Latest / Project 2028 / DNC, Tim Walz, Voter Registration, and More
Transcript
- 0:00Hi everyone and welcome back to another episode of Project 2028. We are so sorry for the break.
- 0:15It's been a crazy first week of high school but we're really excited to be back. We're
- 0:20covering some very exciting topics such as the DNC, Tim Walls, and how to register to
- 0:26vote. So without further ado, let's dive right in. Okay so the first thing we are going to be
- 0:37talking about this episode is the Democratic National Convention or the DNC. If you remember
- 0:44a couple episodes ago we talked about the RNC and they're finally having the DNC. So this is
- 0:51taking place in Chicago, Illinois August 19th through the 22nd. So Monday through Thursday. Now
- 0:59if you remember the RNC was held in Milwaukee. So if you remember the RNC was held in Milwaukee
- 1:07which the reason for this was Wisconsin is a super important state to help win the election
- 1:15for either presidential candidate. So it made sense to have the RNC in a state where they are
- 1:24hoping to turn red. So why would Democrats choose to hold the DNC in Chicago which is in a state
- 1:32that is blue and it has been blue since 1988? Well there's a couple reasons behind this. So the
- 1:42first reason is Illinois is one of the Midwestern states that is super super reliable for Democrats
- 1:53and it is kind of a blue beacon in the Midwest. No matter what it will be blue. At least it has
- 2:02been for the last 40 years. So in the Midwest there is this metaphoric quote blue wall and this is
- 2:13made up of the states of Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota. And this blue wall was
- 2:18super super crucial for the 2020 victory of current president Joe Biden and his running mate and
- 2:25current or soon-to-be official Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and it was
- 2:38super super this group of four Midwestern states were super crucial for this win for president.
- 2:45Not only were these states super crucial for the presidential win in 2020 but they also helped with
- 2:54the success of Joe Biden in the 2022 midterm elections. However since then this wall has
- 3:03been eroding specifically in Wisconsin and Michigan. We are seeing these states starting
- 3:08to pull more Republican and the Democrats are hoping to rebuild their chances of winning in
- 3:19these states and to really help ensure that they will get their blue wall and the Midwest. This is
- 3:28a strategy that they are choosing to use and we really know this because where the party chooses
- 3:35to hold their national convention usually helps you see what their strategy is. So the Republican
- 3:42party's strategy is to flip states or to make swing states or states that tend to go in between
- 3:50the parties become Republican states for this election and hopefully onward and the Democrats
- 3:57are taking more of a rebuild and renew their status in states that they used to be able to rely on
- 4:07and they used to see pull more blue and now they are pulling more red. Another reason they are
- 4:15choosing to have the DNC in Chicago is because it is seen as a safe haven for Midwestern women
- 4:21with abortion. So women that live in some of these Midwestern states are able to travel to
- 4:28Chicago to receive medical abortions and to continue to have the option to choose if they
- 4:35would like to carry a child to term or no. Abortion is a super big topic that comes up in all of the
- 4:43presidential debates and that both of the presidential candidates have super strong opinions on. So for
- 4:48the Democrats to choose a place like Chicago to hold their convention it really just makes a lot
- 4:56of sense especially considering they have laws in place that are protecting abortion. The final
- 5:08reason that I'm going to be talking about of why they are holding the DNC in Chicago is because the
- 5:15city holds the record for having welcomed the most national conventions with a total of 26. There
- 5:23were 14 conventions that were for the Republican Party and 12 including this year's that are for
- 5:29the Democratic Party. Not only this but since 1931 only Democrats have presided as mayor and the last
- 5:37time the state voted for a Republican presidential candidate was in 1988. So who's going to be
- 5:44speaking? President Joe Biden is expected to address the delegates on the opening night of
- 5:50Monday the 19th and so will Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Hillary Clinton is supposed to be
- 5:59attending and speaking on Monday as well. Hillary is the wife of former president Bill Clinton and
- 6:08she ran for president against Donald Trump in 2016. She did not win that election as Trump became
- 6:21president however she is going to support Kamala and her goal and her plan and her campaign to
- 6:31become the first woman and female in office. On Tuesday we will hear from JB Pritzker the governor
- 6:40of Illinois and former president Obama. On Wednesday Bill Clinton former president Bill Clinton the
- 6:49husband of Hillary Clinton will be speaking before we hear from Tim Walz who will deliver a speech on
- 6:55Wednesday as part of his formal address accepting the party's nomination for the vice president slot
- 7:02on the ticket and on Thursday night current vice president Kamala Harris will address the convention
