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First of All with Victor Blackwell

Effort To Close California "Slavery Loophole" Faces Hurdles; Voters Of Color Hold Keys To Victory For Both Campaigns; Today: Harris Rallies In Battlegrounds Georgia, North Carolina; California Ballot Measure To End Prison Slavery Loophole Is Losing; Over 4 Million Ballots Cast Early Voting In Georgia; Op-Ed: Country Is Missing A Message From Black America. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired November 02, 2024 - 08:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[08:00:00]

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: So why is there concern that it might not pass? Someone who helped write the measure after his own experience will join us.

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: I'll definitely be watching. Have a great show.

BLACKWELL: All right. Thank you. Let's get it started right now.

Well, first of all, this is what it looks like to be one, one year old. Our first year of First of All is now in the books. We started one year ago Monday, to be exact. And looking back at what we're talking about this time a year ago, the more things change, the more things stay the same. Listen, Democrats are still trying to solidify support among black voters. We had a conversation about Biden's efforts one year ago. Now Vice President Harris is in the race, a very different candidate, yet similar challenge here. She'll be back here in Atlanta today before heading to North Carolina. Tomorrow, she'll be in Michigan, specifically Detroit, and she'll be at a black church. Again, the goal there is to get black voters to the polls.

One year later, the Arab American and Muslim vote is still a wild card. Former President Trump was just in Michigan yesterday. He's pitching himself to that group which could, as we've said, swing the race there. We'll have more on that ahead. But first, more than 4 million people have already cast their vote early or absentee in Georgia.

Congresswoman Nikema Williams is here. She leads the Democratic Party in Georgia. Congresswoman, good to have you. All right, so let's start here. This is get-out-to-vote time.

REP. NIKEMA WILLIAMS, (D) GEORGIA: That's right.

BLACKWELL: There's no new policy proposals. It is time for --

WILLIAMS: Get your people to the polls. BLACKWELL: Mobilization. So give me something more than just vibes about why you are optimistic about the turnout and the chance of the vice president of holding on to Georgia.

WILLIAMS: Well, when you look at over 4 million people, Victor, already casting ballots in battleground Georgia in early voting and that's a lot to be excited about. More people involved in our democracy is a great thing. But then looking at the percentage of women turning out to vote in much higher numbers than men in this state, when we know that our freedoms are on the ballot. People don't know what votes you actually cast when you walk into that ballot box. And it's a good thing when I'm seeing more women show up because we understand that Donald Trump is the candidate that bragged about overturning Roe v. Wade. And right here in battleground Georgia, we know that better than most, having those stories that broke about the two women, Candi Miller and Amber Thurman, who literally lost their lives through preventable deaths because of Trump's abortion ban.

But we're still doing the work. We're motivating people to go out to the polls because I still say that our biggest competition is not necessarily Donald Trump on the ballot here in battleground Georgia. It's the couch.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

WILLIAMS: And so we got to get those people off the couch and get them to the polls. And we know that polls are open till 7 p.m. on Tuesday, November 5th. And we're doing all the things until then.

BLACKWELL: So you mentioned women showing up at the polls. Early voting shows 56% of those voters thus far, that 4 million are women, about 44% men. Now, when it comes to black voters versus white voters and overall, overall turnouts about 55% white voters north of 60, black voters at 49.5 percent turnout thus far. Are you concerned about the number of black voters who have shown up thus far?

WILLIAMS: Absolutely not, Victor. What we're seeing is a lot of people who historically have voted on Election Day and that historically have voted Republicans, they didn't vote early in 2020. And so they've replaced those votes now. And we've saw them already turn out. Republicans are running out of votes to cast.

BLACKWELL: You don't think that the new Republicans who are added to the rows?

