The Leslie Marshall Show

Trump Created Humanitarian Crisis at the Border

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 Hope Frye, an internationally recognized immigration lawyer focused on disadvantaged populations, especially women and children. She is the Co-founder and executive director of 'Project Lifeline,' a nonprofit focused on children who are or were in immigration detention in CBP jails, ORR shelters or ICE family detention facilities. Their mission spans the child’s experience with the goal of providing continuity of care. They are the only nonprofit with a medical and legal programs.

Project Lifeline's website is www.ProjectLifeline.us and their Twitter handle is @ProjLifeline.

Hope and Brad discuss a new video that is challenging the narrative put out by U.S. Customs and Border Protection regarding the recent death of a 16-year-old Guatemalan migrant while in their custody.  Carlos Gregario Hernandez Vasquez died in a South Texas Border Patrol Station on the morning of May 20th, but not the way CBP would have the public believe, video published by ProPublica indicates.

Hope and Brad also analyze what's causing the disturbing trend that has led to six children dying while entering the U.S. after being detained by government officials since December 2018.

 

During the second half of the show, Brad is joined by Hope Frye's colleague, Dr. Dona Kim Murphey.  Dr. Murphey is the other Co-founder of 'Project Lifeline,' (along with Hope Frye), where she is the Director of Medical Initiatives.

 

Under the Trump administration’s Migrant Protection Protocols program (MPP), or “Remain in Mexico," asylum seekers are forced to stay in Mexican border cities for the duration of their asylum proceedings—a process that can take months or years. Since MPP was implemented in late January, more than 50,000 people have been sent back to wait in Mexico.  Matamoros is one of the Mexican cities where refugees have been forced to live while they wait for their asylum proceedings.  There are about 1,500 people living in a squalid tent camp in Matamoros, half of which are children, and according to Amnesty International.  

 

Dona and Project Lifeline just rolled out a new service this past weekend for the refugees waiting in Matamoros, Mexico, where they provide asylum seekers with forensic psych evaluations.  Since Dona was just in Matamoros this past weekend, she knows the latest on the conditions there. The cartel presence makes it too dangerous for humanitarian organizations to come in and provide regular food, water and sanitation.  However, CBP has deemed Matamoros safe enough for refugees to wait months for their hearings, and calls any accounts of kidnapping and violence “anecdotal,” yet the State Department warns U.S. citizens that it is a “Level 4 – Do Not Travel” region “due to kidnapping and crime.”

 

Dr. Murphey's Twitter handle is @dunkindona.

 

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.
You can read Brad's columns at www.MuckRack.com/Brad-Bannon. His Twitter handle is @BradBannon.

Nationwide 'Nobody is Above the Law' #ImpeachmentEve Demonstrations

Leslie is joined by Jonah Minkoff-Zern, Co-Director of Public Citizen’s Democracy Is For People campaign, where he works to build a national movement for our democracy by building grassroots support nationwide to get money out of politics and ensure all voters have access to the ballot. He has mobilized people to push for a constitutional amendment to overturn the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, helped win voting rights and other election reforms in New York state and coordinated national support for the Second Chances Florida ballot initiative, which restored the eligibility to vote to Floridians with felony convictions.

Jonah and Leslie discuss the over 470 'Nobody is Above the Law: Impeach and Remove' events taking place nationwide on the eve of the House's full impeachment vote.  Public Citizen, which is one of the sponsors of the events, available for signup at Impeach.org, had the following press release on the demonstrations:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – After two articles of impeachment were approved against President Donald Trump today in the House Judiciary Committee, a coalition of dozens of progressive groups and grassroots organizations announced that “Nobody is Above the Law” actions slated for the eve of Trump’s impeachment are now planned in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. (The full House Impeachment vote is tentatively scheduled for next Wednesday, December 18th.  So the demonstrations are tentatively scheduled nationwide for Tuesday, December 17th at 5:30pm local time)

More than 470 “Nobody Is Above the Law” mobilizations are planned across the country on the night before the U.S. House of Representatives votes to impeach Trump, with more than 100,000 grassroots activists signed up via impeach.org to rally in support of impeachment. 

Over the past three weeks, members of the U.S. House Intelligence and Judiciary Committees have built a case against Trump from the testimony and public comments of national security officials and diplomats who observed the president attempting to extract personal political concessions from Ukraine in exchange for approved taxpayer military aid and an Oval Office meeting. 

On the eve of the House vote, protesters will gather in front of the district offices of House members as lawmakers finalize their positions. They also will gather at U.S. Senate offices and other locations, as Senators prepare for a likely trial. Activists will call on lawmakers to uphold the U.S. Constitution and their oaths of office by supporting Trump’s impeachment and removal. 

The evidence is overwhelming that Trump pressured Ukraine to interfere in our 2020 elections, using U.S. military aid and a White House meeting to extort Ukrainian officials into manufacturing fake dirt on Trump’s political opponent and then engaging in a criminal cover-up. While Congress continues its work on health care, the economy and other important issues, it also needs to continue these impeachment proceedings because nobody – especially Trump – is above the law and because Trump’s corruption and abuse of power represent an ongoing and imminent threat to the integrity of the 2020 elections. 