- 7:10to accept the party's presidential nomination. There have been reports of several other high-profile
- 7:17Illinois Democrats that are going to be speaking at the convention including senators Dick Durbin
- 7:23and Tammy Duxworth as well as representative Lauren Underwood and president Jimmy Carter's
- 7:30grandson Jason Carter who is expected to be speaking on his grandfather's behalf. The final
- 7:36thing I'm going to be talking about regarding the DNC is the 1968 protests and more specifically
- 7:44why the chaos and the riots that occurred will not be happening this year. The reason for this is
- 7:52very complex and there's also different elements that play into it. So just to name a couple the
- 8:00Chicago police has vowed to allow protesters to exercise their freedom of speech during the upcoming
- 8:06DNC as long as they do it legally and there have been two designated parks for protesting as well
- 8:14as many units have come out saying that they plan to be using different tactics and different
- 8:22strategies that were used then the ones that were used in 68. This specifically is meaning they have
- 8:32said they're not going to be engaging as much and unless some kind of violence breaks out they won't
- 8:39try and stop any back-and-forth conversations or doing anything that may provoke some of the protesters
- 8:51to change and not be peaceful. Another reason that we will not have the same riot outbreak is because
- 9:00the convention itself isn't separated it's pretty unified. When delegates arrived at the DNC in 1968
- 9:07they truly had no idea who would be leaving with the nomination and when Vice President Herbert
- 9:13Humphrey was chosen as the nominee over the anti-war senator Eugene McCarthy audience members
- 9:21shouted in protests and were not super happy with this final decision. However we're seeing that for
- 9:29Harrison Walls it is totally unified the party is fully in support of this ticket and are really
- 9:39looking forward to seeing what they can do. There are plans for an anti-Gaza war protest at the
- 9:45upcoming DNC and the people organizing these protests are saying they're drawing inspiration
- 9:52from the activists who took the streets of Chicago of nearly 60 years ago while they were
- 9:57protesting the Vietnam War. And while we are seeing parallels between what was happening in
- 10:0468 and what is happening now such as President Lyndon B. Johnson announcing that he would not
- 10:09seek re-election just months before the convention many experts and veterans from the 1960s protests
- 10:16are saying that the differences and reasons for protesting are not super similar and really the
- 10:24differences are outweighing the similarities. And that is all for the DNC now Ryan is going to talk
- 10:31about Tim Walls. And kind of just go through some of the electability polling and finally just kind
- 10:42of talking a bit about the debate. So last episode by the way we talked about all the options for
- 10:48the VP kind of situation and listen to that if need be. So kind of about the selection the public
- 10:56narrative you know kind of from the start was that Harris a biracial woman of Indian you know
- 11:01Jamaican heritage who would make history was probably gonna have to choose a white man to kind
- 11:09of diversify her ticket you know a bit. Barack Obama went this route choosing Biden obviously and
- 11:16those familiar with the process said that you know she was considering both the political manner so
- 11:23for example Shapiro it being in Pennsylvania and giving you know a bit of an advantage there but
- 11:30they were also considering you know her personal comfort with the potential you know governing
- 11:34partner that she's going to spend a hypothetical four years with. You know with all the good
- 11:41options Walls was largely an afterthought. I mean he was on the campaign's extended list for a while
- 11:47but you know he was he's mainly included in like the media photo galleries of like the possible
- 11:53running mates but as the options narrowed to kind of a short list you had Mark Kelly Josh Shapiro
- 12:00and then Tim Walz had kind of just been you know walking through the narrowing corridor of vice
- 12:07presidential options. The biggest threat kind of for Kelly was his positions on labor you know he
- 12:14expressed some reservations about some labor legislation in Washington so he had some some
- 12:22pushback a lot from a lot of labor leaders and people who you know have bigger ties to this
- 12:28Harris campaign than to you know more Republican tickets. Meanwhile Shapiro was kind of attracting
- 12:35some negative attention from the left for his positions on the Israel Hamas war. He has been
- 12:41very critical obviously of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu but he was kind of lumped in
- 12:49because he is Israeli with some of the reflexive you know defenders of the Israeli government and
- 12:55kind of as factions you know squabbled between Kelly and Shapiro. Walz also benefited from having
- 13:02a fan and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and I'm quoting one former Pelosi described the former
- 13:10speaker Walz as super tight and Pelosi you know she recently demonstrated status kind of leading
- 13:16Biden out of his presidential campaign. As the decision got closer Shapiro told the Harris
- 13:24campaign that he would rather lead the Commonwealth and support her ticket as being a VP.
