americans will head to the polls for yet another tremendously consequential election. i am in arizona, a state crucial to democracy four years ago and could prove critical once again. joe biden flipped the state in 2020 right now, the cook political report has the race for arizona listed as a tossup. in recent polling shows the two candidates nick and nick. to get a deeper insight into how this election is playing on the ground am i invited six motors from across the political spectrum, three of whom i've met before, to express how they plan on voting in two weeks and whether or not they think their party is doing right by them. >> are you planning on voting in this election? okay, that takes care of that. are you planning on voting for donald trump and j.d. vance? are you planning on voting for kamala harris and tim walz? okay. how many of you identify as democrats? as republicans? and as independent?

it has got to be, it has got to be tricky for republicans, to be able to do this, in some cases for the second election, the second general election, certainly more locally. tell me about this. >> well, i think that we have a record, right, because we have donald trump running for a second term me but we have had a president in between, so we have seen what trump is capable of, and we have seen what life was like after a trump administration. we kind of have something set up already for us. i think that for me, that factors into a lot of it. i think there is some chaos that follows. >> you and i talked two years ago almost exactly to the day. you believe in what you believe in as a republican, you are

just frustrated with the republicans running in your name, or running in your state, trying to represent what you are not. >> and so it has become easier and easier to not vote for people who don't stand for normal conservative couples, and instead, deny election results, and try to justify an attempted coup in our country. he can't say that january 6th was a loving event where people got together and tore up the capitol. it is not reality. for anyone that is trying to change history on that, or change the perspective on that in a positive way, put a spin on it in that regard, i can't vote for them. i just can't. i think that, as a republican, things that are important to me , politically or policy wise i should say, take a second place to holding the country together, honoring our constitution and our democratic institutions that we've had for 200 some odd years, but that

are really getting torn. >> we are also people that have been accustomed to voting for people like john mccain, in what was his moniker and his brand. he was a maverick. so, there are a lot of us realize that we can contain the multitude, that it is country over party, we are comfortable with that and that we are allowed to be dynamic and freethinking on a ballot, so we don't have to simply be a robot and vote for a party that is lost. it is heartbreaking. >> you are voting for harris and walz, as is everybody here. you are not in love with all of their policies? >> from a policy perspective on the democratic side, i understand they are trying to make things a little less partisan, and appeal to some of the republican voters on the fringe side, that is something for me that was a long time kind of took me a long time to

decide about it. i remember a lot of the policies tim walz actually passed in his date and i adored him when he got chosen for the vp candidate. harris, i remember back in 2020 during the presidential race was not one of my top picks even in the primaries. i was seeing a lot of the things she was saying. although i adore her extensive, and very incredible history and education she does have, there was just some stuff that even like younger democrats on the side think are important, one of the biggest movements that happened in the last couple of years was obviously the blm movement and the association with police and law enforcement. i know a lot of people my age are on the fence and maybe not even voting because of that, but i think that the democratic party needs to align together under one common cause. again, like how is saying, it is not that we are going to be mindless robot, but it is for the actual cost and to protect the nation.

>> richard, you have registered as an independent after the last election? >> correct. >> tell me a little about that. >> i wanted to shake up the dynamics and reflect that there are people that have different opinions. i just thought that was a good opportunity. i want to go back to what pitino said about the goldwater's and the mccains, people in arizona that don't vote for them still respect them. those are people that have led extraordinary lives, have done extraordinary things for our country. and it is deeply harming to hear the attacks on the mccains. it thrills me to see people who will stand up to donald trump and his supporters and say, no, that is a bridge too far. you have gone too far. as a democrat, i saw a lot of love and respect for those people and i am not able to do that now with the current party. >> coming from a liberal

standpoint, i think a part of the concern is existential. i can sit all day long and have disagreements over physical policy, over the fine points of immigration policy, how we deal with border security. there are things we can talk about and talk about civilly. i think when we start getting into conversations that deal with oppressing particular populations, resending it right , trying to remove the very existence of some people from our conversations, to our history books, to our laws. if you are coming down on the side of doing things that are inhumane, i think the conversation needs to stop there and at that point, as much as i dislike the polarization, i think it is very difficult to engage with someone who stands on a platform of wanting to quite literally do away with people you love and care about. the same thing comes with the

existential needs to present the republic. our country, the democracy, as danny said, we've managed to preserve for more than two centuries is on the line. if you're coming down on the side of, let's call them what they are, coup attempts, insurrections, i don't know how we begin to have a civil conversation until we get past that point. >> all right, clearly, providence enjoyed the discussion. as it was going on, take a look at that rhino rainbow. the rain is still coming down a bit, but i think it will be sunny in the next half an hour. that is your weather report. as for that conversation, i will have a lot more tomorrow morning . we will dive into a lack of stability these voters are witnessing in american politics, as we all are and why the three republicans on the panel say, they no longer identify with what their

parties values have become under donald trump. still to come, secretary of state adrian fontes joins me in phoenix . we will discuss how he is keeping the election and election workers safe. more "velshi" in arizona after this. this.

