7:00 a.m. eastern. here recaps of the day's political events on washington today. and get the latest from congress, the administration and important events from across the nation. cspan radio is available in washington on 90.1 fm. on our website, cspan.org or by downloading the free cspan radio app. cspan radio at 20 years where you hear history unfold daily. earlier this week, democratic legislators participated in the exchange conference from washington. this panel focused on what can be done to countertrump administration policies with more progressive actions at the state and local levels. it's almost two hours. if you're -- surprising. want to get everybody to get a

seat as soon as possible. i want to get things started on this lovely morning here at the six conference. let's give a round of applause for six because i'm so happy to be here. so happy to see you all here and remind me of my time the very first six conference at the rate that this organization is grown and our growth is due only to you and your participation. your commitment to the movement and commitment to moving a progressive ideas and your commitment to a progressive vision. to give yourself a round of applause. we all know that after last year's election, a lot of people were left wondering which way to go. a lot of us didn't know which way was up. a lot of us felt that everything had been lost. and a lot of people wrote off the progressive movement. a lot of people thought there

was no way we could ever come back. if you look around this country and see some of these special state legislative elections. people are on our side and the people are on our side because the ideas are on our side and the vision is on our side. the energy is with us. and if we keep this moving and going forward, we will see a progressive resurgence like never before. as we go into the fourth annual six conference, it's hard to believe it's the fourth annual six conference. as a form legislator, and now as a member of the six staff and it's so exciting to see the growth we're going from 14 to over 30 staff members and i think that's also worth a round of applause. people worked so hard to put this conference together. and i would forget names if i tried to introduce everyone. so with that said, are we ready

for an exciting three days? i tell you, and it seems that most if not all are here. we can enjoy the evening festivities but we have a wonderful program set up for us because, you know, we are going to take this to the next level. when they say, you know, our state is under attack from the coke brothers or robert mercer. the answer is six. i'm here to tell you that the answer is you. and before i bring up our esteemed executive director i want to give a few housekeeping items. i want to remind you all that today is an open press day. please keep your credentials on you. this is a higher security than

normal event. and we want to encourage you to use social media. make sure you use our hashtag. we have a snapchat filter for those of you on snapchat. post freely. post to facebook. we want to be sure to engage people. we don't want to keep the progressive movement hidden in darkness. we want people to know exactly what we're doing because we're open about -- about our objectives and agenda and we also want to make sure that you have a good time. so if you have any questions please don't hesitate to reach out to a staff member. if i can get you to rise to your feet for the leader of our organization. someone i look up to. someone whose been very helpful to me. someone who reached out to me, someone you should all know if you don't already know, someone is making sure that we take back power in the states, my good friend, my boss, nicklaus rafo.

>> thank you. thank you so much. thank you. thank you mandela. good morning. >> good morning. >> it's great, great to see so many familiar faces and so many new faces. i just want to take a moment to welcome each of you to our fourth annual conference. each year we say it's a historic gathering, each year you change that history. with nearly 600 state legislators and staff in the house, this will be the largest gathering of progressive legislators in the history of this country. give yourselves a round of applause. so i was thinking back to last year and the last time we were together, it was on the heels of one of the most devastating

elections in the history of the country. i recall still being in a haze and a funk. shell shocked by the idea that donald trump was going to be the 45th president of the united states. i remember desperately looking forward to last year's conference to be in the same room with all of you. but this year's very different. in some ways even more critical moment and this will be a very different gathering. donald trump and the republican congress has proved to be, if this was at all possible, maybe even worse than many of us thought. we're in a crisis and an incredibly delicate moment that i believe will define who and what america is and will be for generations to come. if you're a student of history, i'm sure you understand that this country has been in these important inflection moments throughout our existence. think of the civil war.

think of the vietnam era and the civil rights movement. in each of these moments of struggle for what our country is and what our shared values are, we have, in fact, progressed. moving our country forward, bit by bit to do as our founders described, to form a more perfect union. i obviously didn't live during those times i just know what i read and learned but this time feels a little different. i feel anxious about it because there are challenges we face that are different. right now it seems like we can't agree on basic facts and have a president who is driving this misinformation by either claiming fake news or just outright lying. we are part of a reality television culture, where instant gratification and self-centered behavior is rewarded. look at our president. and we are in this moment where the balance has tilted so heavily towards the right that each of you in this room are having to fight an onslaught of

attacks and policies that are coming now from both washington, d.c. as well as the conservatives in your states. you are defining what it means to resist. you are, in fact, ground zero for the resistance and many ways the states have been where we're able to get some wins, fight back and hold the line despite historic levels of control by conservatives in legislators, governorships, attorneys general and of course control of the congress and the presidency. but we can't and have not been able to fight everything. our country is in trouble. take for example, what just happened exactly a week ago in las vegas. we will hear in a few minutes from the nevada delegation and will hold a moment of silence for the victims of that shooting. nearly 60 people died, 530 were injured but what is going to change? the same thing that always

happens is happening. there is shock, there is outrage and we are told it's not a time to politicize guns and then slowly things go back to the new normal. this time even more so than other times. it feels so fut ilto hope for common sense gun reform and it's amazing to me how we've just allowed this sort of thing to become now part of our daily lives. a few weeks ago, my children started school. i have twin boys, one is in first grade and my daughter's in fourth grade. i went to their back to school night and spoke with one of my boy's teachers. she was telling me about how the kids have to go through what they call a safety drill. let me describe to you what a safety drill is. this is where children, our

children, in their classrooms go with their teacher to the back of the room or a corner or bathroom, depending on the classroom. and have to get down on their knees and cover their faces. the teacher locks the door, shuts off the lights until they hear a knock or an all clear from an officer at that school. the teacher told me that these safety drills occur now just as frequently as fire drills. we have normalized murder to protect guns. our children now have to bear the burden of our inability to do anything about gun violence in this country. my boys are six. let me underscore this point. it is gotten so bad that six years olds are having to accommodate the gun lobby because our leaders don't have the courage to stand up to them

and as i listened to my children's teacher describe this, i couldn't help but think that we have failed them. i see what is happening in puerto rico and texas and florida over the past few weeks and the failure of both -- both to respond both immediately and long-term to the effects of climate change and i look at all of our kids and worry what type of world we're going to leave them. right now in this country, because of trump's decision to end the deferred action for our childhood arrivals program or daca, there are more than 800,000 immigrant lives hanging in the balance. i recently read a story of a young pakistani woman who moved to this country with her family when she was just 11 years old. but she has since fallen out of status. because of the program, she is now ph.d. candidate, a researcher and a professor a texas tech university. if congress fails to act on daca and it becomes repealed, she will have to leave this country.

think about that. this young woman who is working to get her ph.d. she's a teacher and a researcher, she's going to be deported back to a country she barely knows. there are thousands of these stories and that is just a drop in the bucket of examples of why this moment is so critical and why the stakes are so high. and why it is no longer okay to just resist and hold the line. this moment requires all of us to move beyond resistance. too many lives are on the line especially the youngest and most vulnerable amongst us. the future of our country is literally hanging in the balance and what we do over the next several years especially with 2018 and 2020 looming, i believe will seal our fate and the fate of our nation. so what does moving beyond resistance mean? first, the progressive movement needs to clear space for new and more diverse leadership.

