The Leslie Marshall Show

U.S. Poised For a Manufacturing Renaissance

Leslie is joined by International Vice President of the United Steelworkers (USW), David McCall.
The two discuss why the United States is poised for a manufacturing renaissance, and how we can assure that it happens.

Manufacturing is the backbone of the country, providing both critical goods and good jobs.

While union members have known this for years, the past year and a half drove home on a wide scale how important domestic manufacturing is not only to our economy, but also to our national security:

- Broken supply chains during the pandemic meant shortages of lifesaving personal protective equipment and medical supplies- It also created supply chain shortages in other critical goods like computer chips
- Other factors like the strain on Texas’s electrical grid this winter are also creating shortages of plastics needed for consumer goods, highlighting the need for more resiliency in our supply chains 

The manufacturing sector has been weakened over the years by bad trade policy and lack of attention to meaningful and sound economic growth principles.  
The result of the pandemic caused the sector to fall even more deeply. 
As a result, in the 1st quarter of 2020, Durable Manufacturing production fell almost 10%, and by the 2nd quarter of 2020 it fell by 58%.  In Non-Durable production, during the 1st quarter of 2020, it only fell by less than 1%, but in the 2nd quarter it dropped by 33%.

The Manufacturing sector overall lost 1.3 million jobs in March and April of 2020 (900,00 in Durable and 400,00 in Non-Durable).  Now the U.S. did add 15,000 manufacturing jobs in June, but we’re still down 481,000 jobs from February 2020, which was just before the pandemic struck. 

Despite these struggles, this is a moment of great potential:
- Once the extra federal stimulus money and extra unemployment benefits began in the latter half of 2020, the sector began to rebound
- A recent report from the Reshoring Initiative revealed that more companies are reshoring production, or bringing manufacturing jobs back to the United States
- Earlier this month, the FTC issued a rule to crack down on Made in America fraud which will help businesses that are truly operating here
- We also have a President who is taking the need for domestic manufacturing seriously

This is reflected in a number of decisions and policies from the Biden administration:

- President Biden issued executive orders intended to help foster domestic manufacturing growth, including a critical supply chain review that resulted in a number of recommendations that were issued last month 
- He also issued an executive order looking to ensure that wherever possible the government is spending tax payers’ money on American-made products. This is already bearing fruit with new waiver guidance that will help close loopholes in Made in America rules

But some of the most significant potential for revitalizing domestic manufacturing comes from the effort to rebuild America’s infrastructure, especially if it comes with strong domestic procurement provisions.  

The robust infrastructure investment President Biden is working toward won’t just make our communities safer, it’ll support a variety of good, union jobs.  From making the steel that goes into our bridges, to manufacturing pipes for our water systems, American workers are already well positioned to meet our country’s infrastructure needs.

But it’s not just about meeting last century’s infrastructure needs. We also need to invest in things like the fiber optic cables and renewable energy infrastructure – that USW members also make – that will be critical in keeping us connected well into the future.
The bipartisan deal 21 Senators are working on is a good start, but we need to keep the momentum going.

The website for the USW is www.USW.org.  Their handle on Twitter and Instagram is @steelworkers.

Afghanistan Withdrawal, Gen Milley Feared Trump Coup, Student Debt

The guest host for today's show is Brad Bannon. Brad runs Bannon Communications Research, a polling, message development and media firm which helps labor unions, progressive issue groups and Democratic candidates win public affairs and political campaigns. His show, 'Deadline D.C. with Brad Bannon,' airs every Monday from 3-4pm ET.

Brad is first joined by Colonel Cedric Leighton, Founder and President of Cedric Leighton Associates, a strategic risk and leadership consultancy serving global companies and organizations.  He founded the company in 2010, after serving in the US Air Force for 26 years as an Intelligence Officer and attaining the rank of Colonel.

Brad and Colonel Leighton analyze the decision that President Biden made to withdraw all U.S. military forces from Afghanistan.  They also discuss the news that Joint Chiefs Chairman General Mark Milley feared that then President Trump would use the military in a coup attempt after he lost the 2020 election.

Colonel Leighton's website is CedricLeighton.com and his Twitter handle is @CedricLeighton.

During the second half of the show, Brad leads a political roundtable with Edwith Theogene and Mark Grimaldi. The roundtable discusses the large increase in voter turnout among younger Americans in the 2020 election, and analyzes whether that trend can continue in the 2022 midterm elections.
They also discuss cancelling student loan debt, child tax credit checks, and a reported Democratic deal on an infrastructure reconciliation package.

