← Andy Beshear Podcast
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- [00:00]
Andy Beshear
Foreign. Welcome back to the Andy Beshear Podcast. This is episode 12. Remember, you can download the podcast on all major platforms, but also go and subscribe to our YouTube channel @andy Beshear Podcast. This podcast was designed for the types of weeks that we've just lived through, where the news hits you over and over. It's serious, it's concerning, it can even be scary. So on this podcast, we process all of those issues and happenings, but in a conversation among friends. The idea of this podcast is that we can discuss things in a civil way and hopefully lift you up so that you are ready to address the weakness to come. It's been a lot with the bombing in Iran, with it just now being a little more than a week since the shootings in Minnesota. And so to everybody out there, just remember, we'll get through all this and we'll get through it together. And maybe part of how we get through it or how you can get through it is this podcast, if you enjoy it. Our guest this week is North Carolina Governor Josh Stein. I've known Josh for about nine years. We were attorneys general together during the first Trump administration, and now we're governors together in the second. He'll talk about how he got elected. He'll talk about dealing with Washington, D.C. right now. He'll talk about some of the successes he's had in his first six months. Then you'll hear in my Kentucky accent, where I talk about what's really on my heart and mind. And then the conversation with the Johns, where we'll talk about both the issues of the day and a couple things going on in our personal lives, including John Rabinowitz's birthday. Yes, he's older than I am. So with that, let's get to it. You're listening to the Andy Beshear Podcast. Our guest this week is North Carolina's new governor, Josh Stein. Josh and I served as attorneys general together during the first Trump administration. And now he's leading North Carolina in these days of uncertainty, but he is getting real results for his people. Josh, welcome to the podcast.
- [02:31]
Josh Stein
Andy, great to be with you, my friend.
- [02:33]
Andy Beshear
So let's start out. Last year, it was an election that at least a lot of Democrats were disappointed in how the presidential came out. But you, running even with that race above you on the ticket, pulled out a big victory. Tell us how you did it, Andy.
- [02:53]
Josh Stein
I think it'll be a story that sounds pretty similar to yours. North Carolina often goes Republican for president. In fact, eight of the last nine presidential elections, even though they've been narrow, narrow, close races. The Republican candidate for president has won, and that includes Trump for the last three elections. I ran in 2016 as Attorney General. I ran for reelection in 2020 as Attorney General and then as governor this last year. And each of those three elections, even though Trump won North Carolina those three times, so did I. So what that tells me is that Democrats can win in states that are not solid blue if you have the right kind of message. And again, this is something you understand very well. Make government work for people on issues that they care about. To me, it really is not that complicated. You talk about making sure that the economy works for everybody, that everybody can get a good paying job. You talk about addressing the high cost of living, housing, child care, the expenses that really can burden families, putting more money in their pockets through tax relief that helps working families or parents with the cost of raising a child, making sure that our public schools are excellent, making sure that our neighborhoods are safe so parents don't worry when their kids go out to play after school. If you focus on those issues and you deliver tangible results, then people will reward you.
- [04:21]
Andy Beshear
I agree with you a third thousand percent. And I think it's even more about the issues that you as AG or governor focus on. When those are the everyday concerns of your people, it also tells them that you care about each and every one of them.
- [04:43]
Josh Stein
Yeah, it's about delivering for people and helping them, irrespective of who they are, whatever party they may come from, it just doesn't matter because they are a North Carolina. And so keeping them safe, keeping the economy growing, keeping opportunity real and something they can achieve for them and their kids a possibility if you focus on those issues and people will look at you as somebody who cares about them and their friends and their neighbors and their family members. And they don't care about whether you're a D or an R or an unaffiliated.
- [05:17]
Andy Beshear
So you've come in as governor in some really interesting times, certainly one where that big, ugly bill is threatening both the provision of health care. I also think it'd be a major economic blow to both North Carolina and Kentucky. Give us your thoughts on just how devastating that bill could be.
