The next is a transcript of an interview with Rep. Ro Khanna, Democrat of California, on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” that aired on Nov. 10, 2024.
MARGARET BRENNAN: We’re joined now by Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna. He is in California this morning. Good morning to you. This was a tough week for Democrats. I haven’t got to let you know that, however Congressman, I imply, simply to stage with the American individuals, Democrats and the Harris marketing campaign advised them that the destiny of democracy itself was at stake. Was {that a} cynical political tactic, or, if it is actuality, what’s the plan now?
REP. RO KHANNA: Effectively, Margaret, I believe what was at stake is the degradation of American democracy, the coarseness of political discourse, the concept that you might have people who find themselves undocumented, 12 million, who could also be topic to a violation of their rights. The problems about local weather and the reversal on that. I’ve by no means stated that you just weren’t going to have future elections, and I used to be by no means certainly one of these individuals who stated you are not going to have 2026 or 2028 in a single or two years, Donald Trump goes to be a lame duck. However I do assume that we’d like to verify we get up for individuals’s rights on this nation and are wanting ahead and what we will do to win again the Home and the White Home.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Once we have a look at CBS polling, if you evaluate Harris in 2024 to Biden in 2020 you see clearly that the Democratic coalition misplaced help amongst Latino voters, younger voters, ladies. Republicans actually made good points right here with males of coloration as properly. Why do you assume there may be this fracturing?
REP. RO KHANNA: We didn’t have a compelling sufficient financial imaginative and prescient. The Democratic Occasion ought to have one easy mission, and that’s to deal with the financial hardships and struggles of many People, not simply working class People, a big slice of People who really feel the American Dream has slipped away for his or her households and their youngsters, and you’ve got new voices Congress, individuals like Pat Ryan, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, Chris Deluzio, who’re saying, look, we have to have a imaginative and prescient on constructing new factories, on serving to increase minimal wage, on coping with little one care, and emphasize that our social gathering has a greater financial story. I believe that might unify our social gathering, moderates and progressives. And it transcends race and can assist us with Latino voters, Black voters, white working class voters, and we’ve a greater imaginative and prescient than Donald Trump on that.
MARGARET BRENNAN: , it is fascinating on this Monday morning quarterbacking that is taking place to listen to from so many Democrats now, who’re saying that they assume that financial message ought to have been entrance and heart, however that they felt constrained one way or the other by this deal with identification politics. Tom Suozzi of New York introduced that up speaking about Republicans with the ability to weaponize anarchy on faculty campuses, defunding the police and gender questions and women sports activities. Do you assume this, you already know, motion “woke” politics actually was extremely damaging to the left, as a result of a big a part of that got here from the progressive wing in, of which you’re a member.
REP. RO KHANNA: Effectively, I’ve all the time stated that we have to be emphasizing the financial points, however I do not assume we should always run away for standing up for trans rights, for standing up for equal rights for individuals, for instructing American historical past responsibly. You will be true to your values with two issues, Margaret. One, if somebody disagrees with you, we have to respect that disagreement, not cancel or disgrace them. Do not draw back out of your convictions, however have an inexpensive dialog. I did that with Megyn Kelly on a podcast on trans rights. I caught to my place, however we had an inexpensive dialog. The second factor is, if we emphasize the financial hardships individuals are going through, I’ve received $12 trillion in my district in Silicon Valley, whereas cities like Johnstown had been hollowed out. Galesburg, Illinois had been hollowed out. We will construct new factories. We will construct new trade. We will create new financial alternative. We have now a imaginative and prescient of how to do this. Biden -President Biden began it. I believe we will win over individuals, even when they could not agree with us on a specific social problem.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Let me ask you particularly about your district. Because you simply talked about it, Silicon Valley was regarded as reliably blue, however significantly on this election, you noticed cash going in direction of Donald Trump. You’ve got seen some very outstanding tech names, Elon Musk, considerably. And JD Vance, the vice-presidential candidate. He actually reached out into that tech neighborhood as a part of that marketing campaign. What’s the factor that Silicon Valley thinks it will get from a Trump administration? Is it, is it no taxes on capital good points? Is it not regulating crypto? What’s it that the individuals in your district assume they’re getting from Donald Trump?