there are currently too many people who think the same way and frankly look the same way at the helm of our ship. i respect and admire many of them, but at the same time this group was at the wheel while state legislators, governorships and attorneys general have fallen into record control by conservatives which i would argue also led to the election of donald trump. we need leaders who understand how power works in this country and how much of it is derived in the states. we need leaders who think differently about how to engage in the world and who are not willing to double down on the same old ways. we have tried those ways and they clearly do not work. it's time to support and pave the way for new leadership that we see come up in the states many of which are sitting in this room today. it's the state where this new

class of leader resides and works. next, as progressive leaders we must be able to connect politics and policy making with nonelectoral social movements. for far too long elected officials have been wary of social movements. there's a long history for the reasons where. that could take all day to dissect. but the truth is, in fact, both need one another. we have a number of important movements occurring almost simultaneously on the left. think the movement for black lives. movements around climate change, the fight tor 15, the womens' march and more but unless we begin to connect these important movements to actual policy making and electoral politics and politicians who are not afraid to harness the power of these movements in their communities, we are merely engaging in the kind of political theater that we call resistance but it achieves

limited outcomes and doesn't realize our full power. we also need a flip, how we think of politics and policy making within the progressive movement. it's exciting that the left is finally waking up and realizing that these things called states exist. it's amazing to me the number of people who patted me on the head or rolled their eyes when i would talk about the states. now they're the same ones who are trying to run into the states and shift their focus to do more state work. donors are starting to give to state work and we have a rush of groups that are now running into the states. my fear is that this is fleeting. i am not sure people on the left realize just how much power emanates from the states. it is where policy making actually occurs in this country and where lives are directly impacted. it's where federal policies are implemented. it's where congressional districts are drawn and power is established. it's where you can define for

people what policy making is and how they should think of their government and it's the legislatures where you can find a young barack obama and our country's next great leaders. we've always been taught to vote down the ballot. it's time to flip that on its head and start thinking of voting up the ballot. conservatives understood this for decades and created institutions just like six beginning in the 1970s, which is lieued them the command and control they now have in american politics. we need the same level of investment and focus in a long-term strategy, not just cycle by cycle as we have done forever. we need to have the ability to think and act in terms of power, both building hours and undercutting theirs and the donor class and others across the movement need to show the patience and the level of

investment in institutions like six because the return on that investment is much more transformational than the billions we have spent on consultants and television ads, cycle by cycle. finally, we need to be focused on our values as progressives. we need to think less in terms of being transactional or reactive in our policy making to one that is transformational. we need to root ourselves in the values of freedom and opportunity. we are much more than being against trump or a list of demands. our movement is rooted in the values that have attracted so many to this country and allowed us in the past to be the envy of the world. the values of opportunity that no matter who you are, you can realize the american dream. the value of freedom that we believe everyone has a right to express who they are in their faith, in their speech, who they love as well as the freedom to

live your life, to have basic things like health care and earn a living wage. my parents came to this country with basically nothing. they settled in central nebraska where i was born and raised. the town i call my hometown had a population of about 800 people. my father was a preacher and my mother stayed home to raise my sister, brother and i. my father's income was meager. in fact, i began working in the corn and bean fields in nebraska before i was even a teenager. we qualified for things like the free school lunch program and other assistance. i was called the n-word almost on a daily basis and at times even beaten up because of my culture and the color of my skin. it would have been easy for my brother, sister and i to have given up. when you grow up this way, with people expect you to do are pretty low.

especially when the -- when they think you are less than them but we didn't give up. because in the face of all of that, we believe we could make ourselves into something different, because we were given a little bit of help it allowed us to believe that this country cared about us, because we were told by my parents that we could be whatever we wanted. we believed it because it was reinforced by the values of this amazing country and we did. my brother runs his own law firm here in d.c. my sister is senior executive service and a section chief in one of our major intelligence agencies and i have to tell you that i will never forget the day i walked through the gates of the white house for my first day working for president obama. from abject poverty in india to

the corn fields of nebraska, to the white house, working for the first african-american president in no other country would that story be possible. my story is america's story. it is also the story of what it means to be a progressive in this country, because without the opportunities my family and i were provided by progressive policies, my story and so many stories of people from all over this country would not be possible. it's these stories and these values that we should own and remind the country who is actually fighting for them. history is watching us, so let's use this moment and this conference to think differently. to root ourselves in the values we share as progressives and to be bold and strong in fighting for them. this is how we can move beyond resistance and how we can reset the direction of this country, that we all care so deeply about. thank you. that we all care so deeply

about. thank you. thank you. thank you. thank you. i'd like to call the nevada delegation up now. good morning. >> good morning. >> i'm assemblywoman danielle from the great state of nevada and i stand here with my fellow

legislators. a week ago today we woke up to a senseless tragedy in our community that not only effected the families in nevada but effected the families throughout this country. but when you hurt one of us, you hurt all of us. but as the large diverse community that we are we immediately stepped up like we always do that only nevadans do as the family that we are to start the healing process. so today we stand before you united because we are vegas strong, we are nevada strong and we're stronger with you. so i ask you to join me in a moment of silence as we remember the 58 lives that we lost over 500 that are still suffering and their families.

thank you. i would like to thank the nevada delegation for your display of strength and bravery in this time that we deal with far too often in this country.

to go into the program for the next panel, we're going to talk about resistance which is the theme that has been immediate since the election of our most recent president, and any great resistance has to come with an offensive strategy. we cannot always find ourselves playing defense. we need to be very proactive in the way that we approach governing and with that said, throughout this 24 hour news cycle, we find ourselves in a 24 hour resistance cycle and a part of that 24 hour news cycle includes a good friend of mine, a good friend of mine whose with us today who will be moderating this next panel. she needs no introduction but i'm going to give her one any way. she just pointed at me and there's some smingz she's not going to want me to say and i won't say them because i'm a good friend, however, the former

national press secretary for candidate bernie sanders who is actually no relation, surprise, surprise, to simone sanders and give her a round of applause. you see her on cnn and you see her -- you see her carry the message very effectively and she carries the message in a way that we have not seen in some time and the way that she reaches younger populations and the way that she reaches communities of color is something that we need to be very respectful and cognizant of when we go into any cycle because we miss the young people in the last election. we missed people of color in the last election. this is someone that i listened to because she will grab my arm and make me listen to her. and just want to know that anything is possible. >> get out of here. thank you. thank you. oh, my goodness. you all give mandela a round of

applause. he's all right. my name is simone sanders. i am very excited to be here today. we'll have a very fruitful conversation and yes we're going to take crowd questions. so before i set up this panel, i want to tell you who the panelists are, is that okay? i like a room that talks back, is that okay? all right. as long as nobody tells me to shut up we're good. so first up on the panel we have ms. elise hoag. give her a warm round of applause as she comes to the stage. following elise we have senator mike mcguire of california. they're going to keep coming, keep clapping. next we have assemblywoman nelly row sick from new york and last but certainly not least we have john pierre who's the senior adviser. so you all see the program. it says we're going to talk about states -- that's what

we're going to talk about today. we're going to talk about how we move just as nick said in his opening remarks, how we move past resistance to action. as my panelists get seated one of the first questions i would like folks to ask as they tell us a little bit more about themselves with two minutes because i do have a timer up here and we're going to use it, one, what does resistance mean to you and two, is the resistance effective because some would argue that it's not necessarily the job of state legislators for example, to be resisting. is the resistance effective and what is the resistance mean to you and also tell us about yourself and we'll start with the illustrous president of nara. >> i'm ilyse hogue. i've been the president of naral

coming up on five years. i tell people that i did not come from reproductive rights from a long history in progressive politics and i did it for one simple reason and it was that i came to realize that all of those things that nick talked about, all of the promise for women and families in this country was not possible unless we focused on womens' sovereignty about being able to make their own choices in our lives that determine the rest of our lives and it's been a transformative experience. we were -- i'm from texas. i'm a fourth generation texan. we've been living in the resistance for a long time. is my texas delegation out there some where? yeah. i will mean, there are states and many of you y'all in this room that actually know what it's like to live in resistance long -- >> oh, no. >> lost it again. there we go.

long before donald trump became president and through the eyes of women and families, through the eyes of women and families who don't have means, who are struggling economically, that resistance has been powerful because women do what it takes to take care of our families, right, even in the harshest of circumstances. so out of the resistance resistance is born the promise and when women get ahead and when women succeed it's not just the individual that does it's our families, our communities and it's our entire country so that's what drew me to the work, but i will say one more thing which is that i woke up at 3:30 this morning in wors, massachusetts, to drive to an airport to get on a plane to be here by 9:00 a.m. which i'm thrilled because i love six and i love y'all and i love the work that you're doing. the reason i was up there is because i had the honor and privilege to attend a wedding yesterday of two of my very close friends, jacob and steve.

