ARE YOU OKAY WITH A RACIST PRESIDENT, REPUBLICANS?
PRESIDENT, REPUBLICANS? I’M JOINED TONIGHT FOR A
DISCUSSION ON THIS.
FORMER SOLICITOR GENERAL OF THE
UNITED STATES, NEAL KATYAL.
TIFFANY CROSS, MANAGING EDITOR
OF ""THE BEAT"" D.C.
NO RELATION I SHOULD MENTION.
ADAM GREEN, CO-FOUNDER OF THE
PROGRESSIVE CHANGE CAMPAIGN
COMMITTEE.
COMMITTEE. WHAT IS THIS LANGUAGE MEAN TO
YOU?
YOU? >> IT’S REPULSIVE.
WHEN YOU TAKE IT BIT BY BIT, ONE
OF THE FIRST THINGS I DID TODAY
AFTER A HEARING, THE SECOND
PRESSER THAT THE PRESIDENT HAD
TODAY WAS I WENT TO TAKE A LOOK
AND SEE WHAT RUSH LIMBAUGH WAS
SAYING BECAUSE TO ME THAT GIVES
US A REALLY GOOD SENSE OF WHAT
MANY PEOPLE ON THE RIGHT ARE
SAYING AND FEELING.
ONE OF THE THINGS HE’S SAYING
IS, NUMBER ONE, DON’T BLAME THIS
ON THE PRESIDENT.
DON’T BE MAD AT THE PRESIDENT.
BLAME IT ON THE MEDIA BECAUSE
THE LEFT WING MEDIA IS AGAINST
US.
US. YOU KNOW.
YOU KNOW. HE SAYS DONALD TRUMP ISN’T
RACIST.
RACIST. DONALD TRUMP ISN’T MENTION
COLOR.
COLOR. HE DIDN’T MENTION RACE.
THESE ARE ANTI-AMERICAN,
ANTI-ISRAEL, YOU KNOW, HORRIBLE,
HORRIBLE WOMEN.
HORRIBLE WOMEN. AND THEY SHOULD GO BACK TO THE
PLACES WHERE THEY CAME FROM.
WHAT IT SAYS TO ME IS AMERICA
WAS BUILT ON THE BACKS OF BLACK
MEN AND BLACK WOMEN WHO DIDN’T
WANT TO BE HERE.
AND WHEN THEY WANTED TO GO BACK
TO AFRICA, THEY WERE NOT ALLOWED
TO DO SO.
TO DO SO. BLACK WOMEN WERE RAPED.
BLACK MEN WERE -- SUFFERED ALL
TYPES OF ATROCITIES.
WE BUILT THIS COUNTRY.
THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO REASON
FOR ANY OF US TO LEAVE.
AMERICA IS AS MUCH OUR COUNTRY
AS IT IS ANYONE ELSE’S.
AND THE QUESTION I HAVE FOR
MITCH McCONNELL AND ALL THE
REPUBLICANS WHO DID NOT COME OUT
AND SAY ANYTHING ABOUT WHAT THE
PRESIDENT SAID TODAY IS, IS THIS
WHAT TODAY’S REPUBLICAN PARTY
STANDS FOR?
STANDS FOR? WHAT HAPPENED TO THE BIG TENT?
>> SO, I COMPLETELY AGREE WITH
YOU.
YOU. I DO THINK, THOUGH, WE HAVE TO
ACKNOWLEDGE THAT, I’LL QUOTE MY
FRIEND ERIC DYSON HERE AND SAY
FRANKEN STEIN WAS THE DOCTOR,
NOT THE MONSTER.
THIS IS THE MONSTER THAT THE GOP
CREATED AND WE HAVE TO
ACKNOWLEDGE THAT.
ACKNOWLEDGE THAT. THIS DIDN’T BEGIN THIS YEAR.
THIS CERTAINLY ISN’T THE FIRST
TIME THAT WE HAVE A WHITE
NATIONALIST IN THE OVAL OFFICE
OF THIS COUNTRY.
THIS ISN’T THE FIRST TIME WE’VE
HAD WHITE NATIONALISTS WALKING
TO CAPITOL HILL.
BUT WE SEE RIGHT NOW THIS IS
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE’RE SILENT.
I WOULD EVEN GO A STEP FURTHER
AND SAY THIS IS THE FIRST TIME
THAT THE MEDIA HAS BEEN SO BOLD
TO SAY THE PRESIDENT MADE RACIST
COMMENTS.
COMMENTS. OH, NOT COMMENTS WITH RACIAL
UNDER TONES.
UNDER TONES. NOT THINGS THAT SOME PEOPLE
FOUND RACIST.