Edwith Theogene is the director of advocacy for Generation Progress, the youth engagement arm of American Progress. In this role, Theogene works to develop and lead efforts that translate the experiences of young adults into concrete actions that advance progressive policies and increase voter turnout. Edwith's Twitter handle is @WhoIsEdwith.

Mark Grimaldi has been a progressive political activist for the past 12 years. He volunteered for the campaigns of President Obama (2008 and 2012), Senator Bernie Sanders (2016), Secretary Hillary Clinton (2016), and President Joe Biden (2020). Mark is also involved in campaign finance reform efforts around the country, and philanthropic efforts for Cancer research. His Twitter handle is @MarkJGrimaldi.

Brad writes a political column every Sunday for 'The Hill.' He's on the National Journal's panel of political insiders and is a national political analyst for WGN TV and Radio in Chicago and KNX Radio in Los Angeles.
You can read Brad's columns at www.MuckRack.com/Brad-Bannon. His Twitter handle is @BradBannon.

You can also watch this episode here on Periscope: https://www.pscp.tv/w/1lPKqXmLMEwxb

Or here on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DeadlineDCWithBradBannon/videos/1399690157083219

The Power Of Celebrity In Politics

Leslie begins today's show with a brief monologue about people who choose to tear others down through insults.
She then does her 'Ripped from the Headlines' news segment. Here are the stories that she gave her take on:

1. AXIOS: "CDC: Vaccinated teachers and students don't need to wear masks indoors"
2. AUDIO: President Biden says he will not send another generation of Americans to war in Afghanistan with no reasonable expectation to achieve a different outcome
3. AXIOS: "Biden launches 72 initiatives to boost competition in U.S. economy"
4. AXIOS: "U.S. blacklists 23 more Chinese entities over Xinjiang abuses, military ties"
5. AXIOS: "Texas legislature convenes for special session on voting rights"
6. NBC NEWS: "Harris announces $25 million DNC investment to aid voting access"

For the second half of the show, Leslie is joined by Dr. Lauren A. Wright, Associate Research Scholar and Lecturer in Politics and Public Affairs at Princeton University, where she teaches courses on The Presidency and Executive Power, Women and Politics, and Political Communication. Wright is the author of "Star Power: American Democracy in the Age of the Celebrity Candidate" and "On Behalf of the President: Presidential Spouses and White House Communications Strategy Today."

Leslie and Dr. Wright talk about celebrities who run for office like former President Donald J. Trump, former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and current California Republican Gubernatorial candidate Caitlyn Jenner.

They also discuss how being a celebrity can be a huge advantage when running for office, but a huge disadvantage when trying to effectively govern (if the celebrity has no prior political experience).  Additionally, Dr. Wright explains how and why celebrity candidates are covered differently than traditional politicians by news organizations, and why this is such a big deal.

Dr. Wright's website is www.LaurenAWright.com and her Twitter handle is @DrLaurenAWright.

Rebuilding American Infrastructure; Made In USA Talk

Leslie is joined by Scott Paul, President of the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM), a partnership established by some of America’s leading manufacturers and the United Steelworkers union.

The two discuss the House passage of the 'INVEST In America Act,' the FTC strengthening 'Made In USA' labeling requirements, a new International Trade Commission report which reveals that U.S. trade agreements over the past several decades really didn’t deliver, while costing a bunch of manufacturing jobs, and Kim Kardashian is outfitting U.S. Olympians with shape wear...but it's not made in America.

 

The AAM website is AmericanManufacturing.org and their Twitter handle is @KeepItMadeInUSA. Scott's handle is @ScottPaulAAM.

 

You can also watch this episode here on Twitter/Periscope: https://www.pscp.tv/w/1RDGlPPlRaVGL

The Fight For Youth Voting Rights

Today's guest hosts are Edwith Theogene and Charlotte Hancock, Organizing Director and Communications Director for Generation Progress.

During today's show they discuss the 50th anniversary of the ratification of the 26th Amendment, which lowered the voting age in the United States to 18. The amendment was a huge win for young Americans who had fought for this right and recognition of the fact that young adults deserve to have a voice in the makeup of their government.

The struggle for equal and unencumbered access to voting for all Americans continues to this day in the face of blatant voter suppression efforts that disproportionately impact Black people and other people of color. Young people have been consistent leaders in the fight to protect the freedom to vote and reform our democracy, and that is definitely true of young people today—who turned out in historic numbers in the 2020 election and are now fighting to ensure that all Americans are able to continue participating in and being represented by their democracy.

To discuss this momentous anniversary and all that still must be done to protect voting rights for young Americans, Edwith and Charlotte are joined by two expert guests:

Clarissa Unger, Director of the Students Learn Students Vote Coalition, and Wambui Gatheru, the Interim Director of Programs at the Andrew Goodman Foundation.

