kemp: ms. abrams is going to do a lot of attacking of my record tonight because she doesn't want to talk about her own record. in 2018, and the governors race we had the largest african-american turnout in the country. she said this in a built 202, our recent elections integrity act where we passed two years ago would be suppressive and trim -- jim crow 2.0. just this past may and our primaries we had record turnout in the republican primary and the democratic primary. in georgia, it's easy to vote and hard to cheat. mr. hazel: as a libertarian, although you will push for people to have access to go into the bowls and voting, are not pushing valid access. this is a huge oppression for people like the third parties and people that want to get people on the ballot. 20% democrats, 20% republicans in the state of georgia, that leaves 60 percent of people in georgia unrepresented by ballot access laws that both of them support. ms. abrams: i cosponsored legislation to expand ballot access because i

kemp.in recent weeks, two recordings have surfaced in which you left the door open to questions about whether you pushed to get emergency contraceptives and whether you nacl --back a statewide ban on the distraction of embryos. can you tell us whether you push for these measures or any other additional restrictions on abortion now that the 2019 law is in effect? gov. kemp: no, i would not. we were at many campaign events, people come up, secret recordings and completely understand the conversation going on, but that's not my desire to do that, georgia and should know my desires to continue to help them fight the 40 year high inflation and high gas prices and others rains at -- other things that our georgia families are facing right now. quite honestly because of bad policies and washington, d.c. from president biden and the democrats that have complete control. working with the georgia general assembly, we have been able to work to help give some relief to people despite what's happening in

kemp. brian: i would tell people i support safety and justice, miss abrams refused to answer her question, the answer is zero, she has a stance of defunding the police, illinois cash bail and serve on the boards of -- eliminate cash bail and serve on boards that give grants to the organizations to the defunding the police movement. stacey: i do have the support of serifs, -- sheriffs, as my plan -- i have the support of sheriffs, advocates, victims, those that want to be treated fairly in our system. i have to have the conversations with entirety of georgia. i didn't have the luxury of being part of a good old boys club where we do not focus on the needs of people. that is why my mission has been to put up concrete plans explain how i will serve justice, safety, and how i will serve the citizens of the state of georgia. >> 30 seconds, brian kemp. brian: look, i would tell people, i know miss abrams is upset and mad. these are things that she said. this is not be making this up. this is thin

went, brian kemp had an effective week with black people.sn't, that ain't our fault. >> shannon: why do you think there is perception between you and this important voting group? >> i think the manufactured crisis designed to suppress turnout. if you look at my polling numbers and polling numbers of my ticket mate senator raphael warnock polling well with black voters. black voters deserve respect of having someone to come and speak to them, engage them and while brian kemp may have had two events this week, i've done 50 events in the black community and what i've done for 15 years is reach out to and reach into communitiess. i'm excited about the turnout and engagement we're seeing. i know there has to be some worry, in this case, wor being manufactured, it is always an opportunity to engage. i do not take avoting block for granted. i spent efforveryday reaching oo and reaching into communities. i am going to expand medicaid to provide half a million people with healthcare, 40% of african american. i'm going to tackle affordable housing cri

the kemp of 2018 was easy enough to paint as a villain.d to throw the 2020 election in trump's favor. do you think in the end that action of kemp's ultimately may be his saving grace here? >> his decision to go up against donald trump, i mean, who could have ever seen it turning out this way? that absolutely fueled his total dominance of the gop primary. may he beat donald trump's hand picked candidate by more than 50 points we didn't see that coming. and we didn't see this coming that brian kemp who was caricatured in 2018, by all democrats, especially stacey abrams, as being a tool of donald trump's. through his own actions and no political gain anyone saw in the moment of 2020, that has inoculated him against that charge he's a trump crony. obviously he's not. we've seen cross over appeal from some democrats who said that brian kemp did the only thing i wanted him to do in 2020 and that was stand up for the state of georgia. so we know that helped him a lot. will it help on election day? it's helping so far. we'll see what happens, thou

brian kemp has an excellent record to run on. brian kemp is in a strong leadership position.. stacy abrams only wanting to attack him because she doesn't want anybody to understand what her background is what she's wanting for the last few years. she's made public her liberal progressive ideas. it was funny she tried to blame brian kemp on crime when crime is going up in the city such as atlanta and others that are democratically run cities where they had issues trying to defund the police and others. it's a hollow attack coming from abrams. >> harris: it's interesting, david, when you talk to people how crime really rates in that state. that might be why some people particularly people of color, might vote for the incumbent governor kemp. take a look at this. "new york times" columnist appears upset that some black georgia voters are supporting kemp. let's watch. >> there is a little bit to that number. you could have some split ticketing on the ticket between the governor's race and the senate race and may be black people doing that either we're told in a vote or voting for

