♪ >> STEPHEN: WELCOME BACK.
MY GUESTS TONIGHT HOST ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR PODCASTS IN THE
COUNTRY.
FROM "POD SAVE AMERICA," PLEASE WELCOME JON FAVREAU, JON LOVETT,
AND TOMMY VIETOR!
>> HI.
WHOO!
HEY STEPHEN.
>> Stephen: ONE IMAGINES THE CROWD IS GOING WILD.
( LAUGHTER ) LET'S GET TO THE HEAT OF THE
BIDEN IS THE NOMINEE, BERNIE IS OUT.
DOES THIS CHANGE ANYTHING, BERNIE'S ANNOUNCEMENT?
>> I MEAN, I THINK WE ALWAYS KNEW IT WAS GOING TO END UP LIKE
THIS, AT LEAST SINCE BIDEN DID SO WELL ON SUPER TUESDAY AND
THEN THE PRIMARIES RIGHT AFTER THAT.
BUT NOW WE HAVE A NOMINEE, AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, I ALWAYS
REMEMBER THAT BARACK OBAMA WOULD ALWAYS SAY THAT ONE OF THE BEST
DECISIONS HE MADE AS PRESIDENT IS TO MAKE JOE BIDEN HIS
VICE PRESIDENT AND, YOU KNOW, WE HAD OUR SHARE OF CRITICISMS FOR
BIDEN DURING THE PRIMARY, BUT HE IS KIND AND EMPATHETIC AND HE IS
EXPERIENCED, AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S JOE BIDEN OR DONALD TRUMP.
THOSE ARE THE CHOICES NOW.
PRETTY EASY ONE FOR ME.
>> Stephen: OKAY.
YOU GUYS -- YOU GUYS, OBVIOUSLY, FOR THE PEOPLE THERE WHO DON'T
KNOW, WE'RE OBAMA GUYS.
AND JOE LIKES TO REMIND EVERYBODY HE WAS OBAMA'S
VICE PRESIDENT.
YEAH, IT'Sçó JOE OR DONALD TRUMP VHAT'S AN EASY CHOICE, BUT WHAT
IS YOUR LEVEL OF ENTHUSIASM FOR JOE BIDEN RIGHT NOW ON A SCALE
OF 1 TO 10?
>> ELEVEN.
>> Stephen: ELEVEN.
JOE BIDEN IS A KIND, DECENT, EMPATHETIC HUMAN BEING WHO CARES
ABOUT PEOPLE AROUND HIM AND IN THIS COUNTRY.
HE'S ALSO AN INCREDIBLY COMPETENT LEADER WHO IN ADDITION
TO MANY DUTIES HE DID OVER EIGHT YEARS IN THE WHITE HOUSE HELPED
LEAD THE RESPONSE TO THE EBOLA CRISIS IN 2014 AND HAPPENS TO
EMPLOY THE BERN WHO WAS THE EBOLA CZAR AT THAT TIME.
NOT ONLY IS HE A GREAT VICE PRESIDENT, HE HAS DIRECT
EXPERTISE IN HANDLING A PANDEMIC RESPONSE LIKE WE'RE DOLING WITH
RIGHT NOW.
SO IN MANY WAYS WE'RE LUCKY TO HAVE JOE BIDEN AT THE TOP OF
THIS TICKET.
>> Stephen: OKAY, BERNIE GOT A LOT OF CRITICISM FOR NOT
SUFFICIENTLY BEING ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT HILLARY CLINTON IN 2016.
WHAT DOES BIDEN NEED TO DO TO COURT THE BERNIE VOTERS, AND
WHAT'S BERNIE'S RESPONSIBILITY HERE?
WHAT DOES HE NEED TO DO TO CONVINCE PEOPLE WHO WERE
ESSENTIALLY NEVER BIDENS THAT YOU'VE GOT TO DO THE RIGHT
THING?
>> BIDEN PUT OUT A STATEMENT AFTER BERNIE DROPPED OUT AND HE
IS SAYING THE RIGHT THING.
