>> IT'S NOW ESSENTIALLY A TWO-MAN RACE FOR THE DEMOCRATIC
NOMINATION FOR PRESIDENT.
WITH FORMER VICE PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN CURRENTLY MAINTAINING A
DELICATE LEAD OVER VERMONT SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS IN THE
PRIMARIES.
THE WINNER OF COURSE WILL FACE PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP IN
NOVEMBER.
DURING THE ELECTION CYCLE, POLITICAL PUNDITS ARE CONSTANTLY
ANALYZING VOTERS OF ALL AGE GROUPS AND DEMOGRAPHICS,
INCLUDING THE SO-CALLED MILLENNIAL.
BUT WHAT ISSUES ARE ON THE MINDS OF YOUNG VOTERS?
CAROLEE MCGRATH SAT DOWN WITH THE PRESIDENT OF THE U. MASS
REPUBLICANS AND THE PRESIDENT OF U. MASS DEMOCRATS TO HEAR WHAT
CONCERNS THEM THE MOST.
>> I THINK GOING FORWARD RIGHT NOW, I THINK JOE BIDEN IS
PROBABLY GOING TO BE THE NOMINEE GIVEN HIS PERFORMANCE LAST NIGHT
IN MICHIGAN.
AND SOME OF THE STATES COMING UP LIKE FLORIDA, BUT ALSO HIS
DOMINANCE ON SUPER TUESDAY.
>> YES, BECAUSE AS SOME PEOPLE HAVE DESCRIBED HE RESURRECTED
HIMSELF AND BECAME A PLAYER ONCE AGAIN.
WHAT DO YOU THINK IT IS ABOUT BIDEN AS OPPOSED TO BERNIE
SANDERS THAT IS NOW MOVING HIM FORWARD?
>> I THINK BIDEN HAS THE WIDEST COALITION AT THIS POINT, HE HAS
A LOT OF SUPPORT FROM THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY,
OLDER VOTERS, RURAL VOTERS.
AND I THINK HE'S DEFINITELY MADE A BROADER COALITION.
YOU'VE SEEN SANDERS SAY HIS 30% BASE WITH A LOT OF LATINO VOTERS
AND YOUNGER VOTERS, AND BIDEN HAS REALLY COALESCED BASICALLY
EVERYBODY ELSE IN THE PARTY.
SO I THINK THAT'S DRIVEN HIM FORWARD.
>> SO, CHAD, I THINK A LOT OF REPUBLICANS WHETHER THEY SAY
THIS OUT LOUD OR NOT WERE HOPING THAT BERNIE SANDERS WOULD BE THE
NOMINEE, SOMEBODY EASIER TO BEAT, CONTRASTING CAPITALISM
VERSUS SOCIALISM.
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
>> DEFINITELY, THERE'S CERTAINLY THAT PERSPECTIVE OUT THERE.
BUT I ACTUALLY THINK THAT BERNIE SANDERS WOULD HAVE BEEN A MUCH
HARDER CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT TRUMP TO BEAT.
SPECIFICALLY I THINK THAT WHILE THEY ARE POLAR OPPOSITES ON A
LOT OF ISSUES, PARTICULARLY A LOT OF WORKING CLASS PEOPLE
IDENTIFY WITH BERNIE SANDERS AND HIS POLICIES IN A SIMILAR WAY
THAT THEY DO WITH PRESIDENT TRUMP'S WORKING CLASS
PHILOSOPHY.
>> SO A NEW POLL CAME OUT IN NOVEMBER THAT SHOWED 70% OF
MILLENNIALS SAY THEY WOULD VOTE FOR A SOCIALIST.
HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT IT, FIRST OF ALL, ABOUT THAT?
>> TRUTHFULLY IT'S PRETTY SCARY TO ME, AND HONESTLY I THINK THAT
A LOT OF IT HAS TO DO WITH A MISUNDERSTANDING WITH
CAPITALISM, AND CAPITALISM AS AN ECONOMIC PHILOSOPHY.
I THINK THAT PEOPLE THINK OF CAPITALISM REALLY AS THE
ECONOMIC POLICY OF GREED AND WEALTH.
BUT I THINK WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO IT, CAPITALISM IS REALLY THE
POLICY OF BENEVOLENCEY.
IF YOU GET THE RICHEST PEOPLE IN THE WORLD, IF YOU LOOK AT THEM,
THEY KEEP THEIR WEALTH BECAUSE THINK REINSIST IT INTO THEIR
COMPANIES, THEIR COMMUNITIES, OTHER INVESTMENTS.