- [05:44]
Josh Stein
Yeah, this bill is ugly and it will have devastating ramifications to the people of North Carolina. Look at Medicaid. We worked really hard on a bipartisan basis a couple years ago to expand Medicaid in North Carolina. Big, big victory, a bipartisan victory. 650,000 people have health insurance today who did not before. So that they can now afford to go to a doctor when they get sick instead of waiting until they get really sick and going to the emergency department, which we all know is the most expensive way to get health care. Huge victory that is completely in jeopardy based on what we're hearing about the Senate reconciliation bill. SNAP benefits provides important food to low income people, especially kids. And we want to make sure that every child has the nutrition they need so that they can succeed in life, so they can do well in school, so that they have a shot at a brighter future. And the proposed changes to SNAP could make it such that it is completely eliminated in North Carolina. Again, a devastating consequence. And then economically, we've really been moving into the clean energy economy future electric battery manufacturers, solar panel manufacturers, electric vehicle, car manufacturers, all of these companies have been making investments in North Carolina based on expectations that the federal government sent to them of if you do this, we will give you some tax incentives because we want you to bring these kinds of manufacturing facilities onshore in the United States. And with those changes in the reconciliation bill as it relates to the Inflation Reduction act, there is real risk that we will lose thousands and thousands of jobs in North Carolina.
- [07:38]
Andy Beshear
We face those same risks. And one of the things I worry about the most is even just this concept that the United States government would not keep its word, would say here is a program or here is a promise and then try to pull the rug out from under either a state because we saw that with different funding freezes or grant cancellations. I mean, I thought I was back being a collections lawyer for a little bit, writing letters saying, we've got a law, we've got an appropriation, we've got a contract, I've already spent the money and you have to reimburse me and now we have an injunction. But this idea that the United States of America would not keep its word either to a company or an ally or to a state, to me is very concerning. What are your thoughts?
- [08:25]
Josh Stein
Yeah, deeply concerning and incredibly counterproductive to the ends that they claim that they hold, which are we want to have more manufacturing good paying jobs onshore in the United States. And that's exactly what the Inflation Reduction act did. Whether it's chip manufacturers, EV manufacturers, battery manufacturers, things that we need for our economy as well as our environment.
- [08:53]
Andy Beshear
Yeah, I think, I think you, you nailed it on the head there that it's ironic that an administration that wants to reshore has stopped the reshoring that was occurring of manufacturing. And then if you add on top of that the Tariff policy. Many of the companies that I talk to just can't even get a quote for what it would cost to build something right now based on the on again, off again, across the board, reciprocal, etc. Tariff policy of the day.
- [09:22]
Josh Stein
Well, we're always talking to businesses selling them on why North Carolina is the right place for them to locate. Because, no disrespect for Kentucky, we love North Carolina. We think we're the best.
- [09:34]
Andy Beshear
That's where we compete.
- [09:35]
Josh Stein
That's exactly right. And that and on the basketball courts. But the number of CEOs and business executives I am talking to that are completely frozen. They're like, we don't know what to do with our capital. We don't know where to deploy it. We don't know whether to put it in the United States. We don't know whether to put in Canada. We don't know whether to put it in Europe because they don't know what the tariff policy is going to be next week. This is not in the economic interest of the United States, this uncertainty.
- [10:07]
Andy Beshear
So another thing that we unfortunately share in common is being governors that have to deal with natural disasters or the aftermaths of natural disasters. Tell us how the current recovery is going in North Carolina and some of the steps that you've taken to try to help your people.
- [10:26]
Josh Stein
Yeah, one thing I don't think people appreciate, Andy, is how important state relationships are. And I want to thank you. I want to thank the state of Kentucky. Of course, the storm hit North Carolina last September. September 27th. So it was before the election. I had not even been elected yet. And you called me and said, I just want you to know I've been down this path before. It's very frustrating, but we can work together. Let me know what I can do to help. Under the emergency management assistance agreement that we have as states. You all sent a ton of important people. Whether it was heavy machinery people or airport operators or emergency management specialists or electricians or anything else that you all did. You sent us a lot of people who stayed for weeks to help North Carolina deal with the recovery. So I just want to say thank you. And we were honored to be able to reciprocate, even if only as in a fraction. When you all had your floods in February, I think it was sending you some swift water recovery teams.
- [11:29]
Andy Beshear
And they did a great job.
- [11:31]
Josh Stein
And you guys did phenomenal jobs. And you all were not alone. Other states did the same thing. And it's really one of the inspiring things one learns about in dealing with a storm. Is just how good people are. Want to help people, help their neighbors. The number of law enforcement in the eastern part of the state, which has always been, or traditionally been where the storms really hit hard, they were sending their people to the western part of the state to help their neighbors. Nonprofit organizations, state stepping up and building homes, repairing homes, cleaning out muck out of stores. Just incredible support. And what we have to do as a state and federal government is to sort of live up to the quality, the character of our people. And so we're working very hard with our general Assembly. We've already had one appropriations bill passed. There's another one that's being considered as I'm speaking and that I hope will get enacted and helps us do a couple of things. One is, helps us do private roads and bridges. One thing people don't understand about Appalachia you do, is that when there's a road going up a valley, half the property is on the other side of the river.