I THINK IT'S ABOUT DEMONSTRATING TO THE BERNIE SUPPORTERS THAT
BIDEN DOESN'T TAKE THEM FOR GRAND AND HE'S GOING TO LISTEN
TO THEM AND HEAR THEM WHEN THEY SAY THEY BELIEVE THE COUNTRY IS
IN CRISIS AND TRADITIONAL POLITICS HASN'T BEEN THE ANSWER
FOR THEM.
I THINK BIDEN HAS TO STRIKE THIS BALANCE BECAUSE A LOT OF
I'MPEOPLE OUT THERE WANT POLITICS TO GO BACK TO NORMAL,
WHERE EVERY DAY IS NOT ABOUT THE PRESIDENT, WHERE HE'S NOT A LIAR
AND A LOT OF CHAOS.
BUT FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE -- >> Stephen: NORMAL GAVE US
DONALD TRUMP.
>> RIGHT BEFORE DONALD TRUMP BECAME PRESIDENT, THERE WAS A
COUNTRY POISED TO ELECT SOMEBODY AS DANGEROUS, UNQUALIFIED AND
UNFIT AS DONALD TRUMP, AND, SO, ANSWERING THAT SYSTEMIC
UNDERGIRDING SENSE OF INSECURITY, SENSE OF CRISIS, I
THINK, IS WHAT BIDEN'S JOB IS.
IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT LIP SERVICE, IT'S ABOUT LISTENING TO BERNIE
AND BERNIE'S SUPPORTERS.
>> Stephen: I THINK IT'S SAFE TO SAY THAT BERNIE DID CREATE A
MOVE THE AND HE IS TO A CERTAIN DEGREE A TRANSFORMATIVE
POLITICAL FIGURE AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 1st CENTURY.
WITH ALL OF THE JUICE HE'S GOT WITH HIS BASE, WHAT DOES HE HAVE
TO DO TO SAY TO THEM TO MAKE SURE HE THEY'RE ALL BEHIND
BIDEN?
>> FIRST OF ALL, I THINK HE'S HANDLED THIS VERY RESPONSIBLY SO
FAR.
HE GOT OUT NOW, HE DIDN'T WAIT UNTIL THE CONVENTION, WHICH, YOU
KNOW, GIVES JOE BIDEN MORE TIME TO GET HIS CAMPAIGN READY FOR
THE GENERAL.
BUT I THINK, IF YOU'RE BERNIE, YOU'RE TELLING YOUR SUPPORTERS,
LOOK, THIS WAS NEVER -- HIS SLOGAN WAS NOT ME-US.
THIS WAS NEVER ABOUT BERNIE SANDERS, THIS ISN'T ABOUT JOE
BIDEN, THIS ISN'T ABOUT ANYONE POLITICIAN.
BERNIE FOUGHT FOR A SET OF IDEALS FOR HIS ENTIRE LIFE AND
THE BEST WAY TO REALIZE HIS IDEALS IS BY DOING EVERYTHING
THAT HE CAN AND HIS SUPPORTERS CAN TO GET DONALD TRUMP OUT OF
OFFICE AND TO ELECT JOE BIDEN, AND THEN ONCE JOE BIDEN IS IN
THE WHITE HOUSE, IF JOE BIDEN IS NOT GOING TO LISTEN, THEN BERNIE
SANDERS AND HIS SUPPORTERS CAN KEEP PUSHING JOE BIDEN AS HARD
AS THEY CAN.
BUT THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE A BETTER CHANCE OF GETTING THESE
IDEALS REALIZED WITH BIDEN IN THE WHITE HOUSE THAN WITH TRUMP,
SO THAT'S WHY THEY NEED TO GO ALL OUT.
>> Stephen: WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF HIM SAYING, WHILE HE'S NOT
GOING TO CAMPAIGN ANYMORE, HE'S STILL GOING TO NEED TO GATHER
DELEGATES AND WITH ON THE BALLOT.
>> HE WANTS THE DELEGATES SO HE CAN GET THE PLATFORM TO LOOK
LIKE THE VISION HE HAS.
IT'S ABOUT POWER AND POLITICS.