Americans from Beckley, W.Va. to Los Angeles, Calif., are ready to amplify the need to impeach, hold their representatives accountable and declare that not even the President is above the law. 

Activists who want to get involved can RSVP for an #ImpeachmentEve “Nobody Is Above the Law” events via Impeach.org, or participate in a town hall or rally in their district. 

Public Citizen's website is Citizen.org and their Twitter handle is @Public_Citizen.  Jonah's Twitter handle is @JonahMZ.

 

Leslie interviews Democratic Presidential Candidate John Delaney on Healthcare and Trade

Leslie is joined by former Congressman, and current Democratic Presidential Candidate, John Delaney.  He won U.S. House District 6 in Maryland in 2012, and was re-elected in 2014 and 2016.  Rather than seek re-election to his House seat in 2018, in July of 2017, John became the first candidate to announce that he would run for President against Donald Trump in 2020.  Prior to his congressional career, John founded two New York Stock Exchange companies, as well as Blueprint Maryland, a nonprofit organization focused on the creation of jobs in Maryland's private sector.

John is the son of a Union Electrician and he and his wife April have four daughters.

 

Leslie and John discuss his Healthcare plan, his approach to Trade, Trump, and why John is running for President.

 

John's website is JohnDelaney.com and his Twitter handle is @JohnDelaney.

Trump Tries to Cut 3.7 Million Americans from SNAP, including Children, Seniors & Veterans

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 Deborah Weinstein, Executive Director for the Coalition on Human Needs (CHN), an alliance of national organizations working together to promote public policies which address the needs of low-income and other vulnerable populations.

The Coalition’s members include civil rights, religious, labor, and professional organizations, service providers and those concerned with the well being of children, women, the elderly, and people with disabilities.

Her Twitter handle is @DebbieWeinstein and the handle for the Coalition is @CoalitionHN.  The Coalition's website is CHN.org.

Debbie and Brad discuss President Trump eliminating SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) for 688,000 Americans.  This is the first of three proposed moves by Trump's Agriculture Department that could impact 3.7 million low-income people, and not only able-bodied adults without kids. The Urban Institute estimates that as many as half a million families with children could lose SNAP eligibility.

During the second half of the show, Brad is joined by Leslie Marshall's Executive Producer, Mark Grimaldi.  Mark and Brad discuss the Teamsters Presidential Forum that Leslie moderated, and Mark reported on, from this past Saturday in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.  This includes audio from former Vice President Joe Biden and Mayor Pete Buttigieg.

Mark Grimaldi, or 'Marky Mark' as Leslie Marshall calls him, is the Executive Producer of this show and a Democratic Activist. 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.
You can read Brad's columns at www.MuckRack.com/Brad-Bannon. His Twitter handle is @BradBannon.

The Fight 4 a Future Summit

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

They discuss Gen Progress' annual 'Fight 4 a Future' summit, which is taking place this week.  The summit brings together advocates, activists, and organizers in the criminal justice reform + gun violence prevention spaces, from across the country, to discuss their work and goals and to learn from one another.

To talk about their own activism, and what brought them to DC for the 2019 Fight 4 a Future Summit, Brent and Charlotte are joined on air by Chicago-based organizer Ronnie Mosley (Twitter: @RMosThere), and gun violence prevention advocate Karina Sartiaguin Vargas.

You can find more information on the summit at genprogress.org/the-summit.

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.

The USW’s Next Generation Program and the Future of the Labor Movement

Leslie is joined by Connie Mabin, Director of New Media at the United Steelworkers International Union. A third-generation Steelworker, Connie is responsible for overseeing the union’s digital platforms. She also leads the USW 'Next Generation' program that aims to grow the union from within, as well as in the communities where we live and work through education, mentoring, inclusion and community service.

The two discuss the USW’s 'Next Generation' program and the future of the labor movement.

Here are some of the points that they covered during the interview:

· The USW’s Next Gen young workers program was started as a way to educate, empower and inspire young workers within the union. The USW recently had their very first International Next Gen conference – a huge success, including a day of community service.

· This is nothing new in the USW, but it added some structure to what they’ve always done over their history. This was especially important as they lost a generation due to deindustrialization in our nations and continued attacks on organizing; Baby Boomers retiring; and many employers hiring new workers for the first time in a long time.

· The timing is perfect as today’s young workers are embracing unions in ways we haven’t seen in generations

- In a 2012 ACL-CIO study, 48% of workers polled said they’d vote to create a union in their workplace.
- In a 2015 UCLA study, 6/10 millennials expressed an interest in joining a union.
- Today’s young people are leading movements, using technology and social media to organize and willing to fight for change: a perfect fit for the USW.

· Young people are choosing the USW. They are growing and diversifying into various industries, making them younger and stronger. Their recent organizing wins at Google and drives at the University of Pittsburgh are examples. Next Gen is a huge part of this.

