There seems to be little Democrats adore more than lefty politicians who refuse to take the loss following a defeat at the ballot box. Among those politicians being former Democratic Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, who appeared on Tuesday’s Late Night With Seth Meyers.
Leftist host Meyers kicked off the night by wading into adulation territory:
We're taping this tonight before the results start coming in for the New Hampshire Primary. I don't need to tell you that your name is often bandied about as a potential V.P. pick for pretty much every candidate who's still in the race. I know you won't say if you have a preference for that, but do you look forward to the possibility of debating Mike Pence?
Abrams not so coyly answered: “I think it could be a very lovely experience.” To which Meyers, clearly salivating over the possibility of such a match-up, quipped; “It would be an enjoyable evening.”
Abrams then utilized the proposition as a therapeutic tool of sorts: "I have a lot of pent up aggression and some stark disagreements that I think could really lead to a vigorous debate."
Unsurprisingly, Meyers teed up Abrams to speculate on the impact of race in the campaign:
You -- I want to ask, a lot of people have been critical and have asked questions about, does it still make sense in this day and age to have Iowa and New Hampshire, states that take -- I believe their voting very seriously but are, you know, very white states. What would you propose as far as how the primary system worked?
Vilifying "white states" is after all the m.o. of the press during election season and long thereafter.
Abrams gave a typical identity politics response:
…We actually reflect the composition of the United States as we go through the process, because we give so much credence to this that it really needs to be reflective of the demography and the people of the country.
Meyers then proceeded to express concern over the strategy of 2020 Democratic presidential candidates:
You think there's not as much value in trying to flip Trump voters as there is in getting new turnout. Do you still believe that that should be what all the Democrats in the field should be trying to do?
The pillorying of America’s voter base continued as Abrams assailed Trump supporters for possessing unacceptable values:
We should be trying to convince people who share our values to live those values. I think Trump has helped us convince some of his former voters that they actually share our values and we want those folks to vote with us. But we should not be compromising our values to convince them that they want to come to us. If you agree with Trump after three and a half years of ignominy and demonization and sheer stupidity of his Administration, then mazel tov.
This is the person Meyers thinks will make a great Vice President of the United States.
Late Night With Seth Meyers
2/11/20
1:06:52 AM
SETH MEYERS: We're taping this tonight before the results start coming in for the New Hampshire Primary. I don't need to tell you that your name is often bandied about as a potential V.P. pick for pretty much every candidate who's still in the race. I know you won't say if you have a preference for that, but do you look forward to the possibility of debating Mike Pence?
STACEY ABRAMS: I think it could be a very lovely experience.
MEYERS: It would be an enjoyable evening.
ABRAMS: I have a lot of pent up aggression and some stark disagreements that I think could really lead to a vigorous debate.
(...)
MEYERS: You- I want to ask, a lot of people have been critical and have asked questions about, does it still make sense in this day and age to have Iowa and New Hampshire, states that take- I believe their voting very seriously but are, you know, very white states. What would you propose as far as how the primary system worked?
ABRAMS: Number one, they should all be primaries. I appreciate the camaraderie that a caucus creates, but the chaos is not unusual. As much as we were upset last week about Iowa, in 2012, the same thing happened for the Republicans. It's a systemic challenge, not just a, you know, did they use an app challenge.
MEYERS: Yes.
ABRAMS: But more than that, we need primaries that actually reflect the communities that are going to be casting votes. And so my solution would be that we rotate who goes first and maybe we have a few folks who go first. We pick a few southern states, some midwestern states. We let the west, you know, play if they want. But we actually reflect the composition of the United States as we go through the process, because we give so much credence to this that it really needs to be reflective of the demography and the people of the country.
(...)
MEYERS: You think there's not as much value in trying to flip Trump voters as there is in getting new turnout. Do you still believe that that should be what all the Democrats in the field should be trying to do?
ABRAMS: We should be trying to convince people who share our values to live those values. I think Trump has helped us convince some of his former voters that they actually share our values and we want those folks to vote with us. But we should not be compromising our values to convince them that they want to come to us. If you agree with Trump after three and a half years of ignominy and demonization and sheer stupidity of his Administration, then mazel tov.
MEYERS: Yeah.
ABRAMS: But our energy should be focused on those who believe, what we believe, that this is a government that should value and respect people, that should create space for everyone to be successful. And that should be a moral leader, not only here, but around the world. If those are the values you share, then we should talk to you and try to get you to vote.