that we can celebrate the love of two men through legal marriage in this country is an astonishing thing that we should never take for granted and it is an astonishing thing that was made possible by so many of you all and your counterparts in this room who made that change, made that dignity, made that recognition happen at the state level long before it happened at the federal level. and that is the promise, that is the promise of dignity, justice, economic, security that comes out of the resistance, when we recognize the resistance as the engine of the car that's driving us forward. so thank you very much. >> all right. [ applause ] >> state senator mcguire, tell us a little bit about yourself and what you've been working on this morning and what does the resistance mean to you, one and two, and do you think it's effective? >> thank you so much, ms.

sanders. it's so good to see you. good morning. how you doing? i hope you are all fired up to be here. i know i'm excited to be with you. just want to let you know i may have to leave a little early. i represent a large district in california in the golden gate bridge and since 10:00 p.m. pacific time we've had ten major fires, thousands of homes lost and tens of thousands evacuated. and there are some in this country including my uncle who i love and he lives in idaho and he thinks everyone in california or communist but it's less about the resistance i think what we're doing in california is what some may call the resistance to us it's keeping on keep on what the majority of americans believe in. and some examples. so, number one, as progressives we have to focus on job growth,

on job growth and making sure that we are hiring at a living wage and that's what we've done in california. we're now number one in the entire nation in job growth because we focused on our economy. when you take a look at climate change, the vast majority of americans believe that climate change will impact their quality life in their lifetime. california just moved the strongest climate bill in america. we should be doing the same in every state. that's what the resistance is all about. the resistance is about infrastructure. when president trump talks about this $1 trillion infrastructure plan that he wants to vessel on tax credits, it will never happen. it's never happened and it won't happen in our future. if we're serious about investing in a strong middle class in america, then we have to rebuild our roads, our bridges and our highways and california we just pass aid $50 billion

infrastructure plan. republican or democrat, you want good infrastructure, am i right? >> yes. >> when we talk about the resistance, the resistance is paying women equal to men and it's about damn time and you can ask republican women and you ask democratic women it's not about party, it's about making sure that we have equal pay across this nation and it's also ridiculous that we continue to talk like that, right because it's 2017. health care. you take a look at the most rural parts of the state of california, they're the poorest areas of our states. they are the most vulnerable when it comes to repeal and replace. when it comes to the resistance it's all of us in this room standing up to those dangerous policies and making sure that we don't let the aca be rolled back. by the way, we're at 17%. 17% uninsured in california in 2012 prior to the aca, we are now at a record low 7%

uninsured. it is because of the aca and we have to bring that conversation to a universal health care system here in the united states of america. and finally, ms. sanders is going to throw a fork at me in just a second. it's also about transparency and that's why we're working with republicans and democrats alike to get senate bill 149 passed in california and that would mandate that every democrat and every republican presidential candidate has to release five years of their tax returns because 74% of americans believe president trump should release his tax returns. this is about common sense and doing the greatest good for the most amount of people here in america and it is time to take our state legislators back. thanks for having me. >> all right. >> you have the floor. >> first and foremost, i want to thank six for having all of us and i want to give a shout-out to my new york colleagues who

are here both christine and gustavo right in the middle. [ applause ] >> so i'm nily rozic. i'm a mets fan. don't hold that against me. i'm also a first generation american who came to fleshing at a very young age and really got involved in the local community because i didn't want to just be a cog in the system, i wanted to get involved. in 2012, almost five years ago, when i got elected i was the youngest woman ever elected to the state legislator in new york and since then we've done incredible work in getting more women and women of color specifically elected to the state legislator because that is ultimately how we are going to create change from the grassroots staff.

resistance is about me not just focusing on the white house, it's all about our state house. if we're going to have an impact in 2020 we need to started to. actually we should've started yesterday. but that's why we're all here, right? and it means that we are going to work together on everything that impacts people day-to-day. that's the minimum wage, voter i.d. laws, gun violence control, collective bargaining agreements, that all happens at the state level and that's where we're so excited in new york to be at the forefront of fighting on all of these issues together. >> thank you. [ applause ] my name is kareem jean pierre. i started off my career in new york. i'm from new york. grew up in queens village and i started off my 15 year political

career in a city council and then i moved out to d.c. and did national politics work for an issue based campaigns and ended up in the obama administration where i met nick who i thank him so much for putting all of this together, nick is a great guy. i've known him for ten years and so we worked in the campaign and in the administration. i ended up on move.org after the 2016 election so just been part of working with our allies and all of you in the states and really trying to push forward the resistance. for me what does the resistance mean to me? as a mom it means i look at my 3-year-old every day and i think about, okay, what is this country going do look like for her? and when she's 10 years old and she looks back and she's like mommy, what did you do when

donald trump was doing all these awful things as she's going to learn about this president. she's going to learn about what happened and i want to be able to tell her that i fought. i fought fiercelessly for her. that i stood up and that i, you know, any time i had a platform i used it. so i think about my child a lot when i think about the resistance. i also think about myself. i'm an immigrant. i'm a woman. i'm black. i'm part of the lgbtq community. so i think about all perform those things that this administration attacks on a constant daily -- every freaking second they do that. we have someone who sits in the oval office behind the resolute desk signing things to attack everything that i am. it is -- it is important to me to continue to fight and i'm part of an organization that gives me the opportunity to do that. so is the resistance working? i believe that it is.

look, we stopped the repeal of aca which i think is incredibly important to have done. i also think about all of you out there. you guys are part of the resistance. i think about the eight seats that we were able to flip, those state legislators seat that we were able to flip from red to blue. there's been, what, 27 open special -- special elections this year in red districts and winning eight is not bad. it's 30%. and any time there is a competitive democrat in these races we've won them. i think all of you are playing such an important role in what we're doing because it's not about just d.c., it's not about what's happening at 1,600 pennsylvania and also the hill it's what's happening in these states and that's how we're going to stop a lot of these awful bad bills that are coming

out from the state legislator that are heavily rolled by republicans. so i thank you for being part of the resistance. i thank you for being here and let's continue to fight. >> there we go. [ applause ] >> since the election, since november basically, there has been this really intense increase focus on state legislative races on what is just happening in the states in general with a number of bills. and i would like you all to speak to what effective national and state partnerships look like because you've got groups like naral and move on who you all -- both of your organizations have done lots of work as of late in the states. what does it look like? what is an effective partnership really look like from you all's perspective and from my state legislators' perspective? what are some things that may be

folks should know when engaging in a -- in national partnerships, if you will on the ground individuals? but it can get a little sticky. you want to pop in first. >> i know that there are enough of you in the audience that we do work with that will hold me accountable if i actually misspeak on this. i mean -- narals an old organization we'll be 50 years old in 2019. we have members on the ground in every state. we have brick and mortar and staff on the ground from those states in the states in 23 about to be 24 states. so when we -- we try to actually be really clear about what we

have to offer when engaging in state partnerships but i want to back up for a second because i think we need to think -- i hear all the time, do you do state work and federal work and the answer for us is we do both. i think there's a third category that gets passed over too frequently and that's national work, which is that the sum of the states should add up to more than their parts, right? y'all are doing incredibly important work that promotes the values of progressives and progressive democrats and that needs to be put together with your help so when we think about what state work we engage in, we ask three questions with our partners in the states. does it have substantive impact? does it matter to women and families in those states? does it lift up new leaders, because very much like nick spoke we believe that new leadership is coming from and needs to come from the states,

right? and i'm seeing some of my favorite people right out there. and the third is does it change the national conversation? this for us is really, really important and it means two things. does it actually put the opposition on record, right? and does it actually allow us to frame things in our own values rather than reacting to the oppositions' values? my friend here on my right, we've been working with california state legislator for some time on a bill that is now on the governor's desk. it's called the reproductive health nondiscrimination act. it is not well-known that women cannot only be fired for their reproductive health choices in terms of choosing contraception or abortion but always this bill was -- a young woman was fired for being pregnant oust wedlock. and so we've been working with california on this.