WILLIAMS: I -- we have not seen that in large numbers. But what we are seeing is a huge increase in young voters and new voters who did not even live in the state in 2020. And so those people are turning out. And then we still have a lot of votes on our side that have yet to turn out and will be Election Day voters. So we've just seen a shift in who voted on Election Day and who is voting early. But we have a lot of new voters that we've added to the rows.

BLACKWELL: So let me ask you about this. Just the general question of if the country wants to keep Democrats in power in the Whitehouse. The latest Gallup poll for October of 2024 shows that just 26% of respondents say they're satisfied, that they believe the country is headed in the right direction. Our Harry Enten reminds us that since 1972, no party has held onto the Whitehouse with that satisfaction number, that right track number so low. What is the case to the unsatisfied and the undecided that Democrats should hold onto the Whitehouse?

WILLIAMS: Well, Victor, I've done a poll and I put that I was unsatisfied with the direction of this country because I'm sick and tired of the division and chaos of Donald Trump and his Republican Party. The division has to stop. And that's what Kamala Harris is running on, a new way forward. She'll be a President for everyone, not just Democrats, not just Republicans. And the American people are

sick and tired of Donald Trump and his division. And we want someone who can bring us back together. That's why we've seen Republicans coming out endorsing Vice President Harris.

[08:05:13]

BLACKWELL: I hear what you're saying, but if the question is that the track of the country, is it going in the right direction? Democrats have been in control of that Whitehouse for the last four years.

WILLIAMS: But the chaos on the other side. I served in the U.S. Congress, where the Republican Party won't even pass a budget. They won't -- don't even want to keep our government open. And so I think all of that plays into it. And that is not just an indication of how people feel about Democrats. And plus, I don't always put too much into the polls because the polls told us that we couldn't win battleground Georgia in 2020 and we did it. And we did it again with our history-making Senate runoffs. And then we sent Senator Warnock back for a full six-year term.

So what I know is that Georgia voters have always shown up and proven that we're going to defy the polls, we're going to defy the odds, and we're going to keep doing everything between now and polls closing on Tuesday, November 5th.

We have the Vice President coming back today. I'm going to join her on stage speaking at her rally with the big crowd here in Atlanta. And we're doing the work, Victor, because we know that there are still a lot of votes to be cast.

BLACKWELL: The last time you were here, were talking about the President who was then at the top of the ticket and trying to get to a ceasefire in Gaza between this war between Israel and Hamas. And now, of course, former President Trump is making a play for Muslim and Arab American voters in Michigan so is the Vice President. But our K file found that as it relates to Gaza, the Vice President's campaign is running a specific type of ad in Michigan to those voters and a very different ad in Pennsylvania targeting Jewish voters. We're going to play them back to back. Let's watch.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAMALA HARRIS, PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: What has happened in Gaza over the past nine months is devastating. We cannot allow ourselves to become numb to the suffering. And I will not be silent.

Let me be clear. I will always stand up for Israel's right to defend itself and I will always ensure Israel has the ability to defend itself, because the people of Israel must never again face the horror that a terrorist organization called Hamas caused on October 7th.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: And that second ad that's playing in Pennsylvania, it was actually the section about Gaza was removed from two portions referring to Israel. Why two messages in two different states?

WILLIAMS: I mean, Vice President Harris is not running to be a President for one segment of the population. She's shown deep empathy on this issue. And she has always stood by our biggest ally in the Middle East, Israel, and Israel's right to defend itself.

BLACKWELL: But one message doesn't sell in both states.

WILLIAMS: Well, that message is she's going to be a President for all the people. And that's why she's making sure that the people in Michigan know that she hears them, she sees them, and understands what is happening in the Middle East. But we also have to have a long term solution for peace and stability in the region. And that includes making sure that Israel has the defense systems that it needs. But also making sure that no innocent people are continuing to lose their lives. And so the communities are very different. Just like she has an agenda for black men in this country, just like she comes to Georgia and talks about the issues that matter most to us here in battleground Georgia. That's who she is. She is fighting to be a President for all Americans, not just one segment of the population.

