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"Senate Democrats plan for a post-Platner race"
00:40:56
New allegations against the embattled Democratic nominee for Maine's Senate seat Graham Platner, this time of rape, may finally force him from the race.
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B
Hi there everyone. It's four o' clock in the East New allegations against the embattled Democratic nominee for Maine's Senate seat, Graham Platner, this time of rape may finally force him from the race. It is a race that is critical to Democrats efforts to retake control of the Senate in November. One of Platner's closest allies, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, has joined the calls from party leaders like Senator Elizabeth Warren, Sen. Cory Booker, the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. They have all demanded that Platner bow out of the race. The New York Times reports this quote In a private call with his campaign staff Monday evening, Platner did not announce plans to withdraw, but implied such a decision would be coming, according to three people familiar with the conversation. He said that he believed he still had leverage to influence which candidate would replace him on the ticket and wanted to ensure that the movement his campaign had built would continue, the people said. This all comes after Politico reported that a former girlfriend of Platner's said that he raped her. Politico reports this quote. A woman, Jenny Roscoe, who dated Platner, says he forced her to have sex with him nearly five years ago despite her repeated objections. It's an allegation Platner denies. Roscoe described the alleged assault this way. Quote, I remember him grabbing my pelvis and being really forceful of me, she said, quote. I remembered the specific moment where I thought to myself, like, this is no longer my choice, end quote. Politico reports this quote Roscoe previously described reckless and unsettling behavior by Graham Platner to the New York Times, but says she didn't go public with this specific assault claim because she didn't want to be known as a rape victim in a video responding to the article. Platner denies the allegations. However, he said that being, quote, mindful of the political reality the reporting will inflict, we are taking the time to reflect on the best path forward. Time is of the essence, as Platner must drop out by this upcoming Monday, July 13, in order for Democrats to be able to replace him on the ballot. If he does drop out, the Maine Democratic party has until July 27 to replace him on the ballot. Maine Senate seat is considered one of Democrats most likely pickup opportunities in November's critical midterms. Platner has been dogged by a steady stream of scandals that began before the primary had even taken place. They include that he had a Nazi symbol called a Totenkopf tattooed on him, past Reddit posts that were racist and appeared to defend sexual abuse and allegations that he engaged in physically aggressive and disturbing behavior toward ex girlfriends. And now this latest reporting, the allegation of rape. This reckoning by the Democratic Party over how a man who had has so much baggage, to put it mildly, has been tolerated and embraced and permitted to stay in this critical race for so long during election year. Where the stakes for our democracy could not be any higher is where we begin today with a journalist who's been covering the story on the ground in Maine for the Bangor Daily News, Michael Shepherd. Also joining us, Democratic strategist and Columbia University professor, political analyst Basil Smichelsbach, and senior political analyst, host of the Runaway country podcast and author of the Substack, how the Hell with Alex Wagner. Our dear friend Alex Wagner is back with us. Let me start with you on the latest reporting. Michael, just tell me the state of the Platner campaign right now.
- [04:15]
C
Yeah, not good. Right. Lost Bernie Sanders today, our revolution, while I was getting, while I was getting on the call here, endorsed Troy Jackson, the former state Senate president who filed with the FEC to explore Iran today. So it's a matter of time. I think what grand planner is going to have to leave this race by Monday. The Monday deadline also obviously looms. But I think this is really, you know, a matter of hours for this campaign. There is just, there's just no path forward here. Right. So he seems to be trying to exert a little bit of leverage here. I'm just not really sure how much he has. Right. With no support left, essentially,
- [04:57]
B
Michael, what is it about today? Is it that rape crosses a line for his elected endorsers, or is it that his supporters are actually revolted by an alleged rape?
- [05:13]
C
I think it certainly is something that starts at the sort of top of the party. Right. We saw the leaders of the main Democratic Party make a pretty extraordinary move to come out and issue a statement in their own names last night. Right. Saying he should get out of the race. And of course, national Democrats followed in a lot of groups and candidates. And so, so there's just, there's no prominent Democrats still defending him today. And I, and I think it's a, it's a, it's a number of things. Right. I think there was a sense before this that one scandal, you know, even similar in size to some of the ones that he has encountered. Right. Going back to October, the Reddit post, the tattoo, the, the New York Times story about, you know, allegations of toxic and, you know, and violent behavior. Right. I think there was a sense that one more thing was always going to break the back of this campaign, and this one is just so much bigger, so much more visceral. Right. And I think that it's just a bridge too far. So I don't think it's any one thing. I think it's a combination of things. But obviously this is a much more serious allegation than those he's faced in the past.