and it seems to have a patience zero here in georgia and brian kemp.ves that there should not be a right to an abortion, then he should absolutely stand in that position. but that is not the issue here. he does not believe in a woman 's right to choose. he does not believe in the freedom that we should enjoy, the freedom to vote, the freedom to control our bodies. he also opposes marriage equality, and we know that right now, what we are facing in georgia is the possibility that, essentially, a governor who's either in line and in lockstep with clarence thomas, as he dismantles our freedom, or a governor who stands up to clarence thomas, and stands up for georgians. that is my intent, and i believe that in 29 days, that will be the reality. >> and last question for you, we had stewart stevens, the former republican strategist on the show earlier. he said democrats should be running on democracy. that's what we should put on the ballot. is that the top issue for you, in your run? or is it abortion rights? is it the economy? what is it? >> democracy unde

federal democrats delivered that money, not brian kemp.nd we know that he's currently sitting on more than $400 million in affordable housing assistance to stop evictions and refusing to deploy that money. there's a 60% rejection rate. wsb actually did a very fantastic story about it, so i encourage people to look it up. but let's understand that there are four issues in georgia, affordability, inventory, gentrification, and homelessness. he does not have a plan to address any of those issues directly. by refusing to put money into the state budget to tackle these issues, he is not solving the problem. piecemeal solutions and stop gap dollars does not mean that you have a plan, and brian kemp has failed to do anything on real estate, except make money off of it as governor, he's made hundreds of thousands of dollars in real estate and recently told a black radio forum, when he was asked whether he would allow local governments to tackle the issue of affordable housing through giving them more control over housing prices, he said no, he did

facing georgia is four more years of brian kemp. >> ms. abrams doesn't want to talk about her own record. >> not to declare a state of emergency over the migrant crisis fearing it would make the look back. multiple city officials. >> fox has obtained surveillance video capturing what dhorts say likely gabby petino's last day alive before her remains were discovered on the 19th. >> implicating president biden in shady business dealings. >> chuck grassley indicate documents indicate chuck grassley aware of hunter biden's business arrangement and may have been involved. >> that's good. scott puts it down. that's good. the kick is good. and the chargers win it in overtime i want to put on my my, my boogie shoes austin texas, capital of texas according to reports. good news is we are now heard on klbj so lawrence baines johnson picked up the radio show. the station he used to own. i guess he sold it when he died. >> steve: lbj owned a bunch of them. lady bird johnson after he passed ran the radio empire of theirs. >> brian: good news for lbj an

it doesn't mean that kemp isn't equally dangerous.s the governor of georgia, kemp has implemented extremist policies and laws like signing legislation that restricts access to voting and a ban on abortion after six weeks yet he has gotten what could be called a herschel pass. a recent analysis has found that sb 202, the voting law, has effectively cut access to voting. this year, 4% of voters cast absentee ballots compared to 26% in the 2020 general election and 49% in that year's primary when absentee ballot applications were sent to all active voters. joining me now is stacey abrams. i feel like herschel has obliterated the law. there are now 7.8 million registered voters in georgia. data shows that 95% of the state's eligible voters are signed up. that is huge success to which you owe the credit. you've been this for a long time. 68% of eligible voters in georgia turned o ut in the 2020 election. a country where we can barely get 60%, that's a miracle. i wonder if you believe that this law is going to undo that miracle and reduce t

governor kemp, we appreciate your time. >> thanks for having me, bret. >> bret: talked to governor kemp a short time ago. we want to point out we did give stacey abrams the opportunity to have equal time on the show. the abrams campaign turned us down. we will talk to herschel walker live later on in this show. up next, we will go live to the white house where president biden is playing the blame game ahead of the midterms and later as we said herschel walker will join us live. but, first, a look at who cobb county voters wanted in the white house in the past. >> we're here in marietta square the county seat for cobb county. joe biden won this county in 2020. before that hillary clinton won here. the first democrat to do so since jimmy carter. georgia overall is becoming pretty purple, which is why this state is in the middle of, yet, another election battle. we'll talk to some voters here as "special report" continues after the break. ♪ ♪ been healthier. shingles doesn't care. but shingrix protects. proven over 90% effective, shingrix is a vaccine used to prevent shingles in adults 50

>> i really appreciate the fact that governor kemp opened up the state early on.hat kind of helped us get back on the feed faster. >> he sn't decided who he will support to represent georgia in the senate. >> i'm waiting to see how things shake around in a few days. >> with control of the u.s. senate and the balance, it will be up to undecided voters to determine if he can pull off a repeat on election day. >> the number of women dying of pregnancy-related causes is on the rise with nearly 900 deaths were awarded in 20. two thirds of those deaths were determined to be preventable according to a new report from the march of dimes. the report found that as outcomes get worse, so his access to highuality maternity care. >> this new report found 36% of u.s. counties are maternity care deserts. places wh no ob/gyn doctors, hospitals providing obstetric care, birth centers or certified nurse midwives. those counties are also home to almost 150,000 babies. these figures have worsened with the number omaternity care deserts increasing by 2%. two out of three materty care