FOUND RACIST. I THINK HAD WE CALLED A THING A
THING TWO YEARS AGO WHEN THIS
PRESIDENT KICKED OFF HIS
CAMPAIGN BY CALLING MEXICANS
RAPISTS AND DRUG DEALERS, HAD WE
CALLED A THING A THING IN 2011
WHEN HE TALKED ABOUT OBAMA BEING
A BIRTHER, HAD IF WE CALLED A
THING A THING DECADES AGO WHEN
HE CALLED FOR THE MURDER OF THE
CENTRAL PARK 5, THE NOW
EXONERATED 5, IN HONOR OF BEING
HERE WITH ARI, I’LL QUOTE THE
URBAN PHILOSOPHER NAS HERE,
OTHERWISE KNOWN AS NASSAR JONES,
THEY WANT US ALL GONE
EVENTUALLY.
EVENTUALLY. THESE WOMEN REPRESENT MILLIONS
OF PEOPLE WHEN HE SAY GOES BACK
TO WHERE YOU CAME FROM, HE’S NOT
TALKING ABOUT THESE FOUR
LAWMAKERS.
LAWMAKERS. HE’S TALKING ABOUT YOU AND ME
AND YOU AND YOU.
>> AND THEIR CONSTITUENTS.
>> AND THEIR CONSTITUENTS,
EXACTLY.
EXACTLY. >> VERY WELL PUT.
WE DON’T HAVE NAS ON THIS
PROGRAM TONIGHT, BUT WE DO HAVE
PROFESSOR DYSON LATER IN THE
HOUR.
HOUR. APPROPRIATE REFERENCE TO THINK
ON AND A SERIOUS TOPIC.
I WANT TO NOW PLAY BRIEFLY THE
PRESIDENT SAYING, YES, HE’S FINE
WITH THE WHITE NATIONAL
AGREEMENT.
AGREEMENT. TAKE A LOOK, NEAL.
>> GET OUT OF MY COUNTRY.
GET OUT.
GET OUT. THIS IS NOT ABOUT YOU.
>> I’M A U.S. CITIZEN, TOO.
>> A MAN IDENTIFIED AS
36-YEAR-OLD CHRISTOPHER NELSON
CALLED HER AN ISIS EXPLETIVE AND
SAID I WILL CUT YOUR THROAT.
GO BACK --
>> MANY PEOPLE SAW THAT TWEET AS
RACIST AND THAT WHITE
NATIONALISTS GROUPS ARE FINDING
COMMON CAUSE WITH YOU ON THAT
POINT.
POINT. >> IT DOESN’T CONCERN ME BECAUSE
MANY PEOPLE AGREE WITH ME.
AND ALL I’M SAYING, THEY WANT TO
LEAVE, THEY CAN LEAVE.
>> SO I THINK THERE’S A
POLITICAL DIMENSION, HISTORICAL
DIMENSION.
DIMENSION. I THINK THE REASON WHY YOU GET
THESE COMMENTS CREATING SUCH
RESONANCE IN THE COUNTRY IS
BECAUSE OF THE PERSONAL
DIMENSION.
DIMENSION. I THINK -- I DON’T TALK
PERSONALLY ON YOUR SHOW MUCH,
BUT I THINK ANYONE WHO HAS BROWN
SKIN HEARS THESE COMMENTS ALL
THE TIME.
THE TIME. FOR ME IT STARTED WHEN I WAS 3
YEARS OLD WHEN MY MOM WAS
PULLING OUT OF THE CAR, PULLING
OUT OF THE DRIVEWAY AND SOMEONE
KNOCKED ON HER DOOR AND SAID, GO
BACK TO YOUR COUNTRY.
>> YOU HAVE A MEMORY OF THIS IN
YOU ARE WHY LIFE?
>> IT WAS MY FIRST MEMORY AT 3
YEARS OLD.
YEARS OLD. >> I WANT YOU TO CONTRAST THAT
AS YOU SPEAK TO THE PUBLIC
MEMORY.
MEMORY. WE’LL PULL IT AND PUT IT BACK
UP.
UP. I MENTIONED AT THE TOP OF THE
SHOW, THE LITTLE ROCK 4, AND
"THE NEW YORK TIMES" REPORTING
WHAT THEY WERE SAYING THEN TO
THEM, WHAT OUR EARLIER PANELIST
MENTIONED, YOU’RE SAYING THEY
SAID TO YOU.
>> NOT JUST THEM.
MY MOM LAUGHED WHEN I WAS 3.
I REMEMBER THIS VERY VIVIDLY.
