How to Protect Democracy and Build Credibility with Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist
https://youtu.be/f9JqokUSWEI?si=2D3IAVxEp0_nRdPJ

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Chapter 1: Welcoming Michigan Lt. Governor Garlin Gilchrist to the show.
0:000 secondsI think people are are certainly the the economic anxiety that people have is palpable. Gas costs more than $4 in
0:077 secondsMichigan right now. Um, you know, again, whether it's any whatever items you need to buy at the grocery store, they're more expensive than they were seven
0:1515 secondsmonths ago. They're more expensive than they were a while ago. Like that is a that's a thing that is going to be a defining characteristic and on the front of people's minds cuz they probably got
0:2323 secondsto go to the store after they vote. So that's that's never far from people's minds. This also is going to boil down to, you know, the the the candidates who
0:3232 secondswin their races this August are the candidates who are best able to translate that energy to people turning
0:4040 secondsout um to vote and and what communities are ready to be engaged.
0:4646 seconds[music]
0:5050 secondsWelcome to An Honorable Profession, a podcast focused on incredibly talented people who've dedicated themselves to public [music] service when their
0:5858 secondscountry and communities needed it the most. I'm Ryan Kuny along with Debbie [music] Cox Bolton of the New Deal. I'm lucky enough to be your co-host. The New
1:071 minute, 7 secondsDeal is an organization that supports the next generation of American leaders.
1:111 minute, 11 secondsCheck out new dealers.org to find [music] out more.
1:171 minute, 17 secondsMy guest today is Michigan Lieutenant Governor Garland Gilchrist, who's also currently running for Secretary of State. In advance of the upcoming
1:251 minute, 25 secondsprimary there, August 4th, he and I talked about the questions he's most getting on the campaign trail, how he's addressing concerns about AI and talking
1:331 minute, 33 secondsabout democracy and what factors he thinks will ultimately determine the competitive US Senate race there. He also shares why Michigan has lots of
1:401 minute, 40 secondslessons to teach national democrats, including what people want from their leaders right now and why showing up is key to building credibility. I hope you enjoy.
1:501 minute, 50 secondsAll right, Lieutenant Governor Garland Gilchrist, thanks for being with me today.
1:531 minute, 53 secondsThank you so much for having me. It's good to see you.
1:551 minute, 55 secondsIt's been a while. It has been. We It's been so nice to see you. Congrats on the nomination.
2:002 minutesI'm so excited to be our Democratic candidate for Secretary of State in Michigan. It's it's a state that I'm biased, but I know is the most decisive
2:072 minutes, 7 secondsone in the country. And so, uh, what happens here matters. What our voters do matters, and our voting rights matter here in this state.
2:132 minutes, 13 secondsYeah. Well, let's talk. I was going to say this is I think you are like ground zero in 26. Every eyes on Michigan right now for your Senate race. You got a
2:212 minutes, 21 secondsgovernor's race, statewide offices, um, and just so so much happening. Um, I'm just kind of curious as you are heading
2:292 minutes, 29 secondsaround the state talking to people, what questions are you getting the most? What's most on people's minds right now?
2:342 minutes, 34 secondsYou know, certainly prices and costs are are front of mind. Uh especially for just the things that we have to deal with every day. Groceries, health care,
Chapter 2: The most common questions and concerns Lt. Governor Gilchrist is seeing.
2:432 minutes, 43 secondschild care. Michigan was hit particularly hard by these Medicaid cuts uh that the Trump administration has
2:502 minutes, 50 secondsreally, you know, stomped all of us down with across the country. And it's a real problem, especially in rural Michigan.
2:572 minutes, 57 secondsAnd we've had hospitals that have had to cut back and some that have closed in part as a result of that. The people are really hurting. And you know, honestly,
3:063 minutes, 6 secondsthere was a a woman in Northern Michigan who I had a conversation with who made the connection very clearly to uh voting
3:143 minutes, 14 secondsrights in the Secretary of State office in particular in Michigan when she said that look, if Donald Trump is able to wreck voting the way that he raised
3:213 minutes, 21 secondsprices, then we're all screwed. And so this voting system is what we use to fix the systems that fail us. We have to vote for people who are going to, you
3:303 minutes, 30 secondsknow, hold corporations accountable and get corporate money out of politics. We have to vote for people who are going to vote down prices. We have to vote for people who are going to support more
3:383 minutes, 38 secondschildcare and healthcare for more people in more places. And when we can't do that, um, we lose that tool to fix systems that fail us. And so, um, I that
3:473 minutes, 47 secondsthat really resonated with me and and really is the reason why I'm running for Secretary of State of Michigan. You know, this office opens doorway all that change.
3:543 minutes, 54 secondsYeah, absolutely. And I was going to ask you about because, um, you know, you are lieutenant governor now. You've got you've done so much for your state on everything from early child care to
4:024 minutes, 2 secondsdiversifying your economy. I mean, so many different things. And now you are as Secretary of State kind of making this honing in on kind of the voting rights. Of course, we just had Donald
4:104 minutes, 10 secondsTrump recently do that crazy speech where he's talking about trying to roll back our rights. Um, and so, you know, and I I do wonder sometimes how much
4:184 minutes, 18 secondspeople are paying attention to the democracy side of things. That's wonderful that woman made that connection. Do you feel like that's do you feel like democracy is on people's
4:264 minutes, 26 secondsminds or how do you have how do you talk about it to make sure people understand why it's so important to all these other things like you were just saying?