BERNIE SANDERS IS NOT GOING TO BE THE PRESIDENT.
THAT'S GOING TO BE INCREDIBLY DISAPPOINTING FOR A LOT OF
PEOPLE, AND I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT HE'S SAYING TO ALL THE
PEOPLE OUT THERE WATCHING THIS UNFOLD THAT HE'S STILL IN THE
FIGHT, HE'S SERIOUS ABOUT WHAT HE'S FIGHTING FOR, THAT HE'S
STRIKING A BALANCE BETWEEN GETTING OUT TO MAKE SURE JOE
BIDEN IS PRESIDENT, WHILE SIGNALING TO ALL THE PEOPLE
BEHIND HIM THAT THIS WORK IS GOING TO CONTINUE AND THEY'RE
GOING TO HAVE A BIG IMPACT AT THE CONVENTION AND THEY CAN THEN
BECOME JOE BIDEN'S BIGGEST HEADACHE ONCE JOE BIDEN IS
PRESIDENT.
>> Stephen: WE WENT FROM VERY FEW WHITE HOUSE PRESS BRIEFINGS
TO WATCHING TWO HOURS OF THE TRUMP SHOW EVERY DAY AT 5:00, I
GUESS.
I HAVE TO ADMIT, I HAVE NOT WATCHED A LOT OF IT BECAUSE IT
DOESN'T SEEM THAT INFORMATIVE AND IT'S JUST GENERALLY
ENRAGING.
WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF IT?
HAVE YOU BEEN WATCHING?
>> YOU ARE CORRECT, STEPHEN, NOT VERY INFORMATIVE AND ENRAGING,
THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT THEY ARE.
I'VE SADLY BEEN WATCHING EVERY DAY BECAUSE I'M A MASOCHIST.
I THINK HE GETS UP THERE, HE LIES A LOT, HE CONTRADICTS THE
MEDICAL EXPERTS WHO ARE THERE WITH HIM, WHO HE SHOULD BE
ALLOWING TO SPEAK AND SORT OF TAKE THE LEAD ON THIS STUFF.
HE AT SOME POINT REALIZED SINCE HE CAN'T DO CAMPAIGN RALLIES, HE
CAN STILL COMMAND A HUGE AUDIENCE WITH THESE BRIEFINGS,
SO HE TURNED THEM INTO ESSENTIALLY CAMPAIGN RALLIES.
HE'S ATTACKING SLEEPY JOE BIDEN UP THERE, THE DEMOCRATS, HE'S
SAYING AT LOT OF THE STUFF HE WOULD SAY IF HE WAS AT A
CAMPAIGN RALLY.
>> Stephen: ATTA ATTACKING THE PRESS FOR ASKING QUESTIONS AT A
PRESS BRIEFING.
>> RIGHT, HE ATTACKS THE PRESS ALL THE TIME.
>> HE ALSO PRESCRIBES MEDICINE.
SO HE HAS THAT ROLE TO PLAY.
( LAUGHTER ) >> IT'S NOT VERY INFORMATIVE
AND, YOU KNOW, WHAT HE'S TRYING TO DO IS CONVINCE THE AMERICAN
PEOPLE EVERY DAY THAT THINGS ARE FINE AND, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY,
THE PRESIDENT SHOULD BE GIVING PEOPLE OPTIMISM BUT THEY
SHOULDN'T BE GIVING PEOPLE FALSE HOPE, AND I THINK THE DANGER IS
THAT THERE ARE SO MANY MIXED MESSAGES COMING FROM THOSE VERY
THINGS -- WEAR MASKS BUT I'M NOT GOING TO WEAR A MASK, AND THIS
IS GOING TO BE THE WORST WEEK FOR THE UNITED STATES IN HISTORY
BUT ALSO THERE'S A LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL.
HE CONTINUES TO OFFER THESE MIXED MESSAGES AND
MISINFORMATION IN THE MIDDLE OF A PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS AND I
THINK, UNBALANCED, THESE BRIEFINGS ARE DOING MORE HARM
THAN GOOD FOR THE COUNTRY.