last sunday, in an interview with fox news, trump said this. >> i think the bigger problem is the enemy from within, not even the people that have come in and destroyed our country, totally destroying our country. the towns, the villages being in you dated. i don't have a problem in terms of election day. i think the bigger problem, the people from within. we have some very, very bad people, we have some sick people. radical lunatics. and it should be very easily handled, if necessary, by national guard, or if really necessary, by the military.

>> a former president and current republican nominee for president, just weeks before the election, suggesting that he would seek the military on americans. this should be a five alarm fire movement. we have become so accustomed to donald trump's ongoing authoritarianism and fascism, that some of this just blends right in. wednesday, in a town hall that aired on fox news, trump did it again. >> it is the enemy from within, and they are very dangerous. they are marxists, communists, and fascists. they are dangerous for our country. we have china, russia. we have all of these countries. if you have a smart president, they can all be handled here the more difficult the pelosi-- these people are so sick and so evil. they are the threat to democracy. >> this is a question-- [ applause ] >> i am glad i got that out. >> the day he is referring to

are democrats, or even anyone that disagrees with him. he says democrats are more dangerous than foreign adversaries. he has called democrats seek, ludicrous. and we have known trump in the political sphere now for more than a decade and this is not new. his call for violence against his political rivals are getting more overt. calling for retribution is not a new tactic for the former president. one of his very first catchphrases on the campaign trail way back in 2015 was a rallying cry that punishes political rivals as he led his supporters in chance of lock her up. the fact is, threatening his rivals is so second nature to trump, even the best of us lose track of all the transgressions. i decided to dig in a little and refresh your memory. he threatened hillary clinton with jail time, repeatedly. he called for obama to be put in jail.

he says he wants to prosecute all the advisors. new york attorney general letitia james, and manhattan district attorney alvin bragg, nancy pelosi, special counsel jack smith, members of the special counsel committee, fani willis, jeff adams, special counsel robert mueller, and county and electrical poll officials. elliott earlier this year, he openly toyed with the idea of taking revenge. >> you know, the word, revenge, is a very strong word. they've had revenge through success, i'd like to see the country survive. because this country is not going to survive like this. revenge does take time, i will say that. sometimes, revenge can be justified. >> and then of course, there was this from last march. >> in 2016, i declared, i am your voice. today, i add, i am your warrior, i am your justice . for those that have been wronged and betrayed, i am your retribution. i am your retribution.

>> that was a dramatic turning point in our political life, when he said, i am your retribution. it sounded a lot like what mussolini used to say, i am your avenger. if we thought and hoped his language could get not get more extreme than that, we were wrong. the last push toward election it is moreover an extreme than ever before, both in how he is defining enemies and what he is promising to do in pursuit of revenge and retribution. don't doubt him because it sounds unhinged, believe him, because he means it. it. target the source of pain with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medicine directly at the source. voltaren, the joy of movement.

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before the break, we talked about donald trump's escalating rhetoric, now overtly calling for those who disagree with him , the enemy from within, suggesting he would ploy the military against american people he did not like. joining me now someone who has felt the wrath of donald trump's revenge play, michael cohen. michael is the most of "the michael cohen show," on youtube. good to see you again. you and i have talked, especially about that time he talked about retribution. this is something you have talked about and warned people about, not just guys close to him, it is anybody. >> we take a look at the book behind me, revenge, a time that donald trump is using now.

