During a softball interview with left-wing Democratic Senator and potential 2020 presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren on Tuesday’s Late Night, aired early Wednesday morning, NBC’s Seth Meyers wondered if the Massachusetts lawmaker was “relieved” that the Democratic Party was “finally” becoming as radical as her.
Clearly referring to the influence socialists like Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez were having on the party, Meyers asked: “You were here in 2014, and it seems very long ago, you were considered, at the time, the far-left end of the Democratic Party. There has been a progressive wave, it seems, post the 2016 election. Are you surprised it took this long, or are you relieved that it’s finally happening?”
Warren happily replied: “Oh, look, I look at this as people are starting to ask the fundamental question, who does government work for?” She then seized the chance to bash Republicans: “The Republicans passed this gigantic tax give-away, a trillion and a half dollars to giant corporations and bazillionaires. That’s who they think government should work for. That the rich and the powerful should get richer and more powerful.”
Minutes later, following that line of attack, Meyers teed her up again: “Do you take – I mean, solace is a weird word – but have you, do you find it notable that right now as we come towards the midterms, it seems as though the Republican Party is not actually running on this tax bill they passed which is the signature achievement of the first half of Donald Trump’s term in office?”
Warren slammed: “And stinks like three-week-old garbage. I mean, they are – oh, you know, somewhere else every time anything about that tax bill comes up.” That prompted laughter from the friendly liberal audience.
Meyers did actually devote a single question to challenging her on Democrats’ hypocrisy:
It does seem as though one of the things, when you talk about how the rich are being taken care of, money is obviously playing a huge role in politics. And I feel as though the Democratic Party also has to answer for the large amounts of corporate money they’ve taken over the years. Because you don’t take corporate PAC money. But do you think that the Democratic Party has to take a stronger stand against taking corporate money, or is that just the price of doing business?
The Senator immediately deflected the question by attacking the White House instead: “So, look, I’ve been worried for a very long time about the impact of money in Washington....But let’s never lose sight of the fact that the Trump administration is the most corrupt administration in our lifetime.” The audience responded to the dodge with cheers and applause.
Meyers wrapped up the interview by fretting that liberals weren’t doing enough to try to block President Trump’s nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court:
Obviously we have Justice Kavanaugh – might be Justice Kavanaugh. He is Trump’s pick for the Supreme Court. It strikes me that maybe progressives are not making the same push to stop this that they had made to say, stop the repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Do you think this is something that enough effort’s being put behind, or do you think it’s basically a done deal and he’s going to be our next justice?
After interjecting, “I hope not,” during Meyers’s question, Warren assured him: “So, you know, look, it is not a done deal.” She then ranted: “Donald Trump has made his nomination, and he picks somebody off a list that has been pre-screened, pre-screened by not one, but two right-wing extremist groups.”
Warren never actually explained what Democrats could possibly do to stop the appointment without a Senate majority, but at least she riled up her hard-left base of supporters. It’s clear that Meyers was happy to give her the media platform to do so.
The late-night comedian has built his show around liberal activism, eagerly providing Democrats with a friendly forum to push their talking points while routinely bashing Republicans and conservatives.
Here are excerpts of Meyers’s August 14 interview with Warren, aired early on the morning of August 15:
1:07 AM ET
(...)
SETH MEYERS: You were here in 2014, and it seems very long ago, you were considered, at the time, the far-left end of the Democratic Party. There has been a progressive wave, it seems, post the 2016 election. Are you surprised it took this long, or are you relieved that it’s finally happening?
SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN: Oh, look, I look at this as people are starting to ask the fundamental question, who does government work for? And boy, has that become even clearer over the last year and a half. The Republicans passed this gigantic tax give-away, a trillion and a half dollars to giant corporations and bazillionaires. That’s who they think government should work for. That the rich and the powerful should get richer and more powerful. My view on this, and a lot of folks around this country, is, no, government ought to work for the people, and that’s what this fight is all about. That’s how I see this.
MEYERS: Was it frustrating for you, having been a – you know, a politician who had always talked about the middle class and actually had taken steps to protect the middle class to see Donald Trump also frame himself as a hero of the middle class?
WARREN: Sure. But now, it’s not even about the words. It’s about what have you actually done? You give away a trillion and a half dollars to the richest and most powerful among us? I just want to think for a minute what you really could do if you were investing that money in America.
(...)
MEYERS: Do you take – I mean, solace is a weird word – but have you, do you find it notable that right now as we come towards the midterms, it seems as though the Republican Party is not actually running on this tax bill they passed....
WARREN: No kidding.
MEYERS: ...which is the signature achievement of the first half of Donald Trump’s term in office?
WARREN: And stinks like three-week-old garbage. [Laughter] I mean, they are – oh, you know, somewhere else every time anything about that tax bill comes up. You know, and that’s what’s remarkable about this. They passed it knowing it was unpopular. You know, it’s not like people changed their minds. They passed it knowing it was unpopular. Figured, hey, they’d spend a few bazillion dollars out running ads on it, and the American people would fall for it. And here's the deal, it's more unpopular now than it was when it passed. Because I think that really is the heart of where America is. I think we still fundamentally, fundamentally, down at our core, believe in the things we can do together. Believe in the things like health care is a basic human right, and our kids should be able to get an education without getting crushed by debt, and that seniors should be able to retire with some dignity, and that we’re willing to pull together to pitch in some of our money to try to make that happen, to build a better future for ourselves and for our kids.
MEYERS: It does seem as though one of the things, when you talk about how the rich are being taken care of, money is obviously playing a huge role in politics. And I feel as though the Democratic Party also has to answer for the large amounts of corporate money they’ve taken over the years. Because you don’t take corporate PAC money.
WARREN: Nope.
MEYERS: But do you think that the Democratic Party has to take a stronger stand against taking corporate money, or is that just the price of doing business?
WARREN: So, look, I’ve been worried for a very long time about the impact of money in Washington. You know, money just doesn’t talk in Washington, it shouts, it screams, it commands. But let’s never lose sight of the fact that the Trump administration is the most corrupt administration in our lifetime. [Cheers and applause]
(...)
1:14 AM
MEYERS: Obviously we have Justice Kavanaugh – might be Justice Kavanaugh.
WARREN: Yeah. I hope not.
MEYERS: He is Trump’s pick for the Supreme Court. It strikes me that maybe progressives are not making the same push to stop this that they had made to say, stop the repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Do you think this is something that enough effort’s being put behind, or do you think it’s basically a done deal and he’s going to be our next justice?
WARREN: So, you know, look, it is not a done deal. Donald Trump has made his nomination, and he picks somebody off a list that has been pre-screened, pre-screened by not one, but two right-wing extremist groups.
MEYERS: I will say, it’s just refreshing that anyone screens someone that Donald Trump picked. [Light laughter] Usually he just opens the door and like lets in 15 people.
WARREN: But not this time.
MEYERS: Okay. Gotcha.
WARREN: Not this time, because one of the groups, the founder of the group’s number one goal is to overturn Roe vs. Wade. So think about what that screen is that he made it on to this list. The other group, very hostile to government protecting health care for all Americans.
(...)