>> SO HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT SOCIALISM AS FAR AS IT RELATES
TO THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY, WHY IS THAT ATTRACTIVE TO SO MANY YOUNG
PEOPLE?
>> I THINK, AS A PARTY WE'RE STILL A CAPITALIST SOCIETY.
BUT I THINK A LOT OF YOUNG PEOPLE HAVE A DIFFERENT VIEW OF
BOTH CAPITALISM AND SOCIALISM THAT THEY'VE GROWN UP IN THE
TIME SINCE THE GREAT RECESSION, AND THEY'VE REALLY SEEN SOME OF
THE FAULTS OF CAPITALISM AND PEOPLE NOT HAVING ACCESS TO
WHETHER IT BE AFFORDABLE HIGHER EDUCATION OR HEALTH CARE, AND
THEY SEE SOME OF THESE SOCIETIES LIKE, YOU KNOW, NORWAY AND
SWEDEN THAT HAVE THESE MIXED ECONOMIES THAT ARE STILL THESE
CAPITALIST SOCIETIES BUT HAVE A LARGER SOCIAL SAFETY NET.
SO I THINK THEY KIND OF VIEW THAT AS SOCIALISM AND THEY DON'T
NECESSARILY HAVE KIND OF WHAT OLDER GENERATIONS HAVE SEEN,
LIKE THE RED SCARE, AND DIDN'T GROW UP WITH THE THREAT OF THE
SOVIET UNION.
I THINK THAT'S KIND OF CHANGED HOW PEOPLE VIEW IT.
>> I THINK THAT'S A GOOD POINT BECAUSE A LOT OF PEOPLE WILL SAY
THERE'S NO LOOK BACK, BUT IF YOU LOOK RIGHT NOW IN VENEZUELA
TODAY, A GOOD EXAMPLE OF WHAT SOCIALISM WOULD LOOK LIKE,
YOU'RE SAYING THE MILLENNIALS HAVE THE SOFTER VIEW OF MORE OF
A MIXED SYSTEM THAT WOULD HAVE SOME SOCIALIST PRINCIPLES AS
WELL.
IS THAT REALISTIC, UNREALISTIC, IDEALISTIC?
>> I THINK WOULD IT BE TOUGH IN THE UNITED STATES, JUST GIVEN
BOT, JUST THE SIZE OF THE COUNTRY, AND SOME OF THE
CULTURAL ATTITUDES.
I DON'T THINK NECESSARILY THAT SAY A UNIVERSAL BASIC INCOME,
WELL, A LOT OF PEOPLE MIGHT LIKE IT IN THEORY, I DON'T THINK IT
WOULD EVER PASS GIVEN OUR SYSTEM.
THE COMPLETE POLARIZATION IN CONGRESS ABOUT PASSING THINGS
THAT EVEN OBAMACARE, THAT WAS BASED OFF OF MITT ROMNEY'S
PROPOSAL HERE IN MASSACHUSETTS.
IT COSTS THE DEMOCRATS THOUSANDS OF SEATS IN CONGRESS AND ALSO ON
STATE LEGISLATURES.
SO I DON'T THINK THAT WE'D HAVE A BIG SYSTEM LIKE THAT, UNLESS,
YOU KNOW, YOU HAD WHAT BERNIE SANDERS HAS BEEN CALLING FOR, A
POLITICAL REVOLUTION.
BUT THAT REALLY HASN'T MATERIALIZED.
>> WHEN YOU TALK TO YOUR FRIENDS, ESPECIALLY THOSE IN
YOUR GROUP, DO THEY IDENTIFY MORE WITH BIDEN OR MORE WITH
SANDERS?
I KNOW THERE'S OTHER POLITICAL GROUPS ON CAMPUS AS WELL, AND
YOU'RE NOT THE FURTHERREST TO THE LEFT ON CAM US, IS THAT
CORRECT?
>> YES.
>> SO WHERE DO YOUR FRIENDS STAND?
>> THERE'S DEFINITELY A MIX ON CAMPUS.
YOU DO HAVE PEOPLE WHO ARE MORE THE BERNIE SANDERS DEMOCRATIC
SOCIALIST, AND YOU HAVE PEOPLE LIKE MORE LIKE A WARREN WHO
CALLS HERSELF A CAPITALIST OUTRIGHT BUT THEN CALLED FOR
MORE ECONOMIC PROTECTIONS AND THEN, I WOULD SAY THERE ARE MORE
PEOPLE THAT ARE OF THE WARREN AREA, BUT THERE ARE DEFINITELY
PEOPLE INCLUDING MYSELF IN THE CLUB THAT ARE MORE BIDEN,
KLOBUCHAR AREA.