what we also are not only working with california, we worked with our good friends at the municipal level in st. louis. one of the reddest red states, right? and we passed a municipal ordinance with the help of our amazing local folks but particularly our state leader who is a powerhouse from st. louis and the governor of missouri, deep red state, remember, got so, so bent out of shape that he called the state legislator back into session and i'm watching stacy newman and who are my favorite leaders in the states and to have a special, his words, pro-life session, right, to overturn the st. louis ordinance. well, this turned out to be a pretty difficult for him to do. the national headline were like the missouri governor wants you to be able to be fired for your birth control. right, all of a sudden

between -- and we had already done this in d.c., so between d.c., st. louis and our wonderful friends in the missouri state legislator who were prepared to go on offense in a red state. we're having a really different national conversation that gets out what we always say which is this is not and has never been about abortion. and the kinds of policies that support working moms and families in in country but they don't do that. we've got a red state governor on defense, we've got blue state that is actually leading the way and talking about our values and we're change gs the national conversation while having substantive imfact for women and families around the country and acting protections at a time where the federal government certainly seems hel bent on removing. >> so for you, when -- when you talk about going beyond

resistance, it's not necessarily federal versus state, for you it's specifically about a national conversation? is this the same thing with move on? you all are in the states. you all are on the front lines of the rooerz. what does that look like for you? >> move on we are one of just give a little bit about background and i'll answer the question. we are one of the largest independent progressive organizations. we have 8 million members all across the country and we don't necessarily have chapters or people like staff kind of offices based in different regions or states but what we do is we try to empower or members. we train our members. we empower them. we really make sure they have the information that they need to fight whatever's happening in their state or even nationally when it came to repealing aca, we made sure they had the phone numbers. we made sure that they went to the town halls that were located in their states. it's really kind of elevating the conversation and empowering

are members and also we help our allies. that's one of the ways that this resistance i believe is working is helping naral, helping other national organizations that have local hapters and feeding into them and helping all of the organizations that's working on daca for example, and making sure that we tap into our members to push what it is that our allies are trying to do so all of this is important. one thing that we did this summer is we had something called resistance summer where we -- we had about more than 1,000 of our members across the country and we had these conversations in neighborhoods about what are the important issues. we wanted to start this now as we're going into 2018 and really training people in the states and giving them the tools and mobilizing them and having the conversation and figuring out what are the issues that people care about most in their neighborhood and what we're thinking was we called them move on mobilizers is it is a way to

really get folks embedded into their communities as we go into 2018. so that's what it looks like to us but working -- having that ally relationship and helping, you know, the different issues that different folks are working on, pushing that forward, tapping into our millions of membership and raising money too. it's a way to raise money for folks. we partnered up with the hispanic federation and move on members raised more than $3 million and we sent an e-mail. we really mobilized that community and that was for puerto rico and so those are the ways that we try to really tap into what we do and what the tools and the folks that we have the power that we have. >> the resistance is about you all going to work. >> yes. >> so how have you been able to leverage some of these national partnerships?

what does that look like in terms of the resistance in your offices and if you can give two best practices what would they be? >> i think we all know coalitions matter, right. we can't do half of the work that we do without a strong coalition behind us. to give you an example, a lot of the criminal justice work that we do in new york is driven and done in partnership with amazing organization. when at the federal government at the federal level they are trying to roll back the aca and get rid of family planning services, a coalition of reproductive health organizations got together in new york and said we should do a bill inserting family planning services into the state budget if we can't get that done at the federal level. but what i think as a state legislator is really nice in this new world post-november,

we're no longer thought of as the minor leagues. we are now the major leagues and i think the sooner we start recognizing that and embracing that, other organizations will be there to fight arm in arm shoulder to shoulder with us. >> so few items. number one, i think the bottom line when it comes to the resistance particularly when we're building coalitions at the state or we're working one-on-one we need to be able to prove to the residence that we work with every day that standing strong against trump means making america stronger and we have to be able to prove that, but ms. sanders one of the biggest areas i'm concerned in regards to the resistance and i'm going to be very critical for a moment, the democrats really screwed up and i think we can use the term that president obama used sha lacked because we do not have a focus on rural

america and -- [ applause ] >> i'm really concerned. if we do not become america's party and not the perceived party of coastal elites and urban centers we will continue to lose. 86 assemblies, house and senates in the states have gone to republicans. over 1,000 state legislatives seats have been lost and it's because we are not focusing on those voters who, by the way, those issues that they care about in rural america are not as different as some may perceive in urban america. i think that if you take a look at the electoral map after this november, it's so red because it was a blood bath and here's what i believe. rather than democrats continuing to give lip service to rural americans, we need to be able to step up, we need to be able to show up and we need to be able to deliver and i say that

because i'm the only rural democrat in the california state senate. and between the golden gate bridge and the oregon border and if you take a look at rural america as long as with rural california, the poorest counties in the state of california are rural. two of the five poorest counties, am i right, in the state are in my district. highest numbers of homelessness, highest childhood poverty, highest opioid addiction and democrats forget that rural voters are our voters too and they will want good schools. they want jobs. they want quality health care and they want to be able to log on and get on to the internet and, by the way, i have a county that 40% of the households aren't even connected to the internet. what are democrats doing for rural america? and so what i say, ms. sanders

and i apologize that i'm going on the soap box here -- >> i like a soap box. >> is this, we need to coordinate. california's homeless bill $2 billion permanent housing for homelessness, the only way we're going to end homelessness in this country particularly those that are chronic holeless is provide -- it was modeled after utah. thank you utah. when it comes to taxes. and holding our president accountable. we were coordinating thank you so much to six with 25 different states across america. career training, 72% of american public high school graduates will not go on to a four year college degree. democrats should be running with career training and job skills in our classrooms. am i right? when it comes to d.r.e.a.m.ers, 800,000 democrats they need to stay in this country because it's the country they love and it's the country that they are fighting for every day.

if democrats and all of us progressives don't get our stuff together we are going to continue to lose and ms. sanders i will say, we will win the house, we will win the senate, we'll take back the presidency and we'll take back our state houses once we start focusing on rural america. [ applause ] >> i see all the rural america people in the crowd. i see you all. let's talk about that because some people would argue that the problem with the resistance is that it leaves some people out. that's not necessarily my view i'm just talking about some people, donald trump, the problem with the resistance is that it leaves some people out such as rural america as the state senator just noted but others would argue that when we talk -- and i'd like the panel to explore this. we have to do more for rural america. west virginia or dealing with the same stuff as people in downtown st. louis. but the problem is we talk about rural america often times we're

not talking about people that look like me, we're only talking about people that look like you. so how do we bridge the gap in the conversation? because the resistance we just established is about doing the work, but how can we bridge the gap in the conversation that we are actively putting forth an agenda that literally speaks to all people because the economy is everybody's issue but you would think white people only care about the economy so let's talk about that. >> i'm happy to jump in. >> come on. you go and i want to hear from move on and i would like to hear from the assemblywoman and i want to hear from naral because i know you have feelings. >> i sometimes have feelings. >> i think that a successful strategy is not a strategy of one. i think sometimes we get wrapped up into maybe it's just rural america. i think that's one of our biggest weaknesses. when you take a look at

african-american turnout in this past election, it was ten sometimes 15% less when president obama ran and there is a problem with that and if beer not dealing with that now and shame on us in 3 1/2 years. what i will say is, i'm going to continue to come back to this. the majority of americans want to keep their health insurance. there's a county on the oregon border, 26,000 people, one of the most rural in the state of california, over 8,000 are on the affordable care act. nearly a third of the entire county population. they voted for president trump. we have to be able to go into that county, communicate with them, take a county in alabama and be able to show what democrats are doing to be able to keep their health care, show what democrats are doing to be able to provide quality education, show what we're doing to be able to improve their roads and build middle class jobs. but i think for us, whether it

is in a community of color or a caucasian community like you have up and down counties, we have to be able to have a multi-prong strategy to be able to take our state houses back. those bridges aren't as long as we think. i think we can bridge some of these divisions that we have by simply bringing the focus for many of us in this room. >> okay. >> pandora's box. >> open. >> i guess rural america do you define that as white people, rural america? i guess i'm just trying to figure out -- because this is a conversation that the democrats have all the time, who do we -- who are we looking at? rural america there are black people that live in rural america? i want to be clear about who we're talking about because if you look at the -- there's a different conversation for the state legislators, really, okay.