Chapter 3: How Lt. Governor Gilchrist talks about democracy to emphasize its importance.
4:334 minutes, 33 secondsWell, I I want to make the connections and I try to make them very explicitly.
4:364 minutes, 36 secondsBut here's the truth. Trump talks about it all the time. He talks about voter suppression, what feels like on a daily basis, whether it's online or or in interviews.
4:464 minutes, 46 secondsHe talks about it all the time. Like, it's important to him because our power is dangerous. Our power, we have the ability to vote out people who cut
4:554 minutes, 55 secondsMedicaid. We have the ability to vote out people who are making child care less affordable than it already isn't.
5:015 minutes, 1 secondAnd so, I I think that the the stakes are being made clear every single day.
5:065 minutes, 6 secondsAnd we are seeing people tune in because they're thinking like I have to be able to do something about this. And so if
5:135 minutes, 13 secondsvoting is one thing I can do about it, then I'm ready to do that. And so I I am just uh that's how I've been able to make the connection clear. And I think that's starting to resonate with people.
5:235 minutes, 23 secondsAnd it's not just the people who are already or who have been previously super politically engaged. I mean people realize that we got to do something and
5:305 minutes, 30 secondsvoting is something you can do and that you should do. And I want to make sure that's available to every eligible Michigander and that we have systems in place so that it's easy and convenient.
5:385 minutes, 38 secondsDo you think people who are not running for Secretary of State should be talking about democracy as an issue in their campaign in whatever level they're running for?
5:455 minutes, 45 secondsI think they should connect it to the issues that are most important to their voters. And so again, I'm not asking everybody to run on election administration or election transparency.
5:555 minutes, 55 secondsThat's your job. But they should but they should make the connection that people have to vote for them in order for them to make the changes that they propose and that they're campaigning on.
6:056 minutes, 5 secondsSo the vote is the is the doorway to change. The vote is the key that unlocks those opportunities. And so I think everyone should have something to say
6:136 minutes, 13 secondsbecause we all have a role to play in our democracies just like we all have a role to play in changing our communities for the better.
6:186 minutes, 18 secondsYeah. No, I think that makes a lot of sense. I mean, another thing I wanted to ask you about is the this uh I was I was looking at your statement that you put
6:266 minutes, 26 secondsout um after that speech and you know, you talked about fighting for for Michiganders and fighting for the right to vote and protecting people's right to
6:336 minutes, 33 secondsvote. I do hear the word fighter a lot these days. I'm wondering a if you hear that when you're running around the country or around the state um talking to people about people wanting you to
6:426 minutes, 42 secondsfight for them and and what do you think that means to people? Like what are they asking for?
Chapter 4: What people mean when they ask elected officials to ‘fight’ for them.
6:496 minutes, 49 secondsSo I I definitely that is energy that people want to see um from people who are public officials and candidates for
6:576 minutes, 57 secondspeople who want to be public officials because what I see as a as people who for a generation have felt like the
7:067 minutes, 6 secondssystem hasn't worked for them. It's designed for somebody else's wealth.
7:097 minutes, 9 secondsIt's designed for somebody else's happiness or convenience. It's designed for somebody else's health. and they're doing [clears throat] all the things
7:177 minutes, 17 secondsthey're supposed to do, right? I'm working. I'm I'm trying to do my best.
7:207 minutes, 20 secondsI'm taking care of my kids and I'm still struggling while I see these people making more money than God and I'm not
7:277 minutes, 27 secondsgetting any any slice of this share. I'm running in place. And so people want somebody to beat back that system because that system has beat them up.
7:357 minutes, 35 secondsAnd so that is where I think the fighter posture comes from. It's that like if if if I have been trying to fight in my
7:437 minutes, 43 secondspersonal life and I've lost, I need somebody to fight with me so we can win. And and so that that's how it shows up.
7:497 minutes, 49 secondsAnd again, it can show up across a number of different issues. In Michigan, you know, we need to vote to protect our water and our environment, for example,
7:567 minutes, 56 secondsbecause we have more fresh water. 21% of the globe's fresh water touches the state of Michigan. And so we have a unique responsibility to be stewards of
8:058 minutes, 5 secondsthose resources and vote to protect them. Well, if our voting rights are snatched from us, we can't do that. We can't fulfill our responsibility that I
8:138 minutes, 13 secondsthink God gave us as Michiganers. So, so we have an opportunity, I think, to to assert ourselves um in this way. And and
8:218 minutes, 21 secondspart of being assertive is fighting for fighting what's wrong and fighting for what's right.
