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TRANSCRIPT
Jane Coaston: It’s Tuesday, July 8th, I’m Jane Coaston, and this is What a Day, the show thinking about how President Donald Trump invited Israel’s Prime Minister over for dinner last night. The pair celebrated their attacks on Iran, and Benjamin Netanyahu went for the full press flatter, presenting Trump with a nomination letter for the Nobel Peace Prize. Because he’s the poster child of peace. Sure. We’ll have more coverage of the dinner later this week. [music break] On today’s show, President Donald Trump is back on his tariff bullshit, and immigration officers stage yet another massive show of force in Los Angeles. But let’s start with the big question you might be asking yourself right now. After Trump got exactly what he wanted and signed his big Republican spending bill debacle disaster adventure into law on the 4th of July, what should Democrats do now? As far as I can tell, this was not the present voters were hoping for on America’s birthday. Markedly, few people are actually happy about it. Even conservatives. Because as we’ve talked about on this show a whole lot over the past few weeks, the legislation is a debacle and a disaster for poor and working-class Americans. It’s really good for the very wealthy and our very brave car dealership owners though, and Alaskan whaling captains. And Democratic voters are pissed. Like, really, really pissed. Like, House Democrats are telling Axios their constituents have told them, quote, “What we really need to do is be willing to get shot when visiting immigration detention centers.” Yes, Democrats are in the minority in both chambers, which limits what they can actually get done right now. Elections matter. But a lot of Democratic voters don’t care because they remember congressional Republicans in the minority seemingly running roughshod over whatever Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden wanted to do. And as they keep seeing the Trump administration trying to deport folks for thought crimes and sending immigration and customs enforcement agents in full SWAT gear to arrest folks with no criminal histories who have been here for decades, it sure does make the when they go low, we go high mentality seem a little outdated. It’s no wonder then that Democrats willing to go toe-to-toe with Republicans on their terms and on their turf, especially online, are gaining traction. Like independent Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, Democratic New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and New York City Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. At the very least, voters see them as doing something. So, you have a furious base, and an administration that is seemingly hell-bent on making the lives of pretty much everyone worse. How should elected members of Congress and the Democratic Party respond, both to Trump’s big disaster bill and to the onslaught of attacks from the Trump administration more broadly? To find out I spoke with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Leader Jeffries, welcome back to What a Day.
Hakeem Jeffries: Hello, great to be with you.
Jane Coaston: Okay, so the one big, beautiful bill is now law. What do Democrats do now?
Hakeem Jeffries: Well, one big ugly bill is a travesty. It will hurt everyday Americans and it’s all being done, of course, to reward billionaires. It’s the largest assault on healthcare in American history. It’s an egregious assault on nutritional assistance. Literally the extremists are ripping food out of the mouths of children and seniors and veterans. So I think what’s going to be critically important as we move forward is to make sure that the American people are fully informed about what Donald Trump and Republicans have just done to them. Now, the bill is very unpopular and poll after poll after poll, including a Fox news poll that had the bill 21 points underwater. And so I don’t think it’s going to be that difficult given the partisan nature of this bill, uh, to tattoo it on the foreheads of every single Republican, including the so-called traditional swing seat Republicans. Who want to act like they’re moderates when they’re at home, but they are voting for Donald Trump’s extreme agenda in lockstep.
Jane Coaston: I mean, I love to hear it, but what does that look like? How are you going to do that?
Hakeem Jeffries: Well we’re going to be on the road. Listen, we’ve been holding town hall meetings, literally dozens of town hall meetings over the last several months in Republican districts, because Republicans refuse to hold town hall meetings in their own districts. You know, I’ve said repeatedly, we’re in a more is more environment. We have to continue to do more. That’s rallies, that’s protests, that’s press conferences, that speeches on the House floor, that’s speeches on the Senate floor. It’s site visits at hospitals, at clinics, at nursing homes. Listen, the bill didn’t become unpopular on its own. It’s unpopular because Democrats have been pressing the case for the last several months, and we just have to continue to do that.
Jane Coaston: Now, Republicans have been stripping their constituents of benefits, or trying to for years now. I grew up in Ohio, conservative state, conservative region. That was my story growing up. States like Arkansas, Georgia, and Louisiana have all tried to implement work requirements for safety net programs, and it’s all gone horribly wrong. Republicans continue to dominate those states. So what can Democrats do to break through? Does the party need to do something different?