>> last night, all governor kemp had to do was hold his own, stay calm. is a libertarian in the race. very bold last night in the debate. i didn't watch it. all he had to do was stay calm, hold his own, not make any mistakes and he did do that. you play the clip and you said, stacey abrams said the most dangerous thing for georgia is four more years of brian kemp. that's the direct opposite for the voters of georgia do not see a need for a change. they've seen brian kemp go through a pandemic, they see that the economy is okay, they see many challenges. kemp is very popular around suburban atlanta, popular with the chamber of commerce. stacey abrams cannot catch traction. you cannot catch traction. kemp has broke that magic the mark several times in polling and i know that's what they look for as they get over that 50 mark, and right now stacey abrams to me doesn't stand a chance but there is an unknown in georgia and i'll leave it there, the people, the trump voters who will never vote for kemp again, that's not in polling, that won't be cold. how big th

quick witted rematch stacy abrams versus brian kemp.eshed into the national spotlight four years ago in the 2018 governor's race which one but barely. the margin less that 1.5% three. >> the election is over and i am honored to be dort or electric works of the time abrams infamously did not quite concede. >> is not a speech of concession as a woman of conscience and fate i cannot conceive that. quick stacy abrams. >> and the four years since, kemp and abrams have both remain household names. camp making headlines citing new abortion restrictions and notching economic winds for his state. but he is arguably the most for his feud with former president trump who railed against kemp's decision to certify george is 2020 electoral college votes for joe biden. >> i'll be here in about a year end half campaigning against you governor, guaranty and progress of course having her i think might be better than having existing governor if you want and of the truth. >> abrams is now a rising star amounts democrats who deliver the party 2019 state of t

abrams did not concede to kemp in 2018. she acknowledged he was the governor but did not formally concede. she said that i will always acknowledge the outcome of elections butly never deny access to every voter. kate. >> it is good to see you. thank you. >>> so there were two other important debate last night as well. tim ryan and j.d. vance went at it once again and again it got personal pretty quickly. and in the utah senate race, evan mcmcan accused mike lee of betraying america over the 2020 election and the capitol insurrection. omar jimenez is tracking this for us. nobody was pulling punches last night. >> not at all. and in ohio it woas contentious. h honestly it felt personal. j.d. vance was criticizing aex other and one of the most heated exchanged came when discussing the replacement theory that white people are being replaced slowly and intentionally by migtss and minorities. >> this is who he's running around with. talking about replacement theory. there is no big grand conspiracy. this is a country that has bee

listen here, this is the georgia republican governor brian kemp on fox this morning after his debate with democrat stacey abrams last night. >> people here are concerned about 40-year high inflation. i saw -- heard where you guys are saying president obama is coming down here. i wonder why joe biden isn't. it's because his policies are very unpopular. it's caused 40-year high inflation, disaster at the gas pump and border and these are the policies that stacey abrams supports, i mean, she wanted to be his vice presidential candidate and these are the policies that she would bring to georgia and we're fighting against that. >> t >> with me in studio, audi cornish, sewn who is right? you heard governor abrams. he's going to focus on economy, job, inflation, on the incumbent president's unpopularity. the president today is going to urge voters, sure, you're probably worried about the economy and inflation but don't forget about abortion. "the new york times" poll published yesterday, what do voters care about most, the economy, 26%, inflation, 18%, abortion, 5% so if we went back to rig

and so voter fraud, voter frd, voter fraud was plastered by brian kemp.u see the newspaper that has what is called the quitman templates to on their orange traveling jumpsuits, making it really clear black folks use absentee ballots, it must be fraudulent. he brought the georgia bureau of investigation's in there to investigate this voter fraud. there were no convictions. the charges were dropped. but these women went through four yearsf hell, and losing their jobs and this was the intimidation that brian kemp brought on to these women. he also did the same thing with the new georgia project and with fair fight. again, charging voter fraud, voter fraud, voter fraud. and these are organizations that are about registering folks to vote. those who had not been in the system, the marginalized. so you see this pressure. we have got brian kemp on tape saying these groups are all out here registering all of these minorities to vote and if they show up in november, we will lose. so you get this is where the secretary of state has identified minorities as the way