BLACKWELL: Let me ask you about President Biden, because when I remember watching you on locals after the debate and you said it was a bad 90 minutes. But he's got three and a half years of legislation to stand on. Is the campaign utilizing him well at all? Why haven't we seen more of him?

WILLIAMS: So I know that First Lady Jill Biden is coming here to battleground Georgia this weekend. She will be here this weekend. We're running on the policies, the transformational policies that were passed during the Biden Harris administration. And we're continuing to do the work. President Biden is continuing to lead this country. And I stand by the transformational legislative accomplishments that he achieved in four years as President. And Vice President Harris is not President Biden. She will be her own person. But we have work to build upon. Not huge changes that we know, but we know that the work that we did put children back in school. We don't -- we no longer have people having makeshift morgues in the middle of the street. That's the -- that's what he inherited. And we're moving forward in a way that people can now get ahead in this country. Not just looking to get by, but we set the right track. And now we have to build upon that.

BLACKWELL: Congresswoman Nikema Williams, you got a busy day. Wear comfortable shoes.

WILLIAMS: A busy day.

BLACKWELL: Hydrate. Thanks so much for coming in.

WILLIAMS: Thank you, Victor.

[08:10:02]

BLACKWELL: All right, another state. Both Harris and Trump want to win Tuesday, as we mentioned, Michigan, and they need the support of Muslim and Arab American voters to do it. The former President was just visiting a city where many of those voters live, his message to them next. Plus, it's not just the presidential race on the ballot. One state will be voting on whether to ban slave labor. Why some are worried that it won't actually pass.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:15:10]

BLACKWELL: There is no shortage of unexpected alliances in the 2024 race, like Vice President Kamala Harris courting Republicans with the help of Liz Cheney. Former President Trump, the architect of a travel ban on majority Muslim countries, now courting Muslim voters in Michigan. Muslim and Arab American voters will play a massive role in whether the state of Michigan stays blue or flips back to Trump. Last night he touted the support from some Muslim and Arab American leaders. He was at a cafe in Dearborn. Muslims are a significant share of the voters there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We have a great feeling for Lebanon. And I know so many people from Lebanon, Lebanese people, and the Muslim population. They're liking Trump and I've had a good relationship with him. This is it. This is where they are, Dearborn. And we want their votes, and we're looking for their votes, and I think we'll get their votes.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: Vice President Harris and President Biden when he was still a candidate, they've reached out to voters in Dearborn, but they've not actually visited. Niraj Warikoo was at that cafe where former President Trump's visit. He reports on the Muslim and Arab American community for the Detroit Free Press. Niraj, good to be with you. So let me start here. And you know, this is the one year anniversary of the show. The question I had for my first guests who were talking about withdrawing their support from President Biden because of the handling of the war between Israel and Hamas, my question was and still is, what did they expect that former President Trump would do that would better for Palestinian civilians and now Lebanese civilians?

What is the expectation when the imam says at the rally there in Michigan, Trump will bring peace, what do they expect that looks like, and how will he do it? NIRAJ WARIKOO, REPORTER, DETROIT FREE PRESS: Well, they're hoping that

Trump will bring an end to the war in Gaza and in Lebanon. You know, Trump himself now has family ties to the Lebanese community. The father-in-law of one of his daughters, Mossad Boulos, who has been doing a lot of outreach to every American communities, has been -- was at his side at the cafe last night, I had noticed. But they're hoping that he will bring a change from the Biden administration's policies, which they see as giving Israel unconditional support.

Some have made references to what Reagan, President Reagan did in the 1980s when he told Israel to sort of stop attacking in Lebanon. You know, whether that happens or not, we'll see. You know, it's interesting, moments before Trump came to Hamtramck a couple weeks ago, which has a large Arab American population.

He made some remarks indicating that he thought Netanyahu was not supportive enough of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu. So somewhere sort of skeptical about him after they heard those remarks. But they're looking for a change. They feel that Biden has crossed all the red lines for them, and at this point, they really have nothing to lose.