- 13:31After much deliberation from Harris her campaign had begun to dispatch go-teams to all of the
- 13:39finalists really and wrote unique speeches because it was it was more of a last-minute
- 13:44decision than was publicized at the time but she felt the same Tuesday morning that she did kind of
- 13:52at the end of Monday night and she ended up going with Walz. You know as it turns out Tim Walz wasn't
- 14:01quite ready for his call the first time Harris dialed his number he kind of ignored it because
- 14:07it showed up as a restricted number when she doubted again he answered and Harris told him
- 14:14and I'm quoting listen comma I want you to do this with me let's do this together would you be
- 14:19my running mate and let's get this thing on the road. So that was kind of you know the situation
- 14:25that the Harris campaign had and what Walz had coming into his selection as the VP. So now let's
- 14:34kind of look at some of his you know policy history and some of the stuff that he has kind
- 14:41of endorsed. He's actually only vetoed one bill it was a kind of inconsequential bill on like
- 14:47ride share pay for drivers I'm pretty sure so nothing too serious but only one veto it's kind
- 14:54of notable but you also have to remember that before he was you know the governor of Minnesota
- 15:01he was a Army National Guardsman and served to represent I'm pretty sure Minnesota district 1
- 15:08actually in the US House of Representatives in 2006 he won that seat five more times serving from
- 15:152007 to 2018. Most of his more legislative accomplishments and stuff that he signed into
- 15:22law came about when he was governor you know he's passed many you know what they would call bucket
- 15:28list progressive items you know cannabis legalization codifying abortion rights obviously and he's been
- 15:36largely supportive of labor rights something that Kelly was not necessarily throughout his tenure.
- 15:42Some of the labor rights policy include a paid sick leave and expanding access to it you know
- 15:51establishment of a state supported paid family and medical leave program and the banning this
- 15:57is in my opinion one of the biggest ones of non-compete agreements between companies that
- 16:01do not allow for competition usually six to six months to a year. State spending though however
- 16:08in his tenure has increased pretty exponentially over his time as governor however other states
- 16:15grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic also had increased spending but Minnesota tends to outpace
- 16:22the others by a good amount. Electability wise we there's some positives and negatives obviously
- 16:32there's some reasons why Kamala Harris chose them and there are some there are both sides to a lot
- 16:38of these for example like with little name or policy recognition among most voters especially
- 16:45less politically informed he kind of gets a pretty clean slate to do what he wants and kind of reinvent
- 16:52at least his policy goals and stuff he wants to focus on. He's you know a relatable candidate from
- 16:58a modest background he can appeal to voters in swing states just as JD Vance of Ohio is working
- 17:04in the vital swing states you know Pennsylvania Michigan Ohio for the GOP ticket Waltz could kind
- 17:10of match him and appeal in the rural areas with voters in those states. Kind of on the negative
- 17:15he's been attacked a bit by Republicans claim for his claims that he served in a war zone once in
- 17:24a remark he also lied a few times on his 2006 campaign about a previous DUI he once received
- 17:33and then you also have the inverse of one of them his biggest benefits is that Waltz doesn't have
- 17:39the big national profile and it gives tough publicity and PR issues especially with his
- 17:46limited timeline because of the kind of the chaos that erupted with all the Democratic nomination
- 17:55stuff so that could boost the Trump campaign's effort to negatively kind of identify him with
- 18:02voters having no solid impression among most of the population especially among the voters they
- 18:09want to capture the less politically informed the more rural people who don't really know his policy
- 18:17and or personal positions. Kind of segueing over to the polling JD Vance is underwater by around
- 18:269.5 points nationally and Tim Waltz is actually plus 4.5 points but this you know has some benefits
- 18:36from being less known and less time to you know conduct polls they've only had a few weeks and
- 18:41obviously you're gonna have kind of a honeymoon phase with any candidate both also come from non
- 18:48crucial states for polling Minnesota is a Democratic semi-stronghold in Ohio is also a pretty Republican
- 18:57state to be coming from obviously especially in a state like Pennsylvania that controls almost all
- 19:04the path to victory it would be kind of crucial to have say a Josh Shapiro which usually would
- 19:10help you know half to one point but a half to one point in Pennsylvania could be the you know
- 19:16distance between losing and winning a whole election so we'll see kind of how that goes.
