Migrants Land and Martha's Vineyard and at the vice president's doorstep,
Inflation rebounds and abortion divides Republicans on Capitol Hill.
It's all part of a full week, and it's why we are grateful to turn
to the analysis of Capehart and Gerson that is Jonathan, Cape Artists
associate editor for The Washington Post, and his post colleague,
opinion columnist Michael Gerson.
David Brooks is away. Hello to both of you on this year Friday evening.
Thank you for being here. Let's start with the migrants situation.
Jonathan, we have two governors. The governor of Texas Greg Abbott,
the governor of Florida, Florida, Rhonda Santa, sending planeloads
busloads of migrants to Washington, D C. And just in the last couple
of days to Martha's Vineyard, this island part of Massachusetts.
They say This is all about payback because the federal government
Biden administration hasn't done anything about this. Others are
saying it's a stunt. What is it? It's a stunt. They've been sending
busloads and planeloads of migrants to not just Washington, D. C
and Martha's Vineyard but also New York City, Chicago, giving no
notice. I did an interview with Mayor Eric Adams, whether Texas Tribune
Festival and I asked him Have you spoken to Governor Abbott? No.
You know they There's no coordination. No one's no one's calling
them And as we know about what happened on Martha's Vineyard, they
got a phone call 20 minutes before that the plane was going to land.
Um, you know, using human lives like this. These are people, particularly
the folks who landed
on Martha's Vineyard. These are people who traveled
From Venezuela, and I'm not talking about flying in on planes. They
walked from there.
And then they get to they get to Texas, and someone says to them
probably accounts. Are you looking for a job? You're looking for
a home here, come this way and put them on a plane to Martha's Vineyard.
The one saving grace in all of this, And these people being used
this way is that Martha's Vineyard is a It is an island community
that is known for its openness. And there's a sign that I've seen
on the vineyard since at least 2019 2020.
That reads. We respect women. We value black lives. We stand with
our LGBTQ community members. We stand with immigrants with refugees
with indigenous peoples, just saying to the folks who visit Martha's
Vineyard that you are in a community that prizes diversity and prizes,
humanity, and that's not what we've seen from Abbott or dissenters.
Does this get us any closer Michael to some solution.
Oh, to all this goodness. No, um it's a big thing and Maga world
to own the Libs that you know that means essentially mocking them
in ways that make them look bad.
And this is a case where you had a governor in the United States
trying to own the Libs with human beings.
As his method.
Um
That I think is your these states were once known as laboratories
of democracy laboratories, a policy ideas
Now there are laboratories of progressively worse inhumanity in Texas
and Florida and Florida and the like, Um And so I you know, indicates
something disturbing about our that
Much of our political system.
Is has become performative.
These are performances by politicians, not the pursuit of ideas or
solutions are common ground. Um, it's really I'm going to send this
message to try to hurt my enemies.
And I'm going to do it in the most dramatic and way possible, and
we have not even reached the the bottom of it yet. I don't think
I hear people all the time saying, Why can't we do something in this
country about immigration at the issue? But president after President
Republicans and Democrats have not been able to do that, why not?
Because there doesn't seem to be a will to do it. President. I'm
old enough to remember President George W. Bush trying really hard
to get an immigration reform bill done and he gave up in 2007 when
they couldn't get 14 votes to get closure in the Senate. President
Obama tried over and over and over again while at the same time in
enforcing
deporting people where he had people, um
Allies of his calling him DePorter in chief.
He then started doing DACA. But
They didn't do anything. And President Trump. Well, we didn't build
a wall, um, putting babies in prisons.
Um if Governor Abbott and Governor De Santis we're really serious
about doing something about the border, they would be spending they
would be commuting to Washington, D C. Walking the halls of Congress,
demanding a meeting with the president and sitting down together
to come up with a plan and force Congress to pass the plan. But that's
not what they're doing.
Do you see any way through this really hard issue? Well, the problem
right now is that one of the essential elements of Maga ideology
is us versus them.
And someone from an ethnicity like from Venezuela is an easy them
because they look different. They speak differently. Um
You know the opposite Here? These are many people who claim to be
Christians in their political engagement and one of the most basic
principles of religious ethics is welcoming the stranger. I mean,
how could this possibly be consistent? What we're seeing in Republican
ideology right now, But I'm I'm afraid it's kind of baked into trumpism.
There always has to be
An enemy. There always has to be them.
And that's this is what they've chosen.