- [06:17]
B
I want Alex Wagner to read you the Politico reporting about this allegation. This was exclusive reporting in Politico under the headline, Woman who Dated Graham Platner says He Sexually Assaulted Her. Roscoe said she smelled alcohol on his breath and believed he was, quote, almost blackout drunk because Platner ignored her protests and continued to grab her after knocking over an antique sewing kit, spilling small needles everywhere. Quote, I had been telling him these words like, no, don't, she recalled. And the look on his face and realizing what was happening, I just realized that, like, I'm in a situation where there's no consent here, she said. She said she tried to separate herself from Platner by telling him she couldn't be in that room anymore, after which he followed her to her bedroom and had sex with her against her will. It is an allegation of rape by a woman who has come forward against all of her interest. She has said that she agrees with his politics. And I guess what I'm sitting with is how, how is this the guy that gets all the deference in the Democratic Party in the post MeToo movement? How do we sort of, in this one campaign, forget all the things we learned about women?
- [07:38]
D
This is the guy. I mean, remember, Nicole, one of his more infamous Reddit posts was, I wish people would just take some responsibility and not get so effed up that they wind up having sex with someone they don't mean to. Right? That's what Graham Platner said. To say that and then to be accused of this displays such a profound. I don't even. Hubris isn't the word, but it is just shockingly irresponsible. It is Also revelatory in the sense that it suggests that Graham Platner himself hasn't come to terms with any of this. I think even his defiance in the wake of this is exemplary of someone that is in total denial about the darkest of the skeletons in his closet and the darkest demons that he harbors inside him. If these allegations are true, this is some. The Rascoe says that she, the ex girlfriend in question here says that after this encounter, she sent a message to Platner on Instagram saying that the encounter they had was not consensual and that she never wanted to hear from him again. Now the Instagram message apparently is gone, but if we believe what she's saying, and I think these allegations are entirely credible, Graham Platner knew that he had a woman in his not so distant past who had accused him of rape and went forward and lied to the American public and lied to his supporters and said nothing else was coming out. And Graham Platner, the man never got back to a woman who accused him of, of rape. He never spoke to her again. I mean, these are kind of things that when you ask yourself, okay, well, why is this disqualifying? That is not the behavior of not just some, that's the behavior of someone who not only doesn't belong in the US Senate, but is clearly a bad person. I mean, the levels of betrayal here on both a political level and a human level are fairly profound.
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B
Yeah, Alex, I want to put up the Reddit post that you're talking about. This is something that he doesn't deny writing in 2013, quote, Holy f. How about people just take some responsibility for themselves and not get so effed up they wind up having sex with someone they don't mean to men and women. You make a choice to consume enough of a substance to lose your self control. So if you don't want to be in a compromising situation, act like an adult for F's sake. Just an unbelievable mirror to the specificity, Alex, of her account of what she details or what Politico reports that she detailed, is that he suggested he was coming over. She told him not to. He came over. She sort of says her house was open, so he came inside. And she says that the sex that they have is not consensual. I guess what's so striking, though, is that the New York Times, reporting from about a month ago, is about on the spectrum of abuse and violence, it is certainly about unstable behavior, is certainly described as toxic behavior by women. It is on the same dial, I guess as these allegations. What do you think the soul searching is not just in the Democratic Party, but for all of us who cover these things?
- [11:05]
D
Well, listen, I think, first of all, I thought back then, when the first tranche of these allegations came forward, that the Platner campaign should have had a lot more explaining to do. But we're caught in a moment where there is such profound desperation to have some check on Trump's worst impulses, and there is such hunger for Democrats to control the Senate that it feels like people were willing to abide a form of dangerous masculinity that in a pre Trump era would have been totally disqualifying. And I think it does prompt some real soul searching about what we ask of our quote, unquote warriors and what we abide and what we stomach as a society and as a party when it comes to true fighters and what it looks like to be a man in the 21st century. Honestly, without sounding too much like a college professor, I do think so much of the crisis right now is the collapse of the PA patriarchy and people being completely at sea in trying to figure out what it means to hold power and to keep power and to wield it in a just fashion. And the Platner campaign just raises a huge set of questions about what strength means and what crosses the line when you are a strong person. And I think there's a lot of gut checking that needs to happen inside Democratic circles, because what is abundantly clear is this person has not had a check on his power and has felt unfettered and unapologetic about exercising that power and not offering. Offering any explanation for it until now.
