The Leslie Marshall Show

Young People Are Stepping Up As Poll Workers

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

During today's episode, they discuss how the upcoming 2020 election will look a little different than elections in years past given the additional challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic—for example, some states have expanded vote by mail options, some have made the decision to close certain in-person polling places, and many people who have served as poll workers in recent elections (these workers are often older and retired) may not feel safe spending the day at an in-person polling place this year. 

Even though it’s not always easy to get up-to-date information on voting right now, it’s critical that each person who intends to vote this November makes a plan *now* to do so. Whether that is casting an early ballot in-person—which many states now allow, requesting a mail-in ballot and pledging to return it as soon as possible, or choosing to vote in-person on Election Day, the most important thing is that you know how you’re voting and make sure you have taken all the necessary steps to make that happen. 

To talk with Edwith and Charlotte more about the upcoming election, and how young people can get involved as voters and volunteers, they’re joined by two guests from the Campus Vote Project.  They are Ciarra Malone, the Georgia State Coordinator and Rachel Clay, the Southeast Regional Coordinator.

You can find out more about the Campus Vote Project by visiting their website at CampusVoteProject.org, or following them on Twitter, where their handle is @CampusVote.

The website for "Generation Progress" is www.GenProgress.org and their Twitter Handle is @GenProgress.  Edwith Theogene's Twitter handle is @WhoIsEdwith and Charlotte Hancock's handle is @CharlatAnne.

Trump Worsens Climate Crisis Amid Wildfires; Author of New Book, "The Trump Women: Part of the Deal"

Leslie is first joined by Vijay Limaye, Advisor to the NRDC Action Fund, whose mission is to build political support for protecting the planet and its people.
The two discuss the unprecedented wildfires on the west coast, as well as a new blog on how President Trump is worsening the planet's climate crisis. The piece is written by NRDC President Gina McCarthy, and is titled, "Trump Fans Flames of Climate Crisis While West Is Burning."
The website for the NRDC Action Fund is NRDCActionFund.org and their Twitter handle is @NRDC_AF.

Leslie's guest during the second half of the show is Nina Burleigh, an award-winning national political journalist who covered President Trump for Newsweek and the author of six books. Her most recent book, "The Fatal Gift of Beauty," was a New York Times bestseller.

Leslie and Nina preview Nina's upcoming book, "The Trump Women: Part of the Deal," which will be released on September 22nd. The book explores the stark details of the forces that shaped Trump’s thinking about women, in a comprehensive, provocative, and critical account of the six women who have been closest to Trump. You can preorder "The Trump Women: Part of the Deal" on Amazon.com now.  It is available in both Paperback and Kindle Edition. Nina's Twitter handle is @NinaBurleigh.

Impact of Woodward Book on 2020 Elections, Youth Vote, Wildfires

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 new show, 'Deadline D.C. with Brad Bannon,' airs every Monday from 3-4pm ET.

Brad is first joined by Kate Ackley Zeller, Senior Reporter for CQ Roll Call.  Her Twitter handle is @kackleyZ.

Brad and Kate analyze the impact of the new Bob Woodward book on congressional races, fundraising numbers in the presidential race, and more.

During the second half of the show, Brad leads a political round-table with Nick Guthman and Mark Grimaldi.  The roundtable also discusses the revelations revealed about President Trump in the new Bob Woodward book, "Rage," and they talk about what type of an effect they could have on the presidential race.  Nick then details what he thinks can be expected from the youth vote in the 2020 presidential election.  

Finally, the roundtable finishes the show by touching on the devastating wildfires that are currently ravaging the west coast, and how they are fueled by climate change.

Nick Guthman is Co-Founder of 'Blue Future,' a national organizing program run out of the Youth Progressive Action Catalyst, a youth-led political action committee (PAC), focused on organizing young people around progressive electoral campaigns. His Twitter handle is @NickGuthman. The website for 'Blue Future' is www.OurBlueFuture.us.

Mark Grimaldi has been a progressive political activist for the past 12 years.  He has volunteered for the campaigns of President Obama (2008 and 2012), Senator Bernie Sanders (2016), Secretary Hillary Clinton (2016), and Vice 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 column every Sunday on the 2020 Presidential race 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 and watch episodes of his show at www.Periscope.TV/BradBannon.  His Twitter handle is @BradBannon.

Comparing Biden and Trump's Vision to Restore and Grow America's Manufacturing Sector

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.
For over a decade, Mr. Paul and AAM have worked to make American manufacturing a top-of-mind issue for voters and our national leaders through effective advocacy, innovative research, and a savvy public relations strategy.