BLACKWELL: Yes, it's -- they're asking for a change. But it seems like there's no specifics from Trump to, certainly to the media about how he'll do it, but maybe not to those who are endorsing him. Are these leaders outliers there?

WARIKOO: The ones who are supporting Trump do you mean?

BLACKWELL: Yes.

WARIKOO: It kind of depends. You know, in the Yemeni American community, there is solid support for Trump. Several of the Yemeni American leaders, imams and PACs, political action committees have endorsed Trump. In other parts of the community, there's less support. There's a big PAC based in Dearborn that has not endorsed Trump nor Harris so it kind of varies. And then you also have the Chaldean community. Chaldeans are Iraqi Catholics, and they make up a big part of the community. They historically have been Republicans. So they'll probably stick with Trump as well this time.

BLACKWELL: Yes. And I said at the top that former President Trump during the 2016 campaign, he called for a ban on non-American Muslims coming into the country. As president, he enacted that ban on Muslim- majority countries, their citizens coming into the U.S. He suggested that there should be a registry of American Muslims. And I want to play for everyone this interview from 2016 and then talk about reconciliation afterward. Here's what he told Anderson Cooper.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TRUMP: I think Islam hates us. There's something -- there's something there that -- There's a tremendous hatred there. There's a tremendous hatred and we have to get to the bottom of it. There is an unbelievable hatred of us.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[08:20:14]

BLACKWELL: I mean, how does any mom, several imams, how do these leaders clarify, do they ask him to apologize? How does Donald Trump after saying that court Muslim American voters in Michigan? And what are they asking him about that?

WARIKOO: Yes, they are differing views. You know, I spoke with an attorney the other day who said that he's concerned about Trump's rhetoric even now in terms of deportations, and so he's not going to vote for him. But others say they're willing to give him a second chance. His comments about Muslims are more restrained now. He's been praising Arab Americans during his public appearances and Hamtramck calling them good people. And some of the things that we heard in earlier years are not being heard this time but people still are concerned. They're not naive.

But there's also a sense that in order to gain political power in America, you have to be engaged with both political parties. So even if one party says something you may not like, you still have to be involved in speaking with them and maybe voting for them in some cases. Because if you put all your eggs in one basket, you know, and things don't work out, you're kind of stuck. So that's how they look at it. It's sort of a long term strategy. Let's get involved with both the Republican and Democratic parties so we can have more influence. All right. Niraj Warikoo, thanks so much for being with me.

WARIKOO: Thank you, Victor.

BLACKWELL: A proposal to end forced labor in prisons is on the ballot in California. And listen, it might not pass. I'll ask someone who helped draft the measure about the obstacles they're facing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:26:20]

BLACKWELL: You might think a ballot proposal to end a so-called slavery loophole in a progressive state like California would be way ahead in the polls. Well, you would be wrong. Because right now California's Constitution bans slavery and involuntary servitude except as a punishment for a crime, much like the Constitution's 13th Amendment. But Proposition 6 would close that loophole in California and stop prisons from forcing inmates to work. Yet the latest statewide poll shows likely voters are more likely to say they would vote against the measure than for it, 56 to 41. The proposition has lost ground in the last month. My next guest helped draft that proposal. Sam Brown began writing it while he was an inmate being forced to show up for shifts in hospital facilities early in the COVID-19 pandemic. Sam, thank you for being with me.

I want to talk about your experience in just a moment. But first, there are no opponents to this on the ballot, no argument against it, no organized opposition. So why is it failing in the polls? SAM BROWN, ORIGINAL AUTHOR OF CALIFORNIA'S PROP 6: Peace Victor, thank

you for having me. I would say it's because a lot of grassroots organizations have pulled together to raise awareness around this, but it's challenging. You know, it costs a lot of money to get a bill before the public and raise awareness. And quite frankly, we haven't had the money that's required to really put it out there on a large scale. So I think awareness is the issue. I mean, I would love for us to have the Kim Kardashians, the Kendrick Lamar, the J. Cole's, everyone that's made a stand against mass incarceration to really come out and throw their support behind this bill because that would help us a great deal.

