Kamala Harris in TSR News | October 14, 2024

 Auto-transcribed on Wednesday, October 23, 2024.media and text playback available on this page: https://aliceapp.ai/recordings/es0uRdSgA9CKF5Jn72PiZqW6EmlfD_VO

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Words: 	3,811 	
Duration: 	00:23:24 	
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Uploaded on: 	2024-10-23 01:40:13 UTC 	
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Speakers:

 Justin Carter - 27.79%

 Kamala Harris - 72.21%

Notes:

Summary by ChatGPT- Freedom as a Campaign Theme: Harris emphasizes "freedom" as a core message of her campaign, linking it to various issues such as voting rights, women's autonomy, and gun violence.- Focus on Earning the Vote: Harris stresses the importance of earning voters' support, particularly Black men, and rejects the notion of taking any group’s vote for granted.- Contrasting with Donald Trump: She highlights the stark differences between her platform and Trump’s, citing his history of discrimination and controversial statements.- Economic Initiatives for Black Communities: Harris mentions her efforts to support Black business owners by increasing access to capital through community banks.- Support from Barack Obama: Harris acknowledges Obama’s support while focusing on the broader message he delivered, warning about the dangers posed by Donald Trump’s policies.

[00:00:00]  Justin Carter 
 President Barack Obama, he, um, was campaigning for you in Pittsburgh, um, before some students at the University of Pittsburgh, which is my alma mater. And he said some things, um, that really ruffled some feathers in the news. Um, he said, it makes me think you aren't just feeling the idea of having a woman as a president. 

[00:00:19]   
 You're coming up with other alternatives and other reasons for that. We have not seen the same kind of energy and turnout in all corners of our neighborhoods and community as we saw when I was running. Um, so when you hear those words, I'm sure you were briefed on the situation. Um, you know, a former Ohio state senator, Nina Turner, she came out on CNN and said, why are you, you know, putting black men up against the wall and pressuring them into something that possibly, you know, they don't want to do if they want to vote for you or not? 

[00:00:46]   
 So my question to you is, do you think that what President Obama said was the right thing to say? I'm Justin Carter on ground here in Greenville, North Carolina, with the vice president, Kamala Harris. She's announcing something big, not only for black men, but for all black people. We also talked HBcus, we talked Beyonce. 

[00:01:08]   
 It's all coming up on a special edition and exclusive TSR news. Vice President Kamala Harris in the building. VP, are you with me? 

[00:01:18]  Kamala Harris 
 I'm with you. So good to see you again, Justin. Thank you. It's been so long since January, I realized. 

[00:01:24]  Justin Carter 
 Yeah, it's been like several months. 

[00:01:25]  Kamala Harris 
 Uh-huh. 

[00:01:26]  Justin Carter 
 And January, um, 2024, you invited us for an air force two trip from La to Las Vegas. 

[00:01:34]  Kamala Harris 
 I remember that. 

[00:01:35]  Justin Carter 
 And it was just with chef Jeff. We were talking about some policies that you were initiating, and now here we are. How do we get here? You smell good. You look good. 

[00:01:43]  Kamala Harris 
 Oh, that's better than smelling bad. Thank you. 

[00:01:47]  Justin Carter 
 I know. 

[00:01:47]  Kamala Harris 
 You smell great. 

[00:01:48]  Justin Carter 
 You look great. Do you feel great? It has been a whirlwind for you. 

[00:01:53]  Kamala Harris 
 Good. You know, listen, we have 23 days as of today until the election, and I am in these streets traveling and talking with folks. We're here in north Carolina. Um, it's very exciting. You know, what's exciting for me is, like, the rally we're about to do this afternoon in states around our country. 

[00:02:14]   
 People by the thousands are packing these rooms. But the thing that I love about it is people of every different kind of background coming together. And there's so much about how I feel about our message and our movement, if you will, that is grounded in certain beliefs, including the fact that the vast majority of us have so much more in common than what separates us. 

[00:02:38]   
 And it's so important to me that over the course of this campaign, we must win. That's our first imperative. No doubt. But that we build up community. 

[00:02:50]  Justin Carter 
 Yeah. 

[00:02:51]  Kamala Harris 
 Right. And coalitions. I think that's so important. 

