This is Gary and Shannon and you're listening to k if I am six forty the Gary and Shannon Show on demand on the iHeartRadio app.
The wrap up to the Democratic National Convention, of course, from last night, Kamala Harris gave her a big speech and talked about, among other things, what she wants this vision for her plan to do. She did a little biography, kind of like Governor Tim Walls did the night before, explaining who he is, and she went through and explained who she was and talked a lot about growing up and her mom and I didn't realize. I didn't know
she had a sister. But her sister spoke as well and had some and then her daughter, stepdaughter Ella m hoff On, one of Doug's daughters, got up and she spoke as well. They referred to her as a model, and I didn't know if that. I didn't know she was a model. I did not know any I didn't know if she was. But this was part of her speech from last week. She taught us give me the dick, got the computer right there.
She taught us to never complain about in just but do something.
About it, Do.
Something about it. That was my mother and she taught us, and she always she also.
Taught us, and she also taught us, and never do anything half asked, And that is a direct.
Quote comless Mama had a bad mouth. So the reaction to her speech from last night generally positive. I mean, everybody in the convention hall, they seem to like it. Obviously, that's their person, that's their candidate. And in terms of what goes on now, we had seventy four days left before November fifth, and as I read from that piece in the New York Times, this is gonna be this
is gonna be a tough battle. Last night, former President Trump was live tweeting, live truthing, I suppose the and I think it was forty forty five posts over the course of the forty minute speech, so about once a minute. And obviously it was all caps, and obviously he was getting into you know, there was no surprises. How's that wasn't deep in fact checking, but there was no surprises. Speaking of fact checking, I saw this headline in the Washington Post today that I thought was kind of funny.
It was just an example of how people kind of move the furniture out of the way for the people that they like it says Kamala uh some things. Oh, it was five moments in the Harris speech that got our attention something like that. It was actually a whole fact check article about it, and they were five points that they said that she either exaggerated or completely mistated when it was coming to policies about Donald Trump or whatever.
But it wasn't. It wasn't.
We fact checked her speech and we found five lies. It was here's five things that gathered our attention a little bit.
Once you get into the article, though, does it kind of hit her pretty hard? Oh?
Yes, it explains. It explains that some of the things that she was saying were flat out wrong about what policies had been announced by the Trump campaign. And some of them it was like, we gave the Waltz Harris Waltz campaign three pinocchios about this already, but they keep repeating it. So things like that, we are standing by for this update out of Phoenix. We understand that Robert F. Kennedy Junior is expected to end his independent presidential campaign.
They do have the podium all set up, They've got the American flags as backdrops. The room is filling up with reporters and stuff, so we'll keep an eye on that. Former President Trump, after the speech went on Fox, he called into Fox to last it to say he hated it. It wasn't good because he needed to get his moment after she had such a big moment. And it was
a funny thing that Fox actually kinda they hurried him off. Uh, And I'll play for you this SoundBite where it sounds like he's about to launch into a whole new topic and Martha McCallum and Brett Bear on the set know that the clock is ticking, their window is closing, so they end up just saying, well, we gotta go.
They made it that you have to get sixty seventy percent of the vote just to get in, and you know present in the end, the Democrats did the same thing to Joe Biden. They threw Joe Biden out of the party.
Thanks much.
We appreciate that feedback, say right.
Their live edition of Gutfeld is coming up. Thank you so much for joining us from Chicago. It's been a great week now. They they got rid of them because their other show was starting. Guttfeld happens to be I think probably one of the higher rated shows on the network, So that's one of the reasons they wanted to start it on time. So then he turns around and dials up Newsmax, pretty conservative news outlet, and goes.
On with that coming in from Asia, they're coming in from the Middle East places, so rough, rough places, and they're coming into our country and what they're doing is just and it's just like today, the fraud that they're committed eight hundred and eighteen thousand jobs. They defrauded the public. They thought it was going to hang out until after the election.