BLACKWELL: Tell me about your experience. As I mentioned, during the early days of COVID while you were incarcerated, you were being forced to sanitize hospitals. Tell me about it.

BROWN: So right before I do that, I just want to make it clear that I didn't get here on my own, Victor. And I would like to take a moment to say thank you to all of the organizations and the people that have took a stand in the fight against slavery, specifically the Tempe program, the Love We Don't See, Ronnie's House, all my yes on six ambassadors, Max Parthas and my mass liberation family. So with that said, I was incarcerated. I did 24 years. I served, you know, 24 years off a life sentence and I was the first person in the state of California that had to disinfect with somebody in a carceral setting. They had to disinfect with somebody tested positive for COVID-19 because a staff member brought it in. Then they passed it to the prison population.

Despite the fact that I had taken thousands of hours of self-help programming, earned three college degrees, graduated from Cal State la magna cum laude. Had I missed one day of work fighting against COVID- 19, they would have given me a 115. And the 115 would have had me going to the board of parole hearings and be considered a risk to society. It would have resulted in like a 15-year denial. And at that time I seen my neighbor die from COVID, the guy above me died from COVID, someone else died from COVID. And I was terrified for my life. And I expressed that to my supervisors that hey, I'm scared to come in here because we don't understand what's going on right now.

Droves of people were dying around the world and they told me I had to come to work and if I didn't come then they would write that 115. And when I went to the board of parole hearings that would have resulted in a 15 year denial and it would have negated all of my rehabilitative accomplishments, all of the hard work that I've done, and the person that I've become today. And that's really what involuntary servitude and slavery looks like.

BLACKWELL: Yes, I mean, it -- when it's on the ballot and we've seen it in other states, voters overwhelmingly say, yes, we don't want to do that. We're not going to force the incarcerated to work. Other states, they have Oregon, they've gotten it off their constitution as well. There is also in California, Proposition 36 on the ballot this cycle increases penalties for repeated offenders of some theft and drug crimes.

Is there some blur between, you know, the tough on crime supporters of 36 and the effect on Proposition 6 ending this involuntary servitude?

SAM BROWN, ORIGINAL AUTHOR OF CALIFORNIA'S PROP 6: That's a great question and 100 percent there is. You know, you have the tough on crime legislation is oftentimes historically supported by large organizations and corporations that benefit from prison labor. So behind Prop 36 you have Home Depot, Walmart, Target, In-N-Out Burger, these large corporations that we patronize every day and they support this tough on crime legislation. But it really decimates communities of color to get people in prison to have cheap labor forces. All of them use prison labor.

And so what Prop 6 does. Prop 6 undermines that and takes away the benefit and incentives for them to invest in tough on crime legislation that destroys communities of color. And so many people are being, you know, fooled to think that they're focused on public safety, that they want to say yes on 36, not realizing that it's really harmful.

And it rolls back all of the reform efforts that we've accomplished in California for the last 10 years. And so though no one has come out flat out say we oppose ending slavery, there has been like a blurred line, like you said, a correlation between people wanting to support 36 and not really understanding the importance of saying yes on Prop 6 and no on 36.

BLACKWELL: Sam Brown, I thank you for sharing this. I actually have to give credit to my senior producer Hyan Freitas, who brought this to my attention. And I'm glad that you have this moment to share this with everybody across the country. Proposition 6 in California to end the slavery loophole in the state again. Let's take a look at the California Constitution where it says slavery is prohibited. Involuntary servitude is prohibited except to punish crime. Sam Brown, thanks so much.

