s■ ♪ is washington journal for june 20 second. requiring women to register for the draft again after a version was passed of

the national defense authorization act that includes the proposed policy change the effort to expand the requirement comes as the military faces re global threat. to start today's program, we want to he yours on the proposal to require women to register for the draft. here are the lines. if you support it, (202) 748-8000. opposed, (202) 748-8001. if you are active or former military, (202) 748-8002. if you have experience with the draft, your line a would like to text us, you can do so at (202) 748-8003. include your name and city. you can post a questionk.com/c-n or on x @cspanwj. we will get your calls and

comments in a few moments. first, we will talk with conor o'brien, a defense reporter covering congress for politico. good morning. what can you tell us about this senate proposal? what does it look like? xkguest: sure. there is not a lot that wethe ae rked up in closed session last week, so we know broad outlines of what the armed services committee has put out about the bill, which includes a women to register for the selective service system. it is in all likelihood has done for several years running under the leadership óof jack reed who chairs the committee and is th ranking member for several years before that.

he spearheaded a push to expand the selective service system which currently requires men who are from the ages 18-26 to register for a potential draft to group. that has in previous years, and in all likelihood this year cleared on a bipartisan vote with a good chunk of republicans coming over to support that. and probably more conservative republican members of the ■:that general premisets. host: the proposal has a ways to go before it can make it to president biden's desk. what is next? guest: the house has passed its which the next move is for

the floor to take this bill from committee to the floor. it's unclear when that happens. it c■ould happen over the summe. it could happen much later. the election is going to throw a wrench io any attempts to do big legislation for the rest of the year. it could be until after the hat this happens. are passed, the ho go to a conference committee where members of the h this will be one of them -- committee out their differences. this will be one of them. idin the rare occasion when it s in both bills, i believe0 21, when the house passed a provision expanding potential draft to include women. under stripped out whi bills

it is a given that i is going ta bqtopic of house-senate negotiation. think the advocates of this provision do see it as an uphill fight. host: there are advocates, as you put it. at the proposal? guest: there ha't -- the arguments for a number of years that■÷s basically if you are gog to keep this system where young people have to register for a potential military draft women should be required register for it,ll since in the mid-2010's all

combatobs the military were open to women. so, there is an argument that there should be some equality, somearing. particularly since selective see incurs certain penalties. argument against has been wellm conservative lawmakers, conservative groups outside of capitol hill. that is that this is really not about equality. this is more about social engineeringthat it is upsettingl roles and is an extension of what conservatives call woke ideology. those have been the battle host: you mentioned there have been previous attempts to expand the draft to include women. why bring it up again now?

it comes up every few years. why again now?■ anything change? guest: it has bceen priority of senator reed. the one consistently pushing it. think it is a debate that i think he is aware is an uphill fight to get into law,ut her has been very consistent in bringing it up every year. this part of the law does need to be changed. there have been some commissions -- there is an independent commission that studies the draft that recommended this in 2020. he has the votes to get in

at the committee level. if he can force the issue i he certainly has the votes in s co■íte the committee did pass is that any indication it could have support if it made it to a full floor vote? gueses so. interestingly enough, one of those three is jack reed, the chhe opposed his own bill, which is virtual ahe step. the committee adopted a republican amendment to increase the defense budget by $25 billion, which was sponsored by that votes all four members across p lines to support republicans. senator voted against it in a protest vote. i don't see the selective

service having a transformative effect on the overall coalition for the bill. i do think the committee signing off on a republican amendment to increase the defense budget and that is a very fraught topic going back and forth about whether or not to raise cap limits on defense or non-defense the votes to pass, but i thinkb] the senate majority leader chuck schumer does need to make an active calculation to bring !uis billo the floor with a higher top line. he may be less willing to do so, i think, because of that. host: what are you going

bill as it makes its way through congress? guest: i think the immediate thing is, when does senator schumer elect to bring this bill up, and does he? of considerations there. democrats are trying tousfor, as defense and domestic programs that are about equal, where republicans are saying that the threats emanating from russia and more than the $25 billion that they added to the bill. they arenumber of other priorities. it will be interesting to see soon, the senate takes up thes possible that this issue then, a number of issues when

the house and senate finally do go to a negotiation will be the defense budget level. women being required to register for the selective service. then, a number of other fachow w procure, and issues of -- any other number of issues like that that will be on thta connor o'brien covering congress for politico. thank you foyour time.this mornu if you wou -- if you support requiring women to register for the draft. those lines, (202) 748-80. if you support. if you oppose, (202) 748-8001. y a active or former

military, (202) 748-8002. if you have experience with the draft, there is a line for y. (202) 748-8003. we will start with thomas in ithaca, new york. you are calling on the support line. good morning, thomas. caller: good morning. thank you. my comment is i am suspicious that what is prompting this is not any geopoliticalom the expee industry. the definition of a i support the inclusion, but it is going to be interesting. i agree with what connor mentioned about this not taking root in discussion until after election, because it is quite a football. forced selective services

have always been threatened with things like government defaulting on loans i'm such. -- on loans and such. it will be interesting, on how this lays out. will trans women be forced to register? how the measure of gender fluidity. if there is a threat that you will default on your loans do you just change your gender? px world. ■wis coming up because of that more so than any geopolitil situation. host: tom in woodbridge, virginia on the military line. good morning,ing. i am a pretty regular color. i have been in the military most of the people who will hava what the consequences of a draft are. we draft and went

to an all volunteer military after the vietnam war. most people have absolutely no clue what they are talking about, including your guest. i think that it is genius. we should do is require 50% of all combat policl rs, 50% of all bricklayers, 50% of all ditch diggers, 50% of all people working on the highways into building the highways and building bridges, we should mandate it a requirement that it be 50% women. that is the only way really to to require them to do the heavy doing. n men have a shorter lifespan than women is because they do the dangerous jobs in the world. everybody wants all the

privileges of having made all the sacrifices, but they don't want to do the hard work. so 5 daughters should all be to go into hand-to-hand combat with the enemy. íy■clearly, that is the only way for the world to be fair. they need to start working out, though. every woman should start weightlifting and start taking crowd my -- taking kravaga because we will require them to go into hand-to-hand combat with theveryone should know that our enemy just wants to win. they will make sure that there combat arm are full ofof our combat arms will get their ass whooped and every combat we are involved in. we are trying to have equal equality when it comes to

ridiculous things like this. have no■ ever again. if we are using a draft to win a war the war is rethe war is alr. host: julia in brooklyn, new york on the oppose line. good morning. caller: i think this is the most ricuhing i've ever heard. if you want women to kill for y ou, but they can't have an abortion, so their -- sometimes weuppod to kill for but we aren't allowed to k for our own lives. areust supposed to -if women get anymore disrespected and despised in this country.

said peoplcago into the army at 18 they should be able to vote. i inthey should say, if you're going to risk aoman's life in combat,ing helife by nog her an abortion when she needs one. patricia in california calling on the support line. good morning, patricia. caller: good morning. : you are on, pri well, i am inf it. i think that girls should be put on the draft list and serve in the service right along with the guys. i think they would■ learn a lot. and they would gain more respect for their country. it has nothing to do what the person right before me had

to say about abortion or not being able to have abortions. that's ridiculous. serving in the military and defending your country, why leave it up to when we need to support our country too? i have daughters. if they were to be drafted or enlist, i would be totally proud of them. because they would be protecting me as well as protecting the country. host: that was patricia in california. alan in jonesborough, tennessee. ilitary. good morning. caller: can you hear me ok? &mycol. and i served in the spel

forces before. no one is doubting that women can do the job as combat pilots, served in the military. we have a history in the military. s what you ask for. the idea of equality,a that anyone can do everything. i lived in israel wherecompulso. israeli women were fabulous as far as what they the matter is,t every military specialty lends itself to the strength that females possess. i am actually a clinical social worker, butc0 there are going to be more lower pelvic injuries. what you carry in combat is at one point someone told me, well, you can have yes, some can pull that off. it is a very grueling experience as a former airborne infantry guy. i think what we will encounter

is a gre deal of legislation and legality in which people attempt not to serve. the miliry dbelieve in the dra'm rt it, but there will be a number of mothe and want my daughter s. the military, i want to make it clear, doesn'ave time for that much policy, debate back and forth. if they want to serve, let them serve. i would honestly say that the majority are probably not going to be in an infantryinfantry ant the majority are probably not going to choosethem choose whatt but don't let them escape their service■b when the time comes. if they have to serve, let us all serve, as the russian women did in world war ii, or any female warriors have. but remember, there is a big social policy angled being involved in this. ot it now. thank you, ma'am. host: alan talking about taking

time to debate the provision and also oppositn to it. members of congress responding to the possible inclusion if ending the requirement. you can go straight to hell over my dead body. mike lee, senator omsaid we wil. i'm with chip roy. it wiljosh hawley, a senator frm missouri, said i am not voting for any defense bill that forces my dghter to register for the draft. not now, not ever. lexington, kentuck steve calling on the oppose line. good morning, stephen. ll happy saturday to everybody. i do oppose this. off, let me say that women

can do anything that men do. there are really, really weak ak there are women of amazing strengthany man and men who cap any men. it is on both sides. don't divide them. 9#pose it because every war that we've ever started, every war the world has srten started. the priarchy. men, men, men. everything that we despise in war is caused alone. don't drag them into men'sif a n started by a woman? never. other than -- what is the old greek mythology about a war being started over a woman? ñevery single war that has happened in our history is because omaleave women alone. they already have it hard

enough. not -- don't drag them into it. a couple of colors ago said the abortion thing -- caller ago said the abortion thing. yodo body but you want to take them to war andemselves killed over some more complex that america has? ■iget over yourself, guys. thank you. host: the debate over requiring women to register has bnthis ar0 talking about a commission that issues including adding women to the draft. a congressionally mandated commission says it's time for women and men to up for the possible revival of the military draft which has been mothballed since the u.s. military became volunteer only in 1973 acountry,

bipartisan national convention on military, national, and public ser oy revs in its final report. number 49, the commission recommends that congressnd military selective service act to eliminateand expand draft eligio all individuals of the applicable age cohort. a year later, during a hearing, the chair of that commission 's recommendation to include women. of his remarks. [video clip] >> research, deliberation, discussion with experts, and theri public, we recommend the united states maintain the selective service system. policy to supplement military personnel requirements in the face of a national emergency. however, the system requires