8:248 minutes, 24 secondsYeah. How do you square I didn't know that about the 21% by the way of the water. That's fascinating. Yeah. Um
8:328 minutes, 32 secondshow do how do you square? We hear a lot right now in the election season about outsiders, right? You've been lieutenant governor. I happen to believe very
8:418 minutes, 41 secondsstrongly that, you know, running on a record and fighting for people are not uh, you know, and a have actually
8:488 minutes, 48 secondscombined to make a pretty good um case to the American people. I think that essentially, you know, that I can deliver for you. But how do you think about that question? How do you square
8:568 minutes, 56 secondsthis kind of, you know, what we're feeling is this real, you know, outsider year or people who don't want people, you know, want to throw people out of office and make or do you see that as
9:049 minutes, 4 secondsmore of a Washington versus, you know, not Washington issue?
9:079 minutes, 7 secondsI mean, I'm always going to take a chance to throw stones at Washington
9:109 minutes, 10 seconds[laughter]
9:119 minutes, 11 secondsfrom Michigan. So, so say that but I but I think um I think this is about how you establish credibility
9:199 minutes, 19 secondsand I think what people get frustrated with or what people lose patience with
9:289 minutes, 28 secondsis people maybe who have been serving for a long time but don't feel like they are connected to or responsive to the
9:369 minutes, 36 secondscommunity that they serve in a way that they may have been when they first took office. So just because you've been serving a long time, that should not
9:449 minutes, 44 secondsmean that you get less and less connected to the community. But too often it does. And that's what opens the door, therefore for someone to establish credibility by saying, "I'm not them.
9:549 minutes, 54 secondsI'm you. I'm more connected to you. I understand your issues better than they do because they're off doing whatever those inside people do." I understand
10:0110 minutes, 1 secondwhy that resonates. And it but that but you can as a person who's currently serving the way that you protect yourself against that is by being
10:1010 minutes, 10 secondscompletely grounded and present in your community. You have to do the work in that way. What people want is people who
10:1710 minutes, 17 secondscan go into whatever role they are pursuing and make something work better for them as a resident, better for them as a voter. And so there are many ways
10:2610 minutes, 26 secondsto establish that credibility. Like, yeah, like I've been lieutenant governor for seven and a half years. But people also know that I am fundamentally
10:3310 minutes, 33 secondsdifferent than every other statewide elected official in America. Why? I'm an engineer. I'm a software developer
10:4010 minutes, 40 secondsspecifically. There are no other software developers serving in statewide elected office anywhere in this country but me. So, when we're having a
10:4710 minutes, 47 secondsconversation about protecting personal, private, and sensitive data from a Trump administration that's suing 20 plus states to get it, we're talking about
10:5510 minutes, 55 secondsprotecting our data or our communities from big tech companies incursions in all the ways they try to do it. By taking advantage of of local
11:0311 minutes, 3 secondsgovernments, by by doing shady contracts with with elected officials, by imposing data centers on people's communities.
11:1011 minutes, 10 secondsLike, they can't pull one over on me because I understand the language. I know what the plan is. I was in the industry and left it. I've started and
11:1711 minutes, 17 secondssold two technology companies myself because I know what I know. I can make sure that Michiganders are well spoken
11:2411 minutes, 24 secondsfor and protected against those who want to take advantage of them and do them harm. That establishes credibility for me that is different than anyone else may may be able to establish
11:3311 minutes, 33 secondscredibility. So, I think it's important that we as leaders make sure that our credibility comes through in a way that voters respect and are and are looking for from their public servants.
11:4411 minutes, 44 secondsYeah.
11:4511 minutes, 45 secondsLet's stay on data centers and AI generally. I mean, this is obviously causing people a lot of I'm married to a computer scientist myself, so I feel
Chapter 5: How AI comes up on the campaign trail and his approach to people’s concerns.
11:5211 minutes, 52 secondslike uh I'm a I'm by by marriage uh in this conversation. Uh but you know, there's there's people are well, I guess
12:0012 minutesI guess actually I won't I won't presume I'm going to ask it as a question. How much does it come up on the campaign trail? Are people talking about AI every
12:0812 minutes, 8 secondsday? And what are they saying? What are they come up every day? um every day in every community. Even if there's not a like, you know, a a potential or pending
12:1712 minutes, 17 secondsdata center in your in people's communities in specifically, yeah, they're still talking about it and they're concerned about it. Look, in a moment when so many people have
12:2612 minutes, 26 secondsreal anxiety about the future, so much of that anxiety is tied up in anxiety about technology, what it means,
12:3412 minutes, 34 secondswhat it's going to do, what its impact could be, has been, or or will be. And so this is very front of mind for people
12:4312 minutes, 43 secondsof all different ages, people working in all different parts of our economy, um people just at different
12:5012 minutes, 50 secondspoints of the political spectrum. It's it's very very present. And so, you know, I think about this and on data
12:5712 minutes, 57 secondscenter specifically, um you know, I I I get especially concerned whenever I see instances of corporations bullying
13:0413 minutes, 4 secondscommunities. Like what is our job as public servants if not to stop corporate entities from bullying our communities and in too many of these data center
13:1213 minutes, 12 secondsprojects, that's what we see. We see these big huge companies that are worth so much money, right? Like the biggest most valuable companies in the world
13:2013 minutes, 20 secondscoming to these small townships and communities and basically forcing a pro an economic development project down
13:2713 minutes, 27 secondstheir throats. Like that's not okay. You know, if you want to do something in my community, you need to do it with me, not to me. And and too often we've seen
13:3513 minutes, 35 secondsum that bullying happen. And that's and that's part of why people are fighting back. They don't like that. Yeah. Yeah.