>> AND MIDDLE OF THE ROAD.
CHAD, WHAT DO YOU THINK RESONATES WITH PEOPLE THAT YOU
KNOW, WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT PEOPLE CARE ABOUT?
TIM HAD MENTIONED HEALTH CARE AND EDUCATION, ARE THOSE THE
BIGGEST THINGS THAT MILLENNIALS ARE WORRIED ABOUT?
>> DEFINITELY.
I THINK IT'S CERTAINLY THE ECONOMY, HEALTH CARE, EDUCATION,
WE'RE ALL, ARE ALL BIG CONCEPTS.
I THINK THE BIG DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A REPUBLICAN PERSPECTIVE
AND A DEMOCRAT PERSPECTIVE ON THOSE ISSUES IS REALLY WHAT SORT
OF ROLE GOVERNMENT SHOULD PLAY IN THOSE SCENARIOS.
IS THERE MORE OF A LIMITED GOVERNMENT, SHOULD IT BE MORE
PRIVATE SECTOR INTERVENTION IN THE AREAS OF ISSUES.
FOR MOST KIDS WE WANT TO SEE MORE OF THE PRETTY SECTOR TAKING
A STANCE THAN GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION.
>> WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT THE CLUB AT U. MASS, HERE WE UNDER A BLUE
STATE.
THE REPUBLICAN CLUB IN A BLUE STATE ON A COLLEGE CAMPUS, IT
CAN'T BE EASY TO MAKE THE CASE, ESPECIALLY IF YOU'RE TALKING
ABOUT THOSE PRINCIPLES.
OR IF YOU SAY, HEY, I SUPPORT TRUMP, HOW ARE YOU RECEIVED ON
CAMPUS?
>> IT'S DEFINITELY VERY TOUGH, WE GET A LOT OF CRITICISM.
BUT WE ALL HAVE OPEN CONVERSATIONOUR POLICY
PERSPECTIVES.
IT BECOMES A LITTLE MORE DANGEROUS WHEN PEOPLE START
FEELING HATEFUL ABOUT YOUR IDEAS AND THAT'S A PROBLEM WE ALL HAVE
TO OVERCOME AS A SOCIETY.
>> HOW CAN YOU BOTH SIT NEXT TO EACH OTHER AND WORK WITH EACH
OTHER ON CAMPUS AS WELL, BECAUSE YOU SEE HOW BITTER IT HAS
BECOME, IN THE MEDIA, BETWEEN POLITICIANS AND EVEN VOTERS,
WHEN YOU TALK TO DIFFERENT VOTERS ABOUT WHETHER IT'S DONALD
TRUMP OR BERNIE SANDERS, IT'S JUST THIS BITTERNESS THAT SEEMS
TO EMERGE.
HOW DO WE MOVE FORWARD AS WE APPROACH THIS ELECTION IN A
DIFFERENT WAY?
>> I THINK MOST PEOPLE JUST, WE HAVE TO RECOGNIZE THE HUMANITY
IN EVERYBODY, THAT WHETHER YOU GO HOME AT THE END OF THE DAY,
YOU KNOW, YOU'RE A REPUBLICAN OR DEMOCRAT, AT LEAST ON CAMPUS WE
HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER, WE GO TO CLASS TOGETHER, WE SEE EACH
OTHER AT MEETINGS.
SO I THINK RECOGNIZING THE HUMANITY OF PEOPLE IS REALLY
IMPORTANT.
AND JUST WHEN YOU HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER, YOU HAVE TO PUT
TOGETHER, PUT ASIDE SOME OF THESE DIFFERENCES TO MAKE SURE
THAT THINGS CAN GET DONE.
>> AND JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE GETTING ALONG DOESN'T MEAN
YOU'RE SELLING OUT.
I THINK SOMETIMES FEEL LIKE OH MY GOSH IF I ACT NICE TO THIS
PERSON IT'S GOING TO LOOK LIKE I JUST LOST ALL OF MY PRINCIPLES.
HOW DO YOU RESPOND?
>> ABSOLUTELY.
AND I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO MAINTAIN SORT OF YOUR STANCE ON
YOUR ISSUES AND NOT GIVE IN ON THOSE ISSUES.
BUT I THINK AS POLITICAL SCIENCE MAJORS, A MAJOR PART OF POLITICS
IS JUST FINDING COMPROMISE, FINDING THE HAPPY MEDIUM, AND
IT'S TOLERANCE AND CIVILITY IN THE WORKPLACE AND FINDING
SOLUTIONS TO ISSUES.