- [12:35]
B
I want to show you, Basil, what Senator Alyssa Slotkin said on our air. We were on the air when that Time story that Alex and I are talking about dropped. And so I kind of sprung it on her, and this was her response.
- [12:49]
E
I look forward to the day where I am not answering every single week a question about bad behavior by another dude. First of all, I think about the women who are coming forward. Second of all, I think if. If there are allegations of violence, I got a real problem with that. And it doesn't matter if you're a Democrat or Republican, if there's violence, that's not okay. So I haven't gone into the details. I'm sure I'll have to get the. Just like every week, the same briefing from my team on what happened and what and. But frankly, I'm sick of it. We got a lot of bigger issues to fry here, and so that's a dream I have for someday.
- [13:40]
B
Basil, what are your thoughts today?
- [13:42]
F
Yeah, I think there's this sort of Venn diagram where you have accountability, electability, and power. And somehow, you know, Democrats, I think the entire country, quite frankly, has been trying to figure out what is that space in that Venn diagram that allows candidates to get elected in this Trump environment. You know, it's sort of he's moved the line and lowered the bar so much that there was almost this sense that, well, we can do almost anything and still run a race and get elected and get back into power. But that's clearly not the case. It should never be the case. There should be some bright lines. There should be some accountability. And there was an Atlantic story, I think, today that, you know, challenged the Democrats in the state of Maine to say, well, you know, why did you even let it get this far? And that's a fair question. I think there was a period where there was. There were a lot of folks trying to be deferential to the voters in Maine, because I think Mike could speak to this more so that, you know, because the governor was in that primary and then stepped out of the primary. And so, you know, there seemed to be a lot of, you know, power and support behind Platner. And I think Democrats wanted to be respectful of that. But at what cost? Because anyone that follows this kind of felt and sensed, and if you have any knowledge of history, pretty much could predict that something else was going to fall, and then you'd need to have to either defend that or. Or be in the situation that we're in now where, you know, where he would likely step down, and the party is going to have to find a way to coalesce around someone else and get the voters to do the same thing. A worse situation than I think they were in, you know, several months ago. And so I don't think this, unfortunately, this question is going to go away, which is, how do you make. Create that balance? What's that balance between electability and accountability? I think many of us have it, individually and instinctively. But, you know, there has to. There has to be a point where you say enough is enough, because it's not good enough to run campaigns and govern based on who you think you'll piss off the least. That's just not the START strategy.
- [16:11]
B
I so appreciate you and Alex and your candor. I mean, I think, Michael, they've put it perfectly. This. These sort of twin passions, right? This desperation to win and this desperation to try something different. I mean, Platner was so sort of outside the box, but too far outside the box. How. How are people on the ground talking about moving forward today?
- [16:35]
C
Yeah, the way. That's a complicated question. Right. And there's going to be a lot of swerves on that road by between now and the end of the month. But I think that, I think that you hit it there. I mean, this is a Maine's not known for. I'm not often on cable news. Right. Maine does not have a history of electing really exciting, invigorating politicians. Right. It's a very workman like place when it comes to our politics. And we have in Graham Platner a guy who came from nowhere, literally. Right. I knew his name about two weeks before he filed, and then all of a sudden he's everywhere and drawing crowds and inspiring people. Right. And. And Janet Mills was in that primary. She, she was essentially in that primary before she got in it. She didn't seize the moment. Right. And I think there's a lot of things that you can, you can attribute that to. Age is a factor. Right. Democrats are damaged by the age question. After 2020, he's 78 years old, didn't seize the moment. Graham Platner filled this vacuum and in the. In so doing inspired a lot of people. And I think Democrats are also reeling from 2024 and how Trump has reshaped coalitions in places like where Graham Platner lives with younger men. Especially here you have a guy who is resonating with people. So I think that Democrats would like to see some of this Platner coalition live on and maybe transfer to a politician, another politician. I just think that's really tricky when you have to push the politician off the stage and way off the stage. I mean, I think that Graham Platner is going to go away and can almost never come back here. So this is. It's a really tense moment where Maine Democrats need a little bit of what he is trying to sell and so do Democrats across the country. He just can't be the vessel for it.