[00:02:54]  Justin Carter 
 Mm mhm. Hmm. Uh, one big theme of your campaign has been freedom. 

[00:02:57]  Kamala Harris 
 Yes. 

[00:02:58]  Justin Carter 
 Freedom. Right? 

[00:02:58]  Kamala Harris 
 Yes, yes. 

[00:03:00]  Justin Carter 
 Freedom. Freedom. I can't lose. I'm not gonna mess up the words. And I don't wanna get sued by Beyonce. 

[00:03:06]  Kamala Harris 
 And there are a couple versions that she has. 

[00:03:08]  Justin Carter 
 I know. Did you call up the queen? Like, how did that work? 

[00:03:11]  Kamala Harris 
 Well, she absolutely gave me permission to use the song. I love her. And, um, have you met her? I have met her, but not since I've been running just now. But I have met her. And, um, she's just very special. 

[00:03:25]  Justin Carter 
 Yeah. Talk about freedom and what that means to you. Why that song? Um, it's just imperative. It's crucial right now what's going on in 2024. 

[00:03:33]  Kamala Harris 
 I think that there is so much about what is at stake that is, frankly, the need for us to fight for, for the things that we hold dear, that we have always had to fight for, but must continue to fight for if they're going to be intact. And frankly, just to be very candid with you, I am seeing across our country a full on attempt by some to attack these hard won freedoms and rights. 

[00:04:02]   
 Right. The freedom to vote. In Georgia, for example, they passed a law making it illegal to give people food and water for standing in line to vote, which the hypocrisy abounds. Whatever happened to love thy neighbor? You look at the freedom to make decisions for a woman, to make decisions about her own body and not have her government tell her what to do. 

[00:04:24]   
 The freedom to love who you love openly and with pride. The freedom to just be is under attack in so many places. And I mean, the freedom to be safe from gun violence. Right. And so there is so much about what's at stake in this election that really is about fighting for freedom, because the difference between me and my opponent, the former President Donald Trump, couldn't be more different on so many of these issues. 

[00:04:53]   
 And m so I'm so proud. And it always just gives me an extra pep because Beyonce's freedom is my walk on song in all of these rallies. 

[00:05:04]  Justin Carter 
 And, um, did you guys share a moment? You and Beyonce? I mean, you know, what was that conversation like? 

[00:05:10]  Kamala Harris 
 Well, she and I have. I'll tell you, the last time that I saw her was a couple years ago. At actually a BT event. And, um. I mean, she's, you know. And her mother, though, I've been seeing a lot recently because Beyonce's been on tour, she's been doing her thing. Um, Tina is so amazing. 

[00:05:28]  Justin Carter 
 Woman of the year, glamour. 

[00:05:29]  Kamala Harris 
 Yeah, she's very special. She's very special. She's been supporting me for years. And, um, she actually, the last time I talked to her, she was organizing, um, hairstylists and women who have salons and who are incredible small business owners to get involved around getting out the vote. Speaking. 

[00:05:50]  Justin Carter 
 Mhm. Of getting out the vote. You guys are on a HBCU tour. 

[00:05:54]  Kamala Harris 
 Yes, we are. 

[00:05:55]  Justin Carter 
 That's amazing. Come on, hu. You know. 

[00:05:57]  Kamala Harris 
 You know. You know, in fact, I was with a group of incredible, distinguished men last night in North Carolina, and we were all, you know, because we. And they were all, you know, there to support my candidacy and to talk about. There are a lot of them are business owners. But then, you know, we. 

[00:06:16]   
 I'm not gonna say we digress, but we definitely got into it about who went to which school. 

[00:06:21]  Justin Carter 
 Well, that was my m. That's what I was gonna ask you. 

[00:06:22]  Kamala Harris 
 And had a healthy level of disrespect for each other. 

[00:06:27]  Justin Carter 
 Oh, man. Well, this next question might be, uh, you know, a little controversial. So if you didn't go to Howard, is there another school? 

[00:06:33]  Kamala Harris 
 I can't imagine a world like that. 

[00:06:36]  Justin Carter 
 Would you be a Spelman? Do you like. Would you be a Spelman girl? Would you go to Famu? You know, they're very prideful down there in Florida, and they should be. 