how donald trump webinars the department of justice against his critic. in all fairness, ali, nothing says, elect me president, like using the doj to silence your critic, or potentially be all your critics. i will say, after listening to you, showing that list of all the people that donald intends to go after, i have to say, i am thankful that my name is not on it, although i do believe that he must be somewhat angry at me. >> yeah, and i guess this is the thing we have to think about, how would donald trump leverage the power of government, compared to how he did last time? he actually had people in place, in some cases, who were prepared to not go along with his schemes. a new trump presidency, he will not do that. he will not have people who are not loyalists. at this point, you've got all of government how is that going to work? what are the things that critics of donald trump will feel? >> again, why are we even making that supposition, when

the reality is, he has done it before, and with the new supreme court ruling on presidential immunity, you can expect him to do everything that he says he intends to do. what did he do, for example, to me? they learned me down to 500 pearl street, where they had low level these were low-level folks over at the department of corrections, the bureau of prisons. this guy, they learned me down there for the sole purpose of having me sign a document that truly does not exist. it was created specifically for me. why i say that is because, it limited, it's actually limited my first amendment, constitutional right. it prohibited me from publishing my first book, "disloyal" and or speaking to the media about it. not only did it limit me, it limited my family and friends from speaking as well.

so, when i refused to sign that fraudulent, counterfeit document , they handcuffed, shackled me, threw me into a freezer and returned me to solitary confinement, totaling now 51 days of solitary confinement. when donald trump tells you what he wants to do, what he intends to do, understand, he has already done it before, and you should listen to what he is saying, because he intends to do it again. >> let's talk about this enemy from within, a new line he has dropped pretty much everything will day this week. on wednesday, fox news aired this trump town hall. i aired a little of it, let's do it, for specificity, i want to talk to you about it on the other side. >> we have two enemies, the outside enemy, and then the enemy from within. the enemy from within, in my opinion, is

more dangerous than china, russia, and all of these countries. if you have a smart president, he can handle them pretty easily. the thing that is tough to handle these lunatics we have inside, like adam schiff, who is a total sleazebag, is going to become a senator. i call him, the enemy from within. >> this is dictator level stuff. adam schiff, a guy who is running for united states senate, a united states congressman, calling him a lunatic and calling him, the enemy from within. this is not normal politics, michael. this is really dangerous stuff. >> he did not coin that phrase, in fact, that phrase was coined by joseph mccarthy. we all know how that turned out. there is also a term very similar, demoralized from within, these lines that were used in adolf hitler's memoir. these are not new ideologies or belief. trump is just using them, because for whatever reason, he thinks that this is

a good, political move to continue to sure up his base. whether you like adam schiff or not, whether you like nancy pelosi or not, whether you like the bidens, or kamala harris, whether you like the clintons, all irrelevant. right? the purpose of politicians is to debate, not to incarcerate. that is what trump intends to do . he intends to after all of his political critics, all of his political enemies, and he is warning the american people, why there is a large group, and there is a large group of americans that refuse to listen to what he is saying, and said instead, they are saying washing his words, for whatever reason, they are saying washing them so that they are not as unhinged as they actually are. >> that is why we called the

segment, "believe in the first time." these are his words, these are indeed rings that have already been done. no reason to believe they will not be done with rare efficiency next time. michael cohen, former personal attorney to donald trump. host of "the michael cohen show" on youtube. we will be back with more of "velshi" across america in arizona after this. is. voltaren... for long lasting arthritis pain relief. (♪♪) when life spells heartburn... how do you spell relief? r-o-l-a-i-d-s rolaids' dual-active formula begins to neutralize acid on contact. r-o-l-a-i-d-s spells relief.

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coming up on another hour of "velshi" adrian fontes joins me in -person. we will discuss how he is expecting for an onslaught of frivolous lawsuits and delayed tactics and 30 tricks and how he has been laying the groundwork to do it again. also, i will call to order this week's velshi banned book ban. judy blume joins me to discuss randall's brand-new classic of bloom's brand-new classic. another hour of "velshi" across america live from arizona begins right now. good morning, saturday, october 19th, there are 17 days remaining in this year's extremely close and important residential rates, a process that will ultimately be decided by the results of the election in 17 key swing states.

i am in one of those this weekend, arizona, where donald trump lost to joe biden by fewer than 1000 votes in 2020. it was biden's victory that year in terms of boats, also the closest presidential race in arizona history. arizona being a state that is largely a republican stronghold for the past 70 years. with election day fastly approaching them about election campaigns and surrogates have been focusing there efforts on winning the swing states. thousands showed up for an event last night, featuring barack obama, who remains one of the most popular democrats in the country. today, obama will appear at another event in las vegas to help get out the vote. in many ways, arizona is a microcosm of this country as a whole in this moment in time. like elsewhere in america, residents have been concerned about inflation, where the economy is headed, arizona is an actual border state. the country's immigration issue is something that affects people in their everyday lives here. at the moment, a