13:4013 minutes, 40 secondsAnd how do you think about I mean I I I think of you as a very thoughtful um you know resultsoriented guy. That's what we've seen as you lieutenant governor.
13:4813 minutes, 48 secondsYou've delivered a lot. You've got you know and so I feel like this is one of those moments in politics where like everybody it's it feels it has to be so
13:5513 minutes, 55 secondsbinary and these are really complicated questions and as you know particularly on AI or whatever issue we're talking about. How do you thread that needle
14:0314 minutes, 3 secondsbetween like fighting for people, making sure that you're going to stand up for them, but also saying, "Hey, like it's not, you know, these are complicated
14:1014 minutes, 10 secondsquestions and how are we there's some nuance involved here, right?" And so, how do you to get to problem solving?
14:1514 minutes, 15 secondsYou got we got to get in the nuance. How do you thread that needle?
14:1814 minutes, 18 secondsWell, it starts with me with people having to um know first of all that I I care about them and their priorities and
14:2714 minutes, 27 secondstheir values. And I and we have to recognize that different people at a table have different priorities. And so it's important that as a public servant
14:3414 minutes, 34 secondsthat people know whose side of the table I'm on. So that's that I think that's where it starts. And then to say that there is a there may be a pathway in this situation to make something work.
14:4414 minutes, 44 secondsAnd I'm willing to find it because as you said, I am a problem solver and a solution builder. Like my job like what I learned how to do as an engineer is
14:5214 minutes, 52 secondsmake systems work for people. So my job is to find the version of this that does work for people or does work for this community. And in the event that that
15:0115 minutes, 1 seconddoes not exist, then I'm not going to like make them do something that won't work for the community. But I also am willing to be openminded to say that
15:0915 minutes, 9 secondsyeah, you know what, a community can have standards and that's those standards can be super high. And you know, I think again for a lot of reasons in Michigan, we should have super high
15:1815 minutes, 18 secondsstandards. Again, 21% of the freshwater in the world. We have we have the we're the biggest state geographically east of the Mississippi River. Like we have
15:2515 minutes, 25 secondscertain considerations that are different than other places and those should be taken seriously not just by the people who live in and work in our communities, but they should be taken
Chapter 6: Lt. Governor Gilchrist explains Michigan’s party convention process.
15:3415 minutes, 34 secondsseriously by anyone who would want to invest in or do business with or be present in our communities. And too often I don't see the latter part of that equation happening.
15:4215 minutes, 42 secondsYeah. I mean, you're making me think about the fact that I think it's really interesting. It's a little bit of a pivot, but um you guys have a super interesting system in Michigan, right?
15:5115 minutes, 51 secondsSo you've got the primaries, but you also have for down ballot under is it under the level of governor, you go through the convention process to become
15:5815 minutes, 58 secondsthe nominee, not on the ballot. Will you explain it to us?
16:0216 minutes, 2 secondsYeah. Yeah, absolutely. We are one of the few states that does use a party convention process to to essentially uh endorse uh some candidates for some
16:1016 minutes, 10 secondsoffices. So, in Michigan, as a Secretary of State candidate, um, I won my party convention process, as did our attorney
16:1716 minutes, 17 secondsgeneral candidate, as did the candidates for our state board of education, and the candidates for our three biggest
16:2516 minutes, 25 secondspublic universities in Michigan, the governing boards of the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, and Wayne State Universities. Those governing board seats are actually
16:3316 minutes, 33 secondsstatewide elected positions. And so those positions are all uh selected and endorsed at a con at a party convention.
16:4216 minutes, 42 secondsThe office of governor, all of our federal offices, all of our state legislative offices, all of our, you know, municipal county offices, those go
16:5016 minutes, 50 secondsthrough a a primary process and our primary in Michigan is coming up on August 4th.
16:5516 minutes, 55 secondsYeah. So essentially, your primary is over and has been since the convention.
16:5916 minutes, 59 secondsYeah. So, so I so I became our Democratic candidate um on April 19th uh by by being successful at our state
17:0717 minutes, 7 secondsparty convention and I'm incredibly grateful of that. We built the widest and broadest coalition of any candidate who was competing for any office that day. I'm incredibly proud of that. And
17:1617 minutes, 16 secondsthen so I will be formally formally now nominated to be our nominee at a party convention that will happen later in August after the primary.
Chapter 7: The primary issues he believes Michigan voters are most focused on.
17:2417 minutes, 24 secondsI see. Okay. Okay. So, it's kind of interesting though because I mean I'm curious whether there's so you your primary is coming up August 4th through
17:3217 minutes, 32 secondsOctober. We're not too far from when we're speaking and um uh and so you know that's what everybody's talking about, right? Obviously, you've got this big
17:4017 minutes, 40 secondsmarquee Senate race in particular on the Democratic side. Um so, you know, I want to I'm I'm curious about two things. I'll try I'll start
17:4817 minutes, 48 secondswith this one first. Um what what what do you think is going to what do you think the primary is going to come down to, particularly like in your Senate race? What are what are the issues that primary voters are most focused on?