- 19:21So debate wise JD Vance offered two debates Waltz took one they are to be hosted on CBS News set for
- 19:31October 1st in New York City with Tim Walls and JD Vance both agreeing to participate it will be
- 19:38moderated by the CBS Evening News anchor managing editor Nora O'Donnell and the Face the Nation
- 19:45moderator and CBS News chief foreign affairs correspondent Margaret Brennan so that should be
- 19:52quite the interesting debate you obviously have one VP debate two presidential debates which have
- 19:56been since reset due to the unforeseen circumstances when Biden agreed and you may even see one more
- 20:05if Tim Walls were to agree to a second one after that is kind of it on Tim Walls thank you for
- 20:13tuning in and Luchana's got some stuff for you about voting.
- 20:17Hi everyone so this is our segment on how to register to vote so this is very important because one of the things we've talked a lot about is
- 20:30obviously becoming an informed voter so if you've been listening to our podcast episodes by now you should have a pretty good idea of some of the main issues
- 20:40the candidates what matters to you and probably who you're gonna vote for if you haven't been listening before now you should make sure to go back and listen so that you can become informed because it's important for every citizen to be informed.
- 20:55So first things first there's some things that could mean that you can't vote so one of these things is are you a US citizen if you're not a US citizen you can't vote.
- 21:10The other thing is will you be 18 on or before election day so even if your birthday is a week after you can't vote.
- 21:20So you have to make sure your birthday lines up and then also if you have been convicted of a felony the rights your voting rights are restricted but these laws are changing so you can check whether or not you can vote through a website called register your vote and that is at campaignlegal.org slash register your vote.
- 21:45So that's how you can check that and if you've gone through all those things make sure you're a citizen you'll be 18 at the time of the election and you have not been convicted of felonies that impede your ability to vote then you go to the next step.
- 22:06So first of all you should determine your voter registration status if you're not sure whether or not you're registered you go to vote.org you put in your name your address and your birthdate and you check if you're registered and you do not have to register for every election if you've registered in the past you're good to go unless any information is changed.
- 22:25So if you've moved if you've changed your name that stuff is all important in 22 states and the District of Columbia you are automatically registered to vote so as soon as you can vote as soon as you're eligible to vote you're registered these states are Alaska California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Georgia Hawaii Illinois Maine Maryland Massachusetts.
- 22:55Michigan Minnesota Nevada New Jersey New Mexico New York Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island Vermont Virginia Washington and West Virginia.
- 23:05So if you are already registered to vote you're good to go.
- 23:10But if you're not there's a couple steps you have to do first you need to check your voter just your pardon me your voter registration deadline in your state you have to submit your application before the date listed if you want to vote in the next election.
- 23:25And then you have to complete or update your voter registration so you can go to vote.org to get registered all you need to do is enter your name address and birthdate and in 41 states.
- 23:40You can register online these states are Alabama Alaska Arizona Arizona California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Missouri Nebraska Nevada New Jersey New Mexico New York.