- [12:49]
Andy Beshear
That's right.
- [12:50]
Josh Stein
So everybody needs to get across that river. So there will be dozens of little bridges along the way, and they just got washed away like a domino train. And so we had some 8,000 bridges washed out. Probably 80,000 homes experienced some form of damage or another. Many of them just completely washed away altogether. Businesses lost all revenue for months on end. So we have a ton of work ahead of us, and we're focused on doing what we can to help rebuild the infrastructure. On Friday, I'm going out to a state park called Chimney Rock, reopening it. All state parks will be reopened, save one. As of this weekend, 97% of roads are passable in one form or another. 98% of water systems are back. The amount of work that's gone in to try to get things back has been incredible. We've now done all of the debris removal from the roadways. There's a ton that's still left in the river. So we have a lot of work to do on that front. But it's about helping people get back in their homes. It's about helping small businesses keep their doors open so that they can stay in business, keep their people employed, generate income, generate revenue. And that's what we're focused on, is helping people get back up on their feet.
- [14:09]
Andy Beshear
And just so our listeners from the Andy Beshear podcast have a full appreciation for those accomplishments. Flooding is more damaging than. Than any other type of natural disaster. It doesn't always take as many lives, thank God, though sometimes it takes far too many. But what it does to Your roads is it can eat away half of that road. And so getting a road passable again can be a major endeavor. The water and wastewater systems just get annihilated by that amount of water. And so it's a full rebuild. So that's, that's really incredible work. I know you're doing some of that work or were in, in partnership with fema. So give us your thoughts on not just the agency, but President Trump's desire to dissolve fema.
- [15:05]
Josh Stein
It's a terrible idea. We need fema. Every year there is going to be a major natural disaster in the United States. We, we know that to be the case. We do not know when the next natural disaster will hit Kentucky or North Carolina or South Dakota or Mississippi. It's unrealistic and frankly, wasteful to think that every state is going to have the capacity internally to respond to these major disasters on an as needed basis when they may not have a storm in five years or 10 years. That's why you have the federal government. They have the expertise, they have the knowledge, the wherewithal to come in and help respond to a storm after it's occurred. Can Fema be improved 100%? It can be. In many ways, it's Congress that's tied the hands of FEMA by passing laws on how that money can be allocated. Like, one of the greatest irrationalities that I've seen is if somebody's home is damaged in a storm, FEMA can give them enough money to help them get the home to the condition it was in before, but it cannot spend money to improve that home. HUD has another program that comes in sometimes a year, two years later. We're working hard to get that money spent within nine months, but that money comes in later to improve the home, maybe to lift it up outside of the floodplain or whatever needs to be done.
- [16:34]
Andy Beshear
But two years behind, two years behind.
- [16:37]
Josh Stein
A separate set of programs from the same treasury, this U.S. treasury. It will be much more rational if FEMA could have the authority to help a homeowner get their home not only to where it was before, but to a more resilient place quicker. It would get homeowners back in their homes quicker, which a lot of times FEMA is paying for the temporary lodging for those people until they're back in their home. So, so it's just more money, more money, more time, and that slows down the recovery. That's one of the reforms I've called for. I've called for FEMA to approve state plans for how to respond to a disaster so that they can then front load some of the expenses as long as what your expenses are are part of that plan. And then FEMA can come in afterwards and audit it. Now everything is done on a reimbursement basis, which as you know, can take months and months until FEMA will reimburse. And for a state, we can get by with the cash flow. But the counties float money, counties and cities cannot, particularly after they've just lost everything. They've lost their wastewater system, they've lost everything. So they need the cash desperately. There are just some common sense things that I have called upon. I did a editorial in the USA Today a couple weeks ago. Folks can Google it if they want, Josh Stein, fema, USA TODAY and learn some of these ideas. But the idea that we would eliminate fema, that would be a man made disaster that would compound natural disasters.
- [18:09]
Andy Beshear
So you and I were both AGs during the first Trump administration. We filed a lot of lawsuits, we won a lot. Now we're both governors in the second Trump administration. What are some of the differences you're seeing and how is your approach different as a governor than an ag?