Millions of people across the country have already voted early. Are you one of them? Up next, we'll take a look at what clues there may be in the turnout so far for what we'll see Tuesday night.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:37:19]

BLACKWELL: Listen, you can call this a toss-up, a coin flip, whatever you want to say here. This election is tight. So we're at the point now where we're likely not going to learn much more from polls. But with actual votes already cast, there may be some clues in turnout.

Here in Georgia more than 4 million votes, actual votes have already been cast through early voting and absentee. Election expert Andra Gillespie is here with us. She's an associate professor at Emory. Thank you so much for being with us.

So let's talk first about turnout overall. We're going to focus on Georgia this morning. So 55.3 percent already in early voting has turned out. Let's look specifically at the races that have turned out because white voters, larger percentage support Republicans, minorities for Democrats. Here, more about two and a quarter million white voters have voted. Their turnout rate 62.8 percent. Among black voters, turnout is just shy of 50 percent with a little more than a million voters here.

What do we see in these numbers? Is this number lower than expected?

ANDRA GILLESPIE, POLLING EXPERT, EMORY UNIVERSITY: Well, it's lower than the proportion of blacks in the electorate. And so a good way to look at it is a million people have voted and there are a million more black people who could turn out to vote. So the campaigns need to go find those voters and get them to turn out to vote.

Proportionally speaking, there are fewer available white votes left in the electorate compared to voters of color. And if we look at the numbers in terms of turnout for Asian Americans and Latino communities, Asian Americans are voting at a slightly higher rate than African Americans, though lower than whites. And amongst Latino and indigenous populations in the state, we're still seeing pretty low turnout. So that means that there is opportunity to go out and reach those voters and get them to turn out to vote.

And with poll numbers as close as they are, this suggests that this is going to come down to turnout. Whichever side does the best job of getting their people to turn out to vote is going to be in a stronger position to be able to win. But that's especially incumbent on Democrats because there are still fewer Democrats in Georgia than there are Republicans.

BLACKWELL: Well, let's talk about gender here. And this is what the state party chair or Congresswoman Nikema Williams was so excited about. 56 percent of the early voters and absentee thus far, women versus just shy of 44 percent for men. Is this good news for the vice president?

GILLESPIE: Well, it varies.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

GILLESPIE: So, you know, if we break this down by race, the numbers look different because most white voters in Georgia are Republicans. Most white women who are showing up are probably also Republicans. And so you have a lot of white female Republicans who probably are not going to be voting for Kamala Harris.

In communities of color where there have been well established gender gaps along racial lines, having more women come out than men is probably better for her.

[08:40:00]

If you're worried about soft support, even though I have to provide all the caveats, if black men vote less for Kamala Harris than black women they're still the second largest, you know, proportionally speaking, voting bloc for black men.

So these things matter. But you have to sort of be careful to understand that partisanship is probably not going to trump gender in most cases. So Republican women are going to vote for Donald Trump more than likely. It's a question of whether or not Harris can peel off a few of them to support her, because that's certainly going to help her make up the numerical disadvantage she has.

BLACKWELL: And that's what they're both trying to do, peel off a few. Few in these parts that are not typically part of the coalition.

Let's talk now about age groups here, because this is pretty remarkable to me as we talk about the older voters, some of those voters, they are showing up not only as just right here, look at these, this peak here. This is 50 to 69. They're not only showing up at the highest raw numbers in this election, but the highest voter turnout, 62 percent, 50 to 54, 66 percent turnout, 70 percent here, 60, 64, and then 73 percent turnout, 65 to 69.

Is this typical for older voters that they're turning out at this number?

GILLESPIE: So this is typical. The curve that you see here is a reflection of a life cycle that we talk about in political science. So younger people tend to have lower voter turnout rates because they don't know as much about the electoral process. They may be relatively irresponsible compared to where they're going to be. And what you'll see is that turnout increases as you get older. It peaks in middle age. And I'm going to be very generous in terms of how I define middle age.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

GILLESPIE: And where you see the drop off is amongst the older populations where they're becoming more infirm and might not be as physically able to be able to turn out and vote. So none of this is particularly surprising.