- 24:10North Carolina Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina Tennessee Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin and Wyoming and along with these this includes Washington DC and Guam.
- 24:31If your state doesn't have online registration just print the application you've already filled out and then mail it to the address displayed or take it to your local election office in person.
- 24:42Also some states require you to list your party affiliation that does not mean you can't vote for Candace from other parties this information is only important when you vote in a primary election so if your state is one of these just make sure you have a good idea are you voting Republican are you voting Democrat are you voting more independent.
- 25:01Then you should review the sample ballot for your area so many state election offices send out sample ballots to registered voters before election day you can use this to familiarize yourself with the candidates but if you've already been listening to our podcast you really shouldn't need to.
- 25:16If you don't get a sample ballot in the mail you can go to ballot ready or from vote.org to find a preview of what's in your ballot.
- 25:25So voting on election day is the next step you should go to your local polling place as early as possible check your vote their registration card to find out where you're assigned polling places.
- 25:37If you don't have your voter registration card use vote.org handy polling place locator to quickly find it you can find the polling place locator by going to vote.org slash polling place locator.
- 25:52There will be lots of lines on election day but you will have less of a way if you get there early even though lines can start forming before the polls open.
- 26:01You should make sure to check in with a poll worker typically you'll get a row of tables where you'll talk to a poll worker who has a copy of the state voter rolls if your state has a voter ID law you'll need to show a state issued driver's license or photo ID to verify your identity before they will come in.
- 26:18You should sign the poll book to indicate that you showed up to vote and this is also affirming that you're eligible to vote and you haven't voted yet in that election.
- 26:28You should fill out the ballot as you want to so it varies on the kind of voting system used where you live it'll either be marking in bubbles on a paper ballot or a touchscreen computer or another type of voting machine.
- 26:43A poll worker will give you a brief explanation if they don't for some reason and you need one you should ask and if you want to see it in action before you start voting ask for a demonstration.
- 26:57Then review your ballot make sure it's correct these are very important decisions so really review your ballot and if you're using a computer or voting machine you should ask for a demonstration.
- 27:10Make sure the machine records the votes you want to make and then turn in the ballot to cast your vote so some machines retrieve and store a printed copy of your ballot while others want you to feed your printout into a separate machine.
- 27:24Normally the machine will have instructions on the screen and a poll worker will assist you to make sure you're turning it in correctly.
- 27:31Now early voting so you should check your state's early voting rule pardon me rule.
- 27:41Almost all states and territories in the US have some sort of early voting option available with early voting you can go to the poll as soon as 46 days before election day to cast your vote.
- 27:52The biggest benefit is shorter lines and more convenient locations.
- 27:56If you live in a state with the voter ID laws make sure you have a state issued driver's license or photo ID that matches the information on your voter registration.
- 28:04Show up to an early voting location to vote early voting locations might be different from the normal polling locations and you'll have a greater choice of voting locations and you can pick the one that's most convenient for you.
- 28:21There are 36 states with voter ID laws so make sure you have a state issued driver's license or photo ID with you that matches your that matches the information on your voter registration.
- 28:34And also Alabama Mississippi and New Hampshire do not offer in person early voting options but Connecticut will be starting them this election.
- 28:44So if you live in Connecticut and you think that oh no I can't do early voting yes you can they just changed laws and make sure obviously before you start doing any of this Google your state and any voting laws they might have that we're not listing here.
- 29:01So for me in Illinois if I could vote I would not need to present a photo ID except if an election judge challenges my right to vote I'm registered to vote by mail and did not provide an ID and if I'm also registering to vote or changing my registration address on the day that I vote.
- 29:19And also in Illinois on election day you can cast your ballot after the after the polls close if you're in line at the time listed as closing you can bring written or printed materials into the voting booth to assist you can request up to two hours off work to go vote in Illinois.
- 29:35If you're voting hours prevent you from going while the polls are open and if you are denied the right to vote because you are challenged by a judge your name does not appear on the rolls or you do not have an ID in the few circumstances where an idea is required.
- 29:47You're entitled to a provisional ballot be sure the poll worker give you the instructions about any steps you need to take in order to ensure that your ballot is counted.