- [18:30]
Josh Stein
That's a good question. They're definitely moving faster on more fronts all at once. So it makes it harder for people to respond. You know, the success rate of the various cases that people have brought against the federal government and the actions of the administration has been very high. I've seen numbers north of 80% when we brought actions, I think our success rate was even higher than that because a lot of times the actions are not grounded in law, but are rather his whim. And often that's not enough in our society. As governor, I'm focused less on the laws and lawsuits. I have an attorney general, a very able one, Jeff Jackson, who he can handle that side of it. I'm focused more on policy, working with Congress, whether it's on getting us the relief we need to help address the natural disaster. And we've gotten only a fraction of what it is we need. I have a 19, $19 billion request in front of Congress as we speak. But making sure that we protect Medicaid, making sure we protect snap, make sure we protect these investments under the inflation Reduction Act. So these are the ways I'm interacting with the federal government as governor and not so much in the courtroom in litigation. That's the bailiwick of the attorney general.
- [19:57]
Andy Beshear
You're listening to the Andy Beshear podcast with our guest this week, North Carolina Governor Josh Stein. Josh, we were just talking about our time as attorneys general. When I look back when we would file those lawsuits and we'd win, it'd be Attorney General Josh Stein stands up for America or North Carolina and wins. People could see that a Democrat was standing up and was being successful. But as I now look at the stories that are written from AGs across the country, it's always District Judge X or Y stands up to the administration, and those that brought the suits aren't even mentioned.
- [20:44]
Josh Stein
I have not noticed that. That's interesting.
- [20:46]
Andy Beshear
And so there's criticism out there that's, you know, what are people doing? Well, we do have some great attorneys general and Josh Shapiro, and I have to join them because our AGs don't. That are out there getting real results. And my hope is that the these ags can get the credit that they deserve for doing really good work.
- [21:07]
Josh Stein
Yeah, it's interesting. I do think that there's been much more targeted criticism of judges to try to make them cower. And so maybe that's what's the cause of what you've just described.
- [21:19]
Andy Beshear
I think it could also be that you have the majority in Congress that's just not willing to do their job and to be a separate branch of government. And so maybe what the press is seeing is, well, at least the third branch of government is doing some of its job.
- [21:34]
Josh Stein
I mean, the Constitution gives Congress authority over tariffs, over the ability to declare war, and Congress is just ceding its constitutional power to the executive in a way that, frankly, I didn't think would happen. It certainly the framers didn't think would happen. They always thought that the institutions would ultimately defend their own authority and there'd be sort of a natural, healthy tension. And we're just not seeing that today. And it's very disappointing.
- [22:04]
Andy Beshear
So we like on the podcast to ask a couple lighter questions as well. So tell us what your favorite part about being governor thus far is.
- [22:15]
Josh Stein
I'm a sports nut, so I think being able to go to the ACC basketball tournament or NASCAR race, North Wilkesboro and not have to wait in the longest of lines, I may not be egalitarian, it may not be just or fair, but it ain't bad.
- [22:32]
Andy Beshear
But being governor comes with a lot of stress. But good tickets.
- [22:36]
Josh Stein
Good tickets. Tell us which, by the way, I pay for. But good tickets.
- [22:41]
Andy Beshear
So outside of your job, what are some of your favorite things to do with your family?
- [22:48]
Josh Stein
My wife and I, we have a couple dogs, so we like to walk together. And it's just a fun way to unwind all three of Our kids, they're huge Hurricanes hockey fans, and UNC basketball fans. And so whenever I can get them in town, they're all three out of state at the moment. But whenever I can get them local, we make sure we go to some sporting event, because it's just a super fun way to spend time together. We like to eat. So going out to a restaurant every once in a while, that's also a lot of fun.
- [23:18]
Andy Beshear
So if you look back back in time, what is the fashion choice or trend that you really wish you hadn't followed? And I will tell you, Wes Moore apparently wore the crisscross jeans backwards.
- [23:33]
Josh Stein
Fortunately, I never did that.
- [23:37]
Andy Beshear
He says they're pictures.
- [23:39]
Josh Stein
Oh, goodness. He's a brave man. You know, I would say the really baggy plant pants with the double pleat.
- [23:50]
John Rabinowitz
Oh, wow.