And if we keep in mind that this peak is among older populations, remember, older populations are less racially diverse than younger populations. And so what we're seeing is an electorate that's older and whiter. And this is what early voting and absentee voting in particular used to look like before Donald Trump told people not to vote early in 2020. So I see it coming back to kind of where the equilibrium was before.

BLACKWELL: Yes. I just want to point out here, and we're going to wrap here. But these groups here, the younger voters that the vice president is relying on, they max out at 45 percent turnout. But this is only thus far for early vote and for absentee thus far. Of course, Election Day is Tuesday, so we'll see who shows up then. Andra Gillespie, thank you so much for being with me.

GILLESPIE: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: And my next guest says a big change is coming and we may be missing this message sent by black voters this election. That conversation after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:47:00]

BLACKWELL: Once again, black voters may hold the keys to the White House once all the ballots are counted. The campaigns, the pollsters, the media, all paying close attention to what black voters are saying and how it may affect the outcome of this election.

But are we listening closely enough? My next guest says if anyone misreads or ignores what black voters are saying, they could be missing the sign of a significant shift in the country's direction. Theodore R. Johnson is a contributing columnist at the Washington Post and a scholar on Race and Democracy. He's also the author of a new book, "If We Are Brave: Essays from Black Americana."

Theodore, welcome back to the show. I read your piece and we talked in the break I said this line is where we got to start from it.

Few things predict the coming national transformation like a monolithic black electorate. The black electorate has been behind the Democratic Party for decades. So what suggests that we are now at the moment of some national transformation?

THEODORE R. JOHNSON, AUTHOR, "IF WE ARE BRAVE: ESSAYS FROM BLACK AMERICANA": Yes, and thank you for having me on. Look, we all know every election year we hear black voters are not a monolith. And then we watch as about 90 percent or so black voters vote for Democrats.

And so, look, tens of millions of folks, we hold different politics, we hold different views. About a fifth of us are conservative, about a quarter or so are progressive, and about 40, 45 percent identify as moderates. And when you take this group with such diversity and smash them into a single party, and by this, by smash, I mean essentially put such a binary in front of them that there's a party that supports civil rights that's very strong in their belief that the federal government should support civil rights.

And then a party that is weaker on that, you basically move 90 plus percent of this very diverse electorate into one party. And by monolithic, I'm suggesting that about 95 percent or so is now unnatural. We've seen that about three times. Once after reconstruction or during reconstruction, once during 1964 after the signing of the Civil Rights Act, and then again in 2008 when Barack Obama won the presidency for the first time.

It is not natural for 40 plus million folks and, you know, tens of millions who vote to all vote the same way. That suggests something is coming. I've called black voters a canary in a coal mine. Well, the canary is singing, brother. There's something coming and we need to be on alert for it.

BLACKWELL: But each time, in these historical references that you make, correct me if I'm wrong, the swing has been the monolith changes from one party to the other. The Johnson in the 60s to Barack Obama in 2008. I don't read your suggestion to be that the black monolith, if we're using that word, the black voters are going to swing in large numbers behind Donald Trump. You're not saying that, are you?

JOHNSON: No, not at all. What I'm saying is when we see it, in whatever form, it arrives, the country reacts to it. Sometimes in a good way, sometimes not.

[08:50:00]

When we saw the black monolith during Reconstruction, we know what happened. We got the Compromise of 1877 where Democrats and Republicans worked together to decide who would get the electors. And the Republican candidate got it in exchange for removing federal protections of black folks, newly enfranchised black folks in the south, newly freed black folks in the south, and then we get decades of racist terrorism throughout the South. We get Jim Crow and essentially a century of disenfranchisement of black people.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

JOHNSON: In 1964, the opposite happens. Black folks vote overwhelmingly Democratic. The next year, we get the Voting Rights Act. And then black candidates sweep into state, local and federal office across the country to the point where we had a black president in 2008, and we may have another one here in a couple of months.