REP. RO KHANNA: Effectively, to begin with, Margaret, 70% of Silicon Valley nonetheless supported Vice President Harris and Democrats —
MARGARET BRENNAN: – Sure
REP. KHANNA: However you are proper that we had a slippage and doubtless now 20-30% help Donald Trump. They’ve totally different causes for doing it. A few of them need extra free speech. A few of them need deregulation. A few of them need tax cuts. A few of them need AI to not be regulated. A few of them had been involved on crypto. However I believe what the Democrats have to remind of us of, and I’ve reminded Elon of this, is that Tesla received funding from President Obama. SpaceX received began as a result of Ash Carter, underneath President Obama, helped Elon get that facility. The Democrats are the social gathering that has invested within the science and expertise to assist construct Silicon Valley, and we will be the social gathering that helps AI robotics, construct new factories, construct new trade in several elements of the nation. Once we argue coverage, we’ve a greater imaginative and prescient for the way to get People prosperity in a contemporary economic system. And if we deal with that, I consider we’ll win again the bulk and win again in 2028.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Former Speaker Pelosi advised The New York Instances there have been messaging errors, sure, however she additionally stated there ought to have been an open main system right here, and that President Biden’s choice to endorse Vice President Harris instantly made it inconceivable. Do you agree together with her?
REP. RO KHANNA: Effectively, look, I’ve a whole lot of respect for Speaker Pelosi, however I’ve kind of chuckled when individuals have stated this about President Biden, as a result of the day he received out, we had Democrats with probably the most excessive superlatives evaluating him to George Washington, saying he did probably the most honorable factor. So now to return and criticize him appears a bit contradictory. I believe this was a winnable marketing campaign. Even when he received out, Vice President Harris was 5 factors up in a few of the polls. Anybody who’s saying now, this was not a winnable marketing campaign, did not say that again in August. The explanation we did not win, finally, is we did not hear sufficient to individuals on the bottom, individuals like Chris Deluzio, Pat Ryan, who had been saying, discuss in regards to the economic system, discuss individuals’s financial struggles. Have- persuade individuals you might have the higher insurance policies and higher imaginative and prescient. The explanation I am looking forward to the long run is we’ve the substance. We actually- you possibly can’t construct new factories simply with tariffs and tax cuts. You want federal financing. We have now precise funding in apprenticeships. And I believe over the long term, the American individuals will see the reality of the coverage concepts.
MARGARET BRENNAN: You had been a surrogate for Joe Biden. You had been then a surrogate for Kamala Harris, and on this program, you defended each. Many occasions, one place you probably did create house was on the problem of Gaza. You stated, if you had been going to school campuses, if you had been speaking to progressives, if you had been speaking to voters of coloration, not simply Arabs and Muslims. You heard there was an issue right here. Do you assume that the numbers you noticed, significantly in Michigan, vindicated your viewpoint, or was there only a larger power at work?
REP. RO KHANNA: I believe she would have actually received Michigan if there was extra of a reckoning with the failures of coverage on Gaza. That wasn’t my viewpoint. That was the viewpoint of lots of people I used to be listening to on the bottom. I additionally assume past Michigan, this actually was a priority for lots of younger individuals and a whole lot of progressives. Now my hope is as a result of President Trump received a few of the votes for the Muslim and Arab neighborhood. I used to be simply on a bipartisan CODEL in Saudi Arabia. They’ve stated that if the President needs a cope with Saudi Arabia, that the Palestinian state and a two state resolution must be entrance and heart. And I hope we will work in direction of truly doing that after the struggle.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Ro Khanna, Congressman, thanks very a lot on your time right now. We’ll be proper again.