let me step back. if you look at 2016, we had -- democrats had a lot of issues. it wasn't just rural america, right? it was like you said african-american, black folks they were not reached out too. we clearly had a problem with women. but the reality white women do vote republican. there were some facts -- some things that we just didn't address well enough. there is millennials. millennials went and voted for the third party. there's a lot of issues -- it's hard to look at this and just say it was one thing. there were multiple things that happened that we need to address and so that's -- that's kind of like the thing that's going around in my head and let's not forget, one of the big problem that we'll have in 2018 and 2020 is russia. that was -- that was a serious thing that happened and we're not -- it's not being addressed.

and it's not, not with this administration. there are a lot of things that happened that we need to have a serious conversation about and it's not just rural america, it's like how do we treat people of color, how do we go out and really reach out to millennials. what is it -- there were things that we did that just did not resonate and that's kind of the angst that i feel when i hear about the primary focus or the conversation being about rural america because it was -- it was across the board. >> so sei don't think you repre rural america, and what folks did wrong and what we missed what is this quote/unquote, everybody agenda. what does that even look like particularly for the states because i think the states are

going to have to lead on this issue because nationally i mean clearly the democratic party is having some issues? >> the other big piece to all of this is the local recruitment and running of candidates -- i'll say that again. the recruitment and the running of state legislators -- is this better? should i go into my npr voice? >> so the critical piece that's missing here that i think we haven't addressed as a national party and we're not doing effectively at the state level, yes, is recruiting and running of candidates who will speak to voters. you've always heard the story of, i hate congress but i love my congress person. i hate the state legislator but i love my local assemblywoman

and that's really ultimately how we're going to start to see change at the state houses and we'll see more people getting engaged and coming out to vote is if we're picking people who look like their voters and that -- there is power in that diversity and there's strength in that diversity and that's ultimately how as a party at the local level we're really going to make a difference. >> i'll come back to that point. i like it but i think there's something we need to also impact there. >> so i think there are a lot of different conversations actually wrapped up in this which is not that surprising because we're still processing a lot of what happened and a lot of how we're going forward. i think there's a real conversation to have about how resources get distributed through the democratic party and that conversation needs to be transparent and it needs to be loud and it needs to be robust.

the -- it's the way that we actually end up from a nuts and bolts perspective reaching people regardless of population density and i think that's a real thing. from a policy perspective, i don't actually think -- i'm going -- i'm going to be controversial. i don't think we're losing because of policy. i don't think we're losing because of some false divide between identity politics and economic populism. i just don't believe it. i believe that people are not -- i believe we're experiencing a huge crisis in confidence in government, generally. you read polls that came out last week and it said 78% of people disapprove of the gop congress and you're like, wow that's a really big number and the next line is 68% disapprove of the democrats. that leads to underperformance and lack of motivation to get to the polls. i don't think this is a policy

problem. i think it is ability to speak about collected values in a language that's tailored to different cultures and that best comes from the states, that best comes from the localities. i think we're right on with our values. i think most people believe in progressives and democratic values. i don't think we need to concede one inch. i think we need to motivate people because they believe we're actually going to do something and that we're going to do something in their interests and so when we talk about any issue, from jobs or schools or transportation, it always has to be couched and empathetic understanding of where people are coming from as well as a confidence that i'm going to fight for you. i'm going to fight for you. the policies are there and i'm going to take -- my issues are considered really, really

controversial and sometimes particularly with rural voters, right? the ones who suffer the most are rural voters. vice president mike pence, i don't know if anyone is here from the indiana delegation, vice president mike pence in his scorched earth approach to end abortion in his state, when he was governor, closed down reproductive health clinics across the state. that doesn't end abortion. what we know is that when abortion is made illegal, the number of abortions don't go down, the number of deaths to injuries go up. two women sent to prison but what did happen? maternal health outcomes went down in rural indiana and hiv rates went up in indiana. this is about values. this is about who cares for who

and in 2018 dropoff women voters, simone's organization put out this poll, dropoff women voters we need to get to the polls in 2018 across this country. they're top two with issues are health care and abortion rights and that was priorities language that was not our language and the reason for that is particularly women who don't have access to reproductive health care acutely know that that is an attack on their families, it is an attack on their dignity, it is an attack on their future because they can't finish school, get jobs, hold jobs, get out of poverty. so for me, we've got to be able to have a collective set of values that we're communicating and then y'all know how to communicate best with your communities and that language may differ, that outreach may differ but it's not giving up values and we don't have a policy problem. >> that's interesting. so if we don't have -- i think

it's interesting for state legislators to hear that we don't have a policy problem when it's literally y'all's job to create policy. we're gont policy. and if we do have the right values, why is it not essentially connecting for democratic voters? and for democratic constituents and do we have to rethink the way we are actually engaging in our communities? i'll say this. in 2016 there's a whole swath of republican voters, conservative christians who said they voted for donald trump solely because they wanted a conservative supreme court justice. they got one. and so they ignored the misogyny, they didn't like the racism, but they wanted this particular thing and that's why they pulled the lever for donald trump. if you asked democratic voters in places all across the country and we're -- we can talk about state legislative races, we can talk about mayoral races,

democratic voters don't feel that way so how do we connect with folks on the values? i feel that's the only way the resistance actually becomes effective at home because yes we won on the health care fight thus far, we beat that back but in over 33 states more than 90 pieces of legislation have been introduced since 2016 to restrict access to the ballot box. are we really winning? that's the question for the panel. >> i mean some of this -- some of this is [ inaudible ] where we talked about limited of distributions. we never, ever place organizers in a place that we can't have an impact from the top of the ticket to the bottom of the

ticket. you all help determine where that is. we're never going to place an organizer in a place where we think we can make a difference in senate race where we don't think we're making a difference in a state house or state senate race. that is the ballgame. so i do think that there's a huge conversation to have about how we think about resources, resource allocation. there's no doubt that the other side is way more sophisticated in terms of voter suppression and that's absolutely true in the way that they have moved legislation through the state houses, my home state of texas. it's just awful. it's awful there. and the dis enfranchisement that's happening. it's more than that and, you know, all of the work that cambridge analytics did that they're talking about in the trump administration, all of the work of the russians and the election blah, blah, blah which is not blah, blah, blah, it's like a real issue but a lot of

that was actually psychology i cannily knowing how to depress people. how do i get you from going? how do i divide you from the folks that are telling you that they actually want to fight for you? how do i diminish the confidence and both simone and careen have mentioned that white women usually vote for republicans. >> i think that let's white men off when you say it that way because white men vote for republicans in a much higher number but that doesn't mean that white women don't bear responsibility. i just can't stand letting the men off of that. but -- we do actually -- we have taken out seriously. that is traditionally our base. we have reached into both rural and urban areas of white women and a lot of that is -- is psychological which the other side actually gets. i feel like sometimes we're working at 2.0 and they're

working at 5.0. it's not a policies thing, it's a values thing but also a psychology thing. it's actually understanding the human condition and what makes people vote and i'm not going to tell you we have the answers, i'm going to tell you we have some ideas and hypothesis that we feel like we can test in 2018 and that's what we all have to be doing is trying new stuff, testing new things, learning from those tests, sharing with each other what we learned from those tests so they can be replicated and keeping our eye on the long game. >> careen, you want to pop in. there's not an easy answer here. >> i think that's probably part of the problem. there's so many -- there's so many facets to this and some of it goes real, real deep. i want to say this real quick. i worked in the obama administration. i was there the first two years and what i saw from my purge republicans were so angry that