- [23:52]
Josh Stein
Just not a good look. And here's what I'm seeing is that I tried to buy some new shorts from J. Crew, and they were the size of a. Of a parachute. And I was like, don't tell me we're going back to Hammer pants. Yeah, like, no, please. So I had to. I had to turn them back in.
- [24:12]
Andy Beshear
What type of music do you like to listen to?
- [24:16]
Josh Stein
I am a bit stuck in my generation, so I like to listen to what I listen to in the 80s, 70s, 80s, 90s. You know, Bruce Springsteen, Dire Straits. I love Coldplay, U2, Bruce Hornsby, James Taylor. But my kids, they're obviously a little more modern than I am. My middle son, Adam, turned me on to Mount Joy, and I really like them. So what I'll frequently do is go to Spotify and do Mount Joy radio. So now there are all these other songs that I like. I don't know who the artists are who are singing them, but there are a lot of cool. There are cool songs out there.
- [24:56]
Andy Beshear
If you have a secret superpower that nobody knows about, what is it?
- [25:04]
Josh Stein
I think that it is the ability to forget and not obsess about things.
- [25:11]
Andy Beshear
That's good.
- [25:12]
Josh Stein
I think that you will understand it. Being in politics, if you absorb all the junk that is directed towards you, it will weigh you down. And so I'm sort of water off a duck's back. People will say bad things about me, and then, like, three weeks later, I'll have forgotten. And it just. It makes my life a lot happier. So that's my superpower.
- [25:38]
Andy Beshear
I think that is a great superpower. It's. It's almost like you're immune to the toxicity of politics.
- [25:46]
Josh Stein
That's what I try to do. If you just it makes it easier to focus on how, look, you and I, we're going to disagree on these things. We have just different worldviews on this issue. But that does not mean we can't have common ground on another issue, job training or child care or public education or public safety. Let's, to the extent we can put the issues where we really fundamentally disagree to the side and agree that we will disagree. But then let's work across those differences on other issues and get something done for our people.
- [26:18]
Andy Beshear
It's that common sense, common ground, get things done type of approach. I think you see that in Democratic governors, certainly. I wish we'd see that a little more around the country. Tell us a little bit about what some of the recent successes are in North Carolina that you're proud of.
- [26:38]
Josh Stein
Well, we are on a run when it comes to economic development. Just announced last week the largest job announcement in North Carolina history. It's an aeronautics company called Jet Zero and, and they're coming up with a new plane design. It's actually an old plane design. It's just never been commercialized. It's a single body wing plane that is twice as efficient as a traditional tube and wing plane. So if, when they succeed, it will end up cutting fuel costs for the aviation world, which is the number one variable price in running a business, an airline in half. So just huge market potential there. We have brought Genentech, one of the leading original biotech companies. They announced their east coast headquarters in North Carolina. We have very strong aerospace sector, very strong biotech center, strong finance. So what I'm really proud of is that we're keeping going the economic momentum that exists here in North Carolina. And what I want is for the economy to continue to grow and for it to work for more people. And that's what our objective. That's what's driving my governorship.
- [27:54]
Andy Beshear
Well, by my calculation, we've now been working together on different things for nine years. It's been a pleasure. Josh, thanks for joining the podcast.
- [28:04]
Josh Stein
Andy, always good to be with you, my friend.
- [28:09]
Andy Beshear
Foreign you're listening to the Andy Beshear Podcast. Our next segment is the segment with the Johns John Rabinowitz and John McConnell. It is a conversation amongst friends, showing the nation that we can talk about the tough issues. We can even have different opinions. But in the end, it's that talking to each other that helps us all process what's going on around us, gets us prepared for that week to come and leaves us feeling just a little bit lighter. So we'll start with John McConnell.
- [28:45]
John Rabinowitz
Andy, glad to hop in here real quick. Over the weekend there was some activity but I also want to point out that it's going to be John Rabinowitz's birthday.
- [28:53]
John McConnell
Listen, I'm catching up to you.
- [28:55]
John Rabinowitz
Yeah, well, I mean it happens. It's hard to do, but yeah, you're going to be as old as I am.
- [29:00]
Andy Beshear
Two of you dudes are old.
- [29:01]
John McConnell
Hey, listen, listen to your elders. We are very wise.
- [29:06]
Andy Beshear
Won't happen.
- [29:08]
John Rabinowitz
Well, hopping back into what happened over the weekend, the US has now bombed Iran happened about 2:00am Their time, about six to seven o' clock our time, dropped for the first time. 14 Bunker Busting MOP bombs and talking through the success, looking for the battle damage and kind of how that's going to affect the rest of the country and when we'll know. So I just kind of wanted to get your all's take on how we feel.