· Next Gen is one of many efforts to make the USW accessible, relatable and relevant to millennials and others. Their social media channels (Facebook,Twitter, Instagram,YouTube, etc.) their creative organizing tactics, and their many education and activists programs are others.

· The research is clear that unions are the great equalizer for young people, who, unless we do something, could be the first generation ever to be worse off than their parents and grandparents for a number of reasons
- Average union weekly earnings are significantly higher than non-union earnings
- On average, union members also have better benefits and more retirement security than their non-union counterparts.
- Strengthening workers’ rights is essential to reducing economic inequality for young people and others

The USW's website is USW.org and their Twitter handle is @steelworkers. Connie's handle is @ConnieMabin. The social media hashtag for the USW's 'Next Generation' program is #NG2019.

What Do Americans Think of the Impeachment Hearings So Far?

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 Paul Lisnek is a multi-Emmy, Cablefax, Telly and Beacon Award winning television host and analyst. Paul has been the political analyst for WGN-TV since 2008, appearing on all the station’s newscasts discussing political issues of the day. He is the host of Politics Tonight on CLTV, on which he interviews the leading political figures in the city, state and country, and also serves as a fill-in anchor. Paul has interviewed presidents, governors, senators, congressmen, local representatives and mayors too numerous to count over the last 25 years.

 

His Twitter handle is @PaulLisnek.

Paul and Brad discuss whether House Democrats have made an airtight case that President Trump attempted to extort Ukraine for 'dirt' on Vice President Biden in exchange for military aid.  They also analyze the response by Congressional Republicans to the impeachment testimony thus far.

During the second half of the show, Brad leads a political round-table with two guests who continue the impeachment discussion, including polling on the subject.

The two round table guests are Tim Zenk and Mark Grimaldi.  Tim 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 Grimaldi, or 'Marky Mark' as Leslie Marshall calls him, is the Executive Producer of this show and a Democratic Activist. 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.
You can read Brad's columns at www.MuckRack.com/Brad-Bannon. His Twitter handle is @BradBannon.

Presidential Politics: Battleground States, Young Voters and Trump's Control of GOP

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 Charlie Cook, Editor and Publisher for 'The Cook Political Report.' Charlie's Twitter handle is @CharlieCookDC.

The two discuss the findings of a new Kaiser Family Foundation/Cook Political Report Partnership Poll in the four key battleground states of Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin ahead of the 2020 presidential election.

 

During the second half of the show, Brad leads a political round-table with Nick Guthman and Mark Grimaldi, who discuss how the age of Democratic presidential candidates may be affecting their chances of winning their party's nomination.  They also discuss the work that young voters are doing in organizing support for progressive issues and candidates.  Finally, they examine why Congressional Republicans continue their full-throated support of President Trump, despite his impeachable offenses.

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, or 'Marky Mark' as Leslie Marshall calls him, is the Executive Producer of this show and a Democratic Activist. 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.
You can read Brad's columns at www.MuckRack.com/Brad-Bannon. His Twitter handle is @BradBannon.

Unpaid Internships and the Generational Wealth Gap

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

They discuss unpaid internships and the generational wealth gap.

Earlier today, people peacefully gathered in Freedom Plaza in D.C. to call on employers to end the practice of unpaid internships and commit to paying interns for their work. Unpaid internships can be financially difficult or impossible for many young people to take on, but having prior internship experience is often critical for young people who are job-searching. This ultimately leaves young people who cannot afford to take on unpaid internships at a major disadvantage for years into their careers.

To dive deeper into this issue and the people it most affects, Brent and Charlotte are joined by two current interns who helped plan today’s 'Interns for Change' Rally,
Griffen Saul—the co-founder and CEO of 'We Are Able,' an Advocacy and Community Engagement Intern at the United Nations Foundation, and Initiative Coordinator for 'Interns for Change.' (Twitter - @GriffenSaul)
And Jaylun Hutchison—an investigative reporting intern at Voice of America, who has also been involved in the 'Interns For Change' initiative. (Twitter - @BLACKLVRBOY)You can find more information on 'Interns for Change' at www.PayTheInterns.com.

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.

Congressman Ro Khanna on His New State Based Universal Health Care Act

Leslie is rejoined by Congressman Ro Khanna.  He represents California's 17th congressional district, including Silicon Valley. His focus is to create proposals for jobs in areas left behind and tax credits for the working class. He believes in exercising restraint in foreign policy, and takes no PAC money!

The two discuss 'the State-Based Universal Health Care Act,' which Rep. Khanna introduced this past Friday.  The legislation is a landmark step toward empowering states to expand health coverage to every resident. Recognizing the unique position of American states to lead the push for universal health care, Rep. Khanna’s bill provides states with historic access to federal funding streams and regulatory flexibility necessary to implement and support affordable, universal health care plans.

You can read more about the plan here.

Follow Rep. Khanna on social media.  His Twitter handle is @RoKhanna and his Instagram handle is @RepRoKhanna.