Please welcome Stacey Abrams.
(cheering and applause)
Hi.
Welcome to the show.
I did not sit down properly.
There we go.
-Welcome to the show. -Thank you.
Your story is one that has been both inspirational
and, uh, meteoric-- it feels like,
and yet, on the ground, you have been doing so much work.
Before we get into the story of how you've been, uh,
getting people voting and how you are conducting a race
that many people do not believe you can win,
I wanted to ask you about one thing
I've noticed about you in the news, and that is--
We joke about it on the show-- but people often refer to you
as "the first black female governor."
That's the one thing they say, they go,
"She could be the first black female governor."
And then they go, "And her opponent..."
And then they'll mention all the things that he's running on,
"His platform is this, this, this,
but she could be black and a governor."
Do you feel like sometimes people only focus
on the fact that you would be making history
and not on the fact that you would be actually doing the job?
I think sometimes there is a Crayola version
of policy-making that happens, where they do focus on color.
My mission is to talk about issues,
to talk about education,
and to talk about why it's so critical
that we create jobs for everyone
that pay a good wage,
to talk about expanding access to Medicaid
so poor people don't get sick in Georgia,
and that we have hospitals
that can take care of people when they get sick.
But it's hard to get them to focus on that
because I think they're so surprised, some,
by how far I've been able to come
despite what they consider both a disqualifier
and a really interesting fact
that fits really nicely on a "chryon."
-Right. And it's interesting -A chyron.
that you-you wrote about that in the book as well.
You speak about the difficulties of being a person of color
who is trying to run in a race where people make that seem
like it's some sort of hindrance.
You know, people will ask you, they'll see,
"Well, how do you plan to get out the white vote?"
And how do you plan to get out the white vote?
-I... -(laughter)
-I-I'll tell-- No. I mean... -(laughter)
-No, it's funny, 'cause they don't-- -It is.
Like you say in the book, they don't ask it the other way,
so, like, but what do you, what do you stick to
when people ask you that type of question?
I talk to everyone about what matters.
What I tell folks, is I sound the same in North Georgia,
which is predominantly white, and Midtown Atlanta,
and Downtown Atlanta, and in Savannah,
I sound the exact same.
I never change who I am or what I talk about,
because I think that, fundamentally,
it doesn't really matter what race you are,
-you want a good governor who can lead. -Right.
And I think that that's...
that's what I want people to see.
You have been personally attacked
by the President of the United States.
-Yes, I have. -Which I feel like
you would wear with a badge of honor.
-Um... -(laughter)
Trump called you the "open-border
"crime-loving opponent that the Democrats have given.
-Yeah. -"She's weak on vets,
the military and the Second Amendment."
I'm a terrible person by his estimation.
Let me correct this.
I believe in strong bipartisan federal immigration.
I do not love crime.
In fact, I hate crime.
Uh, I am the only candidate in this race
who's actually passed legislation
to protect our vets and our military.
-(cheering, applause) -And I know how to shoot a gun.
I... I know how to shoot a gun.
I know you don't point it at other people.
I know how to use it effectively.
And I know that gun safety means that some people
shouldn't get to have guns, 'cause they'd hurt you.
-Right. -(cheering, applause)
When... when the president and your opponents
talk about "crime-loving,"
they're really referring to your prison policies
and the ideas that you wish to put forth about prison reform.
-Yeah. -Why are those issues that you are so focused on?
I talk very openly about the fact that I have a family member
who has dealt with, uh, prison.
He's an incredible man who deserves every opportunity
to be active and engaged in society,
and when we as a community decide
that you should be held accountable for your crimes,
we also have to decide that you can come back
-and be a part of our community when you get out. -Right.
I've spent the last seven years working very closely
with the governor of Georgia
to push criminal justice reform laws.
Not only transition for prisoners,
but making sure we don't charge someone who's 17
as though they're 18.
Making sure that we decriminalize being poor.
You shouldn't go to jail because you're poor,
and you shouldn't stay in jail
because you can't afford justice.
That doesn't make sense.