, in the event of a draft, the nation must leverage the skills and talents of all americans, including women in selective service registrat7&is what the national security interests of the united states demands. it will improve the ability of the military to maintain higher if conscription is needed. the passions issue, this to two factors.tely comes standards and equity. at a time, as yopointed out mr. chairman, when nearly 70% of 17-24-year-olds will fail to meet military standards,e excluf the population, the female half, from t pool of inductees. if it is enacted we should ensure that many people in the highest quality conserve. those more■ likely to complete training successfully and be more proficient at their jobs.

draft eligibility to women is an issue of standards, not gender. expansion will strengthen national security and mitigate risks proposed by an unforeseen future. itt quality to respond to an ever-changing threat envirnd provide all americans an opportunity to meet their civic obligations. the rights a fre■edom that come with being an american citizen are accompani by responsibilities including the defense of the nation. selective service registration presupposes this obligation to provide for the common defense. consequently,women in the contee selective service system bars women from sharing in this obliga. male-only registration sends a message to women that they are not vital to the defense of tcot expected to participate in defending it. hence, requiring women to register and perhaps be drafted

affirms a common is stronger whl engage in the obligations of citizenship. host: we are hearing from you about the proposal to require women toegter for the draft. on facebook, i believe women are smarter, stronger, a men at mos. unfortunately, many people don't agree with me and try to plea women's bodies and still don't provide equal pay. when those things are resolved in truly equaled then and only then should women be required to register for the draft jas hopkins says, between women and men it is a agenda, so be it.

women should receive the same pay and benefits in our society as men do and should occur the same duties and obligations and same risks. reasonable accmodations should be made due to women' is unique and outstandg functions that are biologically different from men, but my answer to the question is unequivocably yes. mike says absolutely with equal rights and equal responsibility. women have proven they are capable and up to the challenge. let's hear from ray in tennessee calling on the support line. good morning. good morning. i am 85 years old. remember in the 60's when the women's grandmother's were walking in the street saying that they could do anything a man could do. they wanted equal rights. now, we have men in women's ports and they cannot do everything a man can do. now, they have the majority of the jobs in this country less pay than a man would have to have. i wasin combat at one time in my life.if there is a firefightu

out of harm's way. if you're in a firefight and you get hit,nd woman is not going to drag you out of harm's way. if they want to be equal to dra. that is all i got to say. ho: canton, georgia. he has experience with the draft. good morning, earl. caller: good morning. i was drafted in july of 1969. after i finished high school, a month after i fiedhol. i was actuallydn't go to vietna. i ended up in germany, which is under the impression when i was there, that as i was -- i would have never joined. i brother joined and he had a bad deal when he signed up. i would have never joined it.

i was drafted, but i went ahead. r is good spirits for me, because it brought me away from the friends i had here. -- when i came back they ■/■then in the army i smoke some marijuana. it didn't hurt me. the draft thing, i think everybody, no matter what your situation is, woman, man, handicapped, everyone is good for something. what i gained from the military. that is about all i can say. frank inlitary. good morning. i support that women should register with selective service. i think it is terrible that we did away with the draft to begin with. i don't able to bring it back.

that's just it. you know, if a woman can be elected p can send men to war to fight, if she can have a voice in our government, shevk has to get soe skin in the game. she needs to be eligible. just because there is combat support and combat arms. to be drafted for combat arms. she can be in a support position. everyone will be needed. doing away with theing that whes president the house and senate were controlled by the democrats. ■:we are in the situation becaue of the democratic party. look who is in the office right w. women put that guy in office. you need some skin in theonce yg for you might change your mind.

host:n little rock, arkansas. good morning. caller: hi. i think that this whole thing is a lot of whooey. the one guy in congress talking but national security, national grande. if that is notational emergency i don't know what is. it would be interesting to see of our military aged men going overseas to fight these wars and our border is being overrun by fon tary aged men. country while we areung man out importing, allowing illegally, whatever it is,untry. they're not here to shake our hands and ask us over for a barbecue. they are here to do us harm. if the idea of sendingand then s

to fight these wars gentiles fs for the chosen ones. that is all this comes down to. gentile nations. they are killing each otr, host: john■ in florida has experience with the draft. you s oer: i support the draft. i was affected run i saw that is good because we had quality people in the servi■'. when you have volunteers only the people who have to join the army, have no other way of making aproblems. the draft brought in a lot of qnperience. i had experience with■=it was ve draft. i had a

very good job when it drafted willing to serve because i thought the korean war had to be won -- i'm sorry we didn't on -- but i think the draft should come back. i think women should be volunteers only. a lot of women, we shodn't bring women into service if they don't want to come in.you'll probablyunteers like we did in the korean war. we no problem with the amount of women. men should be drafted and 25 and under fir. families. i think the country would have a betterld have better military people. thank you. host: lorene in alabama opposes -0 maureen in alabama opposes. caller:hank you for taking my call.

i have enjoyed listening to all of the comments so far and i'm old man start wars, and young men fight wars. that seems to be always the case. granddaughter recently graduated from high school and i am so proud of her. her parents, my son and his wife, were also in the navy. but i'm also very frightened for her with all of the wars that are currently goin be drafted, . i think that there are enough■@ areas inhe four military branches where they could serve without infantry or combat missions. iwon addition to that,

such as diplomacy. i'm very afraid wit type of barbarism we've seen in ■ i'm■é aeady hor, to put wom i think women could work very well behind the lines. i know we have a lot of women pilots and a lot of rolesk theyg women into cattle on the front -- into battle on the front lines. host: you know what your granddaughter is going to be doing in the navy or what she wants to do? caller: yes. she is in the nuclear program. just like her father wasn't her mom. -- just like her father ander mom. i am imagining she may choose to serve on an aircraft carrier. son was on nuclear

submarines. i'm so proud of açr.i think sina volunteer military right now any young person or person who has served in that capacity they are really putting country before themselves. the -- i am wondering if about bringing the draft back because of all of the wars that are going on at this know that we need to be abe to defend our country. ironic. i rarely agreeith anything that chip roy, the representative from texas, say,i happen to agree with him. i don't think that women need to have a combat role. if you think about world war ii, women were serving in the positn factories like rosie the riveter because the men were all

overseas. if we send all of our men and women, who will be here for the chenif women and men both have combat, dying and losing limbs and not being able to get back to families, who will take care of our children? i really oppose women going into combat. that there are countless, endless positions for women and men throughout the military. i just hope they don't have to serve in combat roles. host: maureen mentioned chip roy and his another person coming out in opposition is sam brown, a nevada republican senate candidate. qrhe is running against democrac incumbent jacky rosen and is a retired u.s. army captain.

he posted this clip on x in response to the proposal. [video clip] >> unbelievable. you won't believe the news i just got. look at my face. this is the high cost war. i just found out that jacky rosen voted, this week, to make signing up for the draft mandatory for our daughters. you will be hearing more from me is an unbelievable and unacceptable wa for our senators to be voting right now. your policies and the policies of this administration have left a severe deficiency in our recruiting of a volunteer army. i volunteered to serve. my wife volunteered to serve. serve, but this is absurd. this is unacceptable. our daughters will not be forced into a draft. you should be ashamed of yourself, jacky rosen. you will hear more from me on this later. america, nevada, voting in

november accounts. not just forfor our daughters. host: about a proposal to require women to regisfoa tweet. ■%not all women are built equal, therefore i don't agree with7o voluarwomen should be able to join theoi on facebook,oe says no. if i were comes and we need to draft we will stick to accommodating the different needs of a lar amount of two sexes will lead cos. also, the record of sexual abuse of women in the armed forcess e. the fact that women are more in danger from their fellow soldiers than the enemy. let's hear from tim in north carolina calling on the support line. caller: good morning. i am also former military.

i feel that there is certain things that citizens should be requiredas part of the price of one is serving through national services in the military. the other is jury duty. the third would be to work at the polls. wesibilities. to shirk theseesponsible. i hear all these republicans complaining about their daughters. maybe facing the draft.

i don't imagine my parents were really crazy when i went in. i think it is part of the ■ of good citizenship. itounds ke a lot of these people are not really very good citizens. host: bill in oak creek, colorado, former military. do you support or oppose? are you there? aryou the?caller: who? go to benarkansas callingarkant line. good morning. caller: good morning. it is denny with a d. my■ mistake.

host: that is my mistake. how are you,caller: i have alwal other countries, their females are drafted or conscripted, whatever word is appropriate. i was raised by single mother and they did a study that women are better at multitasking than men. i started laughing. my mother gave me the look of death. i agree with it. she didn't know what to respond on that one. are against sending their daughters and granddaughters intor when they run this through congress it is like, we are going to send you to war, send you overseas. if they have to send their boys and girls over there, maybe they will think twice before they bomb the snot out of something and put troops on the help.d to say we are hear you're here to help after you just wiped out my village?

host: in florida on the oppose line. good morning. caller: good morning. if a lot of people out there understand that rape is a tool of war. if you send women to the front lines, with social media, especially in muslimntries, you're going to see women get raped, murdered, limbs taken off with machetes. bñthose areghters, and maybe even your wife. i am so thankful that my daughter has -- that is all i have t -- my daughter has flat feet. that is all i have to say. host:ntioned conscription in other countries. earlier this year it was from march, denmark began conscripting women for the military in a rare move.

the article talks about the plan to conscript women for military service, and says that denmark is nowountry in europe to introduce female conscription. norway and sweden did so in 2015 and 2017 rpectfully. let's hear from herbert in columbia, sout carolina calling on the former military line. good morning, herbert. morning. that's ridiculous. that is ridiculous. we want the women to have the babies and come home in body bags from a war? the men in this cnt it. we've lost everythinwomen in co? are they going to ha bab

ies in a war? everyone who agrees with that, you are ridiculous. stupid. host: let's hear from shell in georgia. caller: i would like to give my opposing opinion on the women -- whoer up the draft decision for the women. i am definitely opposed to that because i think womens are already in there,p to them if they want to go or not. let the women do as they are doing now. don't make it a draft. womens can't do everything, have babies l said. have babies and go fight a war too. let tho if they want to do on t■ with you. host: james in washington, west

virginia on the support line. good morning, james. caller: good morning. i would like to talk to you about world war ii. rosi■th riveter. betty grable was p should servee military but they don't have to be on the onthey can support in. i have been in construction for 38 years. women got into construction. like -- i am a trump supporter -- but seems like the senators all have daughters they want to protect. what about the men? a parent who has a single child who is sent overseas and dies? that is about all i have to say. host: mary in brook park, ohio on the support line. good morning.

caller: good morning. i think all women should serve because they want to rights of being like a man. they want their pay, they want their jobs, they take over the world with their■ in there and e men have to. thank you. host: bernie -- earnie in west virginia. caller: i am a disabled vietnam veteran and am opposedause i was drafted in 1967 and had to go. i was glad to serve, but i warst is not the common wars. it is the politicians. let's send the politicians first and let them serve. they don't do nothing but get paid big money and steal and go.