18:0018 minutesYeah. I don't think you predict what's going to happen.
18:0218 minutes, 2 secondsYeah, for sure. So, I I think about I'll think I'll tell you I'll describe it on on sort of two axes. Um yeah,
18:0918 minutes, 9 secondsI think the first one that it boils down to is again we we are in a context and a
18:1718 minutes, 17 secondsmoment where so many people are are crying out for action. Whether that is
18:2318 minutes, 23 secondsaction that pushes back against a Trump administration that has been frankly dangerous and deadly. Whether that's
18:3118 minutes, 31 secondsaction that pushes forward a positive agenda um for people and communities and
18:3818 minutes, 38 secondsjust our values and asserts them in this really um fraugh moment. That's one set of things. So like I think that that posture we went back to kind of fighter
18:4718 minutes, 47 secondsposture or or whatever how that manifests itself. I do think that is something that people want to understand. Are you gonna go to uh
18:5518 minutes, 55 secondsWashington or Lancing and be someone who's gonna fight for my priorities?
19:0019 minutesWhether that's against Republicans or that's we even within our Democratic coalition. The other I think people are are certainly that the economic anxiety
19:0919 minutes, 9 secondsthat people have is palpable. Gas costs more than $4 in Michigan right now. Um, you know, again, whether it's any
19:1719 minutes, 17 secondswhatever items you need to buy at the grocery store, they're more expensive than they were seven months ago, they're more expensive than they were a while
19:2419 minutes, 24 secondsago. Like that is a that's a thing that is going to be a defining characteristic and on the front of people's minds cuz they probably got to go to the store after they vote. So that's that's never
19:3319 minutes, 33 secondsfar from people's minds. But then I think this this also is going to boil down to, you know, the the candidates who win their races this August are the
19:4219 minutes, 42 secondscandidates who are best able to translate that energy to people turning out um to vote and and what communities
19:5019 minutes, 50 secondsare ready to be engaged. Is this going to be a year where we see young people turn out like they never did before? Our state party convention, for example, was
19:5719 minutes, 57 secondsthe biggest state party convention in the history of the state of M Michigan.
20:0120 minutes, 1 secondIt was also the youngest state party convention in the history of the state of Michigan. So if that's any indication of the kinds of people who will participate in a Democratic primary, for
20:0920 minutes, 9 secondsexample, that says that we could have more people voting and more of them could be younger, that has implications for what you need to do to be able to capture the imagination and support of
Chapter 8: How Lt. Governor Gilchrist connects with all of the people in his state.
20:1820 minutes, 18 secondsthose kinds of voters. So I I think that's the things that the the the uh the candidates who are going to compete to serve the state of Michigan, um I
20:2520 minutes, 25 secondsthink that's what they're thinking about going to this primary.
20:2720 minutes, 27 secondsYeah. I mean, but then, you know, like we know, as you know, you you win the primary and you have to now turn to the general. And so, that was kind of what I
20:3620 minutes, 36 secondswas thinking about. It's interesting that you kind of can be already thinking about the general to some extent. Um, you know, uh before even the the the the
20:4320 minutes, 43 secondsother primary races are going on. Um, what do you think how do you think about that differently? I mean, you in particular had to go through a not just
20:5220 minutes, 52 secondsa Democratic primary process where, you know, a lot of Democratic primary voters are more moderate. you know, state parties tend to be a little bit more, I
20:5820 minutes, 58 secondsthink, uh, can be a little bit farther leftaning. Um, how do you square kind of the people you had to talk to to get the
21:0621 minutes, 6 secondsnomination in the primary and now how you're going to speak to everybody in Michigan that gets to vote for you in November?
21:1121 minutes, 11 secondsSo, look, I've been speaking to people all across Michigan for seven and a half years. As Lieutenant Governor of Michigan, I've visited all 83 counties of our state at least three times.
21:1921 minutes, 19 secondsThere's no one in the state of Michigan who's put on more work on the road in more places in Michigan than I have in in in decades, honestly. Um, I go and
21:2821 minutes, 28 secondstalk to people exactly where they are in Michigan and and and here and understand what's important to them, what they want to see going forward, and how I can help
21:3521 minutes, 35 secondsthem. That's the credibility that I lean on uh coming into a general election, that there is not a place in Michigan I can go and say that I have not created
21:4321 minutes, 43 secondsvalue there. And so now my job is to is to is to help people um realize their full potential and open the door to
21:5021 minutes, 50 secondstheir experience the state of Michigan more broadly. I mean the Secretary of State's office is that front door to experiencing all of Michigan. It's where you get your ID to be able to go places you couldn't go without identification.
22:0022 minutesIt's where you get your driver's license to be able to drive and explore all the beauty of our state. It's where you go to get your pass to go to every state
22:0722 minutes, 7 secondspark for the whole year. And it's where you go to get your voice to have a say in how our communities move forward as a
22:1422 minutes, 14 secondsvoter. So I want to open that door wide to everyone in Michigan. And I can tell people that I'm the most effective person to do that and they can support
22:2122 minutes, 21 secondsme for that even if they are not ideologically democratic because that is about respecting their voice. It's about a secretary of state's office that respects their time, delivers them
22:3022 minutes, 30 secondsexcellent and convenient services whether that's in person, digitally, remotely. make sure that I set the table
22:3822 minutes, 38 secondsfor them to be able to have a fantastic experience. Like that's that's my job.