THAT WAS HER RESPONSE, UTTER
SHEER LAUGHTER.
SHEER LAUGHTER. BUT I THINK THIS IS DIFFERENT
BECAUSE THIS IS, OF COURSE, NOT
SOME RANDOM ON THE STREET.
THIS IS THE PRESIDENT OF THE
UNITED STATES DOING THIS AND
TAKING COMFORT, LIKE IN THAT
CLIP, BY SAYING, WELL, LOTS OF
PEOPLE THINK WHAT I’M SAYING.
THAT’S NOT A DEFENSE.
THAT FUNDAMENTALLY DISQUALIFIES
HIM TO BE THE PRESIDENT OF THE
UNITED STATES.
UNITED STATES. HE IS SUCH AT WAR WITH OUR
CONSTITUTIONAL VALUES.
CONSTITUTIONAL VALUES. ARI, YOU’RE RIGHT, THIS IS THE
LAND OF LITTLE ROCK AND SELMA,
OF DR. KING, OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN,
OF OUR 14th AMENDMENT AND OUR
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE.
AND THIS PRESIDENT DOESN’T GET
ANY PART OF THAT.
>> AND THIS IS IT AS I
MENTIONED.
MENTIONED. WHAT YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT IS
WHAT PEOPLE HAVE LIVED AND WHAT
THEY HEAR.
THEY HEAR. AND SPEAK, IF YOU WOULD, NEAL,
AND THEN BACK TO THE PANEL, AS
WE LOOK AT THIS, THIS WAS THE
HISTORY SURROUNDED BY A JEERING
CROWD, GO BACK HOME THEY SAID TO
SOMEONE, WHO WAS HOME, AS YOU
WERE ALLUDING TO.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN WHEN THEN ONE
OF THE RESPONSES THE PRESIDENT
GETS IS, WELL, MAYBE HE DIDN’T
MEAN THAT.
MEAN THAT. OR PEOPLE ARE BLOWING IT OUT OF
PROPORTION.
PROPORTION. >> YEAH, IT’S NOT OUT OF
PROPORTION.
PROPORTION. IT’S FUNDAMENTALLY INCONSISTENT
WITH WHAT IT MEANS TO BE AN
AMERICAN.
AMERICAN. YOU CAN LOOK AT RONALD REAGAN’S,
ONE OF HIS LAST SPEECHES WHEN HE
WAS PRESIDENT ON NOVEMBER 7th,
1988, IN WHICH HE SAYS, PUT UP
ON MY TWITTER RIGHT NOW, YOU CAN
BE A FRENCH MAN AND COME HERE.
YOU’RE NOW AN AMERICAN.
BUT THIS IS NOT WHAT HE SAYS.
THIS RHETORIC, IT’S NOT JUST
WHEN I WAS 3.
ARI, I GET THESE EMAILS EVERY
DAY.
DAY. I GET CALLS EVERY DAY SAYING, GO
BACK.
BACK. MUHAMMAD LOVER, GO BACK TO
PAKISTAN.
PAKISTAN. THEY DON’T UNDERSTAND WHERE
PEOPLE WITH BROWN SKIN ARE ALL
FROM.
FROM. BUT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT LOTS
OF AMERICANS EXPERIENCE EVERY
SINGLE DAY.
SINGLE DAY. AND THAT’S WHY I THINK THIS IS
GETTING THE RESONANCE IN THE WAY
OTHERS DO.
OTHERS DO. YOU AND I HAVE TALKED ABOUT, YOU
KNOW, MUELLER AND, YOU KNOW,
OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE AND
CONSPIRACY AND ALL THAT’S
IMPORTANT.
IMPORTANT. BUT THIS IS A CONSPIRACY AGAINST
OUR CONSTITUTIONAL VALUES.
>> ALSO YOU GET THAT EVERY DAY.
IT’S SOMETHING TO NOTE THAT THE
SCARIEST THING ABOUT THE
PRESIDENT’S COMMENTS TODAY WAS
THE APPLAUSE FROM THE AUDIENCE.
>> YES.
>> YES. >> THE OTHER SCARY THING IS
ALLTEL THEALL
ALLTEL THEALL THE PEOPLE AT HOME WHO ARE
APPLAUDING.
APPLAUDING. THE DEAFENING SILENCE WE GET
FROM THE BRANCH OF THE
GOVERNMENT AND JUDICIARY, ALL
ACROSS THE COUNTRY PEOPLE ARE
DISAGREEING WITH WHAT YOU’RE
SAYING, ARI, THEY’RE DISAGREEING
WITH ME.
