HE IS NOT DOING A GOOD JOB.
JOINING US RIGHT NOW IS THE
CHAIRMAN OF THE STAGWELL GROUP
AND CEO OF HARRIS POLL CHAIRMAN
MARK PENN, HE IS THE FORMER
ADVISOR TO THE CLINTONS.
MARK, IT’S GREAT TO SEE YOU.
THANKS VERY MUCH.
WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF BIDEN’S
COMMENT, HE DOESN’T BELIEVE THE
POLLS AND WHAT DO YOU SEE FROM
THESE POLLS NOW?
>> WELL, HE DOESN’T BELIEVE THE
POLLS, HE DOESN’T BELIEVE THE
VOTERS COME THE MIDTERMS.
BECAUSE THESE NUMBERS ARE
TERRIBLE. I MEAN, IN A WORD.
I MEAN, IN A WORD.
TO BE AT 49, I’M SORE RIBS TO BE
TO BE AT 39% HERE, TO COME DOWN
FROM ALMOST 60%.
THE REPUBLICANS ARE STRONG IN
EVERY YEA WAY, LEADING IN THE
MIDTERM CONGRESSIONAL VOTE BY 6
POINTS.
NORMALLY EVEN WHEN IT’S EVEN THE
DEMOCRATS TEND TO WIN THIS BY A
FEW POINTS.
THERE’S A MASSIVE TURNAROUND
HERE IN THE POLLING AND A HEADS
UP THAT THE ADMINISTRATION THOSE
DO A PIVOT TO THE CENTER FROM
WHAT IT’S BEEN DOING AND IN THIS
PRESS CONFERENCE HE INSTEAD
DOUBLED DOWN ON ALL THE POLICIES
THAT PEOPLE DON’T LIKE.
MARIA: AND MARK, THAT’S REALLY
WHAT STRIKES ME.
YOU KNOW, YOU WERE THERE DURING
PRESIDENT CLINTON’S PRESIDENCY
WHERE HE SAW AND READ THE TEA
LEAVES AND ACTUALLY CHANGED
POLICY MIDSTREAM FOR HIS SECOND
TERM.
THIS PRESIDENT IS JUST NOT
ACKNOWLEDGING WHAT THE VOTERS
ARE TELLING HIM.
THEY ARE REJECTING HIS BUILD
BACK BETTER AGENDA AND HE’S
STILL TRYING TO PUSH IT THROUGH.
WE HAVE CRISES ERUPTING
EVERYWHERE ACROSS THE COUNTRY
AND INSTEAD OF TALKING ABOUT A
FIX, HE’S TALKING ABOUT JAMMING
THROUGH A VOTING BILL.
THE HARRIS POLL FOUND 17% OF
DEMOCRATS WOULD SUPPORT HILLARY
CLINTON AS NOMINEE IF BIDEN DOES
NOT RUN IN 2024.
HAVE YOU SPOKEN WITH HILLARY
CLINTON, MARK?
>> NO.
BUT I WOULD SAY THAT 17% IS A
VERY WEAK NUMBER.
I DID NOT SENSE IN THIS POLL
BRING BACK HILLARY.
SHE USED TO START OUT IN THESE
RACES AT 30, 40, 45, 50 WHEN THE
COUNTRY REALLY WANTED HILLARY.
THIS SAYS TO HE ME THE COUNTRY
REALLY WANTS TO GO FORWARD, NOT
BACK.
THEY’RE NOT GIVING ANY VOTES TO
KAMALA HARRIS EITHER.
THEY DON’T REALLY LIKE JOE BIDEN
FOR A SECOND TERM SO I THINK THE
DEMOCRATIC PARTY IS IN CHAOS AND
IN CONTRAST THE REPUBLICAN PARTY
IS READY TO CONSOLIDATE AROUND
FORMER PRESIDENT TRUMP.
