get out the vote efforts and organizing across the country but I I also think you know generally for Democrats new voters and more voters is a good thing so you know broadly speaking it is the case that the more people who vote nationally traditionally Democrats tend to do better and so that's a good sign for the Democrats I think the other Factor here is that people who are newly motivated in this environment to vote may very well be coming out in support of abortion rights because let's just remember that the most hardcore Republicans are likely to vote in primaries which they've already done they've already gotten their Supreme Court picks so they may not be quite as motivated we really don't know again nothing can be taken for granted I think the big question for Democrats as well is not only what happens in Congress but can they motivate Democratic who are exhausted to show up in their state elections and really understand the importance of what happens in state houses across the country [Music]

Channel: MSNBC

Views: 109,590

Keywords: msnbc, MSNBC, Specials

Id: K1gbkcyh73E

Length: 19min 24sec (1164 seconds)

Published: Sat Sep 24 2022