stacey abrams, and brian kemp, republican. each making the case for deserving their vote. >> the current failures we've seen in this state are not only damns, disqualifying and over the next few years we have an opportunity to change the trajectory of the state. >> my desire continue to help them fight through 40-year high inflation and high gas prices and other things that our georgia family, facing right knew quite honestly because of bad policies in washington, d.c. >> reporter: governor kemp campaigning for a second term and led polling in the race. for many georgians this election sree match of the 2018 contest between kemp and abrams. while a federal judge ruled last monthga's election law did not violate voters' constitutional rights. in response to a lawsuit brought by abrams founded group fight fair action started in 2018, the democratic candidate repeated some of these accusations to georgia voters. >> we need a governor to believes in access in the right to vote. >> reporter: governor kemp pushed back against abrams

incumbent brian kemp has for months held a small but steady polling lead and republicans are hoping kempe a coattail effect that helps walker. but cnn's michael warren has new reporting that suggests we might see something less and less common, ticket splitting meaning georgians who vote republican for governor and support warnock for senate. michael joins our conversation. to that point, one of the voters you encountered, gabriel birx, a black democratic leaning voter, kemp hasn't done nothing wrong as governor, opened up meaning covid. i'm with him. i don't like herschel. something is wrong with him. important because if you -- especially in presidential years ticket splitting has become a lost -- i was going to call it an art, a lost thing. people vote party at the top of the ticket and tend to go down. you're seeing evidence we'll get ticket splitting in georgia. >> it is not a large number of voters here who are likely to split their ticket but know georgia is a closely divided state and is likely to be closely divided in this upcoming election and that's what both of these parties

this one kemp seems to have a comfortable lead.oke to brian kemp, i saw stacey abrams campaigning as well. it's really striking having covered their race four years ago also, it is just a different race this time. in many ways the dynamics are reversed and we do see governor kemp seeming to put up a pretty comfortable lead against stacey abrams and what i found in talking to people down there is that, you know, everybody really believes that there are a lot of voters, especially independent voters in georgia, who may be voting for the republican governor kemp, and for the democrat senate candidate rafael warnock because they feel like governor kemp has done a good job leading the state, stood up to president trump in the 2020 election, has guided the state with a firm hand through covid, and stacey abrams is not getting as much traction this time as she did four years ago. >> it seems certainly right. we'll be watching that debate tonight. national political correspondent for "time" magazine, molly ball, thank you for joining us th

it will be an under, oath may be kemp, a libertarian candidate.re going to be pulling the lever for brian kemp and raphael no warnock. by the way, governor kemp has proven himself on most -- politicians. >> rich flowery, david plouffe, thank you for joining. and i appreciate it. up next, we are talking about, it that 50/50 senate. we're going to go deep on all the battleground states and we're going to take a look at each party's target list. republicans have a set of seats are trying to hard to flip. what are the numbers showing in those states? democrats have their own list as well, how are they doing in those states? which party has the clearest path to control the senate? that is next. s next bile. apple business essentials with apple care+ is included so you can easily manage your team's devices, here, and here. all on the network with more 5g coverage. it's the ultimate business trifecta, with the new iphone 14 pro on us. only from t-mobile for business. >> tech: at safelite, we take care of vehicles with the latest technology. we can replac

but in the most recent polls, she has been behind kemp.ill she sharpen her attack on abortion, for instance? governor kemp's position, the six-week abortion ban that he signed into law, it is unpopular here amongst most georgians. both of them have been crisscrossing the campaign trail for weeks. here is how they're making their closing arguments. >> we have a state government full of powerful men who like to give power to other powerful men. and they like to use that power to strip us of our freedoms, our freedom to vote, our freedom to be safe from gun violence, our freedom to control our own bodies in the state of georgia. >> i tell people, who has been fighting for you? whether you're a republican or a democrat, when you look back over the last 3 1/2 years and certainly over the two during the pandemic, who is fighting to keep your business open and give you the ability to go to work every day? >> reporter: both candidates have seen high-profile surrogates join them on the trail. president obama was stumping with abrams on friday as we

she note blee did not concede the race to kemp in 2018. she said i will always acknowledge the outcome of elections, but i will never deny access to every voter. bianna? >> guns and the economy, the two real standout issues at last night's debate. thank you. >>> in ohio a fierce rematch between democrat tim ryan and republican j.d. vance as the two questioned each other's character during a second senate debate. cnn correspondent omar jimenez is following all of this. several notable flash points last night, part two of what we saw last week with their first fiery debate. what stood out to you? >> reporter: bianna, it was contentious for the second time in as many debates between congressman tim ryan and j.d. vance. it felt personal at times as you watched things. now, there was at one point congressman tim ryan has an a ad about disagreements where he jokes about how he only agrees with his wife 70% of the time n this debate j.d. vance brought up it must be awkward at home if you only agree with your wife 70% of the time but you vote with