22:4222 minutes, 42 secondsAnd so what I lean on is the fact that I want everyone to participate. I think that's the biggest difference between me as a Democrat and the Republican or MAGA
22:5022 minutes, 50 secondscrowd. Like they literally are fighting every day to make it harder for some people to vote. A smaller electorate they feel like is better for them, especially in a year when Donald Trump
22:5722 minutes, 57 secondsis not on the ballot. And so that's why they're they're they're proposing things that can make it hard for women to vote, especially uh women who are married and may have changed their names. To make it
23:0523 minutes, 5 secondsmore difficult for rural voters to vote, to make it less convenient to be able to register to vote, to drop off a ballot that you received in the mail, to screw
Chapter 9: Lt. Governor Gilchrist shares his concerns about the upcoming election.
23:1323 minutes, 13 secondswith the United States Postal Service, to have people question whether they could get ballots in the first place because they're ch they tried to to to
23:2023 minutes, 20 secondsset a rule to stop states from sending people ballots. That is literally voter suppression. So that is what I fight against in terms of this this because I
23:2923 minutes, 29 secondsrespect the people of Michigan enough to want them to have a say in how Michigan and how America moves forward. And so it it's my job to make sure that everyone
23:3723 minutes, 37 secondscan have that say and that's what I'm going to fight for and I think um people will see that that that's what I care about most.
23:4323 minutes, 43 secondsI mean are you worried about the elections this November? I mean we have a fantastic Michigan Secretary of State who actually also happens to be a New
23:5123 minutes, 51 secondsDeal leader running. she's running for governor, but um so I know she's fighting, you know, this currently and and you're running on these issues. Uh
23:5823 minutes, 58 secondsbut are what what are you watching out for, let's say, as we head into November in terms of anything you'd be worried about uh about having a free and fair election?
24:0624 minutes, 6 secondsI mean, look, the Trump and his allies, they are at least three things. They are committed, they are creative, and they
24:1424 minutes, 14 secondsare aggressive. So, I don't think they're going to stop until they can find a way to suppress people. I think they'll be as they'll do as they'll have
24:2224 minutes, 22 secondstheir lawyers do the wildest things they can think of, try to figure out a way to stop people. I believe that means that we have to be at least as committed, at
24:2924 minutes, 29 secondsleast as creative, and at least as aggressive when it comes to helping people, making the system work, removing barriers, and stopping these bad actors.
24:3924 minutes, 39 secondsAnd so, um, we we have been doing, uh, really really broad and aggressive preparation for all the potential, uh,
24:4824 minutes, 48 secondsdarts that could be thrown at us in Michigan. Um, ranging from, you know, novel legal challenges to federal agents
Chapter 10: What makes Michigan so unique and how that affects its political climate.
24:5724 minutes, 57 secondskind of just being in the vicinity of voting places and everything in between.
25:0225 minutes, 2 secondsand and we're exploring every every tool that we have to make sure that people know that they can vote safely, securely in Michigan, that it will be counted
25:0925 minutes, 9 secondsaccurately, and securely, and that our results are ones that you can take to the bank.
25:1325 minutes, 13 secondsYeah. I mean, I think it's going to be incumbent on all of us, too, right? Not just leaders like you're talking about, but Americans some, you know, to actually know that we've got to stand up
25:2225 minutes, 22 secondsno matter what is thrown at us and exercise the one right we have, which is can't be taken away from us if we want to have a, you know, a government that works, the government, the democracy
25:3025 minutes, 30 secondsthat works. So, I think that that's that's a really that's a really great point. Um, I want to just think for a second about kind of what if there are lessons that are happening in Michigan
25:3825 minutes, 38 secondsright now that national Democrats should heed. Um, what do you think people should know about the voters of Michigan
25:4625 minutes, 46 secondsthat they should be thinking about was whether they're running in 26 or they're thinking about running in 28?
25:5125 minutes, 51 secondsI think Michigan I'm biased. Okay. So, just let me preface it with that. But fair enough. I think Michigan is a really a state that is really reflective
25:5925 minutes, 59 secondsof this country as a whole. There's a reason why Michigan is is been has been consistently decisive in presidential
26:0626 minutes, 6 secondselections. Uh issues that matter to Michig Anders matter across the board across the country. And so we're we're a
26:1426 minutes, 14 secondsstate that has you know all sides of the spectrum. We have um a deep and rich
26:2226 minutes, 22 secondshistory of manufacturing of workingclass in the service sector and and all on all all different industries uh represented
26:3126 minutes, 31 secondsin Michigan. And we have, you know, elite public universities um that are some of the best that the best
26:3826 minutes, 38 secondsincluding, you know, my university, University of Michigan, the best university in the history of the world, um that are that [laughter] are excellent, you know, uh you know, higher
26:4626 minutes, 46 secondseducation institutions, um all represented, you know. So what can work in Michigan can work anywhere. And I think and it sounds basic, you know,
26:5526 minutes, 55 secondsDeb, I I'll admit that, but I think Michiganers respect who comes to see them. And I think that it is very difficult um to lead people who you scared to talk to.