let them go first. let's put biden over and see ight. i don't care about your age or your sex o■#r ing. let's send the politicians because they cause the wars. they don've for people who have to serve. they never had to serve so they wouldn't know. i have lost family members, i am disabled, and i'm not against fighting as long as we protect the country right here. going to ukraine or any of these other places. all of the people before that if they have anythink these women d serve because women need to be om with their families. that is where they are supposed to be. i'm not against women wn need t. it is bad enough that men have to go to that the politicians alwayse women should have to go.

let's keep people here. zc put god into our country and serve him and we won't have wars. that is about all i have to say. n ythe oppose line, good morni, jim. caller:=hood morning. i would like military conscription is a violation of the 13thp=of the ce united states which forbids involuntaryery much. host: let's hea a caller in ford on the support line. i name. go ahead. caller: creek? host: what is your name? xñcarmen, thank you. caller: line but it is a flip.

i support if there is a draft that women should be included. if women can be commander-in-chief there is no reason they shouldn't be. some people calling and seem ridiculous. they are not going to send a woman who has children at home or are pregnant. on the field. a lot of the my big problem is, i don't believe in the draft at all. it should be volunteer, men and womei don't think we should be forcing people to go who don't want to go. we would have enough people if we had a just cause. we would get enough volunteers. the case in point is if some of th republicans, like bush and cheney, would stop wars when they go to iraq, and then come back and find out the whole thing was a lie, this is why people won't volunteer. if the is a just cause i think that americans in general will

step up to the plate and do what they need to do and win a war. they will need mennd women to fight this because the next wars will not be easier as they were before. different type of war. thank you. host: george in kentucky on the oppose line. go ahead, george. caller: i am an air force rm. i would like to say that he dra. it has never worked. take trump for instance, a bone spur and the richit is not men,, about the rich and the poor. host: the proposed legishas hads committee has not been brought up in the house but has been previously discussed. in 2021 during an armed services committee ndaa markup hearing■aa

include women in the draft. [video clip] >> i'mrtisan commitment with my colleague. we are together offering this amendment to modernize the military selective service system. is policy is not rushed or unnecessary. for decades, our citizens, women and men, have been trying to make this change. s past time. women make up over 50% of our population. not including them in the selective service is not only a disservice to these women but to our nation as a w.simply put, ae it is unconstitutional and discriminates based on sex. this amendment clarifies that the purpose of selective service is biggeing combat3q replacements. it ensures that the selective

service system is able to provide with all of the skills necessary in the event of a national mobilization, which cyber, stem, technical talent, and others. it isn't limited to those outdated use of the draft for combat replacement roles. last year, the congressionally mandated national commission on military, national, and public service came out inin the selece service. we had a■■á and determined at tt time that it wasn't right for thisearlier this year the supree court declined to hear case on the issue noting that congress is considering this question. justices sotomayor, breyer, cavanaugh representing different ideological views noted that the role of women inged dramaticalle the court last consider the questionwomen now serve in distn rangers, seals, and green

berets. the senate armed serce year hasy taken up and approved a provision to expand selective service to women. it did so in their basic text. is time that we in congress step up to do the sorming the se service to be draw on our entire nation time of the national emergency. as the highlighted the current male-only registration since a message to women that not only are they not vital to the defense of the country but they are not expected to participate in defending it. that is a quote. it sends a message demand that they for some reason are uniquely and perhaps unfairly depe u change. this a minute will do that. i seek support for the bipartisan amendment to make this change to the selrom briann yorkville, illgood morning, bri. caller: goodi am very much oppo.

i think it is on a common sense level. first of women versus men biologically are very different in terms of their structure, not reproductive roles. in terms of their structure. men are bigger and consequently stronger. ipeople at risk, men andyou're k in combat situations that wouldn't be at riskhat way without trying to protect that smaller 5'1", 5'■2'om by their side that is under the same fire they are. that is one thi seems ironic. i will skip arounditi don't havt progression of points, but we live in a country where our intellectuals,■z7y intellectual leaders at times whenre even den

is. all of a sudde■vn we are good wh just putting women in combat? it seems disjointed in terms of the thought progression and logitwo, or three, are we in ned of volunteers or this some woke initiative b to do something active in congress rather than sit there and check? three, on aoquial level, look at the nda versus the wnba. -- nba versus the wnba. to make a smaller basketball and prop these women up to have a professional league that shows games on national tv. they have to be subsidized because they are not as strong as the men. they're n good at the game as men.

and is a limitation areal thi difference that needs to be recognized as fact. not create a fantasy to argue against those basic realities. that is my point vielistening. host: riverside, california on the support line. good morning, cheryl. caller: i called on the approved i am 65. iyears, draft, don't t, draft, don't draft. women of course can and will do everng men do. maybe with differentes, or some with the same abilities. i don't think that we have to pamper women or them.

thereo do the harder work th some of these menat -- that some of these men are talking about that called in before. to restrict them and make them feel less than is not, i think, prudent. frontlines. xouz--n the frt lines to be drafted. be placed based on their individual ability. and somewhat their interests, i don't think to be drafted is a sentence to be on the frt line. it is not a sentence at all. to be in the military and help out and contribute. re not drafted. so, that's my feeling on susan -

sorry, cheryl in california. we will go to susan in maine on the oppose line. caller: there. please, stop making a business out of killing. re never going to get civilized and w n killing of ea. ■ocan we start making peaceful diet? that means aeaceful -- vegan ■yz> foods and their effect upon the human body and peaceful and civilized. ■vht and foresight to real civilization, peace on earth, progress, the arts and

stop the violence and stop making war business. host: that was after the announcement that the senaterm legislation, senator josh hawley of missouri was on fox news and was asked about the proposal. here is a bit from that interview. [video clip] >> this got to the house and the senate armed services committee through 22 to. equal treatment under the law. women rights. >> you have the democrats who want to turn the military into a trained experiment -- trans experiment. they want to turn biological women into men. then you have republicans who want more people to fight all of ese rs.

the rest of the country, the number of people are like leavid daughter. if she wants to volunteer for the armed forces, that is terrific. would be drafted against her will is insane. every father in america feels the same way. these people are so out of touch. >> we see again,ual rights and l opportunity and girl power and all the rest. the argument is, want then thatt they will get. that means they have to do their part. >> here is the thing about equality. if women want to volunteer for the armed forces, they are welcome to do it on the same footing as men. we have many women who serve including members of my family. that's fantastic. these not what the liberals are warmongering

the draft which is involuntary. let's go back to that. that is what a draft is. if women don't want to serve, too bad. they will get drug into it. this is crazy. at the same time they are saying that women have to accept men in the locker rooms, in their sports. now women have to serve in the y want to or not. it is further erasure of women in our society by these radicals. to that i guess it is logical. host: whave a couplof left hearr thoughts on requirg women to register for the draft. let's hear from lester in oregon on the support line. good morning. caller: good morning. how are you? host: doing well. caller: i have a suggestion. we have peopley have been

killing here in the united states. my dad was ahe was in charge ofs during world war ii. those guys are able to come back to the united states for freedom if they fought for their country. that is a good ideal. people -- i don't care what nationality you e, to fight for our country if you are■■@ bad. you will get freedom wheyome ba. a lot of them went back to prison. :q■vthat is what my suggestion . host: that was lester. that's all the time we have for the segment. still ahead on washington journal, free our vote cofounder and director neel kh will

join us and discuss efforts to restore votingiglople with past felony convictions. later, newsletter author gabe fleisher will discuss his newsletter "wake up to politics" and political news of the day. ■we will be right back. >> as we look forward to the 2024 we revisit landmark ments6 from the 2020 debate between president trump and former providing the unique personalities that shaped the 2020 election.

>> we can create good jobs by making sure the environment is clshape. >> there has never been an administration or has done more than i have done in a period tune in this sundae first 2020 debate and monday at 9:00 p.m. eastern for the second presidential debate of the 2020 campaign sso c-span.org and wath the 2024 cnn presidential debate thursday on c-span 2. next week on the c-span networks , the senate is out for a work period. the house is in session working on 2025 federal spending bills for the■ defense, homeland security and state department. ■4 phelps and allisonbefore the house energy d

commerce subcommittee examining measures the world anti-doping agency are taking in advance of the 2024 olympics. coverage continues with a simulcast of the presidential debate live on c-span 2. watch nextnetworks or on c-spane free mobile video app. to c-span.org for scheduling information or to watch on-demand ytc-span, your unfiltf government. >> will be in order. >> thisear c-spcovering congress like no other. sinc 1979 we have been your primary source for capitol hill, providing balanced unfiltered coverage of government, taking you to where the policy decidede support of america's cable companies. c-span, 45 years and counting,

powered by cable. >> "washington journal" continues. host: joining us now to discuss felony convictions andffoting rl sukhatme, the cofounder and director of free our vote. welcome. guest: thank you. host:bout your organization. why was it established and what is the mission? guest: in 2020. i am a law professor. i am a computer engineer originally. i am an loyalawyer and economist. i work on research in different the criminal legal system. in july 2020 i found out something that was weird going on in florida. the people of florida had passed a ballot initiative that was supposed to restore voting

rights for people with past 7 million people, 10% of the state's voting age population. it turned out there is a complicated legal back story to this. ■cmost of these people would not be able to vote. why is that? itd and fees -- they fees associated with their conviction. being told how much they owed. the state was saying you have to pay back the fines. we have a really complicated sy67 different counties. every county works differently. sorry, you cannot vote unless you pay them off cannot tell yo. by the way, if you make a mistake and yoyou owe the money, you may be prosecuted for a new felony conviction. that really troubles me. background, people should know how much they owe.

that seems to be a very basic i got together my colleagues at here i am a professor. my law students and volunteers and we started pulling data on half a million individuals across florida, writing customized programs called web scrapers. we connected data from a host of sources to identify tens of thousas of people who owed nothing but did not realize that they owed nothing. we partnered with the campaign legal center to send mailers to these individuals to inform them that you are able to vote even though you think you cannot do so. ition, we raised money to pay off find for people who owed very small amounts so that we could re-enfranchise them and they could vote. on short, i am a researcher so i can measure the impact of our outreach.we incre%

in the population that we helped in florida. it was a project that troued the problems in florida nation y in states like arizo we could te where there are complicateting e disenfranchising hundreds of thousands of individuals. host: just so we get everyone on the same page, what types of crimes constitute a felony conviction? what are the tic guest: felony conviction can be, things. anything that if you end up in ■rprison for one year or longerr potentially could, that is a felony convict for example, former president trump conviction. he probably will not receive a sentence of that, but that is a possibility. hunter b, these are disenfranchg convictions.