And so the reaction to Barack Obama was also birtherism, the Tea Party MAGA. But that reaction, the backlash, did not stop the march of progress to continue diversifying our parties to include the Republican Party, which now has more Republicans in Congress five than it's had since Reconstruction.

So the warning in the piece is it is not inevitable that a monolithic black vote leads us to good outcomes or bad outcomes. And we're going to see, I think, in this election which way the nation's trending.

BLACKWELL: Yes, fine. Ted's piece in the Washington Post. There's also another line here. We run out of time, but if nativism in the United States becomes multiracial, it will change the country forever. Certainly worth a read. Ted Johnson, thank you so much for being with me.

JOHNSON: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: It's the most important trip we take as Americans. It is the walk to vote. I speak to an author and illustrator sharing the story behind that simple act through a children's book. Next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:56:08]

BLACKWELL: Kids and maybe some adults sometimes might wonder, why do we go out of our way to vote? Well, the children's book answers that question with the Story of a Walk. I spoke with the author and illustrator for our latest edition of Art is Life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) WINSOME BINGHAM, AUTHOR, "THE WALK (A STROLL OF THE POLL)": My name is Winsome Bingham. I'm from Fort Lauderdale, Florida and I am the author of "The Walk."

E.B. LEWIS, ILLUSTRATOR, "THE WALK (A STROLL TO THE POLL)": I am E.B .Lewis and I am from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and I am the illustrator of "The Walk."

BINGHAM: "The Walk" first started off as a poem, but I thought about when I was young and I remember going to the polls with my grandmother. We would run up and knock on doors that hey, we're in the street. Then everybody would come out and we would walk. So I got inspired watching become it. But then I just tapped into my memory and created it.

LEWIS: For me, a book is a movie between two pieces of cardboard. And so the images that you are from real people, as most of my all my books are. So the reason why it feels so real and intimate is because I'm working with real actors. I sit down with them and we discuss the book. You know, so we have so in their head they understand what's in front of them, what they have to do, what they have to portray.

BINGHAM: Why do people vote? I ask. For HOPE, baby, Granny says. For hope. Also, you know how me and your mama teach you to speak up? I nod. Well, voting is how to speak up.

LEWIS: I didn't become a voter until I was in my late 20s and that was because it was secret. Having this discussion and these conversations of the importance of what this is, it's not. It should not be a mystery.

BINGHAM: Yes, there's democracy voting, but then there's love. There's a sense of community and unity.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Thank you to Winsome and EB for the conversation. "The Walk: A Stroll to the Poll" is available now. And before we go today, I want to end on where we started today and one year ago Monday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: First of all, Arab American frustration with President Biden is a major political problem. First of all, when two of the whitest states in America start the Republican nomination process, there's a cost to non-white voters across the country. First of all, Nikki Haley is wrong. America has been a racist country. First of All, can we agree that we should teach black history without ever asking students to play runaway slaves? First of all, first of all. First of all. First of all.

First of all, OK. First of all, we lost an icon this week. Frankie Beverly died. First of all, will Beyonce perform at the Democratic National Convention next week? That's what people want to know. First of all, if you're an undecided voter, first, how. Like, how are you at this point, still undecided? First of all, I'm just happy to be here my good black job.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Oh, that felt good. Listen, my goal for this show always has been to center the voices of people of color in the stories that everybody's talking about and that impacts all of us, but also to elevate those stories from our communities that should get more attention. I wanted this show to be unlike anything you've seen, anything that's currently on the major networks. We talk about education and politics, healthcare, pop culture runs the gamut. The point is, stories about people of color are not niche.

[09:00:00]

They're news. And my hope is that over this year and the years to come, we --