[00:06:45]  Kamala Harris 
 And there is a reason that Howard is called the Mecca, and I'm very proud to be a bison. See, we have fun with each other, but you know what? We have fun with each other, because here's the thing that we know, all of us, whether. I mean, you mentioned all the schools, whether it be Spelman, famu, uh, Morehouse, I mean, all Shaw, all these schools, we have fun, banter among us that is absolutely rooted in a collective pride that we share about our HBCU roots, because it is a very special experience, and it is something that gives us a kindred, I think, look on life, um, about pride and about the pride in the success that we collectively achieve, um, a knowledge that we collectively stand on very broad shoulders of those historic leaders who graduated from each of these schools. 

[00:07:54]   
 And it is actually with that spirit and that sense of family that then we give each other a hard time about which school does what. It's in good fun. 

[00:08:03]  Justin Carter 
 It's in good fun. 

[00:08:04]  Kamala Harris 
 It's good. It's good fun. It's good fun. 

[00:08:07]  Justin Carter 
 Obviously, we're walking into a week where, um, you've been talking about really encouraging black men specifically to get out and vote about the numbers. I crunched some numbers at 03:00 this morning. Okay. Um, there was a poll on Saturday. It said that almost 80% of likely black voters would vote for you if the election were held today. 

[00:08:29]   
 In 2020, though, it was 90% of black voters overall. That was from the New York Times and Sienna College. And then in 2016, um, you know, they also had a poll, the Pew Research, um, center. They said 81% of black Mendez voted for Hillary Clinton, 14% voted for Trump. In 2020, though, that number jumped six, um, percent. 

[00:08:51]   
 So, um, 87% of black men voted for Biden, 12% voted for Trump in 2020. Um, so when you hear those numbers and you're seeing, you know, in the polls and you're seeing black men aren't as, quote, excited or fired up for you, how do you respond to that? 

[00:09:11]  Kamala Harris 
 Well, that's not my experience. 

[00:09:12]  Justin Carter 
 Okay. 

[00:09:13]  Kamala Harris 
 One, that's not my experience. Two, election day has not arrived yet. 

[00:09:16]  Justin Carter 
 Okay. 

[00:09:17]  Kamala Harris 
 And, um, the third point, that is probably the most important point is this. You know, um, when journalists ask me this question, um, I often will say to them that, let's be clear that your underlying premise is not an assumption, that I'm supposed to have black men in my back pocket in terms of their vote, and that I should be taking that for granted because I don't. 

[00:09:51]   
 Black men are no different from anybody else. They expect that you have to earn their vote. And that's why I'm out here doing the work that I'm doing about talking with folks, listening with folks, because I'm running for president of the United States, and it is incumbent on me to earn this support. 

[00:10:11]   
 And that is why I'm talking with folks about the work that I have done in my career, whether it be in particular as vice president, what I've done to put more billions of dollars actually into community banks to increase access to capital for small business owners. Even before I was running for president, I convened a bunch of black small business owners, all who were men, and I purposely convened them. 

[00:10:37]   
 I brought them into my ceremonial office at the White House to have a meeting about what their needs are and to make sure that they have the information about what's available to them in terms of financing capital and access to capital, um, support for what they want to do in terms of building or growing their business. 

[00:10:56]   
 So thats the kind of work I will continue to do. But heres the other thing that I think is equally important is pointing out that there are two very different visions for our nation that are being presented to voters right now. On the one side, youve got Donald Trump, who wants to take us backward. 

[00:11:15]   
 Donald Trump, who, lets not forget when he was renting his apartments and his property, refused to rent to black families. Donald Trump, who, as it relates to five young black men, they were actually teenagers and Latinos. The Central park five, he took out a full page ad in the New York Times calling for their execution. 

[00:11:41]   
 They were innocent. Donald Trump, who referred to the first black president and suggested that, remember the birtherism lies, that he couldn't have been born in the United States. Donald Trump, who in his project 2025, you know, the various things that would happen would include allowing it or making it easier for companies to not give workers overtime pay. 

[00:12:04]   
 Capping. We cap the cost of prescription medication at $2,000 a year for seniors and capped the cost of insulin at dollar 35 for our seniors. That's our grandparents, our parents. Black folks are 60% more likely to be diagnosed with diabetes. His plan would eliminate that cap. So part of the reason that I am out here talking with folks, listening to folks, is to make sure that I am communicating and letting them know about the real contrast that is being presented. 