27:0527 minutes, 5 secondsAnd and I think I think electors at their peril believe that they can um they can learn they can only learn
27:1227 minutes, 12 secondsonline and they can only win online that they can only learn or they can only win through the airwaves. I think you need to go see people. That's why I spend so
27:2027 minutes, 20 secondsmuch time on the road. Um and what I because you get a different feel um for what is true. like the truth feels
27:2827 minutes, 28 secondsdifferent when it is experienced than it does when it's heard. And so letting people know how you can have folks at that, you know, from a DC perspective,
27:3627 minutes, 36 secondsthey want to put people in certain boxes. You're an environmental voter.
27:4027 minutes, 40 secondsYou vote on gun rights. You vote on this. But when you actually meet an actual person, yeah, somebody who loves to to to fish and hunt does care a lot
27:4927 minutes, 49 secondsabout their water, that's an opportunity for a Democrat to talk to them about what conservation and respect for our
27:5627 minutes, 56 secondsfor for the the the sanctity and purity of our natural resources is. And I can get that person to vote against a pipeline, you know? So I think I think
28:0428 minutes, 4 secondswe have to you but you have to actually go and see that and and and and feel those layers and feel that texture in
28:1028 minutes, 10 secondsorder to make make things happen. But I know one thing about Michiganders in this state that was the uh you know the birthplace for the the modern labor
28:1828 minutes, 18 secondsmovement. I'm speaking to you from a UAW hall right now. Um the UAW sitdown strike happened that that really birthed the modern uh trade unionist slaver
28:2728 minutes, 27 secondslabor movement here in this country. Um, we know what it means to take collective action and we want people who respect
28:3428 minutes, 34 secondscollective action, who respect the right to organize because the power of many individuals grouping together can
28:4328 minutes, 43 secondsovertake and overcome and defeat any power, any corporate power, any unjust power. And that's something that's in our bones here in the state of Michigan.
28:5228 minutes, 52 secondsAnd and so I think folks should recognize that and try to build campaigns and operations that that are responsive to that and that can channel that kind of energy.
29:0029 minutesYeah. I mean it goes both ways, doesn't it? It's you're you're talking very um thoughtfully about how you know how how
29:0729 minutes, 7 secondsyou get to know people and they're more complicated and nuanced than we try to make them out. You know, some campaign consultants who are going to segment them out, but also they see you. And so
29:1629 minutes, 16 secondsto be able to be told or caricature a uh elected official or a candidate because you know you have a D or an R or
29:2429 minutes, 24 secondswhatever next to your name and then then I assume I know all about you. You're actually by showing up not just learning about them but they're saying hey that's that person doesn't talk like you told
29:3229 minutes, 32 secondsme they that he was going to talk or whatever. Right.
29:3429 minutes, 34 secondsI can give you a very concrete example of that.
29:3729 minutes, 37 secondsPlease. So look you you can't see cuz I'm sitting down. I'm 6' 8 inches tall.
29:4229 minutes, 42 secondsI'm a 6. I know that. I can attest to that. [laughter] you know, black guy from Detroit, right?
29:4829 minutes, 48 secondsUm, well, this was like, you know, about a year into the CO 19 pandemic. Really, really challenging time for so many
29:5729 minutes, 57 secondspeople in this country. Um, I was in a community in Northern Michigan and I was I was walking through their kind of main
30:0630 minutes, 6 secondsstreet area and the the township supervisor of this township was telling me about this restaurant that had been
30:1330 minutes, 13 secondsstarted by these guys who were from the community. They had left, you know, after they graduated high school and but
30:2130 minutes, 21 secondsthey had come back some years later and a bunch of them got together and they invested money in starting this restaurant and the restaurant opened in
30:2830 minutes, 28 secondsFebruary of 2020, like the the worst time to open a restaurant probably in American history, right? And so they
30:3530 minutes, 35 secondswere struggling. You know, we had these um you know, this guidance uh public health guidance as people couldn't gather in person in large numbers. It was tough for this restaurant. And the
30:4430 minutes, 44 secondsperson who owned that restaurant was pissed off about it and like ranting on on the internet about like, "Yeah, blah
30:5130 minutes, 51 secondsblah blah, you know, trash talking to our administration, all this stuff." Well, I asked the supervisor if I could talk to the guy. And he was a little nervous because he was like, "Well, he
30:5930 minutes, 59 secondswas really, I'm telling you, he was cussing at you on the internet. I don't I don't think that's the best idea." And I said, "Nah, let's let's see if we can get them together." And and you know, as
31:0831 minutes, 8 secondsfate would have it, as Providence would would would make way for uh the one of the restaurant tours, like three of the four partners and like some of the chef
31:1531 minutes, 15 secondswere able to like come get together with me uh at this restaurant like 45 minutes later. Okay. And I I sat with them and I
31:2331 minutes, 23 secondsjust tell me about this this place. Tell me about you. Tell me about why you started this. And they gave me the whole story, right? The guys that played football together in high school also.