some felonies arvery serious. they involve violent crime or murder. some might be not as serious but all of them can be disenfranchising. it depends on the state law. but all of them can be disenfranchisi. host: you talked about florida as an example. but country. why is the so much confusion? guest: states generally■ conwho can vote. they control this o t felony disenfranchisement. a lot of these walls -- laws were passed during jim crow following the civil war. if you look at the■, a lot of them were passed to disenfranchise newly emancipated black voters. over time that has changed. the laws have chang. some of them have been opened up to let more people vote. ork of laws. that is really the problem here.

it is complicateto figure out whether you can vote in a number of states. host: how many americans are impacted by this issue? talk a little bit about the in groups that are most impacted. guest: it is up to 5 million americans that are■■ affd.theres of arizona loan we have identified alone we have identified. georgia, florida and a number of states across the country where this is potentially anthe demoge predominantly, people of color, individuals. usually people convicted of crimethat is the rc breakdown.

hostor people watching at home who may be do not have a feny record, explain why this is an important issue. why should people be concerned? guest: we pride ourselves on being a democracy, on being a place wherple have a voice in what happens in government. faith in democrac itutions is waning. when you have a system in which people are eligible to,y vote, e thing i want to emphasize is that millions of these indidu vote but this is to be so complicated that that out for themselves and they cannot vote withonwhen you havee that,we should all care about because we shld all n which everyone who is eligible to vote has the ability to vote. that is a very basic thing we can all get behind hopefully. host we are talking with neel

sukhatme. he is the director and cofounder of free our vote, an organization working to help restore voter rights to convicted felons. if you have a question or comment, start calling now. the lines, republicans, (202) 748-8001. democrats, (202) 748-8000. independent, (202) 748-8002. people with felony convictions, there is a line for you. (202) 748-8003. about the fact that it varies so much by state. let's take a look at what some of those differences when somebody is convicted for felon. 10 statens le their voting rights indefinitely for some crimes requgoveor's pardon for covered- for voting

rights to be restored, after completion of a sentence included parole and probation or require addi actions before voting rights can be restored. 15tes,elons lose their voting rights during foriod of time after, typically while on parole and prn. voting rights are automatically restored ahis time. former felons may also have to any tstanding fines, fees or resti before their rights are restored. states, felons lose their voting rights only while e. steslus the district of columbia, felons never lose their right toincarcerated. you talk a little bit about the challenges that people face when prison and trying to figure out

how many states actually notify somebody of the status right off the bat? guest: i am not sure of the exact■[ number. that is a moving target too because many states are changing their laws as we speak. forxample iowa and washington state changed their laws around 2020 or so. washingtor example, notifies individuals if you are being released but these systems are not very robust. in some states there is notification when you're released from prison. in other states, that is not there. it states are really picking up and being very clear about. to be fair, because the law is so complicated, it becomes hard. ve read that whole list of state. i am very familiar with this. it is kind of overwhelming. they are somebody different

variables. i mentioned fines and fees. those are two different things. there is also something called restitution. these are different forms of money that is owed. in some states some are disqualifying but others are not. in some states, when you are released from prison, you can vote. p"in other states, you have to e off of probation and parole. in other states, probation can be extended if you owe money. everything is kind ointerconnec. in some states you have to restored.o be able to get your work of laws. on top of a crazy patchwork of data because a lot of the stuff is not just at the state level. that understates the problem. it is actually at the county level because counties in the u.s. determine they have your records of your conviction. whether you can vote, you sometimes have

to look at the county level. counties varyéñ greatly in the ability of data and what they are providg indidus. they may say go look online to check your status and you go it is a complex area of law and data. e h stepped in because our specialty is in law and data. we can help individuals figure out what their eligibility is. in an ideal world, we would not be necessary. this will be something the government whoever would take care of. we a simpler system, then this would not be an issue. host: talked about the fact that it can be difficult for somebody to get the status back. how long does it take when someone is not aware of their status? they have to kind of figure out who to go to and what they back. beginning to end, is average time for how long it can

take somebody to get their rights back? guest: give a straight answer but it is complicated. in some states it is automatic. example, in new york state when you're released from prison, you automatically get your voting rights back. same tnnsylvania. in other jurisdictions, you have to potentially have your convictions expunged. for example, an arizona, i this gets arcane, this illurates how complex it is. arizona, if you have one felony ■>conviction, then you can get your right to vote restored at the end. if you have more than one, you have toition to do that. unless your convictions are for majun automatic expungement law that reduces your conviction amount. you all fines and fees, that can be.

that is the problem righer answ. when you figure out what is gog on, if there is a process to move forward, it can be relatively quick. again, that varies. host: we are talking, the cofoud director of free our vote. le calls. we will go to mike in new jersey on the independent lin good morning. caller: good morning. thanks for having me. i want to say first of all, if you are a convicted felon, you should get the right back to vote after you serve your time. my question to you is that, do you seeeach state for voting rights for convicted felons? is it related at all to thei jum

-- infowars.com. guest:ion as to what extent does politics matter. free our vote is an nonorganiza. i want to make that clear. there is a correlation, an political. certain parts of t i mentioned that a lot of these laws were passed during jim cro. it is disproportionately southern states but not uniformly southern states where the laws are more restrictive. e'f it is necessarily directly tied to politics. correlation. this is an issuehat people of all political stripes have gotten behind. for■ example, there are libertarian organizations that view felony■] disenfranchisement as something that is wrong. there are liberal organizations that do the same thing.

it is more of a human rights issue. i understand the question about politics. that host: this is being brought back into the spotlight becausef's rt conviction. has there been anything -- what has been thestatus? guest: it depends on what happens to him. if he is incarcerated, then he will not be able to vote while he is ■i&$carceratedin new yorks complicated because he is a resident of■m frida but the conviction is in new york. as far as my understanding is from prison, he should be able to vote in florida. the governor of florida has ■=suggested th i he also sits on their rights restoration board and indicated that he would restore rights for him if that ever happens for for

president trump. florida who are not getting that oppornity. host: tony in st. louis, missouri on the republican line. good morning. caller: good morning. i wanted to say two comments. i live in missouri. they did send me a notification in the saying that i was eligible to vote again when i got off parole. is , missouri only restores some of your rights. you still cannot own a firearm or work for the federal government unless you get your whole record expunged after seven years of being on parole or whatever it is. that's all i want to say. have a good day. guest: thank you, tony. free our voteone work in missouri but i appreciate heles are.

again, that raises a really important point. the issue of civil rights is not just about voting. it goes beyond that. a weapon, the right to work for the government. in many states, there are other rights associated with a in florida, if you owe convictit can result in you not being able to drive a car, not being able to have a drivers license, which is a problem if you are trying to pay fines andst: where does r organization currently do work? are there efforts to expand? if someone is in a state where you are not working right now, what other resources are availabl we are working in a number of states right now. arizona where i mentioned the

laws are complex. georgia, the laws are complex. virginia is another state. we have been partnering with the aclu in kansas. kansas has complicated laws. we areookingvirginia and pennsy. pennsylvan i because their lawse actually quite clear. there are tens of thousand, hundreds oindividuals who are on or parole there who can actually vote but they may not know that they can. i voted pennsylvania, parole,ou get a cr answer. you have to dig through. a lot of people do not know what their status is even in states where the laws are relatively clear. host: a comment coming in on twitter from kevin. he says, "on one hand they supposedly paid their debt to

ciy. on the other hand, they may he a oclivity to commit more crime, voting more than ballotsg legitimate votswhat do we know r felons looking to have the rights restored? guest: i have not heard of any evidence thatd: people with past convictions are more likely to commit the sorts of crimes that this individual is suggesting ■afterward. when i talked tothis is an impof being a citizen. you make ake, you serve your time, you come back out. mo of individuals who want to vote want to do so because they want to be part of society again. they want that chance to be a whole member of society. i don't think there is any ev suggest that they are more likely to convincevotes

individual is talking abo what r participation in they generally participate at lower levels.peoo vote. for example, in florida, among pe help we were able to get over half of the ■3individuals in the subpopulatn we were helping to be able to election in 2020. they don't vote in the same numbers but they definitely do in elections. it is meth that they care about and they actually do vote. host: let's hear from kimberly in colorado on the republican line. good morning. caller: as a, as an

ght to vote regardless of their political status or their mistakes in the past. how can we give someone else the right to deny someone to participate in a system that they pay taxes in? i am against a noncitizen voting in our u.s. elections. let's get to the real deal. immigration and the abi noncitir elections. if we are worried about things like that, everyone should have the right to vote except fi am o addressre being passed for noncitizens to vote in our nation.

thank you, kimberly. i apeciate your support for

the idea that all americans should be able to vote. free our vote does not work on the issue of non-american citizens and voting rights and

t that. we are outside of that. our if you are an american citizen, if you have served your time, you should be able to have this right to vote. state laws cannot be so complex. state data systems cannot be so opaque thavote because they do f they are able to do so. that's cmood. host:■d we sorry bit of that after 2020, people who were convicted felons registered. what happened with those cases? neel: none of those cases proceeded. th f was actually convicted. the standard is high. it is something which is not a,a criminal case but i guess that does not necessarily matter.

if you're going to potentially even b charged with a crime, even if it's not proven. if i am rson with a past found a conviction, i could be charged with a crime if i voted. i am probably not going to vote. it's not worth the hassle. that goes to show the problem is regard. you could say in thee convicted. you show those who are not necessarily sure or don't want the hassle from even trying to vote, which may be the point. that might bsome people. these people, let's scare them so they can'tbout know -- canno. i don't know. host:■?b#■'÷u states have been o update their laws. you talked about florida and what thed states changing their laws to better accommodate people are -- have felony convicti i am not sure there are

challenges per se in. terms of like legality. they are able to do that. i mean, it's a lot of peowe havl system, vast majority for nonviolent crimes. this -- of individuals i think makes any kind of case charging. but i think there's really saying, for example, a simple rule would be if you are not in prison, you can vote. right? then you don't have all these issues of, younow,extended? what fines or fees or restitution do i owe? it's a simple kind of role kind of nationwide that says if you're n in prison, you can vote. some states have gone even further. during your incarceration, you come up. i don't see -- you canote. i don't see any kind of reasons why that system will not be ble.