- [18:25]
B
Yeah. I mean, it's. First of all, it's our mistake that we don't platform Maine more. It's a super important state and sort of the. And for. For the passions of the people of Maine to be a national story is a story in and of itself. But I take your point because he's had all this national attention because he's created a movement and you can't just swap out the person at the top of a movement that's not what a movement is. I have a million more questions for all of you. I have to sneak in a break. I want to show you the hypocrisy that one former Republican Party leader is choking on in his response to this news yesterday. I'll show that to you. Also ahead for us, from the COVID up of the Epstein files to the January six insurrectionist slush fund to the killing of US Citizens by federal agents, senators have a lot of things they should ask Donald Trump's pick for Attorney General Todd Blanch to answer for at his confirmation hearing. Democrats and Republicans, we'll look at what that will look like. And a new warning issued today from more than 1,000 former employees of the Department of Justice about the specific risks Todd Blanche poses to the rule of law in America. One of those Justice Department alumni joins us coming up. Also head Did Blanche and Trump just move to nationalize a state election? We'll look at what they're talking about and planning for Michigan. And later in the broadcast, Trump is in Europe as the NATO alliance is more frayed than ever before because of Donald Trump. Leaders there believe they have to be prepared to go it alone without us, the United States of America. We'll have all those stories and more when you Deadline White House continues after a quick break. Don't go anywhere.
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- [21:07]
H
The one thing I know about Republicans, when we had a very bad candidate and found out we didn't vote for that person, we walked away. For better or for worse, when Matt Gaetz came forward, we got rid of him.
- [21:22]
B
I don't know if he missed the Access Hollywood tape and grabbed women between the. You know what's. Or Ken Paxton, whose own wife has not. Ex wife has not endorsed him. Alex. But just a bushel full of hypocrisy there for Kevin McCarthy to choke on.
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D
Yeah, you want to just be like, nice try Kevin, and then have a cane, escort him offstage. The idea that the Republican Party should be taking a victory lap here is a joke. They built the. They literally built the permission structure that allows aggressors to flourish inside political parties. I mean, these are the people that like created the culture in which people with very toxic reputations have in many ways the prerequisites needed to succeed in the modern day gop. I mean, being unscrupulous and being morally questionable are basically calling cards of the most powerful Republicans inside the party. So, yeah, color me a little skeptical that there's any benefit that the Republicans should see themselves, you know, that there's any advantage they have in a scenario like this. And it's great that Kevin McCarthy is saying that because it just highlights first of all the hubristic attitude they have in all of this and also just their complete lack of self reflection about the toxicity that they have pumped into the political water supply.
- [22:45]
B
Yeah, I mean, Michael, the opportunity here for Democrats is to say, we're Democrats, we're not the Republican Party. This seems like a strength, not a weakness. And I wonder if you can just talk us through the process. I know there's never trust the Internet, but I saw some names that are certainly intriguing. I saw Heather Cox Richardson floated. I know there are other names being floated by Graham Platner supporters who, as you've indicated, will have a lot of deference in this process. But just take me through mechanically what happens next.
- [23:21]
C
Yeah. So Graham has to make the decision by Monday to drop out, file with the state. And that triggers essentially a two week process. So the party can kind of choose its own adventure on that. There is not much in their bylaws or in state law governing how they do that. They have the license to do that. So what is happening right now? We just published a memoir from the main Democratic Party to the leaders to the state committee and they are working on this. They say they'll have more details maybe tonight. So there's a lot to come. I mean, I think that everyone thinks Graham Platner is going to drop out of this race sometime soon. Whether it's today, tomorrow, I don't know, but they are moving full speed ahead on this process to replace platinum. And I think a few things we've already talked about are in their minds, right. There is a sensitivity in Democratic politics. Maine was a Bernie Sanders state, right. In the caucuses in 2016. So the idea that powerful party bosses getting together to find a candidate. Right. That's pretty anathema to the way we do things up here. So I think there's a lot of sensitivity among the party to get as many people involved in this as they can out what shape that takes. It's really hard to get a lot of people involved in a process that you can only organize within 20 days. So I think that this could be a convention where delegates are appointed at the local level and, and there may be more media than, than delegates. Right. When you get to that ultimate convention, it'll just be must see TV or you could do some sort of 16 county. Right. That's how many we have up here. Caucus. It's essentially just a party held election like the, like some models of the presidential caucuses around the country. So I think those are the options that they're kind of rooting around right now and figuring out what they can pull off in a really short amount of time.