- 29:55But these might not be the rules for you this is not how it works in every state that's just in Illinois so make sure that you see if there's any special things in your state just because there would be a lot to list all the different states and all the different rules here you need to check that.
- 30:11And then same as normal voting with early voting you mark your ballot for the candidates that you want and ask the poll worker if you have any questions and you turn it in as instructed by poll workers.
- 30:23Absentee and mail in voting so get an absentee ballot ballot for your state if you can't get to the polls by election day or during the early voting period you may be able to vote by mail which is absentee voting.
- 30:36In eight states California Colorado Hawaii Nevada Oregon Utah Vermont for general elections only and Washington plus the District of Columbia elections are conducted entirely by mail.
- 30:49You don't have to request a ballot if you live in one of these locations and in 27 states.
- 30:54Alaska Arizona Florida Georgia Idaho Illinois Iowa Kansas Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Montana Nebraska New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Pennsylvania.
- 31:17Rhode Island South Dakota Vermont Virginia Wisconsin and Wyoming you do not need an excuse for absentee voting.
- 31:29In the other states and territories you need to provide a valid excuse to I can't get to the polls on election day or during early voting such as being out of state or having an illness or disability.
- 31:38Some states like New York automatically mail you an absentee ballot for every election if you provide the election office with documentation of a permanent illness or disability.
- 31:48Check with your state election officer for more information if this applies to you.
- 31:53Some states also allow you to request mail in ballots for every election for up to a calendar year such as North Dakota and Oklahoma or to join a list automatically receive a vote by mail application for every election such as Michigan and Pennsylvania.
- 32:08Military members and their families as well as citizens living abroad have the right to vote absentee as well.
- 32:13Connect with the federal voting assistance program to register and get your absentee ballot.
- 32:18A really fun fact is in Texas for like I think primaries astronauts can send in absentee ballots from space.
- 32:27So that's really interesting obviously they're not mailing them they're filling them in online I believe but I just think that's a really funny fact.
- 32:35So then you follow your state's absentee voting rules to fill out your ballot read the instructions mark your choices sign and date the ballot in the box as indicated.
- 32:45Then mail your ballot before your state's absentee voting deadline put the proper postage on it and put it in the mailbox.
- 32:54You could also use a drop box location in one of your states and if your ballot didn't come with a self-addressed envelope look up your local election office so you'll know where to mail it.
- 33:04And that is all for getting registered to vote. Thank you so much for listening.
- 33:09Please make sure you get registered because your vote counts elections are important.
- 33:14This is your right as an American citizen and it's a right you're so lucky to have so please make sure you go out and use it.
- 33:23Thank you so much for listening have a great day.
- 33:30Hello again the last thing we're going to be kind of addressing in this episode is all the things that have happened with project 2025 and that have come to light.
- 33:42This includes a secretly recorded video where project 2025 co-author Russell Vaught says he's drafted hundreds of executive orders for former president and current Republican.
- 34:00Presidential candidate Donald Trump.
- 34:02Now it is super important to stay educated on topics like these and we will be addressing it in our next episode.
- 34:09However we do not have all three of us present in the same room at the moment and it's really something that I know I want to hear Ryan and Lutrana's opinions on.
- 34:22This topic and all the other things that have come to light with project 2025.
- 34:28So I feel like it will be more beneficial for all you listeners and you will receive more information and get more out of it.
- 34:36If we were to put this on hold and really take our time to take really detailed notes and records of what have happened talk amongst ourselves.
- 34:47And spend quite some time on this topic as it is still something super present and super pressing and important in this election.
- 35:00So please please please stay tuned for our next episode when we end up talking about project 2025 again.
- 35:08This time it will be all three of us you will hear not just me and Lutrana's opinions and what we have to say on it.
- 35:14But also Ryan and we will be talking about all the new things that we have found out about this set of guidelines for the next Republican President.
- 35:25Alright so that will be it for this episode of project 2028.
- 35:33Keep tuning in follow give us a review if you want us to talk about something.
- 35:38And thank you guys for listening see you in the next one.