host: there has been federal legislation introduced. representative priestley and senator welch have introduced legislation guaranteeing the right to vote for people with felony records. the inclusive democracy act, a couple provisions guarantees the right to vote in federal elections for citizens who have criminal convictions and require state and federal entitio are convicted, incarcerated, on probation, or on parole of the right to vote in federal elections. enacted, what impact would it have? ut your organization out of business? neel: heyif we were put out of s for that reason. you started on this topic, the end goal was to be able to help th individuals, if that's the case, they are being helped, that's i we are looking to do as an

organization going forward. information on people with past felony convictions, there are a lot ofhese individuals could use help. so you know, i so if your criminal -- if you hr crimin convictions expunged, thatldd not otherwise be able to we are exploring in nonelection years is whether we can use a large amounts of data that we are collecting and putting together as ways to help returning citizens in other aspects of theiriv it, you knowe to get a job, things like that. so i still think we have other we can do but if the voting component is taken off the table, that's fine for me. host: has there been federal legislation previously introduced that comecl with it? neel: i think there was the freedom toi think it was called.

and thatanywhere. i think that was introduced in a provision about restoring voting rights for, you know, for people who were not incarcerated. these bills have not gone ■+anywi think partly because may times they are bundled with all i think if you focus on this particular lot a bipartisan support for restoring voting rights across the board. let's hear from joe good morning. >> would like to say i agree with some of the stuff he is saying. but i want to know, how about if you have two convictions? that you got arrested for and you are put in jail, does he still think yoshould be able to vote? and how let's see, how can i put it? what crimes does he think that

you should not be able to vote for, no matter how many years you were out of prison or what? and that's my question. i'm not sure what, you kno i give everybody a break, but as far as expunging their records andthing, i don't think you should do that, because once they did the crime, they did the crime. why should you do away with it? ok. thank you. neel: thank you. i think you pointed out a couple things that people might not be aware of. so, many americans are in jail waing tr they have not actually been convicted of a crime yet. so they are technically, technically their right to vote away. so these individuals should be able to vote as well. know, millions of dems are not getting that chance. jail, you are awaiting trial, you have not been convicted of anything. your many times not going to be should be able to vote? you kno,

i feel like that's not a deci, i feel like that's a decision that we say, listen, ou are an individual, you ve■ppart of being integrated bak into society again is being able to vote in a democracy. my view is that regardless of the■

percentage of those with felony try to get their voting rights restored? neel: i don't have a clear numberi think that it's so try n many states, it's technically automatic once released from prison but many don't know about it. if i don't know about it, and i have my right back, have i tried? you could have petitions. in certain states, you have petitions to have your civil rights restored. there are thousands who do tit f magnitude, smaller the problem. if the problem is in the millions, you might have in the thousands,something like that is who do this. host: let's hear from sean in florida on the independent line. good morning. >> is my conviction was for drivingn license, which my s

suspended for child it's like a double whammy on top of a whammy. so you cannot drive but how are you supposed to get to work?n 2. was not fully aware of the fact that i had lost all my rights. i thoughtd the sentencing that they were saying certain things were withheld ■■d i was thinkine the right to vote. honestly, i have voted. my question me minor voter -- my new voter■& id and they been sending it ever since. ■■so i am like, how i am -- vot? is the systems right? i want to go by a wn a -- went from a chain gun store and pass the background check.

they actually sold me thehow waa background check if i am a convicted felon? i honestly did not even know that a convicted felon until a situation came up and i put in my information with the police. and there was like, o you can we nnuse you a convicted felon. way back in 'conviction for dria suspended license. . now i am trying to get my rights restored. seems like some of this should tomatic. i agree with you that you should not have to go through this and i am still going th's not over . i am trying to with? can i vote in this election? be've been going through this process but it's not like it was spethey kind of take thee doing it. neel: thank you for your story. i think sadly, i don't think

that's an unusual story. right.■k you have your license suspended for whatever reason. ■his was for child support payments. florida, you have to drive to get license, which is against the law, you get a conviction. andg" eventually, you lose your right to vote, you lose all your civil rights and confusingy when stuff has happened, what, 18 years ago he said? it's clear from his example about the state actually does not knownf what's going on with these individuals as well because they are, you background checks and say you are on the voter role. that goes to show that the system there and elsewhere is too complicated. it's■ people being able to sort of live their lives, being able to vote, participate in democracy. a simpler system where you are not disenfranchising individuals like this, you are not removin

ights for unrelated stuff. of people who had their licenses suspended in florida has nothing to drgo with drivin. it has to do with owing money on a conviction that's completely unrelated to driving. it's not a public safety issue in terms of, oh, this is an unsafe driver. they decided this would be a good policy, to suspend people, suspend people's driver's license if they owed money on a conviction. you can just see theexity and messy creates for people and the system as a whole. call. we were here -- we will hear from tony in atlanta, georgia on the democrats line. good morning. caller: good morning, "washington journal." kind of want to piggyback off the previous caller about the system. i think it's ridiculous that you are a felon on a suspended driver's license. i've never heard that before.

how is anybody that's a felon and you are thinking that you, your time ang is good with you. and you say, to start voting. in order to ve, you h register. isn't something wrong with the system? i guess what the previous caller was sitting, is there somethingu are even allowed to register to vote? you should not even be all agree? or i mean, what can i do as a citizen to,h, prevent this kind of flaw in the system? i absolutely agree that if the law says you should not be able to vote, it should not be allowing you to register to teos in many states, the systems are,

you know, the voter registration system and criminal legal system do not talk together. there is, you know, you know, monetary systems that track money that's been paid. they are not all talking with each other. because it's a complicated system, it's hard to determine people's status they leave it to individuals to figure out whether they can vote and parse through the law, pathwhich is n. we have to rely on oiz vote to t work for them, to help individuals to understand whether they can vote or not. that's what we are trying to do at free our vote. that's what we've been working on. but an ideal world, that would note the law would be ss could know r they could vote. and the state could know who's eligibleo that's been what we at free our vote. host: for people with felony

convictions who want to find out what their status is or see about restoring their voting dvice do you have? where do they start? neel: i think first things,righe our vote. ■3■we are not operating in all states. we are a very small sort■■(we hw states. states like, you know, if you're in arizona or in georgia, pennsylvania, virginia, kansas, texas, right, thesere states in which we've been doing a lot of work. florida. you us. info@freeourvote.com. you can also go to our website, freeourvot it's hard for us to buildndivids to find the individualized information. so what we do is operate going

state-by-state connecting these data sets. weive outreach with our partners. for example, like the campaign legalconduct this outreach ours. that's at year for this electio. host: neel sukhatme, cofounder and director of free our vote. you can find their work online at freeourvote and on x. thank you so much for being with neel: thank you. host: later this morning on "washington journal," we are going to do our spotlight on substack segment and talk with gabe fleisher about his "wake up to politics" newsletter and political news of the day. first we are going to hear from more of you during our open forum. you can start calling in now. republicans, (202) 748-8001. democrats, (202) 748-8000. an (202) 748-8002

. we will be right back. ♪ ■ >> thursday, to enter the cnn presidential debate simulcast liwatch as president joe biden d foerface-off as they try to earn your vote ahead of the general election in november. coverage begins at 8:00 p.m. and then at 9:00 p.m. eastern, simulcast of the cnn presidential debate. following the debate, stay with c-span as we take your calls and get your reaction to the first debate of the campaign season. cnn presidential debate simulcast live thursday at 9:00

p.m. eastern on c-span2, c-span now, our free mobile video app, or online at c-span.org. ♪-span, book tv, every sunday on c-span2, features leading authors discussing their latest nonfictiformerexas republican sr phil gramm and economist john hurley discussed their book "the myth of american inequality," winnerf the 2024 hyatt prize. at 10:00 p.m. eastern on afterwords, a former new york times editor shares has book "a fatal inheritance," about his family's rare medical history with cancer. he is by the wall street journal's health and science reporter. watch book tv every sunday on c-span2 and find a full

schedule on your programde booktv.org. ♪ c-span now is a ee m your unfilf what's happening in washington, live and on-ndhe day's biggest events with the livedings and hs from the u.s. congress, white house court, campaigns, and more from the world of politics, all at your fingertips. stay current with the latest episodes of "washington journal" for c-span's radio, plus a varif compelling podcasts. is available at the apple store and google play. scan the qr code to visit today or visit our website, c-span.org /c-spannow. c-span now, your front row seat to washington anytime, anywhere. >> "washington journal"

continues. host: welcome back. 5kfor the next 25 minutes or so, we are going to be hearingro again, those (202) 748-8001. democrats, (202) 748-8000. independence, (202) 748-8002 . louisville, kentucky on the democrats line. good morning. caller: my sister was murdered by nbc. the reason why i keep on coming out with this government went to war with afghanistan and afghanistan got 80% of♪ heroin and if the size f california. to give money so afghanistan. up, fly back here and dispersed the drugs like oxycoin through johnson & johnson, purdue pharma, cardinal health,

walmart. nbc is involved in it and abc is involved in it in it. it's corruption at its finest in this country. by news the feds and news oiz like, and i've bn for 20 years since that war been going on. i have been tortured. i have been kidnapped. my wife was rapedral agents, be like, cuz she's a federal snitch and she was made a prostitute in the whole game and everyt l your point. we will go to donald in michigan. good morning. caller: yes. i would like to say a few things. i will start with infidelity with the politicians. i was born during fdr's term so

that will give you an idea of my age and i woul just -- will just start with him. he broke his wedding vows for years and years and years and years. then we came kennedy. he was the same thing. he broke his wedding vows hundreds of times. then we come■e to -- go on your internet and type in jfk, federal settle, and you will the information. host: brenda in fort lee, new jersey on the democrats line. good morning. caller: good morning, america. i am just calling in regards to what's going on with the president. he is taking a whole week off to do this debate with trump.andhe wants to be up on his toes,

knowing what to say and do. but a whole week? there's so many things going on within the country that he could be a part of. le week off to get knowledge about what's going to be o furtherir debate is just so -- for their debate is jus 'a democrat. and i am just so disappointed in a'as far as thinking about votig for president trump, it's in my i mean, really, bidenht now is not doing anything for our country. i really wish he could be better. we need somebody better in the white house. be president trump in the future. thank you for listening. that was brenda in new jersey. she mentioned the debate that's

upcoming this week on the front page ois morning's "wall street journal," the headline "biden-trumpet ready to face off in debate to set stakes of ce." the article says thu of two bate scheduled this year provides the campaign rivals their biggest platform to establish the stakes of the race. it marks the earliest encounter by two presumptive presidential nominees since the debate began been televised in 1960. and will offer many voters who have not fully tuned into the campaign a chance to see both men side-by-side. leah in bronx, new york on the independent line. good morning.caller: i don't ben ideologies. i switched from christianity to theism because i don't like i certainly don't believe in

this new gender ideology. earlier, you guys played honorable hec and he was talking about the whatever, he was speag about gender. i find it absurd that in the patriarchy, some guy is going to say these guys are women, too, and now we are going to take women and make them serve in the military. it's absurd. that's all i got. bye. host: jenny in lancaster, ohio on the republican line. good morning. caller: good morning. i just really liked what the two women said before i got on. very good. i really like what they had to say. qbut i will tell you what upsets me. i would have been upset if it mp or anybody up there. you the statute of limitations ran out.