there was a black man in the white house, so angry that there was a black man in the oval office that they strategized, they got themselves together on day one when he was inaugurated, they met right here in d.c., all of the bigwigs from the republican party and said they were going to resist from day one and what they did and i'm sure a lot of you saw this, is they raised what $60 million over the ten years and made sure that they flipped legislative seats, made sure that they flipped governor seats and they worked and pounded on that and it's not a sexy thing to talk about. but they invested and they did that. and so what happens is, voter suppression laws pop up. all these bad bills on women's reproductive rights pop up. all of these things starting creeping up because republicans strategize and they invested and they raised tens of millions of

dollars because they felt like they were losing their country. they felt like they were losing their identity. and so now we're in a place where are we winning? it's a really good question that simone asked and it's a very complicated answer, because if you look at across the country, yep, it's very red, but i just -- as i mentioned when i started talking, we had 27 special election seats. we flipped eight. that's 30%. now it's small but it's a start and one thing that donald trump has done is he's unified us and, you know, there's the argument of we can't just be against him, we got to be for something but i think there's a lot of things that we're for. we do have a lot of values. we know who we are and so it's trying -- we are in a tough spot as democrats. we really are as progressives. and 2018 is going to be a huge test case and it doesn't stop there. let's not forget about november.

we have two important races in november. we got to win those. and all of the other special elections that are coming up from now until then. so it is -- it is a hard conversation clearly and it is -- there is no one answer but we have to win, we have to win in the states and we have to win in 2020. >> so i think -- so we are going to take some crowd questions. i want to get the mikes prepped and ready. i'm going to go to smi state legislators and take some crowd questions. i'm looking for questions not statements. got to be clear. so -- so i think it's more than -- when i say are we winning, it's more than just getting more folks elected. that's clearly a very important piece but what about folks like people such as yourself who are

elected. you're currently sitting in the seats doing the work in some places it's working well, we can see it but in other places it's not. so how can we be better as state legislators and how can state legislators help change the conversation and lead the charge? >> i want to answer that but also taking a step back to your last question. i think that at the end of the day we do still have a lot of work to do on the policy front. i'm from new york. i'm very lucky i have my own dedicated staff to work on legislative ideas and to put that out there into the world. not many other state legislators can do that, right? [ applause ] >> i hear about it all the time from colleagues across the country. you're sharing in l.a., you're sharing staff or you're trying to write it on your own, your part time like me.

that is a struggle but that is also why six is so important, because you have now a resource and people who will connect you to other legislators from across the country who are working on similar ideas and to just give a small example of that, i have a bill that i introduced that would devest state contracts from any country that is interested or would contract to build the border wall with mexico. [ applause ] >> that has now been replicated across multiple states, arizona, california, illinois because at six someone took an interest in it, spread the knowledge, spread the actual bill draft and got other legislators interested and that is the only way we're really going to ultimately lift

up the entire party is if we're working together on common policy ideas and helping each other out. >> senator mcguire. >> thank you, ma'am. lift up t. if we're helping each other out. >> i agree. when we take a look at the issues that many of us if not all of us are championing in this room. jobs, climate, infrastructure, health care and war and poverty. it's issues that republicans agree with too. now, i think we have some challenges. i'm going to give you an example in california. california will be a majority/minority state by 2050. we have state assembly districts that we simply can't win. we have 8 or 9 point advantages in voter registration, the reason being is. we're not turning out latino voters. and where i feel frustrated at

times is just because we have one hell of a voter registration campaign. we forget to go back and remember that people aren't going to turn out because we registered in the vote, they want to know what we're doing for them, am i right? and so where i feel frustrated is that we have to keep going back, we have to make this a mission not just for months, but for years. we have to embed ourselves into the communities. and yes it's going to take dollars. imagine if we started this five years ago, where we would be at today as a party and a progressive movement. i think the other piece we need to focus in on is the court system. if we are seeing dangerous actions taken by this president. this party. state legislatures have to step up and take this 3rez to court

the majority of the time this president will lose in court. we have to get serious about that resistance. republicans are great with strategy and focusing that with significant money. we have to be organized. i any that's going to be like states like new york and california can start organizing in southwest states or middle america, to help target certain races, particularly when it comes to the state legislature. i think that's the other area where we need to go. [ applause ] >> love it. you all can clap for that. we have hands. where are the microphones. >> i have a question right here in the blue sweater.

yes, ma'am? you know what, hold on a second. i'm going to do my oprah thing, we're going to take it to the crowd. all right. ma'am, what is your name and question. >> my name is teresa. i'm from oregon, state representative. i am the first immigrant latina immigrant in the history of oregon my question to the panel are, what are each of you doing to lead the resistance to folks who don't speak english. our country is diversifying more. what are we all doing to make sure everyone feels included, that they're a part of the whole process, it's imperative we start thinking about everybody, not just our regular population. >> that's a great question, thank you. as you think about your answer, i want to give you some numbers.

according to projections, by the u.s. census bureau. america by 2032, the working class will be majority minority. and by 2040, america will be majority people of color. what are you all doing to lead the resistance, to folks that don't speak english? >> thank you for all your work. and it's good to see you. >> california has just invested $75 million in legal protection, and naturalization services and college scholarships for our 200,000 dreamers. number two, we just passes the toughest law in the land to be able to protect those who are part of our immigrant community. those who are undocumented. sb-54, where it no longer allows for cooperation of local law enforcement with ice. and it has been controversial, but what i will tell you, we have 12 million undocumented

residents who call this country home right now. the vast majority are paying their taxes and abiding by the law. when you narrow it down. you have about 300 to 400,000 who have some type of criminal charge. 200,000 that have a felony. for president trump to say that there are 2 million with a felony going against what the department of homeland security statistics are, that's fake news. if we're not standing strong for the most vulnerable in our country right now, who are we as americans. we are providing 100,000 kids who are undocumented health care. we are focused on that, we would love to be able to work with you as well, thanks for all your work and go ducks.

>> i'm ian conyers, i'm a state senator. >> he's a millennial. shout out to the millennials. >> i have a question about removing barriers within our own party. often we say we want young people involved. when you look at the laws for running for office, in many states they're different. in our state, you need to be 30 to run for lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, what do you think about what's your approach to internal barriers, such as age limits or single ticket voting in terms of the parties deciding the candidates on the slate, instead of the people in direct primaries. >> excellent question. who would like to hop on that? >> so the question is -- let me sum it up for you all. what do we -- how can we open up

the party for young people. there are barriers, you have to be 30 to run for anything. state senator, and state representative. and so what can we do to open up the party on the state level to younger people, also, we need to have some real courageous conversations as democrats, we say we want young people at the table. a lot of times that means you want me sitting at the table, you don't want me to say anything. >> i agree. >> i'm with you 100%, when i ran at 26 people thought -- looked at me like i had three heads. why would you ever want to go work in the state capitol. or i got -- you look so young or -- you look like a teenager, you couldn't possibly be substantive or have the experience to be a state

legislator. and now a couple years in, you know, the tables have turned. but ultimately. you can't be what you can't see. a lot of the work i do every single day is creating this network of other millennial, other young women of color, they want to run for office who don't know where to go. they don't have the resources. recently we've seen a lot of organizations popping up who will start to turn the tide on some of that work. but often times, yeah, it can -- i agree with you, it can feel like you're the only one out there doing that work. >> does the democratic party need a pipeline program? >> they absolutely do need a pipeline program. it's interesting, what you're seeing right now, especially after this election, are a lot of young people who want to get involved, who have -- who are looking around them and saying, okay, it's my turn or i want to

