>>> WANTING TO COOPERATE AND I
THINK WHAT YOU DEMONSTRATE IS
LEADERSHIP IS PARTNERSHIP AND WE
DO APPRECIATE IT.
I THINK WE CAN DELIVER.
>> I THINK WE CAN TOO.
THE UNITED STATES, IVE SAID
BEFORE, WERE BACK.
THE U.S. IS BACK.
>> PRESIDENT BIDENS PROMISE
THAT AMERICA IS BACK, BACK FOR
WHO?
TO BEING A BEACON OF DEMOCRACY
ON THE WORLD STAGE IS A HARD
SELL.
AND ATTACKS ON THE RIGHT ARE
PROLIFERATING ACROSS REPUBLICAN
LED STATES.
THREE OUT OF TEN REPUBLICANS
BELIEVE DONALD TRUMP WILL BE
REINSTATED AS PRESIDENT THIS
YEAR.
AND WHEN TRUMP IS NOT HELD
ACCOUNTABLE FOR ENCOURAGING A
VIOLENT MOB FOR TRYING TO
OVERTURN A REPUBLICAN ELECTION.
THIS KILLS A BIPARTISAN
COMMISSION HOPING TO INVESTIGATE
THE ATTACK.
JOINING ME TO DISCUSS THE STATE
OF AMERICA DEMOCRACY, DR. SARAH
KINZADOR AND AUTHOR OF "HIDING
IN PLAIN SIGHT."
THANK YOU BOTH FOR BEING HERE.
IM GOING TO START WITH THIS PEW
POLL.
WE HAVE A RECENT POLL THAT COMES
OUT ASKING WHETHER OR NOT THE
UNITED STATES IS STILL A GOOD
EXAMPLE OF WHAT AMERICA -- WHAT
DEMOCRACY SHOULD BE.
AND ILL START WITH YOU, SARAH.
WHAT DOES IT SAY THAT 57% OF
PEOPLE RESPONDING SAYING THAT
AMERICA USED TO BE A GOOD
EXAMPLE OF DEMOCRACY BUT NOW IT
ISNT?
>> WELL, IT SHOWS THAT 57% OF
PEOPLE ARE PAYING ATTENTION, BUT
I THINK WHAT WE NEED TO LOOK AT
ARE THE WEAKNESSES THAT ALLOWED
OUR COUNTRY TO DETERIORATE SO
BADLY DURING THE TRUMP YEARS TO
BEGIN WITH.
THE REASON OUR INSTITUTIONS WERE
ABLE TO BE CORRUPTED IS BECAUSE
THEY WERE ALREADY WEAK GOING IN.
WHATS HAPPENING NOW WITH THE
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION REFUSING TO
ENFORCE ACCOUNTABILITY, REFUSING
TO INVESTIGATE THINGS LIKE
TRUMPS REACTION AND HANDLING OF
THE COVID PANDEMIC, THE JANUARY
6th ATTACK ON THE CAPITOL, THE
FACT THAT HE WAS A KREMLIN
ASSET, I DONT THINK THAT THATS
NECESSARILY GOING TO RESTORE
FAITH, EITHER DOMESTICALLY OR
GLOBALLY IN THE U.S. AS A
PARAGON OF REPRESENTATIVE
DEMOCRACY AND JUSTICE.
>> EXACTLY.
IT OCCURS TO ME IN ANY OTHER
COUNTRY IN THE WORLD THAT HAS
BEEN WATCHING AMERICA FOR THE
LAST SIX MONTHS ALONE, ITS LIKE
THERE WAS AN ATTEMPTED COUP AND
THE GUY THAT YOU FOUND
RESPONSIBLE FOR IT IS HAPPENING
OUT IN FLORIDA AND NO ONES BEEN
HELD ACCOUNTABLE.
I WANT TO ASK YOU THIS, THIS
IDEA THAT AMERICA USED TO BE AN
EXAMPLE OF A DEMOCRACY AND NOW
ISNT, WHEN WAS THIS PLACE EVER
AN EXAMPLE OF DEMOCRACY?
WHEN LARGE NUMBERS OF PEOPLE,
ESPECIALLY BLACK AND BROWN
PEOPLE, WERE DENIED ACCESS TO
THE VOTE?
DO YOU THINK THAT EVEN THAT
RESPONSE SORT OF REFLECTS A
PROBLEMATIC UNDERSTANDING OF
THIS COUNTRYS HISTORY?
>> ABSOLUTELY.
THIS IS SPECIFICALLY A CRISIS OF
WHITE LIBERALISM, RIGHT?
SO FASCISM IS COMPLETELY CLEAR
WHERE IT STANDS.
ITS BEEN STANDING IN THE SAME
PLACE.
REPUBLICANS ARE COMPLETELY, YOU
KNOW, IN LOCK STEP WITH FASCISM.
ITS MOST RECENT ITERATION BEING
LED BY TRUMP HERE, RIGHT?
>> RIGHT.
>> BUT THE CRISIS IS REALLY
AMONG THE WHITE LIBERALS WHO
HAVE TO CON FRONT THIS FACT THAT
WE CANNOT HAVE DEMOCRACY IN THE
UNITED STATES UNLESS IT IS
EXTENDED TO EVERYONE.
AND SO YOU CANT ADDRESS THE
CRISIS OF DEMOCRACY WITHOUT
SPECIFICALLY ADDRESSING RACE AND
RACISM AND THAT IS WHERE THE
FAULT LINE REALLY EXISTS.