[00:12:36]   
 Because my bottom line is this. I know the power that people have to make a difference, and I respect that power. And I am out here doing the work of earning then the vote so that we can get to the job of continuing to move forward. And for me, that is about pushing for an opportunity economy, which is about tapping into the ambitions and the aspirations of folks and doing the work of investing in community, investing in industries, strengthening our economy, and, um, giving people dignity in the process. 

[00:13:19]  Justin Carter 
 Now, you have a friend. His name is Barack Hussein Obama. You know him? 

[00:13:23]  Kamala Harris 
 I do know him. 

[00:13:24]  Justin Carter 
 I do. 

[00:13:25]  Kamala Harris 
 He recently Pittsburgh president. 

[00:13:28]  Justin Carter 
 Let's get it right. 

[00:13:29]  Kamala Harris 
 Yes. 

[00:13:29]  Justin Carter 
 Yeah. President, uh, Barack Obama. He, um, was campaigning for you in Pittsburgh, um, before some students at the University of Pittsburgh, which is my alma mater, and he said some things, um, that really ruffled some feathers in the news. He said, it makes me think you aren't just feeling the idea of having a woman as a president. 

[00:13:50]   
 You're coming up with other alternatives and other reasons for that. We have not seen the same kind of energy and turnout in all corners of our neighborhoods and community as we saw when I was running. Um, so when you hear those words, I'm sure you were briefed on the situation. Um, you know, a former Ohio state senator, Nina Turner, she came out on CNN. 

[00:14:08]   
 CNN, and said, why are you, you know, putting black men up against the wall and pressuring them into something that possibly, you know, they don't want to do if they want to vote for you or not? So my question to you is, do you think that what President Obama said was the right thing to say? 

[00:14:24]  Kamala Harris 
 Let me tell you, I am very proud to have the support of President Obama and that he is out traveling to talk with voters about what is at stake in this election. I am very proud to have his support. What is also important is one, to understand, as I said, I intend to earn the vote of everyone, including black men. 

[00:14:49]   
 Two, pay attention to everything that President Obama talked about, because he also talked about, at length, the danger of Donald Trump. The danger of Donald Trump in terms of somebody who has said that they would weaponize the Department of Justice against his political enemies, somebody who has referred to black immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, legal immigrants, as though they would eat their pets, constantly perpetuating tropes. 

[00:15:22]   
 Remember, he who Donald Trump, who said in Charlottesville, there are good people on each side of. So I think it's really important to focus on the stakes of this election. And there are two choices. Two choices. And I ask everyone to look at the background, look at the work, look at the words, to have a sense of how you then choose to use the power of your vote on Election day. 

[00:15:55]   
 But there is a very big difference between Donald Trump and how I will be president of the United States. And I cannot impress upon people enough that this is somebody, Donald Trump, who intends to take us backward. Look, this man won't even debate me a second time. He won't even debate me a second time. 

[00:16:16]   
 He didn't do the 60 Minutes interview, which I believe every presidential candidate for president of the United States has done. He will not take up the important responsibility that every presidential candidate has done of showing their medical records. Okay. I think, which I have done. Of course I've done it. I have done that. 

[00:16:39]   
 I have challenged him to another debate. I have given up my medical records. I did the 60 minutes interview. And one has to ask, what is Donald Trump trying to hide? What is his staff and his team trying to keep from you? And it may be the fact that, like the people who work closest with him, his chief of staff in the White House, his national security advisor, his secretaries of defense. 

[00:17:03]   
 Recently we got the report about General Mark Milley, who all in some have basically said Donald Trump is unfit to be president of the United States and is a danger. And there are many who are believing that all of this points to, uh, an individual who is also quite unstable and unfit to be president of the United States. 

[00:17:25]   
 Those are the stakes at play in this election. 

[00:17:28]  Justin Carter 
 One more thing I want to ask you before you go, and I think it's the fun part. I want to ask you about your plan for black men. It's something huge. 

[00:17:36]  Kamala Harris 
 Yeah. 