kemp. he tried to differentiate himself from stacey abrams in last night's debate on a series of issues including his strong support that he is getting from georgia law enforcement. take a listen. >> men and women in law enforcement know who is going to be with them and we have the endorsement of 107 sheriffs around the stachlt >> dana: i'm not a member of the good old boys club but i dainty e -- want to be able to take black people off the streets and go without accountability. >> abrams added she does not believe every sheriff feels that way but she would defend law enforcement while holding them accountable to protect the rights of the people they serve. she hopes the rally with former president obama on friday will help her make up lost ground in polls. kemp was asked whether he would seek further restrictions. >> i'm not going to say yes or no to any specific legislation. i don't desire to move the needle further. >> he did not say he wouldn't. >> abrams went on to claim that the new a

governor kemp has had a narrow but steady lead for some time.he can offer coattails to others like perhaps the controversial senate contender, herschel walker. there is no guarantee of that. some new cnn reporting today explores there big question, whether voters will stick to one party, or are they in a mood to deliver split ticket moves? our great reporters are back, including jeff zeleny part of this reporting. it is a big question in georgia, if kemp wins, if he can hold onto the lead does he pull other republicans with him, walker. you can say the same in new hampshire, ohio, if you look at the polling, mike dewine. >> it's going to be fascinating to watch on election night. i feel like our list of fascinating things is growing here. you're on top of it. that is something we'll be looking at, split tickets versus coattails. each state may do it differently. it is not a monolith. i was in georgia last week, and boy, one of the big reasons for republican optimism in the senate race is, you know, all these allegations of abortion payments and

four more years of brian kemp. you know, that is the direct opposite.ed for a change. right now stacey abrams cannot catch traction no matter what she does. she cannot catch traction. >> todd: okay, that is focusing on the candidate when it comes to trashing. historically early voting hasn't help the democratic party in this race. but nationally and specifically in georgia, we just read that line, 2 million people have already voted. half of the nation can vote early by the end of this week. does that benefit republicans, or does it benefit democrats like stacey abrams? >> i absolutely believe it benefits republicans because i don't think anyone wants to be a democrat. at this stage in the game, everyone is feeling the strain of inflation. they are feeling it at the pump. these are direct impacts on people's every single day. and i think and the end of it all, that will make the decision when you go into that booth, go when they privately and make a decision regardless of how you vote in the past. >> carley: janel, last night senator tim scott, lindsey

-- against governor brian kemp on issues such as the economy and inflation.fulton county, georgia, saturday, abrams made the case why she's better for georgia's economy. she touched on a number of issues including her plan to give teachers pay raises and expand affordable housing, things he said are only afforded to the privileged under kemp. >> we're going to have a governor who believes in all of us, who believes in one georgia, who doesn't believe that it's an old boys' club, believes that it is one georgia that belongs to every one of us. >> reporter: yeah, and the kemp campaign had this ponce to abrams saying many a statement, quote: the people of our state know that abrams only offers the same failed leadership they see with democratic control in washington which created 40-year-high inflation that's hitting americans in the wallet every day. meanwhile, governor kemp has been fighting for georgia families and with more than 1.5 million if people having already voted early, mike, it's going to be a fight between kemp and abrams on the debate stage as the

it will be an under, oath may be kemp, a libertarian candidate.ople are going to be pulling the lever for brian kemp and raphael no warnock. by the way, governor kemp has proven himself on most -- politicians. >> rich lowry, david plouffe, thank you for joining. and i appreciate it. up next, we are talking about, it that 50/50 senate. we're going to go deep on all the battleground states and we're going to take a look at each party's target list. republicans have a set of seats are trying to hard to flip. what are the numbers showing in those states? democrats have their own list as well, how are they doing in those states? which party has the clearest path to control the senate? that is next. that is next. moderate to severe eczema still disrupts my skin. despite treatment it disrupts my skin with itch. it disrupts my skin with rash. but now, i can disrupt eczema with rinvoq. rinvoq is not a steroid, topical, or injection. it's one pill, once a day, that's effective without topical steroids. many taking rinvoq saw clear or almost-clear skin while

we did invite governor kemp on the show and he declined.early voting, which i know is very important. do you think you have enough time to turn this around? >> absolutely. there are some polls which have had some very express problems that are showing, that are outlier polls. but we also had a series of polls that show that this is a tight race that's within the margin of error. this is a snapshot, polls are snapshot. and the question is who are you taking a picture of. and when you take a picture that is predominantly republican and has a disproportionately white population or that undercounts the participation of women, of course it's going to lean in the direction of the incumbent. but when those polls reflect the composition of georgia, we are in a neck-in-neck race. this is a race that will be determined by who shows up, and that's why we're going to fight as hard as we can to make certain that voters show up early october 17th to cast their ballots and that they stand with us because what's at stake is not only the soul of our state b