>> Stephen: LET'S TALK ABOUT THE 15 PRIMARIES DELAYED IN
APRIL, OR THE ONE THAT WASN'T, WISCONSIN.
DESPITE THE FACT THAT GOVERNOR EVERS WANTED IT DELAYED TILL
JUNE, FOR SOME REASON THE REPUBLICANS DIDN'T WANT TO GO
EXTENDED MAIL-IN BALLOTS, DIDN'T WANT TO POSTPONE IT.
WHAT DO YOU THINK -- WHAT IS THAT HARBINGE FOR OUR DEMOCRACY
AND THE REST OF THE PRIMARIES SUCH AS THEY ARE AND THE
ELECTION IN THE FALL.
TOM.
NO, JON, NO, JON!
HEY, FIGHT!
>> I GOT IT.
THINK PEOPLE NEED TO UNDERSTAND HOW WE GOT TO TUESDAY
WHERE THE REPUBLICAN G.O.P.
FORCED AN ELECTION THAT WAS NOT SAFE.
THE REPUBLICAN PARTY IN WISCONSIN SPENT A DECADE
CREATING LAWS TO MARK IT HARDER TO VOTE AND GERRYMANDERING THE
STATE LEGISLATURE AND THE REPUBLICAN GERRYMANDERED
LEGISLATURE FORCED THE VOTE BECAUSE THEY WANT A SUPREME
COURT JUDGE TO WIN AND THEY CAN PURPLE 2,000 PEOPLE FROM THE
WISCONSIN VOTER ROLLS IN 2020.
SO USING VOTER I.D. LAWS AND OTHER SUPPRESSION TACTICS TO
MAKE SURE A PARTY SHRIMPING IN TERMS OF ITS TOTAL VOTER BASE TO
CONTINUE TO WIN ELECTIONS AND WHY DEMOCRATS NEED TO FIGHT HARD
TO MAKE IT EASIER TO VOTE IN THIS COUNTRY.
>> WHAT WE SAW IN WISCONSIN SHOULD BE A REALLY CHILLING
WAKEUP CALL FOR WHAT THE ELECTION COULD LOOK LIKE IN
NOVEMBER.
THIS IS DANGEROUS, IT IS STEALING MEDICAL SUPPLIES FROM
DOCTORS WHO NEED THEM SO CO-WORKERS CAN WEAR THEM FOR AN
ELECTION THAT SHOULDN'T TAKE PLACE THE WAY IT DID.
THE TAKEAWAY FROM WHAT HAPPENED IN WISCONSIN IS EVERYONE NEEDS
TO MAKE SURE AND URGE THEIR SENATORS AND CONGRESSMEN TO PUT
ELECTION INTEGRITY IN ANY RELIEF BILL THAT COMES NEXT BECAUSE WE
HAVE A MASSIVE HEALTH CRISIS, WE HAVE AN ECONOMIC CRISIS, AND WE
HAVE A DEMOCRATIC CRISIS, AND THEY ARE HAPPENING ALL AT ONCE,
AND THE MOST IMPORTANT PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION IN YOUR
LIFETIME MAY BE FOUGHT UNDER THESE CONDITIONS, AND IF WE WAKE
UP ON WEDNESDAY AFTER ELECTION DAY IN AN ELECTION IN WHICH A
LOT OF PEOPLE FELT IT WAS UNSAFE TO VOTED, IT WILL BE AN
INCREDIBLY DESTRUCTIVE OUTCOME FOR THIS COUNTRY.
>> Stephen: WELL, GUYS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING ME.
STAY SAFE.
>> YOU, TOO.
>> Stephen: PET THAT DOG THAT JUST CAME INTO THE FRAME.
STAY STERILE, WASH YOUR HANDS.
MY DOG'S NOT HERE.
HE'LL BE SO JEALOUS.
>> MINE, TOO.
>> Stephen: THANKS AGAIN.
THEIR PODCAST IS "POD SAVE AMERICA."
WITH JON FAVREAU, JON LOVETT, AND TOMMY VIETOR.