One of the other questions that came up was specifically, and again this was a last night interview, so he refers to a former president, refers to today as tomorrow. But he was asked about RFK Junior and this potential for RFK Junior to endorse Trump after he drops out of the race.
I know he's got a news conference. We happen to be in the same state, Arizona, will be in the same state, but in quite different parts of the state. But as possible, we will be meeting tomorrow and we'll be discussing it.
Yeah, so we'll see.
One of the things that did happen was Kennedy withdrew from the ballot in Arizona late yesterday, the day before, he and Trump were set to appear a part of Miles Part in the Phoenix area. Kennedy is scheduled to speak. Like I said about eleven minutes ago, we're standing by. We'll take that live. They said, they're going to talk
about the present historical moment and the path forward. According to his campaign and as Trump referred to there, he is planning a rally in Glendale, Arizona, not too far away. Yesterday he was campaigning in the southern part of Arizona, down along the border. It said that they're at that time said no plans had been made for Kennedy to appear with him, but said that they would be in the same state at the same time. So we'll continue to monitor this. Again, waiting for Kennedy to speak at
this news conference. The podium is there, the room is full of reporters, and.
We know what he's going to say.
So we got a chance at the DNC to talk with CNN commentator David Urbin about the implications of RFK Junior dropping out.
I'm welcome, but I think it's important, I followed RFK on Aaron Burnett show one night. So I sat there and listened to him for thirty five minutes before I had met him in the airport one time, I bumped into him and said hello. But I really got to listen to him talk. And look, I know he said a lot of crazy things.
In the past.
He's got to go and you can find quotes that are kind of out there about different things and so, but when I listened to him talk about a childhood obesity and how much money we spent in America battling diabetes and obese. We spend more money on diabetes than defense. You know, fifty six percent of Americans can't put their hands on a thousand bucks. So when that check engine light comes onto your car, for you and I may not be a big deal, but for fifty six percent
of Americans, it's a crisis in your family. I mean, he said a lot of things that I listened to him and said, Wow, pretty insightful. Really really connects with a lot of people. So I am hopeful that we get at Bobby Kennedy on the team in the campaign, not the guy who's dubbing a dead baron in Central Park. But we get the other guy, right that is AT's like, I don't know, but you know, I don't know if
we get many voters that way. But he's a thoughtful, intelligent person who's got a big following, and I'm hoping we can convince some of those folks to come to our side and vote for Donald Trump. And listen, in a state like Pennsylvania, it's going to be won by tens of thousands of voters, right, It's really important. It's really important that we get those folks and we we bring him in and we lock hands and we hopefully kind of move forward together.
Uh do you have you been looking at any of the polls? I mean, is there is there a way to gauge what kind of an impact kennedy endorsement would have on Trump?
I don't know. I would have to think.
You know, the Democrats office is going to downplay it. They'd been spending millions, tens of millions of dollars to keep Bobby Kennedy off ballots and lots of places, so they obviously think that he's a concern in a lot of ways that if his name shows up on about that's bad for them. So if it's bad for them, you know, just by uh, by by logic you would. I think it's good for Republicans.
So I don't know a number.
Well, that bad for them because there would be voters that would normally vote for Harris that would vote for Kennedy. So it takes away from that absolutely. So I mean if if you remove if you remove that, then they're gonna go.
I don't know, well, I mean hopefully they don't stay home, right.
Right, I don't think hopefully don't make questions.
I hopefully we can convince them to come vote for us, And so that's part of the challenge is convince them to join our team. And I'm hopeful, you know, we'll kind of listen to President Trump and uh and see some things that might be appealing to them, and hopefully they'll join up politically.
Do you think Governor Tim Wallas did a good job last night in terms of introducing himself to people who wouldn't necessarily know him.
Look, I think the moment with his son, if you're you know, you're, if you're a human being, you can't you can't help be touched by that, right, It's a sweet moment.
Right.