- [25:06]
B
Basil the strategic imperative seems to be that they have to turn this into a strength, not a weakness. It is a strength that in one of the country's two political parties, you get thrown out for acting like Graham Platner. In the other, you get picked over John Cornyn.
- [25:24]
F
Yeah, and you were talking about this in the other segment that the math still needs to be mathing the Senate math, at least, because Maine is extraordinarily important because so is North Carolina, Alaska, Ohio, Iowa and Texas. States that Democrats need some path through those states that Democrats need to get the majority. So Democrats across the country know how important this is. The Maine voters clearly know how important this election is. And just to speak a little bit on that process, because, man, when Michael earlier talked about being pushed off a big stage, I just went back to 2024 because we were having a very similar discussion, different reasons, clearly, but very similar discussion about what happens when you push somebody aside and have to deal with that electability issue. And in this case, they're the state laws, they're party rules. And there's what you should do. And the what you should do really does involve how do you engage and incorporate all of Platner's supporters, the larger coalition that needs to win a general election, the donors that need to be engaged the national leaders that likely need to come in and help this new candidate campaign campaign in the state. So it is a tremendous amount of activity, as was said, in a really short period of time. But because the Democrats really, it is so important to get this seat, they've got to put everything they can into it right now.
- [26:50]
B
I appreciate all of your knowledge and candor. Alex Wagner Bezos, Michael. Michael shepherd, thank you so much for starting us off today. When we come back, more than 1200 former Justice Department employees imploring the Senate to stop Todd Blanch from officially becoming the country's attorney general. One of those voices will be our next guest. Stay with us. Former Justice Department employees from all across the ideological spectrum are out with an urgent warning to Congress asking them to reject the nomination of Todd Blanche to take on the job of attorney General permanently ahead of his confirmation hearing next week. In a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee signed by more than 1200 DOJ alumni, they write that DOJ under Todd Blanche's leadership has been defined by the vindictive prosecutions and investigations of the president's foes, the deals designed to reward lawbreakers with taxpayer dollars, the erasure of accountability for January 6, the mishandling of the Epstein files and the denigration of judges and repeated violations of their orders. But that quote, we want to focus on an area that deserves just as much attention. Todd Blanche's degradation of DOJ's apolitical career workforce. Under Todd Blanche's leadership, approximately 16,000 employees have left and departures are not slowing down. The culture of fear Todd Blanche has instilled within DOJ's workforce must end. Respect for career professionals must return. Would be job applicants need to believe the Justice Department lives up to the virtue in its name. And instead of exhibiting fealty to the President, the AG must heed John Adams admonition that our republic remains a government of laws, not of men. For the sake of the institution where we once proudly served, we urge you to reject Todd Blanche's nomination. I want to bring in a former assistant special agent in charge at the FBI, national security and intelligence analyst Michael Feinberg. Also joining us, writer and editor for Protect Democracy, Amanda Carpenter. Michael Feinberg, you've signed this letter, I believe, is that right?
- [29:17]
H
Yes. And I should also note I am on the advisory committee for the organization that promulgated it.
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B
So tell me, tell me what the hope is. Is it that Republicans consider themselves warned and Democrats have more than 1,000 of you to say? Don't take my word for it. Take the word of the people who are inside, or do you think there's a shot that you can torpedo his nomination?
- [29:44]
H
It might still be a bit chaotic to hope that we can halt his nomination, but I think that really is the goal. Todd Blanch clearly represents a threat to the rule of law in that he views his ultimate duty to Donald Trump, not even as a president, but as a person rather than to the Constitution and to the United States. So, yes, we would love if a newly independent senator, someone like Tillis, would halt this in committee, but we're realistic about that. The reason we actually wanted to get this letter on the record is for the very theme that you cited in the poll. Quote, this is signed by an incredibly large and diverse group of Justice Department alumni from both parties who firmly believe that Blanche's overseeing of the utter decimation of the workforce is unforgivable and is going to take generations to repair. And it's worth noting that this letter is a little different than any other of its type. This is the first one of which I'm aware that contains not only main justice employees, but quite a sizable number of FBI alumni as well. The FBI alumni community, we call it the formers, is not entirely dissimilar from the military community in that we are generally loathe to get involved in specific political battles. But I think everybody who wore the badge with pride and took their oath to the Constitution seriously is incredibly alarmed at what Todd Blanche is doing to the department and for that reason is willing to step out of our traditional role and make our voice heard.