Generation Progress' website is GenProgress.org and their Twitter handle is @GenProgress.  Edwith Theogene's Twitter handle is @WhoIsEdwith and Charlotte Hancock's handle is @CharlatAnne.  Clarissa Unger's Twitter handle is @uclarissa and the handle for the Students Learn Students Vote Coalition is @SLSVCoalition.  The Twitter handle for the Andrew Goodman Foundation is @AndrewGoodmanF.

What the U.S. Loses When Americans Save Too Much

Leslie begins today's show with her 'Ripped from the Headlines' news segment.  Here are the stories that she gave her take on:

1. U.S. NEWS: "LA County Recommends Masks for All When Indoors as Delta Variant Spreads (Israel Too)"
2. AXIOS: "Nearly all U.S. COVID deaths are among unvaccinated"
3. MIAMI HERALD: "Federal judge upholds post-Parkland ban on gun sales to people younger than 21"
4. THE HILL: "Manchin says he's on board with Democratic-only infrastructure bill"
5. ASSOCIATED PRESS: "Maricopa County won't reuse subpoenaed ballot counters"
6. AXIOS: "Pelosi moves to establish 13-member committee to probe Capitol riot"
7. AXIOS: "House passes bills to make U.S. science more competitive with China"
8. AXIOS: "Dangerous Pacific Northwest heat wave shifts inland"

Leslie is then joined by Dr. Robert Shapiro, Chairman of Sonecon, an economic advisory firm and a Senior Fellow of the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University.
He was Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Affairs in the Clinton Administration.

The two discuss his latest piece for 'The Atlantic' titled, "Post-Pandemic, a Strong Expansion Needs Less Personal Saving or More Government Spending."

Dr. Shapiro's Twitter handle is @RobShapiro.

Infrastructure Negotiations In Congress; Is Unity Possible In America?

The guest host for today's show is Brad Bannon. Brad runs Bannon Communications Research, a polling, message development and media firm which helps labor unions, progressive issue groups and Democratic candidates win public affairs and political campaigns. His show, 'Deadline D.C. with Brad Bannon,' airs every Monday from 3-4pm ET.

Brad is first joined by Shawn Zeller, Deputy Editor of CQ Magazine, and host of the 'CQ on Congress' podcast. Shawn's Twitter handle is @ShawnZeller.

Brad and Shawn discuss the current status of infrastructure negotiations in Congress. This includes the bipartisan agreement reached last week in the Senate, as well as the more progressive proposal that looks to be heading towards the budget reconciliation process. They also talk about the congressional prospects for police reform and the 'For the People Act.'

During the second half of the show, Brad leads a political round-table with Tara Devlin and Mark Grimaldi. The roundtable analyzes whether the 81 million Americans who voted for Joe Biden can coexist with the 73 million Americans who voted for Donald Trump.
With Independence Day this Sunday, they also discuss what it means to be an American patriot, and why some Conservatives put on displays of 'phony patriotism.'

Tara Devlin is a New York City based comedian, writer, and host of the unapologetically-liberal podcast "TARABUSTER.”
Tarabuster is 5-star viewer-reviewed and 100% viewer-supported.
Help keep the REAL liberal media going – and growing – by becoming a Patron of Tarabuster at Patreon.com/TaraDevlin.
You can follow Tara on Twitter at @REALTaraDevlin and on Instagram at @Taradackty.

Mark Grimaldi has been a progressive political activist for the past 12 years. He volunteered for the campaigns of President Obama (2008 and 2012), Senator Bernie Sanders (2016), Secretary Hillary Clinton (2016), and President Joe Biden (2020). Mark is also involved in campaign finance reform efforts around the country, and philanthropic efforts for Cancer research. His Twitter handle is @MarkJGrimaldi.

Brad is on the National Journal's panel of political insiders and is a national political analyst for WGN TV and Radio in Chicago and KNX Radio in Los Angeles.
You can read Brad's columns at www.MuckRack.com/Brad-Bannon and watch his previous 'Deadline D.C.' broadcasts at www.Periscope.TV/BradBannon. His Twitter handle is @BradBannon.