>> AND ALONG THOSE LINES, WE
HAVE SOME RECENT STATEMENTS FROM
RAFFENSPERGER AND HIS WIFE WHO
WAS SECRETARY OF STATE IN
GEORGIA WHERE THEY ARE GETTING
DEATH THREATS, DEATH THREATS FOR
SIMPLY DOING THEIR JOB.
YOU KNOW, BRI, YOUVE DONE
ACTIVIST WORK IN SOUTH CAROLINA
WHERE YOUR LIFE HAS BEEN IN
DANGER AND EVERYTHING ELSE LIKE
THAT.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN THAT NOW
CONSERVATIVES, PEOPLE WHO HAVE
SUPPORTED TRUMP ARE NOW HAVING
THEIR LIVES THREATENED EVEN AS
THE LARGER PARTY ITSELF TURNS A
BLIND EYE TO THE INCREASING
DANGERS OF WHITE NATIONALISM IN
THIS COUNTRY?
>> WELL, ITS NOT SURPRISING AT
ALL, AND THATS PART OF WHAT IS
FRANKLY FRIGHTENING ABOUT THE
FACT THAT, YOU KNOW, EVEN AS
REPUBLICANS FACE THESE THREATS
THEY ARE STILL WILLING TO MARCH
ALONG, YOU KNOW, THIS DIRECTION
WITH TRUMP.
BUT ITS ALSO IMPORTANT FOR
EVERYONE TO RECOGNIZE THAT THIS
IS WHAT HAPPENS AS FASCISM TAKES
OVER.
THEY ARE NOT FEELING THE THREAT
AS ACUTELY AS PEOPLE LIKE
MYSELF, BLACK AND BROWN
ACTIVISTS HAVE FELT FOR SOME
TIME.
IT WILL COME KNOCKING AT YOUR
DOOR.
THAT IS WHAT IS SO FRIGHTENING
ABOUT IT.
>> SARAH, WEVE BEEN TALKING
ABOUT INTERNAL THREATS TO
AMERICAN DEMOCRACY.
NOW LETS TALK ABOUT AN EXTERNAL
THREAT TO AMERICAN DEMOCRACY.
I WANT TO PLAY SOME SOUND FROM
AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW NBC HAS
WITH VLADIMIR PUTIN.
ID LIKE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE
OTHER SIDE.
>> WHEN PRESIDENT BIDEN IS ASKED
WHETHER HE BELIEVES YOU ARE A
KILLER, HE SAID, I DO.
MR. PRESIDENT, ARE YOU A KILLER?
>> Translator: WITHIN MY TENURE
IVE GOTTEN USED TO ATTACKS FROM
ALL KINDS OF ANGLES AND ALL
KINDS OF AREAS AND UNDER
PRETEXTS AND REASONS AND
DIFFERENT CALIBER AND FIERCENESS
AND NONE OF IT SURPRISES ME.
AS FAR AS HARSH RHETORIC, I
THINK THIS IS AN EXPRESSION OF
OVERALL U.S. CULTURE.
>> SARAH, ALL WORLD LEADERS ARE
KILLERS AT SOME LEVEL OR
ANOTHER.
THEYRE IN CHARGE OF ARMIES.
WHAT DOES THIS KIND OF RESPONSE
FROM VLADIMIR PUTIN TELL US NOT
JUST ABOUT HIS POSITIONING NOW
BUT PERHAPS WHAT HES WILLING TO
DO AND WHAT HE MIGHT BE
COMMITTED TO DO UNDER THE U.S.
ADMINISTRATION?
>> IT SHOWS HES VERY ADEPT AT
USING AMERICAN TELEVISION AND
MEDIA FOR AUTOCRATIC FLAUNTING.
TRUMP WAS HIS ASSET AND THE
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION WAS A TRANS
NATIONAL CRIME SYNDICATE
MASQUERADEING AS A GOVERNMENT.
THE KREMLIN WAS A KEY PART OF
THAT.
THIS IS LINKS BETWEEN MAFIOSOS,
AUTOCRATS WORLDWIDE.
NOW THAT HIS ASSET IS REMOVED
FROM POWER, HIS PRIMARY CONCERN
IS HAVING THE AMERICAN PUBLIC
FOR GETTING THAT HAPPENED.
HIS GREAT ROUTE IS TO LEVERAGE
MEDIA TO ISSUE THESE KINDS OF
THREATS.
ITS AIDED BY STRUCTURAL THREATS
LIKE THE MAJOR CYBER ATTACKS
THAT THE KREMLIN HAS BEEN
LEVYING AGAINST THE U.S. THROUGH
PROXY ORGANIZATIONS, BUT THE
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION NEEDS TO BE
MUCH MORE AGGRESSIVE ABOUT THIS,
MUCH MORE ASSERTIVE ABOUT
STATING OUR VALUES, HITTING THE
OLIGARCHS WHERE IT HURTS,
FOLLOWING THE LIST OF OLIGARCHS
THAT SHUT BE HURT.
THOSE ARE PRAGMATIC THINGS
PRESIDENT BIDEN COULD DO INSTEAD
OF HAVING A SUMMIT WITH PUTIN
THAT PUTIN WILL USE AS A GREAT P
PR COUP FOR ITS ENTIRE AGENDA.
>> IF YOU EVER FEEL PASSIVE, IF
YOU EVER THINK ITS TIME TO SIT
DOWN, PLEASE FOLLOW THE TIME
LINES OF EITHER OF THESE WOMEN
AND THEY WILL WAKE YOU UP EVERY