Another really tough issue That's come up this week, Jonathan and
that as we saw in the Senate Lindsey Graham, South Carolina Republican
proposing what's almost a national ban a national ban on abortion
15 weeks limit. Um, but it's interesting not there were some Republican
senators who were saying they are indicating they couldn't
Go along with this what is happening with the issue of abortion right
now? Well, I'm still trying to understand why Senator Graham did
what he did knowing what we know how the American people feel about
the issue of of abortion. If the Kansas vote from this summer wasn't
a big indicator to Republicans that you need to tread lightly here.
I don't know what is, And instead the senator proposes. This proposes
this band. The fact that Republicans on the hill are walking away
from him says nothing to me because they're walking away from him
because midterms are coming.
Will those same people be walking away from Senator Graham after
the midterms when maybe they try to do it in the lame duck? Or if
the Republicans get the majority? Will they be still Will they still
walk away from Senator Graham? Or will they will they go with him?
And the other thing is, once you start at 15 weeks once you start
that debate
That's not the end of the debate. That's the beginning. What more
are they going to want to do to try to have more control over bodily
autonomy for women? Are they going to go after contraception? Are
they going to go after other things that really strike at people's
own personal liberty? What do you think is behind What Senator Graham?
Is doing And what do you How do you read the Republican reaction?
Well, what he's doing is politically foolish. It complicates the
lives of almost every one of his colleagues that that's running.
But I think I know him well enough to that. He believes this is actually
a moderate Republican position.
If you look at the number of abortions that take place in America,
according to the CDC, Um, about 90 to 93% are before 13
weeks what he's proposing. I think which people don't quite realize
is if you accept the 15 week ban, you've allowed most abortions in
America well above 90%.
Um at other times in the history of her life movement, people people
would have looked at this and said this is total surrender.
So the bill itself is not extreme. Um, and he actually makes exceptions
for rape, incest and life of the mother. Then why are saw it? Why
are a number of Republicans not
Uh, signing on because I think politically, they don't want to engage
in the details of an issue they don't want to talk about, Um
You know, this is a case where the polling is really bad when you
look at from the pro life perspective that people wanted to keep
Rovi Wade. But if you look at the polling about a 15 months back
It's just about even in several polls in America, there's support.
I think that Graham knows that and thinks this is the way it should
be argued, But it's It also is a political disaster for Republicans.
You know, this whole thing feels like politics. I hear what you're
saying. Michael about, you know, this is actually from Republicans
of yore would think that this bill is surrender.
But I watched part of that press conference of Senator Graham's press
conference. And there was a woman there who asked the question of
very personal question about a complication with her own pregnancy,
really horrible complications. She spoke from a from a human level
personal level, and he answered her by dodging the question and relying
on political talking points. You're going after Democrats
If you really care about this issue.
Then you need to talk to that. You need to talk to that woman. You
need to address her concerns, and that's what Republicans aren't
doing.
Another subject I want to bring up and that is pretty bad news this
week about inflation about prices. Um, this is an issue that clearly
Democrats worried about Michael Republicans, Of course, you know,
beating that drum, but from a from a pocketbook standpoint, what's
going on right now in the economy, we're told is strong, but prices
Are going up. What's happened? What's behind all this? I think that
the president has actually had a pretty good couple of weeks. And
when you look at it in total
validated the you know inflation for for gasoline and other products
go down you've had, you know, there's some fairly bad news on inflation,
which you still have unbelievably lower Unemployment in America.
That's actually part of the problem. A tight labor market that in
increases inflation
He bite me as to some extent.
The least popular, most successful president I know of,
But even the popularity has come up a few points in the in the last
few weeks. Um so I think he's looking
to, you know to try to build on that success create the appearance
of competence and progress.
And it actually is working to some extent. I think that among independents,
you see some movement, not Republicans, but
How do you see this? And and what? The role inflation is playing
and all this
well in terms of this, this aura of competence, the president coming,
you know, getting that averting the rail strike is something that
necessary necessary. But imagine if there had been a rail strike
the inflation would have. They would have complicated the story.
It would have complicated inflation. But I do think that inflation
is a big It's a big worry. It's a big worry for the ministry.
Rations because we all we know as much as abortion is working well
for Democrats politically in terms of getting women registered to
vote.
We know
At the end of the day. People look at their pocketbooks. And if prices
are high, if gas starts spiking up again, they look at their own
personal economy. And we saw in a poll that the news hour was part
of this week that even though the economists and the experts say
we are not in a recession yet, it maybe down the line. We don't know.
A majority of Americans. A large majority of Americans think we are
already in a recession, so so much of it is, is the mindset right?
It's personal.