will you vote for kemp or abrams? >> i'll be honest with you, i'm still leaning towards kemp. said some things that made me uncomfortable with each of the candidates during the debate. i don't agree with her stance when it comes to crime. i don't agree with his stance 100% when it comes to crime. i feel like he spends times talking about street gangs to stir up the contingency if you will when a lot of the gun activity is not coming from street gangs. i feel like if you could take both of those candidates and put them together, we'll have a great plan moving georgia d. that won't happen. one of the problems that i do have with kemp is the fact that when it comes to the money that we have -- we have a loot of money. georgia is doing well. he did a great job responding to trump. i really don't have any complaints. with all of the money that we have in surplus, some of the money should go to programs and some should come back to the people that poured into it. stacey wants to take all the money and put it in programs. i'm like -- i'm on the fence but i'm still leaning towards kem

there continues to be a gap between kemp and walker.oms large in the home stretch of this campaign. let's find out what is happening in georgia. get the lay of the land. no one better to turn to than greg bluestien. let's start on the numbers we just showed. there continues to be a gap where kemp is outperforming walker. what is behind that gap and is that something that -- does walker's campaign feel like they're going to be pulled over the top by kemp? or is it too stubborn for him to overcome. >> the split-ticket trend has been a stubborn trend for republicans. kemp has a lead over stacey abrams. it could spell trouble for herschel walker. that would be the difference between a victory for herschel walker and a runoff in december. i'll tell you, even though these polls show it's very close, both campaigns are girding for that december 6th runoff right now that could determine control of the u.s. senate. >> and just in terms of what it would take for walker to catch warnock here in the home stretch, is he going to be getting explicit

abrams criticized kemp for not promising to sign further abortion restrictions in the state. in 2019 kemp signed a law banning most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy which went into effect this year. >> he has praised the texas bounty system that allows neighbors to make $10,000 by reporting on women. we know that under the law that he signed women can be investigated for miscarriages and other pregnancy losses. >> women are not going to be prosecuted under this piece of legislation. dctors that perform illegal abortions would be. the thing is, miss abrams continues to attack my record because she doesn't know -- she can't tell you what her record is. she's changed it three different times. >> kemp narrowly defeated abrams four years ago in the race for governor. >>> the supreme court is set to hear arguments today challenging the use of affirmative action in college admissions. the group, students for fair admissions, is challenging whether harvard and the university of north carolina can continue to take race into consideration as a factor in admissions. the court's no

i'm curious to see if abrams sharpens her attack against kemp. she's been behind kemp in many recent polls. does she sharpen her attack on a host of issues? but mainly abortion. the abortion ban. the six-week abortion ban that kemp signed into law sun popular with most georgians. take a listen to how kemp and abe rams have been making their closing argument on the campaign trail. >> we have a state government pull of powerful men who like to give power to other powerful men. and they like to use that power to strip us of our freedom. our freedom to vote. our freedom to be safe from gun violence. our freedom to control our own bodies in the state of georgia. >> i tell people, who has been fighting for you? whether you're a republican or a democrat, when you look back over the last 3 1/2 years, simply over the two over the pandemic, who was fighting to keep your business open and give you the ability to go to work every day? >> reporter: so as you can hear there, kemp routinely makes this argument that he was among one of the first governors to reo

brian kemp has been extremely popular. well ahead of herschel walker in just about any poll. that's probably what herschel walker has going for him, the chance that brian kemp will perform so well that he will drag walker across the finish line. on his own, that's tough. another thing herschel walker has going against him is his opponent warnock is a very talented candidate. he is running a better race than abrams who is running against kemp. that's why you see a big gap. he has to hope kemp can carry him through. >> yamiche, brandon, thanks to both of you. fascinating race. we will keep a close eye on that one. >>> yesterday, the government presented new evidence in their case against five members of the oath keepers for their alleged role in the january 6th insurrection, including this chart of those in the conspiracy that the government alleges. right at the top is the founder. joining us is ryan reilly, and barbara mcquad. this is a recording of stew ste rhodes from november of 2020. >> ryan, what is the significance f

brian kemp, incumbent governor, does not have that baggage. and they argue that stacey abrams' status is a factor as well as sexism has led voters to hold her to a different standard. >> so let's talk about the early voting in that state. it looks like from what we're hearing overnight, and you can fill in the blanks here, sahil, we heard from gabe sterling, in the secretary of state's office, a familiar face to many people around the last election, he says we are north of 125,000 early votes, dwarfing the number from four years ago. >>. >> reporter: that's right. we just got some new early voting numbers yesterday. yesterday was of course the first day of early voting in georgia. it will go on for a couple weeks ahead of election day. and the turnout was quite extraordinary. the number we have is 131,318 showed up for the first day of early voting. by comparison, that is much larger than the 70,849 who showed up in 2018. as far as we know, these are record-breaking numbers for a midterm election. compared to 2020, which was of course a presid