I still think that he's I think he's like a mean spirited Jim Gaffigan love it right, like so hot pockets, right, but you can see.
Him like that guy eats hot pockets.
He's pocket right, but he's.
You think he's like that.
He's like this nice Jim Gaffigan esque figure. But then he seems like he's got this nasty he's like there's yelling and screaming and getting all angry.
I don't like that, don't you know.
So we'll see the whole like football team up there and their thing rah rah, Like I'm not buying it, right. So, and he's the white guy, he's the white guy in the ticket, he's supposed to speak to. You know, I view everything again through the lens of Pennsylvania. My it's my little my, my superpower and also my my drawback.
But you know, Carba wants to describe.
Pennsylvania is Alabama in between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Right, So again I see a lot and this convention, this building for the Philly folks, right, a lot of African American women, a lot about abortion. I don't see many for that Alabama part, right, not a lot of guys in bass pro hats and driving trucks and maybe that's the Tim Walls part that.
He's supposed to fill in, and we'll see. I think I think he'll be helpful.
He will be helpful in some of the Midwest states, perhaps maybe Michigan where you know, and in Wisconsin. I think he will be helpful there. Marginally, he's not gonna He's not going to sell in Pennsylvany, he's not. He's not that one thing that I know is kind of off that what kind of cells in the state.
It's gonna have a hard time.
We talked about the implications of RFK Junior dropping out with David Urban, and one of our great interviews this week has been.
If I do say so much, if I don't think.
So myself has been with Congressman Dean Phillips, one of the first people to talk about Joe Biden getting.
Off the ticket, a lot of bit of concern.
The nice thing is I've been invited back to the popular Kids table in the cafeteria. It's kind of a nice you know. I actually was not even planning to come to the convention. Last minute decided I would, and I'm so glad I did because it restored my faith in a lot of people that had been disappointing to me, High fives, hugs and handshakes, and just a reminder that when you walk through the rain, you might find the rainbow, and I seem to have done so, and a joyous couple of days here so far.
Yeah, I was going to add that was going to be my first question, is in your opinion, is the party unified right now?
It sure seems like it.
You know, I'm much more accustomed as our listeners to a party that seems to be in disarray. More often, there seems to be a little bit of a pendulum shift where we are consolidating. I think the way that Kamala Harris consolidated democratic support so rapidly is a hallmark of leadership. I was surprised by it. I think some colleagues were as well. And yes, I'd argued for change for the better part of a year and a half
and it was a lonely argument. We have a conventional wisdom that says you never take on an incumbent, and I said, even if the incumbent's going to lose a historically important election, and people are so reluctant to challenge that orthodoxy the fear of losing their political careers. I was one of the few that I think was in a position to do so I have, but that's fine, it was worth it.
I was a big fan of yours because of that, because it seems like there is this colorination or there's this you know, this this pathway to the you know and just ask you know, Bernie Sanders about it, and it just seems like there have been candidates have been sandbagged by their own party and the own party rules, and I just hate that as a voter, I want to be able to have a say. I don't want the machine to pick the candidate. And so when you came out and said that, it was refreshing, and I
think it started a lot of conversations. Have you gotten any I'm sorries you were rights.
I have gotten a lot of them.
Yeah.
I didn't do this to attract sori's or apologies, but I have, and from people that actually surprised me proactively coming up to do so. I don't need to name names, but that wasn't the mission. I was trying to be Paul Revere more than a George Washington, if you will. But I got to reflect on what you just said. That's my frustration that we have two political parties private corporations that are much better at suppressing competition when it's
helpful than they are promoting it. And that's because we still are affording a handful of Americans on the right and the left with I think a little bit too much power. And these conventions used to be where the candidate was selected. We didn't used to have primaries. This is where the work was done. That's why they called it in the smoke filled room. So my argument is, either we entrust voters to really make this decision, and if so, you got to get.
Out and vote.