MARIA: WELL, MAYBE IF HILLARY
RUNS AGAIN SHE’LL COME UP WITH
ANOTHER MADE FOR HOLLYWOOD STORY
LINE OF COLLUSION WITH TRUMP THE
WAY SHE DID THE FIRST TIME
AROUND.
SHOULD WE EXPECT MORE DIRTY
TRICKS FROM HILLARY CLINTON,
SHOULD SHE RUN?
>> AGAIN, I’M SURE SHE’S GOING
TO LOOK AT RUNNING BUT WITH
NUMBERS LIKE THESE I HAVE TO
POUR A LITTLE BIT MORE COLD
WATER ON THIS WHOLE THESIS.
I THOUGHT SHE MIGHT GET MUCH
STRONGER NUMBERS.
IT’S JUST NOT WHAT THE DEMOCRAT
ELECTORATE IS SAYING.
THEY WANT SOMEBODY NEW, THEY
WANT SOMEBODY YOUNGER, THEY WANT
SOMEBODY FRESHER.
I DON’T SEE HILLARY REALLY
MAKING A COMEBACK HERE MUCH AS
TANTALIZING AS IT IS.
MARIA: AND MORE AND MORE WANT
THAT PERSON TO BE REPUBLICAN,
BIDEN IS NOT THE ONLY ONE
DROPPING IN THE POLLS.
THE HARRIS POLL FOUND 53% OF
PEOPLE PREFER REPUBLICANS IN THE
CONGRESSIONAL RACES RIGHT NOW
COMPARED TO 47% PREFERRING
DEMOCRATS.
MARK, WHAT ARE YOU EXPECTING IN
THE MIDTERMS COME NOVEMBER?
>> WELL, I THINK YOU’RE GOING TO
SEE AT LEAST A 25 SEAT SWING
TOWARDS THE REPUBLICANS WITH
NUMBERS LIKE THESE.
MAYBE EVEN A LITTLE BIT MORE.
THESE HAVE BEEN GROWING.
REMEMBER, BIDEN’S NUMBERS MONTH
AFTER MONTH HERE KEEP FALLING.
THE REPUBLICANS’ NUMBERS HERE
KEEP GROWING AND THE DISCONNECT
ON THE ISSUES, I MEAN, BIDEN
WENT OUT THERE AND HE SAID OH,
AFGHANISTAN A WAS FINE, THE
ECONOMY IS FINE.
PEOPLE DON’T THINK IT’S FINE.
YOU KNOW, TWO-THIRDS REJECT THAT
THE ECONOMY’S FINE, THAT
AFGHANISTAN WAS FINE, THAT
IMMIGRATION WAS FINE, 70% SEE
CRIME OFF THE CHARTS RIGHT NOW.
MARIA: YEAH, IT’S A GREAT
POINT, MARK.
DAGEN, JUMP IN HERE.
DAGEN: MARK, ONE OF THE BIGGEST
ISSUES COMING OUT OF THIS WHITE
HOUSE FROM BIDEN AND COMPANY IS
JUST THE MESSAGING.
AT EVERY TURN WHEN FACING A
CRISIS, THEY LIE ABOUT IT AND
THEN THEY LEAN ON THE SAME
LANGUAGE AND PHRASING OVER AND
OVER AND OVER AGAIN, UNTIL EVEN
RECENTLY PRESIDENT BIDEN TALKING
ABOUT THE PANDEMIC OF THE
UNVACCINATED.
THAT’S SIMPLY NOT TRUE.
VACCINATED PEOPLE ARE
CONTRACTING OMICRON AND
SPREADING OMICRON.
HE USES THE PHRASE THE BATTLE
FOR THE SOUL OF AMERICA.
HE STARTED USING THAT I THINK
EVEN BEFORE HIS NOMINATION FOR
THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY TO RUN
AGAINST TRUMP.
I DON’T UNDERSTAND WHY THEY
AREN’T LIKE A CLINTON MORE
NIMBLE AT JUST THE MESSAGING AND
THE WAY THEY TALK ABOUT THESE
PROBLEMS.