kemp, that's not true. >> i understand the point you're making.he point is when you buy a firearm, you get a background check. none of the laws -- >> mr. kemp, if you purchase a weapon in georgia through a gun sale or private sale, you are -- >> we are going to have to move on. >> ms. abrams, i have not interrupted you tonight. >> reporter: abrams then apologizing. >> this is a very important topic to me and i apologize for my outburst. >> reporter: the debate taking place as early voting gets under way in georgia, a state that could decide which party controls the senate. voters will decide between democratic senator raphael warnock and republican herschel walker. the staunch anti-abortion candidate still denies allegations he paid for a woman's abortion. now acknowledging for the first time he did give a $700 check to his ex-girlfriend, but he couldn't say what the money was for. some republican voters told us they still support him. >> i had to go with herschel walker which is basically just a vote against warnock, you know, if i had to choose

kemp survived, i think that probably made kemp okay in that voter's book.much more closely aligned with donald trump certainly than kemp is. and i think that might explain some of the hesitancy of those types of voters to get behind walker. questions for the final weeks of the campaign basically is do those kempal voters reluctantlyt the end of the day that gap, do they reluctantly vote for walk and put him over the top, or is there a split ticket in georgia? democrats with a chance for the senate may hinge on that. >> also interesting that warnock andte walker, different strategies. andt you're see the different strategies borne out in the numbers. steve kornacki, thank you as always. be sure to lead "the refusals" podcast by steve kornacki which drops on monday. that's steve kornacki's personal refusals. >>> now, i want to turn to dan fiver, former senior adviser to president obama and now a co-host. dan, i need all the help to understand what's happening ta here, my friend. and i want to get to this bigger change strategy the democrats havey pursued thro

brian kemp and his cohort, brad raffensperger, have spent the last four years attacking our right to vote, making it more difficult to participate in our elections. they have gotten credit for simply not committing treason. but that is the lowest bar in america. we need leaders who actually believe in our access to democracy. and the last thing i will say on this is that we keep focusing on election denial about the outcome, but the more permissions version is denying access and that is what brian kemp and brad -- special isn't, denying access to the right to vote, keeping people away from their participation in our democracy. and that is more dangerous because you don't even have to manipulate the outcome -- >> i don't have to remind you. you're opponent, brian kemp, who just messaged had campaign for reelection against you in large part under the theme that you're soft on crime. it was repeated in your first debate with camp last week, his questioning of your law enforcement and relationships and it comes at a time critics are arguing some republican candidates are intentionally li

kemp, for his part, spent much of the evening touting his record on the economy. arguing he would be the best choice to steer georgians through inflation. meanwhile abrams characterizing what she viewed as the failures of the kemp administration arguing that his policies on everything from guns to abortion are just too extreme. >> i believe that we could protect the second amendment and protekd second greaters at the same time. because of the criminal carry law that brian kemp signed into law there is no longer a background check for those with concealed carry permits. we know the right to vote is the ome way to make the changes that we need in the state. the only way we could make the changes we need this this country. whether it is access to an abortion or the ability to take care of our families. we need a governor that believes in access to the right to vote but not in voter suppression which is the hallmark of brian kemp's leadership. >> we again had record turnout in the republican and the democratic primary. in georgia it is easy to vote and hard to cheat.

it's a rematch between current incumbent governor brian kemp and his challenger stacey abrams. of them could not be more different in policy areas. kemp is running on his economic record, the fact that he had one of the shortest covid lockdowns in the country during 2020 and that he stands on very socially conservative issues like abortion and lgbtq issues. abrams is diametrically opposed on a lot of those issues and see her try to hammer him on some of his economic policies in the state that she believes left behind a lot of people. you're going to see her hammer him on questions about abortion and his ability to legislate issues relating to that. and then you're going to see kemp counter with questions over inflation and whether or not democrats more broadly have a plan to steer the american economy in a state that kemp says is doing pretty well right now. >> so we're going to see former president obama on the campaign trail in georgia at the end of the month, in michigan, in wisconsin. how helpful is he going to be for democratic candidates, do you think? >> look, obama is s

god loves us all. >> abrams and kemp also sparred over abortion. abrams said a law that kemp recently signed, georgia's heartbeat law would potentially subject women experiencing miscarriages to undue questioning and scrutiny. kemp said that was not the case, that the law would potentially cause doctors performing illegal abortions but not their female patients. >> john: bring in our panel, mer mer mercedes, and juan. clear politics, generic ballot graph which showed -- there it is, sorry, i could only see part on one monitor, isn't that interesting. you can see how republicans months ago were out in front and then it closes in and now republicans are back out in front again. mercedes, they have a lead that is probably as big as it ever was and a big turn around from just a few weeks ago. what's going on there? >> well, i got to tell you, i've been on the campaign trail, i just came back from michigan and arizona, and when you are talking to the people on the ground, john, i think the main focus is, it is about the economy. i mean, back to the fact