Watch a video broadcast of this episode here on Twitter/Periscope: www.pscp.tv/w/1YpKkzzoyRAxj

Or here on Facebook Live: https://www.facebook.com/DeadlineDCWithBradBannon/videos/200609095309493

How the Digital Far-Right Has Transformed Since the Jan. 6th Insurrection

Leslie begins today's show with her 'Ripped from the Headlines' news segment.  
Here are the stories that she gave her take on:

1. THE HILL: "Obama: Voting rights bill must pass before next election"
2. AUDIO: Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO) reminds everyone that today's vote in the Senate is the beginning of a very long fight on voting rights. Democrats are going to force Republicans to vote on every piece of the For The People Act if they filibuster the bill today as expected
3. AXIOS: "The Senate’s “too-big-to-fail" bipartisan infrastructure plan"
4. AXIOS: "Court blocks California assault weapons ban repeal"
5. AUDIO: Las Vegas Raiders Defensive End Carl Nassib comes out as gay

Leslie is then joined by Karim Zidan, an investigative journalist for 'Right Wing Watch,' a project of People For the American Way dedicated to monitoring and exposing the activities and rhetoric of right-wing activists and organizations in order to expose their extreme agenda.
Leslie and Karim discuss how the far-right has transformed online since the January 6th Capitol insurrection.

The website for Right Wing Watch is www.RightWingWatch.org and their Twitter handle is @RightWingWatch.  Karim's handle is @ZidanSports.

Infrastructure, Filibuster, and the U.S. Economy

The guest host for today's show is Brad Bannon. Brad runs Bannon Communications Research, a polling, message development and media firm which helps labor unions, progressive issue groups and Democratic candidates win public affairs and political campaigns. His show, 'Deadline D.C. with Brad Bannon,' airs every Monday from 3-4pm ET.

Brad is first joined by Sarah Jones, Editor-in-Chief of PoliticusUSA. The two discuss the infrastructure package negotiations going on in the U.S. Senate, the filibuster, Senator Joe Manchin, and whether the House of Representatives should open their own investigation into the January 6th Capitol insurrection. 

Sarah is a 2 time Telly Award winner, and now hosts Politicus News and co-hosts Politicus Radio. The website for PoliticusUSA is www.PoliticusUSA.com and their Twitter handle is @PoliticusUSA. Sarah's handle is @PoliticusSarah.

During the second half of the show, Brad is joined by Dr. Robert Shapiro.  Dr. Shapiro is the Chairman of Sonecon, an economic advisory firm and a Senior Fellow of the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University.
The two analyze the state of the U.S. economy, GDP projections, inflation, and how President Biden's infrastructure plan would affect the economy.

Dr. Shapiro is an internationally-known economist who has advised, among others, President Bill Clinton, Vice President Al Gore, Jr., British Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, and then U.S. Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. He was Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Affairs in the Clinton Administration.
His website is Sonecon.com and his Twitter handle is @RobShapiro.

 

Brad writes a political column every Sunday for 'The Hill.' He's on the National Journal's panel of political insiders and is a national political analyst for WGN TV and Radio in Chicago and KNX Radio in Los Angeles.
You can read Brad's columns at www.MuckRack.com/Brad-Bannon. His Twitter handle is @BradBannon.

Watch a video broadcast of the show here: https://www.pscp.tv/w/1mrGmwEkqQWxy

Gun Violence Awareness Month

Today's guest hosts are Edwith Theogene and Charlotte Hancock, Organizing Director and Communications Director for Generation Progress.

During today's show they discuss how this month is gun violence awareness month, a time to reflect on the gun violence epidemic that plagues this country and disproportionately harms Black and Brown communities. Last year—a year that saw many Americans struggling with loss of family and friends, life-altering illness, and economic crises due to the COVID-19 pandemic—was also the deadliest year for gun violence for decades, according to the Washington Post. And this year is looking even worse. Thus far in 2021, gun violence killed more than 8,100 people in the United States.

Since gun violence can take many different forms—from domestic violence to mass shootings to police violence—we also need solutions to gun violence to be multilayered and multifaceted. Although progress has been made in spreading awareness of the crisis and the harms perpetrated by the gun industry, it has remained extremely difficult to make significant progress to end the gun violence epidemic at the federal level—despite the fact that a majority of Americans support legislative reforms to prevent gun violence.

To discuss what the takeaways from this gun violence awareness month should be and how people can get involved in addressing this epidemic moving forward, Edwith and Charlotte are joined by two expert guests.  They are Bella D’Alacio, Federal Policy Associate for "March for Our Lives" and Greg Jackson, National Advocacy Director for the Community Justice Action Fund (CJAF).

Generation Progress' website is GenProgress.org and their Twitter handle is @GenProgress.  Edwith Theogene's Twitter handle is @WhoIsEdwith and Charlotte Hancock's handle is @CharlatAnne.  Bella D’Alacio's Twitter handle is @bella_dalacio and the handle for March for Our Lives  is @AMarch4OurLives.  Greg Jackson's Twitter handle is @GregoryJackson and the handle for the Community Justice Action Fund (CJAF) is @CJACTIONFUND.