Hakeem Jeffries: Well, as it relates to these so-called work requirements, they really aren’t work requirements. These are red tape requirements. These are paperwork requirements that are trying to deny people who have the inability who have earned the benefits, whatever the case may be, whether that’s in Medicaid or whether that, you know, particularly SNAP, they qualify for the benefits. But Republicans are trying find ways to disqualify them. More than 90% of the people who can work in terms of receiving benefits, whether that’s Medicaid or nutritional assistance, actually do work. And so, you know, we’re taking um our efforts on the road all across America, and we’ve got 15 months now between the moment we’re in and when the American people will have an opportunity, as I mentioned on the House floor during my remarks, to implement Project 2026. And begin to end this national nightmare in the United States of America.
Jane Coaston: But I’m just I’m just thinking about mixing up the playbook beyond town halls and appearances, because as you said, more is more. In this economy that is dependent on attention. Do you think Democrats are there other ideas that you’re thinking about or that Democrats are thinking about to really draw attention to this, really help people recognize that actually, yes, your Medicaid is being cut, your SNAP benefits are being cut and you should vote differently?
Hakeem Jeffries: I spoke on the House floor for eight hours and 44 minutes longer than any other member of Congress in the history of the country for that very reason, because we all are going to have to do more to make sure we are bringing attention to just how harmful this bill will be in terms of the attack on Medicare, the attack on Medicaid, the attack on Planned Parenthood, the attack on the Children’s health insurance program and also the attack on the affordable care it’s the reason why more than 17 million people are likely to lose their health care as a result of this bill and we’re going to continue to point out that tens of millions more uh will actually experience higher premiums co-pays and deductibles So we’re gonna have to draw a clear contrast and find new and creative ways to reach the American people including the casual voter uh who might not otherwise pay close attention to what’s happening in Washington, D.C.
Jane Coaston: Yeah, I think that this is one of the few pieces of legislation in which, you know, I’m in L.A. And I’m hearing from people who don’t know anything about politics. I just heard about this bill. I’m really depressed about it. So should Democrats regain power during the midterms, as you mentioned, Project 2026 or even the next presidential election? Are there ways you can undo the harmful parts of this bill? I mean, a lot of it is harmful. But thinking about the net cuts to people’s health care and food assistance or the unwinding of clean energy tax benefits?
Hakeem Jeffries: That’s exactly why people should be hopeful, even in the moment of despair. Nothing in law is permanent because when the majorities change as a result of the will of the American people, the ability to stop bad things from happening that were set in motion in a previous Congress gets new life.
Jane Coaston: And what about in the interim, especially in regards to immigration? This bill throws nearly 200 billion extra dollars at Trump’s immigration enforcement agenda immediately. The administration says it will allow them to ramp up deportations even more. Just as the Supreme Court says it’s fine to send migrants to places like South Sudan, even if they’re not from there, people are terrified. To what extent is the Democratic Party ready to defend these communities that feel like they’re under siege right now?
Hakeem Jeffries: We’ve seen, whether that’s from Senator Alex Padilla, the Senator Chris Van Hollen, Congressman Maxwell Frost, Congresswoman LaMonica McIver, Congressman Robert Garcia. I could run through the entire list. Democrats showing up on the ground to defend the American people, to defend due process, to defend the rule of law, to defend law-abiding immigrant communities. And clearly, as we move forward, that will have to continue because of the intensity of the extremism that Republicans are trying to unleash on the American people. And, you know, we’re going to continue to make clear, we have to secure the border. We understand that. That’s what the American people want. That’s what the American people deserve. We have to secure the border, we have to make sure that we fix our broken immigration system. It should be fixed in a comprehensive and bipartisan way. But at the same period of time while we respect our heritage as a nation anchored in the rule of law, we’re also a nation of immigrants, e pluribus unum, out of many, one. That’s part of American exceptionalism. And so, as Democrats, we are going to defend dreamers. We’re going to define farm workers. We’re gonna defend law-abiding immigrant families. It’s one of the reasons why in my remarks during the debate, I dedicated a specific moment to meaningfully talk about this assault on law-abiding immigrant communities all across America and how that’s inconsistent with the American journey.
Jane Coaston: Finally, I wanted to ask, you have not yet endorsed Zohran Mamdani to be the next mayor of New York City. He resoundedly won the city’s Democratic primary. He’s the front runner. Why?
Hakeem Jeffries: We’re scheduled to meet next week, and as is the case with every single endorsement that I’ve ever made as an assembly member, as a member of Congress, as the chair of the House Democratic caucus, and now as the House Democratic leader, I sit and I meet with the candidate, the nominee. And I’m looking forward to doing just that. But we’ve got that meeting scheduled. Look forward to hearing about you know his vision for New York City. I look forward to talking to him about the communities that I represent in the Eighth Congressional District, and also on talking about the importance of taking back the House of Representatives next year.