[00:17:36]  Justin Carter 
 That you have just released this week. We're talking about a million, 1 million loans that are fully forgivable, up to $20,000 to black entrepreneurs, men and women. Correct. Um, expanding access to bank accounts, expanding the child tax credit. Many things that you're doing. Housing, lowering rent, um, you know, making it affordable to buy a house for first time home buyers. 

[00:18:00]   
 Um, talk to me about this plan, just in summary, and how this will impact not only black men, but all black people. 

[00:18:06]  Kamala Harris 
 Sure. So, look, I grew up, um, I grew up in the middle class. My mother worked hard, she saved up, and by the time I was a teenager, she was able to buy our first home. I will never forget where I came from. Okay. By the way, my opponent, Donald Trump, was handed $400 million, basically on a silver platter and filed for bankruptcy six times. 

[00:18:30]   
 So just keep that in mind about who's coming from where. I know the ambitions, the aspirations, incredible work ethic that exists in our community. I know the dreams that exist, but not everyone has started out on the same base in terms of being able to realize their goals and their dreams. So my plan is to build what I call an opportunity economy, which means giving people an opportunity to actually achieve those ambitions, those goals, and those dreams. 

[00:19:06]   
 So, for example, housing is too expensive. The american dream is something that previous generations could kind of count on, but no more. So, one part of the problem is that we have a, uh, supply issue in terms of housing supply. My plan includes working with developers to do what we and home builders to create incentives for them to build 3 million new homes by the end of my first term. 

[00:19:34]   
 The second part, which is equally important, if not more, is to give people, first time home buyers, a $25,000 down payment assistance. Because what you and I know is a lot of folks want to be a homeowner, but they don't come from money. They don't come from families that can necessarily give them, uh, or pass, uh, on a home or give them the equity out of their home to help them with the down payment. 

[00:20:01]   
 $25,000 down payment assistance just helps people get their foot in the door to then save up to cover a mortgage. $6,000, um, child tax credit. I'm expanding the child tax credit to $6,000 for young families so that in the first year of their child's life, they have the resources they need to buy a crib, a car seat, clothes. 

[00:20:23]   
 Knowing that all parents have a natural desire to parent their children well, but not all parents have the resources to be able to do that opportunity. Small businesses. My second mother, our second mother who helped raise us, uh, was a small business owner. I know who our small business owners are for our communities. 

[00:20:45]   
 They are part of the cultural, economic, civic fabric of our communities. They hold the strength of hiring locally, mentoring, all that. So I'm going to change, so that the tax deduction for a startup small business, change it from what it is. It's $5,000, nobody can start a small business. Five thousand dollars to fifty thousand dollars, and include it in that. 

[00:21:08]   
 Knowing that a lot of startup businesses then have overhead around, for example, what they need to do to buy equipment for those who are startup and don't have the connections historically, a $20,000 forgivable loan for them to be able, for example, to pay, to set up a really good website so that their business. 

[00:21:34]  Justin Carter 
 PPP loans and how, you know, a mess. Some people were involved with that, the PPP loans and fraud and, and all of that fraud. 

[00:21:45]  Kamala Harris 
 Listen, I spent a career prosecuting people for fraud, so we will take care of the abuses, but that's not a reason to not give people an opportunity to thrive. You know, I think there is a real misconception that people just, and only their highest aspiration is to have a job. That's not where I come from in terms of how I think of it. 

[00:22:08]   
 The baseline should be everybody has a job. What we should be doing is creating incentives for people to be able to build wealth and build intergenerational wealth. But again, knowing that not everybody starts out on the same base, but when you give them a little bit to just compete, they will work around the clock. 

[00:22:28]   
 Good ideas, innovative ideas. And when they have just that little bit extra, it gives them what they need to actually get in there, compete and thrive. That's the theory behind the $20,000 forgivable loan. For people at a certain threshold to just give them the resources, like I said, to start up a website to buy the equipment they need, depending on the kind of business that they're creating. 

[00:22:54]   
 So that that's not the barrier to what otherwise is going to be their incredible work ethic and hustle to actually make a success out of their smart idea that actually has relevance to the community. 

[00:23:08]  Justin Carter 
 Wow. We are watching. Thank you so much, Vice President Connelly Harris, for joining us. It's so important that you're here talking with us. Black media. It's so important. 

[00:23:19]  Kamala Harris 
 Of course. Always, always.