- [31:38]
B
I mean, Michael, I saw you last Thursday when I was in D.C. to interview Jack Smith. There is something happening. I mean, he's made. I'm happy that he's decided to speak out, but he's made a decision that it is clear in normal times he would not find himself on TV shows like mine. He said so much, this letter. To your point, the numbers can be numbing, but this is probably an historic number of people who have signed a letter trying to stop something. Right? There are people that sign letters trying to get things passed, but trying to stop someone from doing more damage to the department. I just want to ask you about that last point. I mean, the formers are so loathe to get involved in politics. It seems like we're not talking about politics anymore. We're talking about just the decimation of one of the country's sort of frontline national security agencies. Is that where we are?
- [32:36]
H
Yeah, I think we're not just talking about Party politics, We're way beyond that. We're talking about the decimation of the Justice Department because the Justice Department is also traditionally a metonym for the rule of law. And that's really what all the signatories care about. They don't disagree that the President should have the right to pick his or her own Attorney General. They just think there should be a baseline standard of integrity to that pick. And we unfortunately find ourselves in the position where there's really only one party whose majority seems to care about the rule of law. So what should be an apolitical issue is inevitably going to be painted as one that is partisan, when in fact, that's not true.
- [33:25]
B
Yeah, I mean, I was thinking Amanda Carpenter about Jeff Sessions and Bill Barr. I mean, no Democrat was excited about either of them, but they did not elicit 1200 formers signing a letter opposing their confirmation as the country's Attorney general. Just talk about how abnormal this track is that we're on at doj.
- [33:51]
I
Well, I think if Michael doesn't mind, I think I'd like to gloss up his letter a little bit more, because I do think it is a very smart strategy influencing a key vote, which we all recognize is going to be Thom Tillis on the Judiciary Committee Committee. Thom Tillis has said pretty bluntly that although he is favorable to Todd Blanche, he wants to see Blanche demonstrate some independence from the President. There's been a lot of focus on Blanche's support for January 6 rioters. Of course, the memo that he wrote authorizing that terrible politically explosive slush fund, and the get out of jail free audit card from the IRS for Trump and his family organizations. But this adds another layer to that argument that Todd Blanch is not an independent actor. And it's not just isolated in this Trump vers thing. It is Department of Justice employees who have been in the building. Thom Tillis is going to read that letter. You can't ignore thousands of names. And he's going to see Republicans on that list. And what they are saying is, if you confirm Todd Blanch, this department is just destroyed, essentially. This is not just about this person that you're appointing because it's the President's nominee and you feel like you should give due deference, people are going to leave. There will be brain drain because all of these former employees recognize how his. His fealty to the President, and he will install other people who have that fealty to the President. And so I think this letter is a good effort, and it's because of the sheer volume of names on that list, their expertise, and this additional layer of argumentation that they're adding that Thom Tillis has said that he is paying attention to.
- [35:27]
B
It's so important. I want to read more from the letter. We'll talk more about what's happening, the things that are more opaque to outsiders at doj, but that are our expert on Michael and Amanda stick around after the break as well, how Donald Trump is pushing Todd Blanche and the federal government to get involved in the elections in the state of Michigan. We'll bring you that reporting next.
- [35:52]
J
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A
On the line with Alicia Menendez, weekdays at 12:00pm Eastern on Ms. Now,
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I
Donald
- [36:25]
B
Trump's power grab over the midterm elections is intensifying in a key battleground state. Today the Detroit News is reporting that Trump's Department of Justice has informed three cities in Michigan, all Democratic strongholds, that they will send election monitors in for next month's primaries. According to that report, quote, letters from the federal department about the plans have mentioned Detroit, Lansing and East Lansing. They add that the letters, quote, marked an escalation of the Trump administration's bid to scrutinize voting in Michigan. Trump's Department of Justice has already sought a complete copy of Michigan's registered voter list and voting records from Wayne county, where Detroit is located. Michigan's Attorney General Dana Nestle shot back, saying this, quote, the courts have made clear time and time again that states run elections, not the federal government. We're back with Michael and Amanda. Amanda, speaking of Bill Barr, this was one of the conspiracy theories that Bill Barr shot down and describes, I think in that January 6th deposition as bullshit. The efforts to find farcical voter fraud in Michigan have been ongoing literally since 2020, and no one has found any, not even lots of Trump friendly people. What do you think they're doing in the absence of actual fraud?