Jane Coaston: What do you need to hear from him?
Hakeem Jeffries: Well we’re going to talk about a whole host of issues, but I think primarily what’s important to many of the communities that I represent is this notion that New York City is no longer affordable for working class people, particularly neighborhoods of color that have been overrun by gentrification. Now these were communities that I came up in, in the midst of the crack cocaine epidemic.
Jane Coaston: And that’s been the focus of his campaign is talking about affordability, affordability affordability.
Hakeem Jeffries: Absolutely. So when you asked me what I wanted to talk to him about, I look forward to talking to him about that very issue.
Jane Coaston: Do you think that he represents a possible future of the party in terms of how to get voters excited and engage voters online? You talked about that more is more strategy. Is that something other Democrats should be looking to Mamdani’s primary campaign to learn how to do?
Hakeem Jeffries: I think the one thing that was clear about his race is that he focused on affordability and that he outworked, he outorganized, and he outcommunicated the opposition. When you can do those things, you put yourself as a candidate in the strongest possible position, and I think that’s why he was able to win so decisively from an execution standpoint. The focus on affordability is something that I think all of us have to continue to lean into because the cost of living in America is too high. Donald Trump weaponized the issue of inflation as part of him actually being able to win the election and now he’s run away from it. And we as Democrats have to make sure that we fill that void because we authentically actually do wanna make life better for hardworking American taxpayers, for everyday Americans. Make things more affordable, of course, in New York City for the people that I represent, but also as it relates to the cost of living crisis that has impacted people all across America.
Jane Coaston: Very quickly. I wanted to ask a little bit more about third parties. The current mayor of New York City, Eric Adams, is running as one in the November general election. Former Governor Andrew Cuomo hasn’t ruled it out. Nationally, Elon Musk is threatening to fund his own third party. Does this is the two party system at risk of falling?
Hakeem Jeffries: I think one thing we have seen is that more and more Americans have chosen to not affiliate themselves with either of the two political parties. Now, I think there’s a big difference between Democrats and Republicans. At the same time, we do find a lot of everyday Americans saying they’d rather be unaffiliated or independent. And so we’ve got to do a better job as Democrats of reaching those people. Particularly younger voters, newer voters, casual voters, working class voters, particularly working class, voters of color in certain parts of the country, rural voters in other parts of the country. And that’s one of the things that we’re committed to doing as we move forward.
Jane Coaston: Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, thank you so much for joining me.
Hakeem Jeffries: Thank you.
Jane Coaston: That was my conversation with House Minority leader Hakeem Jeffries. We’ll get to more of the news in a moment, but if you like the show, make sure to subscribe, leave a five-star review on Apple podcasts, watch us on YouTube and share with your friends. More to come after some ads. [music break]
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Jane Coaston: Here’s what else we’re following today.
[sung] Headlines.
[clip of Karoline Leavitt] The president will also sign an executive order today delaying the July 9th deadline to August 1st, so the reciprocal tariff rate or these new rates that will be provided in this correspondence to these foreign leaders um will be going out the door within the next month or deals will be made.
Jane Coaston: White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced that the tariff deadline is, in fact, being pushed again. On Monday, President Trump announced a 25% tariff on imported goods from Japan and South Korea, which is now set to go into effect on August 1st if the countries don’t negotiate. Trump also posted letters to a number of mostly Asian countries on Truth Social, threatening tariffs between 20% and 40% should they not strike a deal before the next month. The deadline had previously been set for later this week. Leavitt was asked at the same press conference if the extension means the White House found its 90 deals in 90 days goal more difficult than anticipated.
[clip of Karoline Leavitt] No, it’s an acknowledgment that this administration is doing what’s best for the American worker and we want the best deals possible for our workers, for our manufacturing base, for our middle class, um and they are doing this deliberately and appropriately on behalf of our country’s interests.
Jane Coaston: Sure. Leavitt also said the president’s phone quote, “rings off the hook” from world leaders all the time who are begging him to come to a deal. Even though only three of those deals have been announced in the last three months. Wonder if his cell reception is okay because three out of 90 trade deals sure doesn’t sound like a lot. Maybe switching to Trump mobile will help. Dozens of heavily armed immigration officers swarmed a Los Angeles park on Monday with horses, rifles, and armored vehicles. They were joined by about 90 members of the still Trump-controlled California National Guard as they used a fleet of minibusses to block off traffic in the largely immigrant neighborhood. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass arrived on the scene shortly afterward and spoke at a press conference.