When only you let when you let the far left and far right choose the candidates, why in the world would we think we have people of moderation and centrism and maybe and capacity in November. Too often we don't. So I'm glad you refer to that, because that is the ultimate mission. Joe Biden happened to be the man.
This happened to be the season, but this is something bigger, and I intend to dedicate time in the future too inspiring more competition because absent it, you know, that's the vitamin of democracy.
Right, Well, I tied Kamala Harris in terms of the number of delegates that received in the primaries. You at least got four delegates during the primaries. There that's I think that still should be part of the conversation, which is she did not get the approval of the Democratic voters to be in the position that she's in now. I'm not saying that she shouldn't or she doesn't deserve it, but it is a very different process that takes place than we've seen in the recent past.
And you're right, and I feel the same way. But if you recall when I actually when this occurred, when the president announced he wouldn't be running again, I immediately called for a series of four town halls, even if only in three weeks. My point was, let each region of the country host Democratic delegates who had already been selected, but entertain some other candidates, including the vice president. That didn't happen, But I agree with you generally speaking, we
should have competitions. It wasn't in the best interest of the party. I do think what has transpired is actually probably a good thing for Democrats. But in the future that's what we need to do. And I should also reflect on the fact that this compressed timeline one hundred days or so, it kind of feels right, these two year cycles of NonStop campaigning. Let me tell you, as someone who's kind of had to do it, it's not helping this country and most countries figure out how to do
it in really short windows. And there's something kind of refreshing about that. So I think maybe things that have happened recently, if we employ them in the future, could be really beneficial.
Do you think it is just a conservative slash Republican call for her to sit down for an interview or do you think that voters deserve to hear her in her own words, not on a teleprompter, off the cuff, about what she believes.
There's no question voters are entitled to and she will have to answer to them in unscripted moments, and that will come. And I understand that if I were a Republican, I'd be calling for the same thing. And I understand with that said, I think, you know, this is the coming out party, and I think that this honeymoon phase, which has been quite remarkable, I'm sure for her and Tim Walls, you know, we'll probably dissipate, and then she will have to issue her platforms and our reconcile policy,
and to your point, start subjecting herself to interviews. And you know, I know from experience there are times where it may not be politically advantageous to engage in debate or to consent to interviews, But that doesn't matter. You know, this is a democracy that begs for you two and so many others here who make their you know, their lives help in democracy, and every single candidate should consent
to it. And I'm really troubled by the fact that even on the debate stage now it's being managed by the campaigns themselves. That should be independent and it should not be up to the candidates to decide how American voters assess them. It should be up to American voters to tell the candidates how we do.
So, how does a voice like hears get heard in that mechanism that is a party. I mean, you talk about it and refer to it as a corporation. That is not what we think about when we think about parties. We think about those dark, you know, smoke filled rooms and things like that, where everybody's voice is heard. That's not the way it works industry.
There was like a great Freakonomics podcast about this and about how we have no say and you're right, and.
Think of me as I was a middle manager and a large corporation that challenged the CEO, and like private corporations do, they don't take kindly to that. And because theyre private, they can do whatever they want with that middle manager. But the middle manager can also you know, cry, you know, call bs and go to the press, and that there's a little bit of a tuggle war.
But that is you still have provided to the company.
Picnic, Well, look to your point, I think I came in second place here on the Deele Country. I would't know that, right, you know, it's not like I got an invitation to speak. But that's not you know, that wasn't the objective. And I'm not going to play by the rules as they exist because I think it's broken. I think we need to focus on how we change them to have more dissent, not less. You know, whether it's protesters, whether it's people in the party that have
different perspectives. You know, we're not represent neither parties representing the majority of America.
Right now, let's just get to the point.
Yeah, that's why I think fifty one percent of Americans are now declared independence. As an entrepreneur, I've never seen a market opportunity like I see in front of us right now in the political industry, which is now dominated by a duopoly. So there's a there there. And to answer your question, no, it's not easy to get platform. MSNBC did not invite me on one time from October
when I declared my candidacy to this very day. The only time I had an MSNBC interview was the day after the South Carolina primary, which was Joe Biden's massive victory. So you get a sense of how this environment works, how the relationships work, and most importantly, how perverse the incentives are, including the right and left media.