(cheering, applause)
The...
the conversations that people have
in and around some of your ideas is they say,
"Oh, I mean, we understand why you would say this
"about, uh, you know, criminal justice reform
and-and why you have these views on tax."
One of the ideas I had... that I heard about you
that was really interesting was someone actually said,
"Stacey Abrams, how can she be governor
when she herself is in debt?"
And what was interesting is, you are the person who came out
and told people when you were running that you were in debt;
you told people that you have student loans.
This is something most candidates would hide.
So if somebody wants to vote for you
and you are in debt, how do you expect them
to-to work through those two seemingly conflicting ideas?
So, I actually dedicate a whole chapter in my book to money.
Because one thing that you learn when you are in the minority
is that money plays as huge a part in your success
as your intellect, as your capacity.
It is an anchor that can drag you down.
And I want people to understand that you want leaders
who actually remember what it was like
to have to make decisions, to struggle with money,
to struggle with the real choices we make every day.
I have student loan debt 'cause I went to really good schools
that cost a lot of money.
I have tax... I reported my income...
(cheering, applause)
I reported my income to the IRS.
They never failed to know how much I owed them.
I just told 'em, "I'll get to you."
-Right. -I'm gonna pay... I...
Because I have parents who had medical needs.
I have a niece, uh, that my parents are raising.
I have... I am responsible, primarily,
for not just my household, but another one.
And I want a leader who knows how to make decisions
when things are tough, not just someone who can e-easy choices
-because they've never had to face challenge. -Right.
-I think it makes me a better candidate. -(cheering, applause)
When-when you look at the issues
that are driving you in this race,
one of the big things people are concerned about
are the raw numbers.
People are saying in order for you to win,
you would have to turn out the black vote
like it has never turned out before.
And, in many ways, that's the reason
you're sitting here today. That's the reason
people are taking notice, is because you have motivated
black people to register to vote like never before.
I mean, I believe that you are part of a campaign where,
at one point, 800,000 black people
had not registered to vote, and I think that number
has now diminished to 350,000, which is an insane jump.
-So... -(applause)
there are two things...
there are things that I would like to understand.
One: why do you find, in your personal experience,
so many black people don't register to vote?
And, two: why do you think it's so important
to get these people into it? It seems like an obvious answer,
but-but why are you mobilizing these people in that way
-and how are you doing it? -So, when I founded
the New Georgia Project in 2014 or 2013,
there were 800,000 unregistered people of color,
the majority of whom... 600,000 of whom were African-American.
But you also had a large population of Latinos
and a smaller population of Asian-Americans
who weren't registered.
The problem with that is we are making choices and decisions
about everyone's lives, and if you're not
part of the decision-making, I promise you
you're still gonna be affected. Uh, the really crass way
I've heard it put is "look, if you're...
you're either at the table or you are on the menu."
And these were hundreds of thousands of people--
basically the state of South Dakota--
who were not engaged in deciding leadership.
They were watching their hospitals get shut down,
they were watching their children go to prison,
and they had no say. I grew up in a family
that was always been a part of the civil rights movement.
My parents helped register folks before it was legal.
-And they raised us to revere the right to vote. -Right.
I'm going to win this election because I revere
the right to vote, and I'm going to talk to every single Georgian
-because I know they're what matters. -(cheering, applause)
And...
f... for me, the-the real important piece of this--
and-and I think why people get confused-- I want every vote,
but I'm going to center the votes of those
who are the least likely to be asked to vote.
And that tends to be people of color,
predominantly African-Americans. We have a n...
We live in a nation that has spent centuries
-denying the right to vote, -Mm-hmm.
and spent decades creating barriers to that right to vote,
and I have an opponent who is a remarkable architect
of voter suppression. My mission is to tell folks
he doesn't matter. You do. Your right to vote is yours,
and I'm gonna give you a reason to use it.
Because when you elect me as the next governor,
your life will get better
because we're gonna work on it together.
(cheering, applause)
Thank you so much for doing our show.
Really wonderful having you.
Minority Leader is available now.
Stacey Abrams, everybody.