[clip of Karen Bass] Frankly, it is outrageous and un-American that we have federal armed vehicles in our parks when nothing is going on in the parks. It’s outrageous and un-American that the federal government seized our state’s National Guard. It’s outrageous and un-American that we have U.S. Marines who are trained to kill foreign soldiers overseas deployed in our American city.
Jane Coaston: Agents were confronted by protesters and the entire operation was over in roughly an hour. It’s unclear if anyone was arrested. One activist told the LA Times this is just, quote, “One big perverse publicity stunt.” The sweep comes after months of tension between the White House and California over immigration. The Trump administration has deployed thousands of California’s National Guard troops and the United States Marines against civilian protesters. And, as I mentioned earlier, Trump’s big budget bill dedicated nearly $200 billion for immigration operations that will make ICE the most heavily funded law enforcement agency across the entire federal government. The death toll from the weekend’s devastating flooding in central Texas has surpassed 100, with rescue efforts ongoing for the dozens still missing. While locals mourn the staggering loss of life and try to piece together what happened, misinformation and conspiracy theories about the origins of this natural disaster are swirling online. Cue Marjorie Taylor Greene, the ultra-maga Republican from Georgia, who seized the moment, posting on Twitter, she wants to make, quote, “weather modification a felony crime.” But, never mind what she says. No one is secretly making natural disasters more frequent. Climate change is. Scientists have long warned that a warming climate will make droughts, floods, storms, and wildfires worse. And that’s what we’re seeing. In 2024, the US experienced 27 weather and climate disasters that caused more than $1 billion in damage, according to the LA Times. Sorry, Marge, there’s no secret cabal making storms and hurricanes more destructive. It’s just plain old everyday, normal, terrifying climate change.
[clip of unknown legislator] According to the report, this systematic review revealed no incriminating client list. So what happened to the Epstein client list that the attorney general said she had on her desk?
[clip of Karoline Leavitt] Well, I think if you go back and look at what the attorney general said in that interview, which was on your network on Fox News, go ahead.
[clip of unknown legislator] John Roberts said, DOJ may be releasing the list of Jeffrey Epstein’s clients, will that really happen? And she said, it’s sitting on my desk right now to review.
[clip of Karoline Leavitt] Yes she was saying the entirety of all of the paperwork all of that paper in relation to Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes.
Jane Coaston: Girl. White House Press Secretary Levitt had quite the task during Monday’s briefing untangling Attorney General Pam Bondi’s Jeffrey Epstein file mess. A memo obtained by Axios from the Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigations concluded that convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein did not maintain a client list or blackmail those on said client list. And according to video posted by the DOJ, he died by suicide. Take that, conspiracy theorists. The news comes after the FBI and DOJ spent the first months of the Trump administration combing through what became known to conspiracists as the Epstein files. Conspiracists like FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Director Dan Bongino, mind you. Now that all of this has been put to bed, whack-job conspiracy theorists across the country were left grappling with the fact that their wildest fantasies surrounding the once-influential financier, who had been photographed multiple times with President Donald Trump before Trump was elected, we’re just that. Fantasies. Fantasies sold to them by MAGA influencers who are now part of the Trump administration and are now telling them they were fantasies. I wonder if there’s a lesson to be learned from this. Hmm. And that’s the news. [music break]
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Jane Coaston: That’s all for today. If you like the show, make sure you subscribe, leave a review, have the self-confidence of Elon Musk, who has a net favorability rating of minus 18.4 and still thinks he can successfully launch a third party and tell your friends to listen. And if you’re into reading, and not just about how seriously, if Elon Musk who has managed to unite millions of Americans in disliking him personally can think he has the strength and personality required to start a new political party for people who hate both heightened border security and USAID, then you can definitely run that marathon like me. What a Day is also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe at Crooked.com/subscribe. I’m Jane Coaston, and as always, dream big, because if people way, way, WAY worse than you are trying new things, why can’t you? [music break] What a Day is a production of Crooked Media. It’s recorded and mixed by Desmond Taylor. Our associate producer is Emily Fohr. Our producer is Michell Eloy. Our video editor is Joseph Dutra. Our video producer is Johanna Case. We had production help today from Greg Walters, Matt Berg, Tyler Hill, and Laura Newcomb. Our senior producer is Erica Morrison, and our senior vice president of news and politics is Adriene Hill. Our theme music is by Colin Gilliard and Kashaka. Our production staff is proudly unionized with the Writers Guild of America East.
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