step in, and we do have say problem as a party, we do not train our young people. there are people who stay in office for 30, 40 years who have not left, and they're not looking behind them. there are some people who are, i don't want to say all of them. who's behind me that i can lift up, elevate, bring into the fold, so they can step in, when i'm no longer around, i think that's right, the democratic party needs a pipeline. we need to actually reach out to people, tell people there's an opportunity here, we need your voice. and it's recruiting and creating a pipeline, so you need both, so young people know, hey, they can do this as well. >> can i -- >> oh. i don't disagree with that, but i'm going to go back to something nick said in his opening. i think it's really important. i'm on the board with core faith and probably other people in the room. of a new organization, one of those that has cropped up since the election, called rise to

run. which is the only organization in the country that focuses on high school and college age women who want to prepare to run for office. it's a fabulous organization, there are tons of women supporting it, some of you are involved in the program. and to the gentleman's question, what we're finding is a lot of those young women are focused on structural barriers, and that is part of their training to run. i don't -- i mean, yes, the democratic party can do a lot better, i think we also need to actually let people and progressive organizations do the work, and have the democratic party recognize the work rather than just assume the democratic party is going to do everything and going to do it perfectly. i think that is a really really important pathway forward, because -- >> part of this is actually rebuilding confidence. and part of how we rebuild confidence, is that when we recognize the valuable work everyone is doing, whether they

are structurally part of the democratic party or not. and we've got to end the distrust of advocacy groups and activists in the states and the party. part of how we do that is when we recognize young people's work, critical work. i just got back from minnesota, the last thing they want to do, if i start with, you should join the democratic party, they're not going to listen to another word i say. that doesn't mean we move them closer to the democratic party as a party of interest when we're demanding the party move closer to the value they bring to the table. >>. >> i was about to say what you just said. thank you. and i will share with you, i was first elected to my local school

board at 19. and it was a hell of a fight. and did it from the grassroots. we need to be able to learn from that lesson exactly what you just said, having individuals who are their age or look like them. they're able to lead the effort, when they lead the effort, those are also our new leaders that are going to be able to organize and change communities for the positive forever. i'm going to have to jump on a plane, and i apologize, to get back to california. i apologize to leaving early. but due to the fires, i have to run. >> you all give senator mcguire a hand, he was great. are the mikes already out there? >> i have them right here. i'm state senator andrea delazondro from arizona. i have the distinction of being the only gringa in the latino

legislative caucus. last sunday i wrote the letter for a latina who i hope will succeed me. we've had $2 million in fines that the legislature owns because of planned parent hds court cases, we have the values, the message, but where we failed, i believe -- and in arizona, we picked up one house seat and one senate seat. we're kind of a counter state, i don't think we adequately connected our values and our issues with the from us traks, anxiety and anger that many of the people in the country are facing. >> so how can we better connect our -- this is what we were talking about earlier, how can we better connect the things we say we're about, with the policies that we're actually fighting for, to what people are actually dealing with at home. and in a way that helps us win.

and be effective. >> i heard a little bit of a different question. i heard -- i -- what i heard you saying, which i think is totally true in my experience of traveling around the country is that people are angry, sad and frustrated. and that if we don't start by acknowledging that anger, fear and frustration, that we're never going to start from a place of people thinking we recognize what they're going through. and this is actually mostly a collective malaise. that may be too soft a word, that's gripped our country. i keep saying i have children the same age as corinne's. the fear that our children are going to have worse lines than we do, is very real.

i think we have a tendency. which i value of framing things in the positive, and wanting to look to the future and say it's going to be better. if we don't connect with people. and validate their fear and frustration and anger, then they're not going to see us as an ally moving forward. and i think some of that gets into challenges that we probably don't have time to discuss. but a lot of that fear and anger and frustration, particularly among trump voters was coming from a sense of social dislocation that has to do with the changing demographics in america. that is a very difficult and real challenge. all of the social data since the election has shown that. and i'm not going to sit up here and say i have the answer. this is the collective challenge for us, moving forward, without doing what i think the simple and stupid answer is, which is

saying we need to win back white working class voters, right? that is not the future of this country. how do we offer solutions that make folks feel like they're not being left behind when that comes from a deep place within. and on the other side we have people who have been left behind for so long and are tired of being left behind. this is hopefully what we're all going to be talking about over the next couple days, that's the real challenge. >> i have another question right here. >> i am from memphis tennessee. my question for you all, the resistance looks a lot different in the south we often have to tow the line between being effective in our state houses while speaking out for our c constitue constituents. what are you all doing to help

lift up the south. we are in super mine orders, we are struggling. and i think a lot of times the progressive strategy or democratic strategy does not include southern states, it's almost like we're written off. so for these national organizations, what are you doing or what are your plans to engage us. we're down here fighting, but we need your help. >> that's a fantastic question, i think for us, for move on. we try to be mindful that we are a national organization that we do not we try to be sensitive to areas like the south. so if there's something going on, we don't come in and hover around and do things. we'd love to partner with you, and let us know how we can be helpful, that's how we kind of deal with things without looking

like we're coming from up here, when you have to be on the ground to understand what's happening. that's the most important way we deal with things. if there is, i would love to exchange information after this. if there are ways we can be helpful, we can use our membership, try to figure out how we can help you in anyway, that's how we do it. we do strategic partnership, we go in, and let you guys do the work, but we give resources as much as we can. maybe the move on name may not work where you are. i think people -- i agree with elise. people are suffering, and that is so real right now. in 2017, especially with vulnerable communities. what we have to do is own the

conversation, we have to take it over. and the other side. on the other side of the aisle, they do such a great job by taking a lie. something that is so not true, and just banging it in over and over and over again. they're in such unison that it's almost like the lie becomes true. we as democrats, as progressives, we have to make sure that we are just owning the conversation and really knowing how to communicate, that is one of the biggest problems that i know that i saw when i go back in my head and look at the last eight years, the last ten years. that was always it, even if you look at aca. obama care, the first four years, six years, republicans owned the conversation, and it was easy for them, they were able to pick 2, 3 things and

controlled it, and they spread lies across the country. i'm not saying aca is perfect, that's not what i'm saying, but what they said about it? was it true? and they sold it as truth. and we were never able to counter at that. i'm just using aca as an example. we really have to figure out how do we communicate not from d.c., but from what's happening in the states. how do people understand what it is that -- the policies we're putting forth. how it will help them in a real way. i keep thinking about these young people. in five months they may have to leave this country. they probably will. how do we take that message everyone really knock it in. >> you want to pop in on that?

>> yeah, i have two answers, and then -- well, three answers. the first is good old democratic distribution. we make money from the coastal states and try to divert some to the southern states. in some cases that's building state infrastructure. in some cases it's working with partners on the ground and through those partners. the second is doing the municipal work that we've been able to do in missouri. and we've done a little bit of that in tennessee too. we worked with the five mayors of the five largest cities, to see what was possible to start the conversation about women and families. which gives you guys a hold on -- when you have a hostile state government. and then the third is listen, which i think corinne was saying.

staying open and coming to places like this, so you can tell us what you need more of. i think that's sort of the way we approach it. >> is there a mike out there? >> yes, right here. >> hello, everybody. >> i'm chris taylor from the state of wisconsin. and my question is, when are we going to start having the discussion about build iing a machine -- they've been building this machine for 45 years, we don't have a way to communicate a message. their grassroots organizing in so many communities. we don't have the network or the structure to communicate the great policies that we're

working on. and to get a message into some of our communities. when are we going to start fo s focusing on developing that network like the right does have. >> that's true. and where do we get the money the way the right has. the aren't right has been able to have an effect iive strategy because they have a few wealthy families that fund them. how do we compete. that's the million dollar question. >> many million dollar questions today. >> that's a great question. i talked about this earlier, when it came to taking back some of these state houses. republicans raised tens of

millions of dollars to do that, and they did it really effectively. i can only speak to what move on is doing right now. we thought about that, what can we do to start and build something with members that we have across the country. and train them and give them the resources to have those conversations and to talk to people about these different issues, that's what we did this summer with our move on mobilizer nz, we had over 1,000 people across the country. that's not enough, it's just the beginning. it starts a process, and we wanted to see how successful can we be, where can we take this? that's why we tried this experiment. and it did really well, we're going to continue to build so that we're building in these states, we're training our folks, giving them resources, and we're having the real conversation.