31:3231 minutes, 32 secondsThey gave me the whole story. And I was like, "Look, I I'm a two-time recovering entrepreneur. I get it. This sucks." And
31:4231 minutes, 42 secondsum I I will tell you that like, you know, me and Governor Whitmer didn't wake up every day to think about who's whose uh restaurant we could close down.
31:5031 minutes, 50 secondsThat ain't how we thought about this.
31:5131 minutes, 51 secondsSo, just like it's not where it was coming from. And we talked about some things that would have been helpful to them. And I talked about some programs that we had that may or may not work
32:0032 minuteswith them. I didn't I didn't make him a guarantee that something would work, but I but I did say that I would have somebody on our team get back to him about what these programs are. And at
32:0732 minutes, 7 secondsthe end of the conversation, he said to me um something I I I won't forget. He said, "I wanted to hate you.
32:1832 minutes, 18 secondsI was ready to come in here and just give you a piece of my mind and just tell you off and tell you how stupid
32:2532 minutes, 25 secondsy'all are, blah blah." But like I realized that you were actually listening to me. You were actually interested in what I was saying. You
32:3232 minutes, 32 secondswere actually want to be helpful. Um yeah.
32:3532 minutes, 35 secondsAnd my take away from that was this. I I don't I have no idea if that guy voted
Chapter 11: Lt. Governor Gilchrist tells us what Democrats need to do to win elections.
32:4332 minutes, 43 secondsfor me in 2022. I don't know. Maybe he did, maybe he didn't. But what I do know or what I what I what I what I am very
32:5132 minutes, 51 secondsvery confident in is that if he was at a barbecue and somebody
32:5832 minutes, 58 secondsfor some reason started trash talking me, he'd be like he would tell them, "Oh, slow down now. I know he's a Democrat.
33:0733 minutes, 7 secondsI know he's believes in all this stuff, but I talked to that guy.
33:1333 minutes, 13 secondsI I I met that guy. I spent time with that guy. He listened to me. like I I don't I don't think he's crazy. And in that situation, I think that's a win.
33:2233 minutes, 22 secondsThat's a real win for building community. That's a real win for recognizing that we all are in this in this present and in this future together. And so, we might as well figure out how to do something together to make it better.
33:3233 minutes, 32 secondsI love that so much. I've got goosebumps. I mean, it it's it's it's it's right. I mean, it's that human connection. It's what democracies are
33:3933 minutes, 39 secondsbuilt on. That's what this country is built on. I mean, it's just we have to get back to that sense of whether you like to your point, we can even
33:4733 minutes, 47 secondsdisagree. You can just you don't have to believe everything I believe, but we certainly should be able to talk about it. You should know that I'm not the enemy just because I, you know, whatever. I I think that's so powerful.
33:5733 minutes, 57 secondsUm, let me end with a question that we've been asking people because, as you know, we're um putting together kind of a messaging series based on uh some of
34:0534 minutes, 5 secondsthe New Deal leaders around the country and what they're seeing and talking about where they live. So, uh, you can you can boil down what you just told me
34:1234 minutes, 12 secondsand if you'd like, but um, if Democrats are going to win, they need to blank.
34:1834 minutes, 18 secondsOkay, that's a good question. If Democrats are going to win, they need to blank. I like that. If Democrats are going to win, they need to make sure the
34:2734 minutes, 27 secondspeople understand that we understand that what is the things that have happened to get us to this point
34:3634 minutes, 36 secondshave not been successful or at least have not been successful enough because too many of our people are struggling.
34:4534 minutes, 45 secondsToo many of our people are not able to realize their full potential through no fault of their own because they are systematically held back or held down.
34:5534 minutes, 55 secondsWe need to make sure people understand that we understand that and that we urgently want to do something about that. That we are willing to fix what's
35:0435 minutes, 4 secondsbroken. We are willing to replace what has failed and we're willing to build what does not exist. And if people
35:1235 minutes, 12 secondsunderstand that, they will support Democrats going forward. I think that's right. Even if it means pissing off some people, which we're not always great at as a party to be honest.
35:2035 minutes, 20 secondsYou know who's you know you [laughter] know the voters are pissed off.
35:2435 minutes, 24 secondsThat's right. That's right. We got to do it. We got to do it from them. That's why why else are we doing this work, right? Why else will be doing this work? Exactly. That's right. Exactly.
35:3235 minutes, 32 secondsYeah. I love it. I love it. Well, thank you. So good to see you. Really appreciate your time today. So fun to talk to you. We'll be following you on the trail. Congrats again on the
35:4035 minutes, 40 secondsnomination. Super important job, Secretary of State. So, thank you for stepping up and doing that.
35:4535 minutes, 45 secondsI appreciate it. Thank you so much for having me. I want everybody to go to garlandilchrist.com to check us out. Sounds great. Good to see you.
35:5235 minutes, 52 secondsThank you. An honorable profession is a New Deal Leaders Podcast. And because we [music] keep things honorable, no tax dollars were used in the making of this podcast.
36:0736 minutes, 7 secondsThis podcast is part of the Democracy Group.

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