Well, it's a real conversation about how the media protected a president who had no chance of serving another four and a half years. It's just you know, your eyes tell you. We all watch that debate. It's common sense. We know what we saw, the fact that they were spinning oh behind the scenes, he's you can't keep up with him. It's like, you know, don't lie to us, you know. And I think that there's such distrust with the media for having shielded opinions like yours, whether whether
it's MSNBC or what have you. And it hasn't really been felt yet because we're in this whirlwind. But that's going to be a conversation.
That's had and if I can speak to that as a member of Congress. You know, the game is played probably better than I do. You know, there are a lot of media outlets, especially in Washington, whose life blood is access to the White House. So if you if you get out of line or you bother them, they're not going to afford you the talent, the leaks the information.
It's the same thing with the NFL exactly.
That's an interesting embarrassing but you so you get the point that that's why. And by the way, yeah, the media dropped the ball. You know, the New York Times started getting a little bit more interested in that story and then they stonewalled them. You know, they kept me off the airwaves, that at least the left leaning airwaves. And that's how the game works. So independent, that's the perverse and sentence. The media has got to be independent.
And the same thing with politics. Why are we punishing courage and rewarding cowardice. That's shameful in both my in my business and yours. And that's I think we got to bring some.
Light on It's kind of when we first started talking about it, is when Dean Phillips came out and said, I don't know, I've got these big concerns about Joe Biden serving another four and a half years or what have you, or there's six years at the time. I don't remember exactly when it happened, but that's kind of when we started talking about it, and you know, and other people were saying, I don't think this guy can do another term, and and uh and and and we
were lied to. We were lied to for at least a period of time about his cognitive abilities and where he was at.
Yeah, it was it.
Was a confirmation of what our eyes were telling us, that there was somebody else in power, somebody closer than
we are obviously that recognized that. So I almost I almost feel like I want to thank you, because there are a lot of people, I mean, even the members of the Democratic Party should thank you for raising this to the level of people's getting people's attention and that and that you I don't want to say you were a dog with a bone, but it was something that you didn't forget, you know, you didn't let.
Go dog with a bone is a compliment in those cases. All right, well then I'll use that one.
You know, and I think every what you just said about seeing with your own eyes, I mean I did too. I may have been the only person in democratic politics that woke up the morning after that debate and was wondering what was so unique about that I'd seen that?
Yeah, what had you seen that?
What led to you?
I'll tell you?
And I want to clarify this is really important to clarify. I've not seen legitimate cognitive decline. That's a little different. What I've seen is pretty incredible physical decline. That age is unstoppable.
We know that.
And his communication skills, which have always been challenged, you know, have really eroded his ability to seem strong and enunciate and think on his feet. You know, that's clearly been eroded. And Americans had decided that that didn't make them comfortable for.
Another four years.
And all I was trying to point out, I wasn't trying to demean him or attack him. I was trying to point out that voters, the ones that matter, had made the decision already, so why would we ignore them because of this orthodoxy that you always protect the incumbent. So what I had seen he was in my home in twenty eleven. I saw a very strong man. We'd just Osama bin Laden. He was the vice president, and of course you know this, this is you know, fourteen
years ago. Then I saw him in twenty twenty and you know, he was an older man but still had the GUSCO. But in twenty twenty one he came to our caucus a couple of times to present to help make a case for some legislation. He was pushing and we all saw with our own eyes the decline and it had started, and it was real.
I probably had I.
Was probably a little more concerned and jarred than some others, but we were talking about it. But it wasn't until he declared his candidacy again to run again that really surprised a lot of us. He had kind of insinuated he wouldn't do it again. It was going to be a bridge, and that's when I felt compelled to say the quiet.