because they were doing these neighborhood talks. and they were hearing from people about why they liked aca, why they didn't like aca. what was important to them, what did they want to see. that is one way to go about it. it's a larger question we have to try to answer. >> in no way do i want to diminish the resources in getting these messages out to all corners of all states in this country. we're not going to compete on money. we have phenomenal examples of where the person with the most money does not win, actually loses. we're going to compete, it takes money, it's not the same model or amount of money. they need money because they

don't have people. they need money because they don't have people. we've got people. and when we spend our resources on actually making sure all of those people can participate, want to participate, and have the capacity to participate, that's when we win, i don't want to diminish the need for more resources to make that happen. but i used to work in campaign finance reform, and it's not that it's not important, it's extremely important to be able to compete. but i'm going to take the people over the money any day and put my bet there is. >> all right. >> i think we have a question over there, who has the mike on this side? johnny shaw from tennessee. i'd like you all to talk more about fear, that's what the republican party is doing, they're promoting fear.

they've been doing it, and i heard this over the last seven, eight years, even longer. and, you know, people will buy whatever you're selling. i live in a rural area. i hear this every day. people say, you know, i just couldn't vote for hillary clinton so i voted for trump. now, if you think about it for a moment, how do you choose one crook over another crook. and then when you look at -- with no offense to anyone in this room, no offense at all. but when you look at washington, it's made up of a lot of old white men and they're thinking for everybody in america because they're promoting fear. every day they're telling someone else a lie. fake news. they move one point to another,

to keep people wondering what's going to happen the next day. i wish you all would discuss some strategies how we overcome that. thank you. >> all right, mr. shaw. well, panel, what you got? how do we overcome it? >> the level of bigotry, racism, anti-semitism that is out there is astounding. i know that i face it not just going through twitter, but through hate mail sent to offices, through the rhetoric that we're seeing from people who -- yeah, have been just influenced by fear. and to go back to -- i think elise's point earlier, you have to give them something else to believe in, to focus on, and to organize around. we haven't done that effectively over the course of many years,

and i think today is step one in that process, but that worked to beat back the racism, the bigotry and all the awful rhetoric we're seeing will take some time. >> donald trump has tapped into the worst parts of this country. and the -- it's that fear, it's that -- all of the horriblisms we hear about, and that we have to face every day. the thing that i like to at least give myself some hope is that that's only 35%. well, it is significant. but it's 35% of the supporters who will probably never ever leave him who truly believe everything that he says. so that means there's a big chunk of this country i like to hope and think, that do not

believe in this guy and are -- hopefully don't believe in all those awful isms. i'd like to think while the country is divided there's still more of us than there is of him, of his people. we have to keep communicating and have to have a message that hits home. >> i mean, i think it is starting with the local and working our way up, you gave the example of hillary clinton and donald trump. we could talk forever about the 2016 election. at the presidential level, but i mean, you know, if we take a page out of the other side we know in a as confidence has collapsed in the federal government, and fear has become an effective tool for the republicans, the best place to start to man those relationships is at the local and state level,

where you all are there every day talking to the people whose lives you're affecting, and i think that matters very much. i also -- it sort of goes back to one of the first questions, the wonderful woman from oregon, breaking down the artificial barriers among our constituents. you know, one of the first things that i felt was really important to do, when i came in in 2013, was make sure that the organization adopted a position on immigration, comprehensive immigration reform, and pathway to citizenship. being able to stay together as families is very much a reproductive justice issue. voter suppression is very much a dignity issue. if we are able to say, we can bring neral members and move on

members together in the same room, along with our friends at colore and united. and start nichting that community together and invest that faith in y'all, i think we're going to see the national impact of that. >> we need to call out racism and bigotry every single time we see it. >> i am park cannon. i was elected to the georgia house at 24. >> she's also a millennial. shout out to the millennials. >> many young people want to know what each state democratic party's strategy is on impeachment, this is a timely way to get young people involved in the political pipeline and sooner. so how do you think states can support our congress people on

impeaching donald trump? >> well, the millennials did not come to play this morning. >> not today. >> thank you, park. we can answer that question, i think another question to pose is, are our congress people even in the mind-set of impeachment? >> i hope so. >> well, to set it up. >> yes, there are young people across this country, younger voters -- to be frank, some of whom did not vote 37 what can we do. we need to get donald trump out of office, why are our congress folks not talking about impeachment, what are our state democratic parties and state elected officials doing about impeachment. there's also another conversation to be had about the fact that some people do not

want to use the i word, do not want to go anywhere near impeachment at all. so we can't talk about a strategy for impeachment if the folks who are in charge of impeachment aren't getting there. and the other part is, there will be no impeachment if we don't win the house in 2018. >> this is why 2018 is so important. if republicans certainly are not going to be impeaching donald trump any time soon, and they have the power to do that on both sides. on the house side and the senate side is where that will happen. they are clearly in lock step with donald trump and all his awful bigotry. and everything else. that's not going to happen. on the democratic side. if you ask maxine waters, our wonderful congresswoman, she's talking about it every moment, every second that she can. and i applaud her for it. i think she's absolutely 110% right. move on has called for it, our

members are in lock step with it, millions of members, and i cannot really answer as to why there are leaders in our democratic party who the i word they run away from, i'm not really sure why that is. but tlm couldn't be any clearer list of reasons why he should be impeached. there couldn't be? >> anyone else want to touch this? i will say, we are out of time, we want to say thank you to everyone, senator mcguire who had to leave us. this has been absolutely amazing. you have a little bit of

wiggling room before your next session. if you liked what you heard, tweet about us. #sixconference. i appreciate you all for spending your time with me today. and thank you for letting me be your moderator. see you all next time. american history tv on c-span3 is in prime time, this week, starting at 8:00 p.m. eastern. the 60th anniversary of little rock central high school's integration, with former president bill clinton. thursday night, a discussion on the lead up and response of the 1957 forced desegregation of little rock central high school. and friday night, interviews with prominent photojournalists

who documented major events throughout american history. watch american history tv this week in prime time on c-span 3. >> tomorrow, housing and urban development secretary ben carson testifies on the future of housing in america. he'll speak before the house financial services committee, and it starts live at 9:30 a.m. eastern here on c-span 3. also thursday. testimony from energy secretary rick perry on future energy missions and management priorities at his department. he'll speak before a house energy subcommittee, and that begins live at 10:00 a.m. eastern on c-span 2 you can watch both hearings online at c-span.org or on the free c-span radio app. sunday night on afterwards. krig shirley on the life and political career of newt

gingri gingrich. the making of a reagan conservative. >> you know, this was an era before cable television, i mean, cable television is prominent today. cable news wasn't. >> no, it was before cnn, msnbc. it was little pockets of cable here and there, mostly reruns of "i love lucy" and "andy griffith." there's no talk radio to speak of. there's the big media, and c-span. and he quickly realizes the potency of giving special orders every afternoon, giving a five minute speech, because it was then being carried over cable and to 100,000 homes around the country. and dick armey, former congressman used to rib him about it, and gingrich would say, this is the -- dick, would

you go give a speech to 100,000 people. of course you would. that's what you're doing with c-span, with special orders every afternoon. c-span became -- he quickly becomes a cult political leader and he's getting 700 letters a week from people around the country. to this back bench. junior member from georgia. he's already achieving a national following. next, a discussion on russian efforts to influence the democratic process in the u.s. we heard remarks from intelligence and foreign policy experts who looked at how russian backed efforts are currently buying ads on facebook and twitter, and how those efforts are aimed at dividing american society. held by the center for the