the judge is a democrat. allowed to do that. the judges like that, you cannot different venue. i don't know, if it was anybody else, you know, the court system failed. ■aare you there? host: i am here, jenny. go ahead. caller oh, ok. i'm serious. it wouldn't matter if he'd done it oryou have to foll tso, i d'. i just think, ok, i tell you one more thing that bothers me. ok. children. school. i cannot put that on the school laws but we could teach kids

about transgender things? i don't understand that. we are becoming a godless country. and biden, biden is a traitor. all he's worried abt are votes an's behind him that's telling him what to do. that's all i've got to say. i hope■2 ladies i listen to before likewh too. host: ashley in pennsylvania on the democrats line. good morning. caller: hi. 't know. i just, i am a little thrown by a lot of these comments this morning from other viewers. ihorred by them, honestly. i feel like them are either completely unaware of the incoming threat of 2025 ust don't care.

i feelike the democrats are doing a good job as far as trying to spread that awareness now finally. a little too late but they are getting there. but as far as the debate think the only mistake biden is making with the is doing it with nazi in general and that's all i have to say about that. thank you. henry in chicago, illinois on the democrats line. good morning. caller: good morning. i am calling in regards to the debate between donald trump and president biden. when donald trump ran for president, when hey clinton, he [indiscernible] missed the whole point. he did not answer the questions.

i mean, he just made up his own them. i mean, hillary answered all the questions. trump just trampled all over. ■5 bra ined moderators when they have this debate. that's all i'm going to say. host: are you going to watch the debates, henry? caller: hello? host:■! are you going to watch e debates? caller: oh yeah. i hope they have courageous, brave moderators. with trump -- and not let trump, donald trump, take over. host: that was henry in chicago. the section, house speaker, gop operative made splash in 1994 referring to george another cut, who died on june 14 at the age of 79.

say george, a lawyer in sn with limited political experience who■@ beat has local congressman, docrac house speaker thomas s foley, as part of a stunningove that shifted national politics to the right in 19914, at 79. the cause was a rare■ neuro degenerative brain disease. the 1994 midterm came halfway th president clinton's first term were a resounding victory for republicans who won control of houses of core the first time since the early 1950's. heep the district for 40 years. the last five,■xz mr. nethercu's campaign pointed out term limits pointing out that fully had be s

the top show on television. he was the first speaker to lose a reelection bid since 1860. charles, alexandria, virginia, independent line. caller: thank you for taking my call. i will be extremely brief. since this is open forum, i was out the other day and i saw someone ind with an upside down flag. it disturbed me as a 24-year military. it got on my nerves. it bothered me greatly. a caller yesterday, for the maga mom you guys had on, and all of th■■!e moms, and men for that i want to ask this question. trump, she indicated yesterday, i hope she

is listening, i want her and america this one simple question. donald trump mentioned he could touch women's private parts becae and get away with it. would you still love him americe touched your mother's parts, daughters parts, so on and so forth because he brags on it? she also mentioned mr. by then needs to apologize. for what, i don't really know. i want to ask anybody else, h tr the central park 5? the five young black men he accused of raping a white woman? it was true they did not do it. he never apologized for that. he never apologized for discriminating against blacksi , and fascination for an adulterer and one who believes in christian

values, what are the christian values of we are supposed to be the shining light on the hill like naldi wanted to ask america, if donaldouch your family's parts and rag about it, would you still have adoration for him? host: don in combus, ohio. good morning, john. caller: good morning. finished asking --just got ■8host: you are breaking up. you are a little hard to hear. if donald trump touched your daughter' parts, or anyone's private parts. also, have a question.

■[indiscernible] -- a stiun to be president of the united states? host: let's go to aaron in truth or consequences, new mexico on the republican line. caller:■1■v now. i used to be in massachusetts. there is this rumor on tiktok that they are going to ticket. jesse waters was on fox the other day talking about it. is there any truth to this? host: are you going to vote for biden or a replacement? caller: no, of course not. i don't care who's donald

trump touches and who he brags abouto i love donald trump and d love him more if he molested my mother. host: good morning, michael. caller: just a quick comment to the democrat on the independent line to answer his question. what goes on, whether my mother and the other■x1adults, as was t to, that is none of my business. judge people that do things consensual. the central parke were convicted, and then their conviction was our trump, a newk city them, he was going by the courtthat tn

court. so, yeah. it is unfortunate that maybe they were -- they were falsely convicted. but how was he supposed to know. njthis debate coming up, all bin has to do to, you know, say he did a great not sound like an imbecile. if he can go out and be coherent, put some words . but based on what happened last bait where the moderator aided biden and shut down president trump, i expect especially on cnn -- on top of that there is a judgment against president trump for sexual assault fromde,

from a person with no witnesses. says that she was wearing somethin't even around at the time. tells different stories. the judgeds. the recent 34 felt anything, -- 34 felony thing, that was a literal crime scene. you■/ad a ranking member lee of his position to join with the local da. previously, no one wanted to touch the case until the, the ranking official from the biden justice dertthen they try. also in gi prosecution. just total, blatant corruption. there is a member of the house representatives in a

different state that is taking what is going on in new york for election interferenc ask you ane listening. when do you ever hear any news about the trump trials without it referring to the election? now, in judge is being harassed o defamed. she is not going at it fast enough. i't be there in time for the election, and all these things. host: got your point, michael. lori line. caller: good morning. triumphast tailor-made for mass oi think that he stoked thr fears, starting with obama. even before that■ he was in the media talking about how bad

america is. this is when t from japan. what i'm hearing from people about him attacking their mother, it is just -- awful. everybody has a reason to be ■angry when the working class gt taxes. we always get taxed thehost: lo. caller: we work hard, we try to get ahead, down. we are frustrated and angry. our representatives are not representing us anymore. they are representing big-money. i am saying from either side. for people to give up on their country and put■ man whose life has been nothing evil.

he has been in he has been old enough to go to court. this is nothing new for donald trump. this is donald trump working on them. the fact that other republicans are standing around and letting him -- too afraid of losing their job electing someone more dangerous for the country, they have to get up and say something. if you gets in the white house again everyone out there who always thought the democrats would take your guns, he just had a bump stock case. banned the bump stock. heated. his -- he did come his administration, courts agreed. they knew that the supreme court would not ban the bump■ stock, they knew that wouldn't happen. but every single host: that was hear from keith n evansville, indiana on the

republican line. good morning, keith. caller: good morning. i have a comment that i want to make. we are short on labor in this country. there -- they want to have abortion but we will take everyone else's people. but we are short on people. but you need to go have an abortion. morning where the government saying that it's dangerous for you to goth your pregnancy. it's a danger. democrats put that out there. it's a danger for you to get help with your baby. it's better to abort your baby. so, i believe in the first amendmt, iel in life. if you want to kill the babies,

you have to meet your maker upstrs. my wife was adopted. 48 years. youc' know, if you get rid of al the people other people in this country. why are we getting rid of our own people? i do not understand that. host: in north branford, connecticut on the independent line. good morning, joe. caller: good morning, "washington journal." how are you today? host: doing well. caller: like to talk about the deportation of migrants. it is kind of interesd like to s going to pay for it. i people that they want to round up all these people and deport them holding camps. then they want to deport them out of the country. ■mdo people realize that they ae

talking thousands ofeomaybe mor. what countriwhat happens if thes they plan to s■sd them to refuse to take these people? now you have these people in holding camps. you can call them something different than holding camps. you will have disease and hunger rampant in these you have to feed them. you have to c them. you are taking peoplehat are productive, paying taxes, providing the service, doing things, and now you're going to round them up and throw them into camps for deportation? who is going to pay for all this? who? host: tom in zion, illinois on the democrats line. good morning. er: good morning. let me start bypreface that i ar reporter for a newspaper, and

political and news junkie for years, and still am. i'm shocked by the amount of propaganda being spread just this morning on this show. donald trump is li no other -- is like no other candidate, no s a man whose inability to showe for anything is shocking, frankly. t his background, and abuses, and other things that people are upset about with him. his character. yeah, those are important things. they crucified bill clinton over his affair with monica. some people say, what is good for the goose is good for the

■igander, but the■ f debate and election will focus mostly on the economy. 4hhigh inflation. and immigration. all of the experts are saying that these are the main, key things. one thing that drives me crazy about immigration is back in the 1990'sborder, left here r taxes, brought in cheaper labor, and put them in our factories and so on. since tthen, there has been an influx. i also read a recent arcl timesg mexico is suing the nra. it is the first time a foreign country has ever sued the nra. is actually for millions ofa. dollars.

i think a few billion dollars. it is because they are fi of ths in mexico who are driving all the immigrants appear were sold guns by thejfstates. so, it justhypocrisy and gas lit the right is always blaming democrats for this or that, blaming them for the border problems, when a lot ofselems wr side. i may sound biased, but it is the truth. governor texas hasn't helped either. up in the 1970's 1980's politics had its divisiveness at times, but somewhere after reagan, from the 1990's on, it seems like everyone went way left doorway right -- went w left or way

right and er: good morning. caller: goodi am stuck on the -e mercy. ■pthe man when he was talking about the guns. it was obama and his party that gave those guns to theorder to . but anyway -- i forgot what i wanted to say. thank you. host: we will go to larry in texas on the democrats line. good morning, larry. caller: yes. i want t■/scta the first.

obama is the first president put a black woman on the supreme court. making me forget. also he is the first -- let me talk about trump. he is the first president to call it black woman a dog. the first president to call -- sob's. back to where they came from.