- [37:43]
I
Well, I want to pay attention to this story because it is important to level set what is going on with this particular aspect. We know Donald Trump is trying to deceive voters with lies about the election to disrupt the process to deny results that he doesn't like. He's using all lovers of power to do so. But when it comes to sending election monitors from the Department of Justice, I Do want your viewers to know this is something that has been done under Republican and Democratic administrations for decades. They cannot do anything except for watch and observe. And I really like how the Michigan officials have been responding to this, because, again, we know what Donald Trump wants to do, but we also know that he tries to bait people into having a reaction and making them appear guilty and saying, no, no, no, no, violators don't come here. So watch. What Jocelyn Benson actually on your air earlier today is saying she is spot on. She's saying federal observers are welcome to come here. This has happened many times before. But we also know that they're looking at Democratic strongholds, and we stand ready that if these observers disrupt the process, we will step in. I mean, this is just one of those really tricky things to go hair on fire, say, oh, my gosh, what's happening? This does happen. We know what they're up to. And this is just all part of the things for to cause chaos and make people scared. But the Michigan officials have kept this voting process secure, and they know what they're doing. Secretaries of State have been training for this exact scenario. If you do have Trump officials stepping over that line and disrupting the, disrupting the process, they know what to do. The law is clear, and they have tools.
- [39:22]
B
Michael, your thoughts?
- [39:26]
H
I'm not as sanguine or optimistic as Amanda, I'm afraid. She has stated the law and policy with 100% accuracy. But we have seen time and time again that this iteration of the Justice Department does not feel itself bound by law and policy. Todd Blanche himself in an interview misstated the law and said that there was nothing wrong with armed federal agents at polling places. That's either a lie or complete ignorance, because there is a very specific statute that except in the case of armed invaders, there cannot be armed federal agents or military personnel at polling places. And if the Attorney General is willing to elid or obfuscate such a bright line rule as that one, what else are they willing to do? And it's worth noting the organizations within the Justice Department that traditionally monitored the ethical behavior of its employees, whether the Office of Inspector General or the Office of Professional Responsibility, they've largely been gutted, and many of the vacancies have not been filled on purpose. So, you know the old question, who guards the guards themselves? In the case of the Justice Department, there's nobody.
- [40:54]
B
Yeah. I mean, it just gets back to the substance of the letter. This is not a normal nominee to lead the Justice Department. This is not a Justice Department doing normal things. That in a normal time would be all the normal things you describe them as. So much more to discuss. To be continued. Michael Feinberg, Amanda Carpenter, thank you both for joining us today. After the break, another quote, unquote improvement coming to the White House. We'll tell you about it and how much more it's going to cost you to get it done quickly. If you thought Donald Trump would take a break from treating the People's House like he's hosting some sort of HGTV Show after the 250th celebration, you would have been wrong because brand new reporting in the Washington Post reveals he's doubling down, speeding up construction of a new helipad, a helicopter pad and related work in anticipation of a, quote, upcoming state visit. It requires crews to work around the clock and it drives the cost up by $875,000, according to a contractor's record obtained by the Washington Post. If you're wondering who Donald Trump is trying to impress with this new helipad, the Washington Post reports this the move came after the contractor received a last minute directive from the government to conclude work no later than September 17. The documents obtained by the Washington Post do not name the foreign leader planning to visit the White House, but officials requested the accelerated construction timeline days after Donald Trump invited Chinese President Xi Jinping to Visit the on September 24th. We'll stand top of that story when we come back. Trump is overseas again and fighting with Europe again for not working with the United States of America. The next hour of Deadline White House starts after a quick break. Don't go anywhere.
- [42:57]
K
The critics have spoken. World War II with Tom Hanks is a must watch.
- [43:02]
H
It is on a scale no one's
- [43:03]
K
ever seen before, an enormous accomplishment.
- [43:06]
H
The world turned upside down.
- [43:09]
K
It's global history on the grandest scale.
- [43:12]
H
All wars changed the world, but none
- [43:15]
F
of them like the Second World War did.
- [43:16]
K
Unlike any World War II docu series before World War II with Tom Hanks new episode Monday at 8, only on History. Next day on the Apple.