kemp -- >> none of the laws were change. >> mr. kemp you purchase a weapon through a gun sale or private sale the gun show or private sale you are not subject. >> we have to move on. >> and -- >> candidates, we have to move on. >> voting rights was also front ant center. >> brian kemp was a secretary of state and has assiduously denied access to the right to vote's we know that the right to vote is the only way that we can make changes we need in the state and in this country. whether access to right to abortion, ability to take care of our families we need a governor to believes in access to vote and not suppression, the hallmark of brian kemp's leadership. >> i'm the person who created the online system in the state any georgian can register to vote 24 hours a day, 7 day as week. someone saying we have been suppressive in the state, seen increase over the years including minorities like african americans, latinos and others is simply not true. >> early voting is already under way in georgia with election day, of course, exactly t

the polls show kemp in the lead.t is she going to do differently, especially when it comes to tonight's debate. >> the last debate, it was a little diluted, there was a libertarian candidate taking up a lot of oxygen in the room. i think you'll see abrams continue to hammer away her message, her economic message that this economy is not helping everyone. there's a need for affordable housing and medicaid needs to be expanded. you'll see a sharper distinction between her and kemp on those issues. the closing message is the economy. i think you'll see probably more talk about abortion. there wasn't as much discussion of abortion in the last debate. and i think probably she is going to hit that harder in this debate. because that is such a clear difference between those two candidates. >> that was something that really animated many voters, especially in the democratic party and independents. that's in the summer. the hope amongst democrats is that that passion for abortion rights hasn't faded. when we turn to the race

i will never concede, i'm the real governor and brian kemp and libertarian, stupor star shane hazel - shane shane, hazel. >> he weakened gun laws and flooded our streets. weakening our privacy rights and women's rights. the most dangerous thing facing georgia is 4 more years of brian kemp. >> i would let people at home know the largest fastest growing segment of the population is buying handgun ands firearms is african-americans and females you know why, the criminals are only ones that do have guns. >> georgia we will have less and less gun laws whether under republicans or libertarians, libertarians believe you know how to best protect you some your property, the biggest mass murder in history is government. kennedy: please stop talking. how could that liberty lover shake up the race as we near finish line, fox news powerrages have kemp in front, ahead 5 and 8 could shane hazel once again force a run off in great state of georgia, joining me now shane hazel. great work last night. did you get good feedback from your performance at the debate? >> i got to tell utoday has been and las

but brian kemp is leaving by seven points. what do you make of that mixed about in georgia?lot of question about herschel walker weathers a good enough candidate to win. it is very interesting. typically we talk about campaigns we do not talk about senate debate as playing a real role in the race but most voters do not watch them in their own states and much less nationally. the pennsylvania race of the georgia race these are make or break moments for these candidates. raphael warnock is a great debater. he is a minister. when he is good on a pulpit he's good on the stump and we do not know about herschel walker yet. he's have a strong night to bring this home. sorry to use the analogy would take his campaign into the ends of her. >> you know some is going to do that you had to do. yahoo! news talks about this on friday, the ship we're seeing is the race impose tight inflation shifting the midterm momentum back to the gop. when you make of that? it is sticking up again. >> look, there are so many factors in the selection breed that is what makes this particular midterm so un

of report from d.c. >> brian: let's bring in brian kemp. choked on my governor of georgia once four more years doing the job. governor, what was the difference between this debate and the ones you had four years ago? >> first of all, good morning, thank you for having me on. i have a record to run on now, georgians know me where last selection they really did not and abrams had the national media and tons of money. just like she does now, 90% of her money is coming from out of state. but we have also raised a lot of money too have a great record to run on and that's what i was doing last night. i think the biggest takeaway and i told her georgia voters this last night is stacey abrams is attacking my record because she doesn't want to talk about her own. >> rachel: absolutely. by the way, democrats keep talking about abortion. i don't think anyone, people in your state want to talk about inflation, the economy, crime, stacey abrams, someone who has never had a child, telling people the heartbeats we here in our ultrasounds aren't real. how

as for what we expect to hear, talking to republicans sources, one thing that governor kemp is leaning on this time that he didn't have last time he was running against stacey abrams is a record, he has been governor for four years so some strategists i have spoken to said they are hoping to essentially look to suburban voters and areas like where i'm standing right now, people who didn't necessarily vote for the governor before, when he was running just as a candidate, but who has had four years to watch him govern and look at some of his policies and may lean in to the column this time. as for stacey abrams, one thing that she has and made more of a platform is the issue of abortion. when i've spoken to her, going around the clock, she's had women talk to her, say, this is a key issue and this is why i flip over to your side and cast my ballot for you. and when i've spoken to republicans across the state, that is a major issue. but it also shows that some are voting for kemp for that very same reason and it depends what sides of the abortion debate that you fall. early voting is toda