host:t call for this hour,ce stockbridge, georgia on the republican line. good morning. caller: good morningyou can telo mainstream media. lies. trump never called anyonan sob. he loves soldiers. y than any president. all this hate and talking's. the mavóint was illegals. there is a differenceet biden has led over -- let over 12 million illegals this country and they are raping and killing our women and children. but no one ever tells about

that. there were three this week. a mother■, of five, a 13-year-od girl that wa and then a murdered in houston. but you don't hear about trump. it. just like the three years of russia,ô russia, russia and it was proven that hillarclin bought the steelh4■?■ dossier, but no one mentions on media and says we were wrong about that. it's just hate and division from democrats all the time. no, it is thma. the maga's are doing nothing wrong. it make america great again. right now our country is not

great. we have saying "from the river to the sea" and wanting to kill the jews. you know who else wanted to kill the jews? the nazump hitler and the maga's nazis. they need to get real facts and stop listening to mainstream media. host: that doesn't for this open forum segment. ned by recent georgetown university graduate and newsletter author gabe fleisher. ■> book tv every sunday on

c-span2 features leading authors discussing their latest nonfiction books. at 8:00 p.m. eastern, former texas republican senator and johnarly discuss their book, the winner of theynek prize. a former new york times editor ar his book about his family's rare medical history with cancer. his interviewed bynce reporter. watch book tv every sunday on c-span 2, and find a full schedule on or watch online anytime at booktv.org. ■ganr: sunday on q&a, we sit down with ben's chili bowl■u owr

and ben's chili bowl historian, author of breaarriers with chili, about the history of the >> 1968.on, d.c. landmark.■6 did ben's st open? >> yes. we were the only place that was allowed to remain open. >> asked to remain open. they wanted everything closed in d.c. that uprising, we were on curfew for three nights. we were the only place open. >> a great spaceafrican-americal safe, that this is our place to talk, eat, socialize, listen to the jukebox.

new york has sylvia's. d.c. bowl. announcer:■s chili bowl owner and historian on c-span's q&a. you can listen to all of our podcasts on the free c-span now app. >> "washington journal" continues. host: joining us for our spotlight on sub stack segment is geisher the author o on sub stack. welcome. why don't you start by telling us about "wake up to politics"w? >> i started when i was nine years old in 2011. i have now been doing it for about 13 years with more than . it is a daily rundown trying to

serve as a guide of what going on in american politics that day to break downgton and e country trying to give historical context and an tell t to think or mold their opinions. just what the government is doing. the big stuff and the more under the radar things that the government is doing every day. host: nine years old. what■>■í peaked your interest at nine years old? guest: i was interested during the 2008 elections. living now during the election, politics are all around us. and debates. something about it intrigued me. about politics and writing about it too. host: witso much going on in politics then and now, how do you -- how do you decide what to cover? guest: it can be challenges, especially with the daily news. ia lot of political news out there, a lot of morningngs a little

different. i try tos understand those, but my goal is to give my readers something different. i try to take a granular look as understand the ins and outs of what they're doing and the processes undergirding the gislatiog outcome executive orders, and supreme court decisions. my goal is somewhat news of the y but trying to go under the headlines to give my readers something they might not get wh who is reading it and who is your target audience? guest: more than 40,000 readers and a really diverse group. readers in all 50 states and more than 100 other countries. people who are at the highest level in washington. you will hear members of congress, white house staffers, news executives. but my target -- i am from st. louis. people fall acss the country read from the very beginning. really trying to write from

country, giving people an idea of what their leaders are doing. people who are not steeped in politics every day. i get emails from peop eday. that is really my target di have a lot of really wired people and political junkies, my audience is people who just want to get the feed and may not have time to read a different newsletters but want to know the important rings and stay infmeimportant things and stay informed. host: for peo who are learning about your newsletter but may get other newslrs they are reading, what makes yours different? all readers. there are a lot of newsletters that are targeted foan inside the beltway audience if you misd a few days you are suddenly lost. i focus on giving people the full sweep of the story, view. any issue that talking about i look at, is something

unprecedented or never before seen never before seen? i go throughmples, why this might be different, compar. i think that i give a broader view of the context focused on e big stories that you can get everywhere. is, what did congress pass this week? on c-span people are watching and we will see that, but a lot of major outlets are focusing on the infrastructure billr the major pieces of legislation. the reality is, each week there arsm but very substantive and important bills getting throughi believe they are havinn impact on americans and deserve to be written about. what makes my newsletter you need to strung to focus on what happened this week, here is who will impact, and here is why

it matters even though most news outlets are chasing flashy stories. host: the specifics of your newsletter. you graduated from georgetown university. congratulations. ined he would transition your long-time newsletter on to this sub stack platrmwhy did you decide to do s your focus as opposed to working for a more legacy news outlet? guest: i put a lot of thought into the decision and it was a hard one. i thought about it for a long time. newsletter there are a lot of benefits. being able to chase the stories i want to chase. focus radar. the model of a lot of news organizations may not allow you to chase them. i was excited about the opportunity to work with substack. i've been in the newsletter

long time and they are innovating the most and build even larger platforms, them in newer ways. i hear from readers all the time that a newsletter allows them to connect with your readers and they are right there in your inbox and very personal. op like they have built a collection. -- a connection. of outlets are struggling with their revenue models this is one■ñ that works. independent newsletters people feel like it is■:■o autntic and they can build connections and they can trust people than -- more than the larger brands that have been around a long time but are losing trust. i hear from readers that the ist to their trust. and you know, it is a risky that i wanted to give it a try. host: we are talking with gabe

fleisher about his substack newsletter "wake up to politics," whi you can find online and you can find him on x at @wakeup2politcs. if you have a question or comment you are welcome to join the conversation. republicans, 202-748-8001. democrats, 2-748000. independents, 202-748-8002. going back to something you said about being independent, what are the challenges of working independently versus a legacy organization? caller: there are■ --■) guest: there are a few. the resources are smaller. if there are debates or conventions it can be hard to getdentials and to have the resources to go to those place sign up and i am grateful to the ones who do.

obviously i just graduated -=college, so sometimes miss out on the editing or mentor ship that■s being at a larger news outlet provides but i have been doing the newsletter a long time so certainly, i have done with the news outlets and i will continue to partinwill build that connectio. host: we have a lot of callers lined up starting with bob eagle river, wisconsin on the republican line. good mning. i just wanted to boe a few ideas off of you that i have come up with and i wondered if you could spread the word and maybe we can make meing happen. the first one is student loans, why isn't there a mortgage, whatever you owe it is a 30 year or fixed loan like a mortgage, 4%.

when the 30 years are up you are why isn't it?nd you are done. illegal alienwehe are so many people in this country that just got here that our young men. don't we give them the opportunity to serve four or six years in the service. you become a proud american, t me. they would speak english citizenship they have earned it. we have solved so many oblems out of those two issues. thanks you for your time. you are wonderful. host: any response? guest:not just for immigrants we idea of a national service. a young person who just graduated college there are ones who as national service either serving in the military or mething. it is something that i've talked about a can hear my peers

discussing it and there are criticisms of■(deas like that that could be interesting even as it has its benefits. host: chris in tennessee on the independent line. go ahead. caller:i have a question for gao you go to school and college to get an education before you go to school? guest: i just graduated from georgetown in a major and gerd session government and a min in journalism. caller: thank you and have a good summer. guest: i appreciate it. host: royalton minnesota on the independent line. good morning. caller: good morning. i have a, the presidential worries me because that puts o rs all. and i do not know how we are going to put that.

anyway, that is my question. i do not yav a -- i do not know if you have input for that. guest: that is a difficult question because a lot of americans agree there needs to have some level for a sitting president. there are good arguments on both sides and arguments to be made that it would be a difficult decision if anof tir actions were subject to prosecution and we would have to worry about levels going after them for different after -- differt saidy hard to be put in a position where there is one person who is completely above the law and removed from prosecution. i do not think the supreme court could grant full immunity but they will come up with a test where perhaps the president will at we do not want the presidency bogged down but

that if the president is doing set we have e past few years with impeachment not being an effective tool to rein in the uses of power. a president is out of office and there is no longer the argument tbeing bogged down that there is some li tha ross where it is appropriate for them to be prosecuted host: your newsletter is a daily newsletter monday through friday. who are you talking with when you are looking at the content, what are your sources? guest: it aggregation and original reporting. i am looking at all different outlets, all of the owned news outlets onhe left, right and center, i am checking them all day and every day and to my reat summary of what the news outlets are talking about. ■@there is a fair amount of original news reporting. i am focused on reporting on the

daily actions soing to people working at high levels across the government trying to get my readers my best understanding of when i am writing about certain bills and talking to experts and think tanks and universits pert understanding of what these issues are -- what these people are doing and it is a wide range of sources. host: newsletters, eight and she missed that congress did this week and it talks about specifically bipartisan wk, think it is important to highlight the ipod a sin wor-- ? guest: people are focused on the idea that congress is so dysfunctional atprised to learnt of what comes out of congress is bipartisan. the vast majority of bills that pass in the house meaning that more than two thirds of supported. people would be surprised to learn that a piece of

legislation that might see controversial and come out with huge numbers of lawmakers supporting it. i think it is important that trus low and the approval rating is 12 or tha lot of reasons but i wonder the types of bills that i talked about this week like the advance act, a nuclear been -- a nuclear energy bill that passed the house. could make a big role in expanding nuclear energy and reducing carbo■n and a lot of leaders care about it. and i wonder the extent to which trust in congress would be higher if news outlets ■c bipartisan work on things like climate change that a lot of people care about. it does not mean that congress is not perfect and there is not more to fixed but it means it is important to shine a spotlight. these are taxpayer-funded lawmakers and what are they working they are making progress on issues that

voters care about and perha that will change the opinion and relationship with our legislature if we h a clear idea of what they were doing and the polarization in the country if we kn how much of that work was being done across party lines i it is a wide range of topics. some of them, indian boarding schools, threats against judges, gaza, health care and federal ethics. andrewrí in new mexico on the independent li. good morning an. one of my favorite subjects. i see the person you have on is with■q substack and they like to present substack like a lot of independents because they are not directly connectederhaps to any major media. but i usually find the media and the public being basically

misinformed day after day. off-the-cuff comments. the example i wanted to use yesterday was 1commandments stat into law in louisiana where you have all oes sites, major me■úa sourced minor media sources talking about the 10 commandments. they do not say what language it is supposed to be in or the exact wording of the statute. and then i can go to you all of these people who talk about operati mockingbird, the cia and money being spent here and there. s the highest contributor to the political campaigni have no faith in the n political sy i mean i think thaw

is one that i see a lot of people and why it to have independent media outlets available for americans. mainstam mia odoing a lot of gri do think it is important to voices in the conversation. no advertisers or corporate sponsors are no large organization. is just me writing and trying to let them know what is going on. and i think our media system is large and varied which■iea it hf roles to play. i believe that independent media has an important role to play holding other outlets and the feet to the fire anha without some sort of corporate advertising backing which is an important host: a question on the text from miche■:■ e in illinois. she asked "do you find it difficult to remain bipartisan?" guest: i been doing it for a