- [29:37]
John McConnell
Operation Midnight Hammer I understand strength and peace and hopefully they think strength will come first. But I do wonder what I'm really concerned about was this a preemptive strike because we had the intelligence that showed that this was the time to do it. Was it successful? We do not want nuclear Iran and so maybe this was the time and I guess only time will tell whether or not this was successful and had the effect that we hope it did.
- [30:16]
Andy Beshear
So we're recording this on Monday, it's going to play on Thursday. Obviously it was last Saturday that this occurred and I found out about it when the news hit cnn. I was on an airplane asking the person who had the computer out to tell me what was being said. I fully agree that we cannot have a nuclear Iran. The question is was Iran there or were they close to getting there? And part of the challenge is none of us have the information. Actually no other person on earth has as much information as the President of the United States with or all the intelligence sources that can brief him. I think in the coming days and weeks, hopefully we'll learn more about what information led up to it. But these decisions, when you're the decision maker, you got to own and it's not whether or not you thought it was a good decision at the time, it's based on the results of what happens. So the first question is was it a effective. The second question is was it necessary? Were they that close? Then the third question is what are the ramifications going to be? Is this going to put the citizens of the United States in danger? And we'll see.
- [31:35]
John McConnell
Yeah, and, and listen, I'm not going to pretend to know whether or not having the ability to enrich uranium leads to, like, how quickly that leads to a nuclear weapon. I have no idea how close they were. I agree with you. He'll have to own it. But I don't know that there was. Again, we don't have all the information, but there might not have been a better time to take these steps and it may end up really protecting the country.
- [32:04]
Andy Beshear
I think there are some questions that Congress is asking that need answers. Should Congress have been briefed beforehand more than just two individuals? And what is the full legal authority for taking this action or maybe even other actions? And that's going to play out in Washington, D.C. i think a president has to have some authority, especially to protect the United States. But I think it's fully patriotic to ask in any situation was this action within those limits. Part of the way that our country holds up is that we do ask those questions. But I think this is one where we're going to see, based on what happens. Right before we started recording, we know that Iran launched a missile strike against a US Military base. Right now, the information we have is that that was fully intercepted. And we'll see if this is the end of the retaliation or if there's more to come. We'll see if it brings them back to the table to talk peace.
- [33:09]
John McConnell
And, you know, listen, there's no question we have the greatest military in the world. And the way they said this, how smoothly the operation went, is. Is incredibly impressive. And I think I read that they had been planning and training for this for years. And so, you know, you're right. Time will tell.
- [33:27]
John Rabinowitz
And a credit to our war fighters is that with the military, there was not one shot fired at the incoming planes when they dropped the bomb.
- [33:35]
John McConnell
You know, and I do think that's a good point. Like, they did not strike, to our knowledge, they didn't go after an individual. And, you know, they were sites. But I will say, to your point, Andy, one of the things like my youngest asked me this morning is, are we at war with Iran? Or I said, no, it's nuclear program. I guess the semantics right.
- [33:57]
Andy Beshear
So the other big piece of news coming out yesterday and today deals with what the President calls the big beautiful bill, which I think is a big ugly bill because of what it's going to do, especially to rural America and our state. But there was actually some good news, at least for part of that bill. So the Senate has what's called a parliamentarian, and the parliamentarian looks at the, at the bills and asks, does it meet all the rules? And then makes a judgment on that. And there are rules about what can and can't be included in certain type of bills and how many votes it will take. And the parliamentarian found that there were a number of parts of that big bill that couldn't move forward as one package because they take 60 votes instead of the simple majority. One of those pieces were the cuts to the SNAP program, and that's food assistance to those who are hungry in the United States. It also would have blown a big hole into our state budget. So I think that's good news. I mean, I'd like to think that one of the things we can all agree on is in a country with that grows this much food, that has this much wealth compared to the rest of the world, at least no one should starve.
- [35:17]
John Rabinowitz
And speaking about that. So based on that, will they have to pull those pieces out and vote them individually or so?