The two discuss the 720,000 factory workers who are still out of work after losing their job at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.  They also analyze and compare Joe Biden and Donald Trump's different visions to restore and grow America's manufacturing sector, which both candidates outlined during the Democratic and Republican national conventions.

They also comment on Disney recent admission that some scenes from its new live action remake of "Mulan" were filmed in Xinjiang, where the Chinese government is engaged in a campaign of cultural and demographic genocide against indigenous minorities.  Critics of the filming location say that the riches promised by China's massive domestic film market are buying the silence — and even complicity — of Disney, which is one of America's most powerful entertainment empires. 

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

Explaining the MORE Act (Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement)

Today's guest host is Brent J. Cohen, Executive Director for Generation Progress.

On today’s show, Brent talks about an important piece of legislation that’s currently making its way through Congress—the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act of 2019, more commonly known as the MORE Act. 

At a high level, this piece of legislation would officially remove marijuana from the list of federally controlled substances, expunge federal marijuana convictions and arrests, and specifically direct resources to communities that have been most affected by the disastrous war on drugs started by Richard Nixon in 1971.

To talk with Brent more about the MORE Act, and the people and communities who would be impacted by its passage, he's joined by Maritza Perez, the Director of the Office of National Affairs at the Drug Policy Alliance. 

Here are the Twitter handles for today's guest and her organization: Maritza Perez - @MaritzaCPerez, Drug Policy Alliance - @DrugPolicyOrg.

The website for Generation Progress is www.GenProgress.org and their Twitter Handle is @GenProgress.
Brent J. Cohen's Twitter handle is @BrentJCohen.

Former Trump DHS Official: President is Letting Right-Wing Extremists 'Start a Race War'

Leslie begins the show by giving her take on today's news in her 'Ripped from the Headlines' news segment.

She's then joined by Michael Isikoff, Chief Investigative Correspondent for Yahoo News and Co-Host of the 'Skullduggery' Podcast with Daniel Klaidman.

Season 2 of Michael's other Yahoo News Podcast, 'Conspiracyland,' begins being released next week.  Look for more details on that by follow Michael on Twitter, where his handle is @isikoff.

Leslie and Michael discuss Elizabeth Neumann, a former assistant secretary of the Department of Homeland Security specializing in domestic terrorism, saying the Trump administration is allowing right-wing extremists to "start a race war."

Neumann, who resigned in April 2020, appeared on an episode of Isikoff's podcast, 'Skullduggery,' on Friday.

"There are multiple arrests that the FBI has conducted in the last few months at these peaceful protests where you have right-wing extremists coming in trying to take advantage of the cover of the protests to carry out these violent acts and they are trying to start a race war," Neumann said.

Neumann, who also worked under President George Bush, said more people had been killed by white supremacists in the US than every other domestic terrorism threat combined.

"[The most dire threat is] right-wing extremism," Neumann said on the podcast. "It is not antifa."

Latest 2020 Election News; Trump Further Inflames Race Relations with Kenosha Visit

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 new 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 latest 2020 election news, whether President Trump visiting Kenosha this week helps the situation, race relations in America under Trump.

During the second half of the show, Brad leads a political round-table with Tara Devlin and Mark Grimaldi.  The roundtable expands on the topics from the first half hour, and also discusses Trump's world-worst response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tara is a New York City based comedian, writer, and the founder of RepublicanDirtyTricks.com, also known as RDT Daily. 
Tara’s unapologetically-liberal podcast, "TARABUSTER,” is 100% listener supported, free from corporate influence, and 5-star viewer-reviewed.  
Join the resistance by becoming a Patron of Tarabuster and R-D-T Daily 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), and Secretary Hillary Clinton (2016). 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 column every Sunday on the 2020 Presidential race 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 and watch episodes of his show at www.Periscope.TV/BradBannon.  His Twitter handle is @BradBannon.

Trump's Anti-Union NLRB (National Labor Relations Board)

Leslie is joined by Tom Conway, President of the United Steelworkers (USW).  They discuss how the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), the federal agency responsible for protecting workers’ rights, has done the opposite under President Trump by becoming an avenue for silencing workers’ voices and defending corporations. 

Leslie and Tom detail the union-busting tactics of President Trump's NLRB, which have chipped away at long-established rights and practices that allow workers to organize for better lives.
(related blog here by USW President Tom Conway: https://www.usw.org/blog/2020/a-thousand-cuts)

For example:

·         The NLRB imposed additional required steps to the union election procedure solely to stall the process and give employers more time to squash organizing efforts.

·         The NLRB also made it possible for employers to withhold contact information like email addresses of employees, making union communication more difficult.

·         Employers can now legally discipline workers just for mentioning a union drive to a co-worker while at work.