WITH ME. THEY’RE SAYING WE’RE PART OF THE
LEFT WING MEDIA THAT DOESN’T
UNDERSTAND THE COUNTRY THAT WE
BUILT FOR FREE.
SO I THINK WE HAVE TO ROOT THIS
OUT STEM WHAT THE PRESIDENT HAS
CITED.
CITED. >> IT’S EVEN SCARIER TO ME THAN
THE DEAFENING SILENCE IS EVERY
SINGLE DAY OF THE WEEK YOU CAN
GO ON SOCIAL MEDIA AND FIND
VIDEO OF SOMEONE YELLING AT A’s
PERSON OF COLOR IN A RESTAURANT
OR IN A PARK AND TELLING THEM TO
GO BACK TO THE COUNTRY THAT THEY
CAME FROM.
CAME FROM. EVERY DAY WOMEN LIKE ME FEAR
THEIR SONS AND THEIR DAUGHTERS
LEAVING THEIR HOME JUST TO GO TO
SCHOOL.
SCHOOL. JUST RECENTLY I TOLD MY SON IN
ADVANCE OF SOMETHING HE WAS
GETTING READY TO DO, BE CAREFUL
AND DON’T PLAY MUSIC TOO LOUD
AND SHOWS HIM THE STORY ON THE
NEWS ABOUT THE YOUNG MAN HE
THOUGHT A BLACK BOY WAS PLAYING
MUSIC TOO LOUD AND SLIT HIS
THROAT.
THROAT. THIS COMES FROM THE TOP AND IT
TRICKLES DOWN.
TRICKLES DOWN. TALK ABOUT TRICKLE DOWN
ECONOMICS, THIS IS TRICKLE DOWN
MURDER.
MURDER. IT’S VERY, VERY SERIOUS.
HE IS SETTING THE TONE FOR A
COUNTRY THAT MAKES IT UNSAFE FOR
ANYONE WHO LOOKS LIKE THE PEOPLE
SITTING AT THIS VERY TABLE.
>> RIGHT.
>> RIGHT. AND THAT WAS THE POINT I THINK
WAS ALLUDED TO BY THESE FOUR
WOMEN OF COLOR, MEMBERS OF
CONGRESS TODAY AS WELL ABOUT
WHAT ARE YOU PUTTING OUT INTO
THE BLOODSTREAM OF AMERICA?
>> EXACTLY.
>> EXACTLY. THEY GET DEATH THREATS EVERY
DAY.
DAY. >> SO, ADAM, YOU ARE SOMEONE WHO
HAS WORKED FOR A LONG TIME AT
THAT INTERSECTION OF WHAT THE
DEMOCRATIC PARTY IS, WHAT IT
SHOULD BE, AND HOW IT SHOULD
DEAL WITH ITS FOES.
AND FIVE OR TEN YEARS AGO WHERE
YOUR GROUP WAS, A LOT OF PEOPLE
IN THIS TOWN SAID, TOO FAR, AND
YOU’RE TOO NEGATIVE OR CYNICAL
ABOUT THE MODERN REPUBLICAN
PARTY.
PARTY. CERTAINLY THAT WAS HOW PEOPLE
VIEWED YOUR GROUP IN THE OBAMA
ERA HERE I THINK IT’S FAIR TO
SAY.
SAY. WHAT DO YOU SEE AS SOMEONE WHO
SAID, NO, YOU HAVE TO MEET FIRE
WITH FIRE IN THIS PART OF THE
WAY THE REPUBLICAN PARTY LOOKS
TODAY IN WASHINGTON?
>> WELL, FIRST BEFORE GETTING TO
THAT POWER DYNAMIC, I THINK IT
IS IMPORTANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE
MORAL MOMENT THAT WE’RE IN.
AND AS THE ONE GUEST HERE WHO
DOES NOT HAVE A PLAQUE, IT’S
IMPORTANT TO SAY WHITE PEOPLE
NEED TO CALL OUT WHITE
NATIONALISM EXPLICITLY.
NATIONALISM EXPLICITLY. WHITE PEOPLE NEED TO CALL OUT
RACISM EXPLICITLY.
RACISM EXPLICITLY. THAT’S THE BARE MINIMUM WE CAN
DO.
DO. THERE WAS A DIRECT CORRELATION
HERE BETWEEN THIS RACIST POLICY
AND WHAT’S HAPPENING AT THE
BORDERS WITH THESE CHILDREN.
IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT COMMENTS
THAT ARE BEING SAID AND
CRITICIZED.
CRITICIZED. I HAVE NOT SEEN THE IMAGES OF
WHITE PEOPLE IN THOSE CAGES.