- [35:25]
Andy Beshear
Most likely they'll just abandon that part. But then the question is, will they try to cut something else to get those, quote, unquote, cost savings? This bill, though, doesn't have cost savings. The Congressional Budget Office, which is their budget office, it was created so that Congress could know what the fiscal impact is. It's going to put trillions additional on the national debt. And so my first question on any piece of legislation that I look at is never, is it left or is it right? Is it conservative or is it liberal? It's always, will it work? Before we even talk about where it's coming from, will it work?
- [36:06]
John McConnell
So there may be a procedural out, but I wonder why did it take this long to find out this information?
- [36:12]
Andy Beshear
You would think like, so this is part of the Senate, and the Senate was taking this step. The House went ahead and, and pushed it through. There are some other pieces. They're removing some of the immigration parts of it, saying that that takes 60 votes as well. But if it holds up and they don't try to override the parliamentarian, it does show that Congress, at least in some segments, is working.
- [36:41]
John McConnell
Yeah. So John and I were talking before this episode, and he's still very much obsessed with the relationship with Elon Musk and Donald Trump. Like, it's uncomfortable about the relationship. He calls it a love story.
- [36:56]
John Rabinowitz
It's a love story.
- [36:58]
John McConnell
He wants music. There's a whole thing. And so I think I want to shift a little bit and talk about John, this infatuation. And you think that they have now reconciled, Correct?
- [37:10]
John Rabinowitz
I think they've reconciled.
- [37:12]
Andy Beshear
Have they Personally reconciled, or is this more of recognition of mutually assured destruction? Are we in a cold war or. Or are they actually calling each other again?
- [37:25]
John Rabinowitz
I think it's a cold war, more or less. They've both stopped on social media, so I think they're taking a cooling off period. But, you know, there's still the attraction there.
- [37:33]
John McConnell
I will tell you, when I was trying to research these allegations by you on this reconciliation, I did see the cool thing I did see was that Elon was launching like a robo taxi in Austin, which sounded, you know, another autonomous vehicle out on the road. I've never used one. Don't know that I would ever use one, but it sounds pretty cool.
- [37:52]
John Rabinowitz
Have you ridden a Tesla that when it's on the mode just driving itself? Have you done that?
- [37:57]
John McConnell
I have not tried that yet. I don't know how I feel about it.
- [38:01]
Andy Beshear
I have control issues. Shocker.
- [38:05]
John Rabinowitz
In my car. It's got something called Blue Cruise on it. And the, the first time, because I would make a four hour commute to come up to Frankfurt, it would drive about an hour and a half. And I'll tell you, I had my hands over the steering wheel just for the first little while as it would slowly turn.
- [38:20]
John McConnell
But I think that's a slippery slope. We got it. I mean, we have to be able to operate our own vehicles.
- [38:27]
Andy Beshear
So another thing that I see that's happening right now is potential changes to the 988 mental health lifeline. I got to institute this in Kentucky using some federal funds and using some state funds. And it is amazing. This is the 911 for mental health.
- [38:45]
John McConnell
Sure.
- [38:46]
Andy Beshear
You know, you call 91 1, they're going to try to get you an ambulance as quickly as they can because you're physically hurting, in pain or in danger. But 988 have really qualified mental health professionals that are to help you to get through this very difficult moment, knowing that it might be the only voice at that time before attempted suicide or other self harm. So the news coming out is that the Trump administration is considering eliminating one part of that line and that is a specific line in the 9888, the 988 overall line for LGBTQ youth. And for me, this is one where you don't even have to get to the quote unquote diversity issue of it. If having a specific line will help save those kids lives, then it's something I don't think we should cut.
- [39:44]
John McConnell
No, listen, we all have teenagers.
- [39:45]
Andy Beshear
Yeah.
- [39:46]
John McConnell
Like it's a different world than when we grew up, isn't it hard And I can't imagine what they're going through with social media on top of everything else. We should, I mean, we need to put people over politics in this situation. Right. Like there needs to be if, if it's, there's a direct service for people that are struggling and we can provide it, we need to do it.
- [40:07]
Andy Beshear
And that's hearing the, the word suicide before any of the other ones. Right. It's, it's making sure that, that we always place the lives of individuals ahead of whether we agree or disagree on any views that they might have.
- [40:23]
John McConnell
So if they cut funding for, can the state pick up the funding to make up the difference or is it going to be a challenge?
- [40:29]
Andy Beshear
We'd have to look at it. It's one where all of these things that the federal government are doing, we're going to have to look at our priorities because we have to balance our budget as a state, the federal government doesn't.