>> WELL, HYPERBOLE IS CERTAINLY
BACKFIRING.
THE JANUARY 6th SPEECH WAS
NEGATIVELY RECEIVED BY THE
PUBLIC.
I DON’T KNOW, IT’S A MYSTERY WHY
THEY HAVEN’T PIVOTED.
I CAN REMEMBER BILL CLINTON
DIDN’T PIVOT UNTIL AFTER THE
MIDTERMS BUT HE THOUGHT HE WAS
GOING TO WIN THE MIDTERMS.
HERE, EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT THE
POLITICAL SITUATION HAS TURNED
AROUND AND HE SAYS -- AND
PRESIDENT BIDEN SAYS, WELL, I’M
GOING TO GO OUT AND CAMPAIGN.
WELL, WHICH DEMOCRATS ARE GOING
TO WANT A 39% POSITIVE PRESIDENT
CAMPAIGNING IN THEIR DISTRICT?
OH, MY GOD, THEY’RE GOING TO BE
RUNNING AWAY FROM THE PRESIDENT
DURING THIS MIDTERMS UNLESS
THINGS DRAMATICALLY TURN AROUND.
LOOK, ONE OF THE SUGGESTIONS I
TEST IN THE POLL IS IF YOU
REALLY WANT HIM TO REACH OUT, HE
SHOULD HAVE PARDONED ALL OF THE
NONVIOLENT PEOPLE FROM
JANUARY 6th, PROSECUTED ONLY
THE VIOLENT ONES, AND THAT IN
THE POLL WOULD HAVE GOTTEN HIM A
HUGE RECEPTION FOR REACHING OUT
BUT THEY ARE ABOUT AS FAR
REMOVED FROM SOMETHING LIKE THAT
AS ANYONE COULD IMAGINE.
DAGEN: REAL QUICK, MARK,
THEY’RE ACTUALLY USING
SARBANES-OXLEY TO TRY AND
ELEVATE THESE CHARGES.
SARBANES-OXLEY, WHICH WAS PASSED
AS A FINANCIAL FRAUD LAW AFTER
ENRON, THAT’S HOW DESPERATE THEY
ARE.
>> WELL, LOOK, I THINK THAT
THERE’S A VERY GOOD CASE HERE
FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE ACTUALLY
VIOLENT ON JANUARY 6th SIXTH, PE
WOULD WANT TO SEE THEM
PROSECUTED BUT FOR THOSE WHO ARE
NOT VIOLENT, WHO ARE JUST THERE
TAKING PICTURES, CAME IN, YOU
KNOW, AMERICAN TRADITION WOULD
BE NOT TO PROSECUTE THEM AND I
THINK THE JANUARY 6th
COMMITTEE IS OVER-STEPPING ITS
AUTHORITY.
ALL OF THESE USES OF THE
CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND
INVESTIGATIVE SYSTEM AGAINST
POLITICAL ENEMIES ARE SEEN AS
BACKFIRING AS OPPOSED TO DIALING
THEM BACK, JUST TO THOSE WHO
WERE VIOLENT.
THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN A MUCH
SMARTER MOVE HERE THAN WHAT
THEY’RE DOING.
MARIA: YEAH.
WELL, IT’S A GREAT POINT, ALL OF
THIS.
MEANWHILE, PEOPLE ARE SITTING IN
JAIL AND IN ISOLATION AS A
RESULT OF EVERYTHING YOU’VE JUST
SAID, MARK, AND IT’S ALL
POLITICS, WHILE REAL CRIME GOES
UNNOTICED.
NO PROBLEM WITH ALL OF THOSE
PROTESTERS BACK IN 2020, THE
SUMMER OF LOVE WHERE WE SAW
BUSINESSES FORCED TO BOARD UP
AND THEN YOU’VE GOT DR. FAUCI
SITTING THERE LYING UNDER OATH,
NO PROBLEM THERE.
I THOUGHT THAT WAS A FELONY.