THIS IS AN OUTGROWTH OF THE
INHUMANITY EXPRESSED BY TRUMP
THROUGH HIS POLICIES THAT IS
HAVING HUGE RATIFICATIONS ON
PEOPLE’S LIVES.
PEOPLE’S LIVES. THAT GETS TO THE YOUNG WOMEN OF
COLOR WHO ARE PROGRESSIVES AND
PUSHING THE ENVELOPE OF WHAT
THEY ARE DOING.
THEY ARE A THREAT.
THEY ARE A THREAT TO THE ENTIRE
POWER ESTABLISHMENT.
POWER ESTABLISHMENT. NOT JUST THE REPUBLICAN PARTY,
BUT THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY AND
THIS HAS BEEN A WEIRD WEEK
WHERE, FIRST IT WAS THE
DEMOCRATIC CIVIL WAR AND NOW
TRUMP IS GETTING IN AND GETTING
MIXED UP.
MIXED UP. WHAT WE ARE LEARN BEING HERE IS
WE HAVE TO FIGHT FIRE WITH FIRE.
IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, THIS WEEK
IS A RARE INSTANCE IN THE TRUMP
PRESIDENCY WHERE HE FELT SO LEFT
OUT OF THE CENTER OF GRAVITY OF
A DEBATE HAPPENING THAT HE FELT
THE NEED TO JUMP IN, RIGHT?
THAT IS TESTAMENT TO THE POWER
THAT AOC AND RASHIDA AND ILHAN
AND AYANNA HAVE IN MOVING THE
NATIONAL DIALOGUE.
NATIONAL DIALOGUE. IT’S A GOOD POWER.
AND THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY NEEDS
TO LIFT UP THAT POWER, NOT TRY
TO TEAR IT DOWN.
>> LET ME PLAY BRIEFLY FOR YOU
BECAUSE YOU MENTION THE
CENTRALITY THERE.
CENTRALITY THERE. LINDSEY GRAHAM WHO USED TO SAY
THE PRESIDENT WAS A RACE-BAITING
KOOK, TO QUOTE HIS WORDS, AND
NOW DEFENDS ALMOST ANYTHING.
TAKE A LISTEN.
>> WE ALL KNOW THAT AOC AND THIS
CROWD ARE A BUNCH OF COMMUNISTS.
THEY HATE ISRAEL.
THEY HATE OUR OWN COUNTRY.
THEY’RE ANTI-AMERICA.
THEY’RE ANTI-AMERICA. DON’T GET THAT, AIM HIGHER.
WE DON’T NEED TO KNOW ANYTHING
ABOUT THEM PERSONALLY.
TALK ABOUT THEIR POLICIES.
THEY’RE ANTI-SEMITIC.
THEY’RE ANTI-SEMITIC. THEY STAND FOR ALL THE THINGS
THAT MOST AMERICANS DISAGREE
WITH.
WITH. >> SO HE’S TRYING TO SAY
ACTUALLY THEY ARE THE SOURCE OF
THE HATE.
THE HATE. AS I MENTIONED AND WE LIKE TO DO
RECEIPTS AROUND HERE, THIS WAS
LINDSEY GRAHAM BACK IN THE DAY
ON DONALD TRUMP.
TAKE A LOOK.
>> HE’S A RACE BAITING
XENOPHOBIC RELIGIOUS BIGOT.
HE DOESN’T REPRESENT MY PARTY.
HE DOESN’T REPRESENT THE VALUES
THAT THE MEN AND WOMEN WHO WEAR
THE UNIFORM ARE FIGHTING FOR.
>> WHAT DO YOU DO WITH THAT?
>> WELL, I SAW MY FRIEND HARRY
REID STAFFER TODAY CALL OUT
STEVE BAYNES, REPUBLICAN SENATOR
FOR MAKING THE SAME COMMENT.
HE SAID DON’T BRING JUICE IN
THIS.
THIS. DON’T WHITEWASH THIS BY INVOKING
JEWS.
JEWS. LINDSEY GRAHAM WOULD HAVE THE
CREDIBILITY TO SAY ANYTHING IF
HE SAID THIS IS WHITE
NATIONALISM, THIS IS RACISM, I
CONDEMN IT.
CONDEMN IT. HE’S DEFLECTING.
HE’S DEFLECTING. THAT SHOWS WHAT A PROBLEM THIS
IS.
IS. >> I HAVE MARK WHO LEADS THE
CIVIL RIGHTS ON THESE ISSUES.
I’M GOING TO TURN TO HIM.
THIS HAS BEEN AN ILLUMINATING
DISCUSSION.
DISCUSSION. I APPRECIATE THE REAL TRUTH AND