Part out loud.
I went to Vietnam, where my father was killed in the Vietnam War that spring of twenty twenty three to visit where he died, and I remember getting on the plane coming home and thinking, you know, my dad was one of a million Americans that literally gave his life serving the country. The least I could do for gos sakes was speak the truth that I knew it was real, and not condemning him, but ensuring that we inspire competition and that we don't hide the truth from Americans, especially
after I saw my Republican colleagues. What I thought it was a disease unique to the right, which was saying one thing about Donald Trump privately and then excoriating him, and then getting in front of the cameras just and blessing him. And then when my side started doing the same thing, I thought this was contagious. It's not unique
to one side or the other. It is this culture of silence, rewarding cowardice, and staying in line so that if you aspire a higher office, you've got to play by these rules that Americans are really sick and tired of. That was the mission, and to think that it may have been partially accomplished. I shed light on it maybe I'll take some credit for that, but now it's up to everybody else.
What's your relationship with Tim Walls?
Like?
Tim and I are very close he I've known him for twenty years. I really liked him. What you see is what you get. Okay, he's down home. He knows how to fix a lawnmower. He knows how to plow his driveway. He can skim a deer and then go legislate and lead a state in the afternoon. You know, Teach, you're a National Guardsman represented a red district in southern Minnesota. He more than most Democratic politicians, really, I think understands
where most Americans are at. You know, you can say he's too progressive, or you don't like this policy or that. But the man comes from I think, a part of the country and has lived in communities that need to be heard more certainly by my party.
So I'm pleased by it.
You know, he's likely if they win, he will be the third Democratic vice president from the state of Minnesota of the last six and, as Senator Clobshar says, regularly, in Minnesota, when a baby's born, parents put him on their laps and say, one day you two can grow up and be vice president.
Of the United States.
So we raise good vice president and you know, look at we are our state. I think there's a reason for that. You know, we are you know, we're thoughtful. You know, we're generally respectful. Minnesota nice, little passive, aggressive, but a state that has higher taxes, but clean water, beautiful parts, a great environment, great schools.
Safe community.
What are you going to do about the Vikings.
Yeah, that's an issue now.
I mean, that's a whole other sect.
I wish, I wish Congress.
I wish Congress could legislate a Viking super Bowl Progesson before in my lifetime.
Well, you've been through the ringer, whether it's the party that did it or media whatever, you've been through the ringer for the last year and a half. Do you are you confident that there was a place for a voice like yours in the Democratic Party.
I think time will tell. I'm testing that right now. It was not well received, but I will let me I will. I'm glad you asked that question. Leader jeffreyes Hakeem Jeffries. There was not one moment from the time I started this endeavor to this very day where he was disrespectful where he threatened me with removing me from committees, where he didn't afford some space and place for the very dissent that I was trying to elevate, and I like,
I believe that speaks to him specifically, not everybody. Uh, there is a place, and I think those handful of leaders in our party who recognize what real American principles are and what winning requires should be elevated that. But as you know this, we live in a culture now that doing so comes at risk to the very leaders that need to inspire it. So that's the perverse incentive.
So time will tell, But I won't be quiet. I'm you know, I'm unbridled and uncommitted, if you will, and I just want to inspire more people to speak that truth. But you can do it in a way that is not antagonistic and mean spirited, because it works better. Yeah, and I think that's what I want to Maybe.
We shouldn't have come here because now I like a politician, I like the media.
How about that something's wrong.
It's just nice to have a thoughtful conversation with somebody who doesn't seem phony and is smart.
Yeah, So thank you for I appreciate it.
Congress, this right here, Thank you for coming on, Thank you for making time for us to Thank you both most for it.
Thanks for what you do. Absolutely we need more of it, not less.
You've been listening to The Gary and Shannon Show, you can always hear us live on KFI AM six forty nine am to one pm every Monday through Friday, and anytime on demand on the iHeartRadio app