long time and it has been my■ i think it is very important that readers are able to get a lot of outlets and including a lot of independent outletsjor outlets are onesnd to get their audiences thinking one way or the other. it can be difficult. there are a lot of hot buses su issues and journalists are not robots. i am very practiced at when i am reading the news it is just with the kind of lenscan i best inform my readers and give them context to undewhat are thi have about the news and the questions mmight research and o experts so i can find the answers. that is my main view, trying to take emotion out of it and report dispassionately. and g a clear idea of what is going on and why it matters and they can come up

with onist: again with so much g on, how do you with everything, what does your process look like putting the newsletter together? guest: it is a lot easier when i graduated. i am doing it full-time it is a lot easier. ]especially with the changing news cycle, i worked on it throughout the day the day before a my goal is by the time i go to bed to at least have some at least outline of what the next one wants to be or some of it written. certainly it is not infrequent that i wake up and that will be i am scrambling to write a different newsletter as you can relate with. andtbut the process is to spende whole day researching and talking to sources and trying to go deep on whatever topic i want tod most of the writing ice -- most of the writing i do the next morning. i try to have as possible so my readers can wake up and read it and go about

their day. st in duluth,on the democrats l. good morning. caller: yes. e gentleman is part of the new generation. it is pivotal that they understand the dynamics going on before us. mwthe world is really changing. i want to view context of what mr. putin wants from the world. he has said to be the richest man in the world, and i play ale resources. and he wants oil to remain in power. he wants chaos and that is an echo of an old bull civic -- bolshevik theme which is to turn the world upside down and when it burns itself out he will be in power. he wants to shepherd big-money into the hands of the few and he want wars to be able to blame them on biden and tea putin's ve

world. which one of those are provided by trump? i think that the young ople should realize this is not trump, but a lot coming in from a triumvirate which is , i believe netanyahu and trump. young people should know as they go■é forward to watch the world, it is changing and dangerous. ■ñh.a lot of it has to do with n oil economy wanting to crush what is happening in the green side. guest: i mean i guess one that certainly in terms of the next generation of young■çeople something that i do a lot of reporting on is talking about the views of gen z, is this is something that i will say it comes up a lot when i look at the polling and talk to young voters. foreaffairs is very low on a lot of their minds. not traditionally when it straight -this election could py

be different. but still when you ask young voters the economy and health care and housing are the issues that rank higher. the caller mentioned certainly some fern issues -- foreign issues that have■k attracted yoh energy and it will be important to are paying more attention to foreign affairs than the past issues -- domestic issues. host: you are on campus when the protests were happening, the gaza protest. what was your take away from that, what opportunity did he give you for your work? guest: it■■ was an interesting time to be on a college campus. georgetown was quieter than other■j■v campuses so there wert as many active protests. but one thing was very interesting to be on the college campus and to be s there and hah my friends and it was interesting to watch the media coverage and independent media

iortant and why it is good to have manycluding young persp. one thing that was occurring to me was that seeing the caricatures of college campuses and young when the reality was certainly at my campus it was an issue and there were a lot of people who care deeply as i should and there were conversations about it. but there was also college and people going about their days in living their lives and the vast were not super plugged into the issue. it gave me see that when you turn on the tv and get the idea this was about and the most important thing and campus but the reality it was a factor this past semester but not the be all end all or■g the political life. looking at the nearly every poll that comes out about young voters and this cp convero

reporting, it ie care, inflatid issues that matter to adult voters and the same ones that arise into the top for young voters. i think having that perspective as a young person on a college campus getting a clear id. there are se loans and israel in boat and there are young activists. you tao are someone who lives on a college campus you see that get attached to young voters because they are fsh are. what are animating young people and driving their boat. that is an interesting perspective that that granted me. will youngning -- they had an voters shipped american litics in 2024? since the last presidential election 60 million americans have reached the voting age for

the first time. some experts believe that millenials and geners will bring a sway this november. what are your thoughts on the potential outcome or turnt for that generation? guest: in terms of turnout i will say and again this comes up in the polls and in my conversations. are disillusioned and that is the main fruit -- the main through line whether parties. most young voters in the -- identify as independents, or moderates or when you asked them about the news mediar (mseinstitutions, any institutir anything like that they are disillusioned and feel very g9skeptical and very low trust f all of those social institutions and of both presidential candidates. that is particularly truehe choice of two candidates who are 60 or 70 years older.

i i would be surprised at this point in the electioifthere saw in 2018 2020 andw a record levels. obviously there are a t of time for both campaigns to really engage in voting. but as it stands with low levels high skepticism of both candidates i would be surprised if we saws of levels in the record-breaking years that we have had in the last few cycles. host: what is some of the ctors causing that dissolution that in politics and how can you campaign to fix that? gu on some levels it is very stark when we see the nbers and on other levels it is not that surprising. you think of my age, i was born in 2001 a few months after 9/11 and■b graduated in 20

my whole first year of college was online because of covid. between there was a 2008 recession and the other recession afevery generation han but it is especially true that the events that happened in the first 10 to 15 years of their life are the ones that will influence your political thinking the most. for my generation there is■" ths series of crises whether it is sions and covid that have seated a lotnment's handling of these big crises that my generation grew up knowing would be all around us. and generation has an immediacy much myou are able tos ango dth hole of in some cases true anger and distrust and be surroued bwhen e

factors th on social media the untested factors of generation n phones and tiktok. that iext. it becomes less surprising why we have such a disillusioned and skeptical generation. to fix that it is most important. it has been striking to me that it is just now that campaigns are learning the lessons of reaching for the voters where they are. there campaigns that use traditional older forms of voter contact that arethe ott yesterday thee dnc would have a content creators can -- credential for the first time. ■9and i think that was start -- smart and a lot of them are geintheir news not from main news sources but tiktok. context to the convention and kind of havingvñ themhrough the

platforms i think campaigns are idea that this is a different generation that exists in different spaces online. and there are very different tools to reach them. host: i might have done the math wrong, but are you one of those 16 million who is going to be voting for the first time? guest: i turned 18d% before 2020 so i will vote again and i will vote again now. host: let us go to in oklahomahow do you say your ci'? tellql-a-quah. it is the i think independent media is veryi appreciate what you do wih independent media. th concept, i used to woron newslet™ters and i still do to some extent.

i think that what is going on here is there is a lot of what i would call the haze of anxiety. it is kind of brook that just goes on and on. with why young voters, andk young voters are very important. i think it is really youth and get them interested in not just politics, not just the struggle for power, but get them interested in the issues behind the struggle forer.because thisg on. the domest■ic ieak of that havee import into larger and worldwids such as climate change. we need public■7 education at a time when public adjective -- where politicians are tearing it

down. making it moreor young people to be informe and make good decisions about the future, a sustainable future. s absolutely imperative. so, i appreciate the independent point of view and the newsletter but you are going to have to pierce through a lot of this anxiety haze. t down to some real pertinent issuesbolts of the ecd in natural things. d we have to get down-to-earth on some of the stuff. population and pollution problems have been a big problem my e:)ntire lifei was born in 1. host: we are running short on time so we will get a response. guest:ld say the term that he just used, haze of anxiet ono disillusionment, we are the

doomscrolling■(■j generation spending so much time online. you can scroll and see nothing but news that does make the haze of anxiety. my newsletter one of the things that ie and what i hear from a lot of peopl■e, one ofavoritey i read the news all day and i me angry or trying to emotionally map -- nipute i reai feel calm. i hope people are getting the news that is important and there is news that should make people anxious and the news is not always good. but i tried to give it in more of a calmo raise anxiety levels and trying to give a focus on not j also good. things that are making their way through congress gthese issuesg bipartisanpo difference whethers

things like climate change or reducing fees or benefits to veterans. i do that every friday and it is the most popular feature in my newsletter and people write me every week depressed and down about the dysfunction and the polarization and they rd the friday newsletter and say things are getting done and mtill has a way forward. that is a big goal trying to pierce through the haze of anxiety and trying to give people not pollyannish or over not sure over naive. but just letting them know the good things that are happening or that things are getting deanx and. host:estion coming in on twitter from angela, "what are

the major differences between your reporting and the mainstream media? have you ever found major discrepancies with you and the mainstream media?" guest: i do not know there is discrepancy in terms of fact. you not it, but a lot of media outlets there is the ideahat■b there is a lot of emotion put into what they are doing. i hear from readers all the time feel like the news is screaming at them endlessly and thateel one way or another. there is a total difference in turn -- tonal d to act as if evy little that or you should be angriero trying to can candid also in terms of like to think at least that in terms of policy, i go to a nitty-gritty level and that is myope,

trying to be honest, i have a lot of people who are not wired in. so i try to make it accessible and understandable but people do not like to be talked down to. if you explain tot of the stuff that seem so confusing is not. ■it is just talking friendly ths is what happens and then this. this is why it matters. president biden does the certain executive action but this gives him the authority and hear the arguments from either side. you are being kind to frank about what is going oness behind the news. i hope to go to a deeper level thani'm trying to focus on not just news that is the flashy headlines but these kinds of smaller and lower profile headlines. always excited to find a story whether it is in congress or the statevu legislature where it is not like getting covered but it is super interesting and had a real politics -- a real

impact on politics and policy and should get some sort of platform. those of the storiei not that to media coverage but tr you do hay edition for subscribers separate from the monday through friday for everyone. and you have an r&r section recap and recommendations. some of the sections that i saw included outside the beltway issues and issues under the radar. why are those important? guest: there is a lot of focus on what is going on in washington in my newsletter and across the media that is important. ■3 the city is critically important. there are 50 states. a lot of things happening.y a they do not always get as much coverage and state and local media shrinking as it is with so many fewer local news outlets it that those are the levels of government closest toy

people so it is important to tell people what is going on not just in thethe states because pe in that state. but also oftentimes you see those of the issues that percolate up. th wk will be talking about a few school districts that are doing interesting actions either banning phones in schools or changingt+ the relationship between online using social media and we are seeing a lot of action on the state washington that will percolate up as well. the surgeon general is speaking on that and different bipartisan pieces of legislation that are being introduced. so it is always interesting to look at the state levelch gives you an idea that if we are seeing enough states with both democratic and republican led legislatures focusin to focus on because there were people wthat but that might giva clue that that is washington will be working on in a few months or years down the line. host: you can find d subscribe

to "wake up to politics" at wakeuptopolitics.substack.com. we have been talking to the author. guest: thank you for having me. host: that does it for today. thank you to oicipated. we will be back tomorrow at 7:00 a.m. eastern and 4:00 a.m. pacific. enjoy the rest of your saturday. ♪ [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2024] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption ntent an■eaccuracy. visit ncicap.org]