·         The NLRB sought to overturn an Oregon ruling that employers could not force employees to attend anti-union meetings. If that gets overturned, workers will get hit even harder with corporate coercion and fear-mongering, weakening the potential for successful union organizing drives

If the NLRB overturns Oregon’s law, employers will ramp up the coercion and launch anti-union campaigns every bit as brutal as the one Kumho Tire waged against workers in Macon, Ga., three years ago.

After workers began an organizing drive with the United Steelworkers (USW), Kumho forced them into daily anti-union meetings—each lasting up to 90 minutes—in which the company repeatedly threatened to close the plant, haul away the equipment and eliminate their jobs.

Kumho augmented that torture with shop-floor conversations in which supervisors continually bullied workers and demanded to know how they planned to vote. The pressure tactics began the moment workers began their shifts each day, creating an atmosphere of pure hell inside the plant.

These and other unfair rules allow employers to viciously bully workers with anti-union tactics while forcing employees to stay silent or else risk losing their jobs. 

But the pandemic has also fueled the momentum for unions among many in frontline and essential jobs

·         From Whole Foods to Fed Ex and Trader Joe’s, workers have mobilized to gain union protection in the midst of the pandemic

·         The pandemic further widened America’s rampant income inequality and underscored corporations’ indifference to workplace safety, as workers at Cort Furniture and Orlando International Airport discovered when their bosses herded them into anti-union meetings despite the need for social distancing(!)
These and other exploited workers realize that only by organizing can they win family-sustaining wages, decent benefits and safe working conditions.

An NLRB that enforces labor rights is necessary for building better lives for millions of Americans.

·         The president nominates NLRB members and the NLRB general counsel, and the Senate confirms those nominations.

·         The current NLRB leans heavily anti-worker. The five-person board includes the corporate lawyers John Ring and William Emanuel, and GOP congressional staffer Marvin Kaplan.

·         The board’s general counsel, Peter Robb, is a longtime anti-union, management-side attorney, who has set in motion many of the anti-worker stances the current NLRB has taken.

·         To truly fulfill the mission of the NLRB and protect workers, America must have federal officials in charge who truly care about labor rights.

The website for the United Steelworkers is USW.org.  You can follow them on Twitter and Instagram using the handle @steelworkers.

You can also watch this episode here on YouTube: https://youtu.be/vJ7wXzoFz-g 

Comparing 2020 Democratic and Republican National Conventions

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 joined by three special guests to analyze and compare this year's Democratic and Republican national conventions. 
Brad is joined for the first half of the show by Amie Parnes, Senior Political Correspondent for The Hill and Co-Author of the #1 NYT Best-Selling book "Inside Hillary Clinton's Doomed Campaign."

Then, during the second half of the show, Brad hosts his provocative progressive political panel.
His guests for today on the panel are Tim Zenk and Mark J. Grimaldi. 

Tim Zenk is a Principle at 'Molecule,' a business and public affairs company, a former Democratic staffer, and a well known renewable energy expert.  His Twitter handle is @GreenCrude.

Mark J. 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), and Secretary Hillary Clinton (2016).  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 column every Sunday on the 2020 Presidential race 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 on Twitter/Periscope: https://www.pscp.tv/w/1lPKqLwQNYLxb

Or here on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brad.bannon1/videos/10157267861945880

Student Debt is a Civil Rights Issue

Today's guest hosts are Brent J. Cohen and Charlotte Hancock, Executive Director and Communications Director for Generation Progress.

On today’s show, they come back to a conversation from one of their first shows after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic and the resulting economic crisis took hold in the U.S. The student debt crisis has been a crisis long before the pandemic started, but it has long been clear that COVID-19 was going to make the crisis even worse for many student borrowers—especially for student borrowers of color and student borrowers working in the service industry. Since we covered the subject on our last show, the limited relief provided by the CARES Act, which included suspending loan payments and stopping collections on defaulted loans, has expired—which has left many borrowers in a very precarious position.

To talk with Brent and Charlotte more about how student borrowers are being affected by the pandemic, what the government can do to provide real relief, and why student debt is a civil rights issue, they are joined by Natalia Abrams, the Executive Director at Student Debt Crisis.  They’re also joined by Mike Pierce, Policy Director at the Student Borrowers Protection Center.

Here are the Twitter handles for today's guests and their organizations: Natalia Abrams - @nataliaabrams, Student Debt Crisis - @DebtCrisisOrg, Mike Pierce - @millennial_debt, Student Borrower Protection Center - @theSBPC.

The website for Generation Progress is www.GenProgress.org and their Twitter Handle is @GenProgress.
Brent J. Cohen's Twitter handle is @BrentJCohen and Charlotte Hancock's handle is @CharlatAnne.