- [40:43]
John Rabinowitz
And we've got kids all around the same age. And I've had that experience where my daughter came in to me and in tears worried about what a friend was going to do and they knew about the line. So I lived it one night and it's a pretty helpless feeling when you have a kid come in talking about one of their friends. So it's something that we need.
- [41:04]
John McConnell
So shifting real quick. In these last few episodes we have had your children visit us, give us words that we don't know the definition of. My question to you is where are they? What is going on?
- [41:20]
Andy Beshear
It is summer and our kids are busy. So Will is playing in a baseball tournament just about every weekend and doing well. Lila is at her horse shows just about every weekend and doing well. And she went out and got a job 15 years old and she said she wanted to make some of her own money. And I said, I'm so proud of you.
- [41:44]
John McConnell
Let's go.
- [41:45]
John Rabinowitz
So were you a reference for this? Who were the referees?
- [41:50]
John McConnell
I was not a 15 year old.
- [41:51]
Andy Beshear
Wanting to get a job is fire. The next segment on the Andy Beshear podcast is in my Kentucky episode accent. This is when I talk about what's on my heart or on my mind this week. So this week what's on my heart is diversity. The federal government is trying to make diversity a dirty word. They try to say that equity means that you aren't worthy of opportunities. I believe that diversity is always a strength and never a weakness. That we are always better and stronger with more diverse backgrounds and thoughts at the table. And that Our table always has room to pull up more chairs and to make sure that everybody can be a part and be heard in our great democracy. That's why last year I signed an executive order making Juneteenth an executive branch holiday in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. And I'm really concerned that this year the president did not sign Celebrate Juneteenth, folks. This is about the end of slavery. It's about the recognition of the worst sin that this country has committed, but also celebrating the African American contributions that have made this country what it is today. Any president should celebrate Juneteenth. We as a country should celebrate Juneteenth. And one of the reasons that we should do it is because, again, we're all better off when we are all at that table, when diversity helps us make better decisions and when we all see and recognize each other as our neighbors. I think Wes Moore said it on this podcast. If you truly believe we are all children of God, then we are all each other's brothers and sisters. We're wrapping up another episode of the Andy Beshear podcast. Guys, what was your favorite part of the episode?
- [43:51]
John McConnell
Well, I'll go first.
- [43:52]
John Rabinowitz
Go on, get it, John.
- [43:54]
John McConnell
I was gonna say age before beauty, but you're older than me right now. Listen, I thought it was really interesting to hear you and the governor of North Carolina talk about the similar paths you took to end up as governors of your respective states. And I thought it was really interesting to hear him talk about FEMA and some of the struggles and how it's handcuffed by Congress at times. I just thought that was a really interesting segment.
- [44:20]
John Rabinowitz
Yeah, it was great. And both of you being attorney generals at the same time, what did you guys collaborate on?
- [44:27]
Andy Beshear
Dozens of lawsuits. At the time, I was AG, Democrat and Republican. AGs were working together on things like opioids and other major nonpartisan issues or causes that you need to work together on. And you see less and less of that now, which is a shame. The idea that we can't focus on the 80% that we agree on or just what our job duties are, being the top prosecutor and top lawyers of a state. But certainly we filed a lot of those lawsuits together. Josh was actually a big part of the steering committee on the opioids lawsuit as well. So that was this episode.
- [45:17]
John McConnell
Yes.
- [45:17]
Andy Beshear
Our next episode, which will be just before July 4th, we have Griffin Johnson. He is a big influencer, I think 9 to 10 million TikTok followers. And he is going to explain to my dad's generation what an influencer is. And what an influencer does.
- [45:38]
John McConnell
He has a bit more followers than us, John.
- [45:41]
John Rabinowitz
Just a few more.
- [45:42]
Andy Beshear
Just.
- [45:42]
John Rabinowitz
Just a few more views out there. I can say this, that when I said his name to my daughter, she instantly knew who he was.
- [45:48]
John McConnell
And I'll tell you, recently, he's been very much engaged in the equine world in the horse industry with had a horse that ran in the derby, Sandman. And I mean, listen, the bar is set really high if that's his first and only horse.
- [46:01]
Andy Beshear
Folks, this is the 12th episode of the Andy Beshear Podcast. Thanks for joining us. Remember, you can download us on all major platforms or subscribe to our YouTube channel @andy Beshear Podcast. Your downloads and your subscriptions are what keep us going and keeps this conversation going. So make sure you're a part of it, and let's do this together.