>> THERE IS A DUALITY TO THE NATURE OF DEMOCRACY, INCREDIBLY STRONG. AND INCREDIBLY FRAGILE. >> WE NEED TO PRESERVE OUR DEMOCRACY. IN 2024, WE NEED YOU TO VOTE I LITTLE IRONIC MAYBE SINCE HE IS THE GUY GOT THROWN OUT BY HIS OWN PARTY, A MONTH AND A BREATH AGO THROWN OUT LIKE A CHEAP RUG. THE DEMOCRATS ARE RUTHLESS THEY WILL DO ANYTHING IF THIS MEANS THEY HAVE A REAL SHOT AT WINNING. >> SOMETIMES YOU JUST HAVE TO TAKE A PUNCH FOR THE CHILDREN. [LAUGHTER] >> AND THAT'S WHAT YOU ARE DOING RIGHT NOW YOU? ARE JUST GOING TO TAKE THE PUNCH FOR THE CHILDREN? >> WHO IS PURGING RIGHT NOW? >> I DON'T KNOW. >> EVERYBODY WANTS TO HAVE A FIGHT WITH NANCY PELOSI AT THIS TIME. >> DO YOU KNOW WHAT? I HAVE HAVE TO DO WHAT I HAVE TO DO. >> RIGHT. >> HE MADE THE DECISION FOR THE COUNTRY. >> >> Laura: DO YOU KNOW WHAT WE CALL HER NANCY THE GAVEL PELOSI. OKAY. DON'T MESS WITH NANCY. BUT BIDEN REVEALED LAST NIGHT THAT THE TWO HAVE GROWN A BIT DISTANT OVER THE PAST MONTH, SHOCKING, SINCE BEFORE HE OFFICIALLY DROPPED OUT OF THE RACE. JOINING ME NOW IS MINNESOTA CONGRESSMAN DEAN PHILLIPS FORMER 2024 DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT. CONGRESSMAN, YOU PRIMARIED BIDEN AND THE DEMOCRATS TRIED TO SHUT YOU OUT. NOW THEY ARE THE PARTY OF SAVING DEMOCRACY. WHY DIDN'T THEY GIVE DEMOCRACY A SHOT WHEN YOU WERE CONCERNED? WELL, I WILL TELL YOU, LAURA, THAT WAS MY MISSION. THIS IS UNIVERSAL. I WOULDN'T SAY ONE PARTY IS EXCEPTIONAL AT THE PRACTICE OF DEMOCRACY RIGHT NOW. AND I BELIEVE IN COMPETITION. I WAS TERRIBLY DISAPPOINTED THAT MY PARTY SHUT IT DOWN. I THINK WE SHOULDN'T BE SUPPRESSING DEBATE. WE SHOULDN'T BE CANCELING PEOPLE. WE SHOULD BE HAVING MORE IT. AND THAT'S MY MISSION RIGHT NOW. WAS I DISAPPOINTED? YEAH. BUT AM I PLEASED WITH THE OUTCOME? I ACTUALLY REALLY AM. NOT PLEASED THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE A THOUGHTFUL COMPETITION BUT PLEASED THAT THE MAN WHO I RESPECT BUT WAS NOT GOING TO WIN WAS KIND OF ENOUGH, THOUGHTFUL ENOUGH AND HAD ENOUGH COURAGE TO ACTUALLY HAND POWER OVER WHICH IS NOT. >> Laura: DO YOU THINK HE WROTE THAT LETTER? DO YOU THINK HE WROTE THAT RESIGNATION LEFT. >> NO. HE PROBABLY HAD HELP WHICH IS WHAT ALL PRESIDENTS HAVE HELP. LOOK, I WANT TO CELEBRATE, IT'S REALLY RARE IN HUMAN HISTORY LET ALONE AMERICAN HISTORY WHERE THOSE IN POWER ELECTIVELY HAND IT OVER. >> Laura: NOT ELECTIVELY, NANCY THE GAVEL PELOSI TOLD HIM YOU KNOW IT? >> OF COURSE. >> Laura: SHE SAID HERE IS HOW IT GOING TO GO DOWN, JOE, MR. PRESIDENT. YOU ARE EITHER GOING TO GET OUT OR GET YOU OUT. YOU HAVE GOT 24 HOURS. >> IT GOES TO SHOW THAT NANCY PELOSI HAD A LITTLE BIT OF A MORE HEAVY GAVEL THAN THIS GUY DID. >> Laura: ALL RIGHT, CONGRESSMAN, TIM KAINE SAID BIDEN MADE HIS DECISION TO DROP OUT BASED ON BAD POLL NUMBERS. THEN, JOE BIDEN ON THE TARMAC LAST NIGHT SAID. THIS. >> GO BACK AND LOOK AT THE NUMBERS. WE WEREN'T THAT FAR BEHIND. IT WAS LIKE WE TALKED ABOUT HOW THIS WAS -- WE WERE GETTING BLOWN OUT. THAT'S NOT WHAT WE SAW. BUT WHAT HAPPENED THOUGH, IF THE DISCUSSION HAD BEEN WAS I GOING TO COST SEATS FOR DEMOCRATS, THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN THE WHOLE SUBJECT MATTER. >> Laura: YEAH, WELL THAT'S TRUE. TIM KAINE SAID HIS COMMENTS ABOUT BIDEN GETTING OUT BECAUSE OF THE NUMBERS AFTER THAT. I MEAN, BIDEN DIDN'T WANT TO GET OUT. HE WAS FORCED OUT. THIS REWRITING OF THE NARRATIVE, SO YOU CAN STAND UP HERE TONIGHT AND TALK ABOUT HOW WE ARE GOING TO SAVE DEMOCRACY FROM DONALD TRUMP. DID DONALD TRUMP LEAVE OFFICE ON JANUARY 20TH? 2021 OR NOT. >> HE ULTIMATELY DID, OF COURSE HE DID. >> Laura: YOU THINK THAT DEMOCRACY WILL END IF JOE BIDEN'S SUCCESSOR, KAMALA HARRIS DOES NOT END? >> I DO NOT BELIEVE DEMOCRACY WILL END. DO I HAVE GRAVE CONCERNS ABOUT DONALD TRUMP'S CHARACTER? YES, I DO. I'M NOT GOING TO LIE ABOUT THAT. SAME GRAVE CONCERN ABOUT REPUBLICANS COLLEAGUES, I DON'T. IT IS A SNEAK DISEASE, I THINK, ACROSS THE BOARD IN AMERICAN POLITICS WHERE WE HAVE TOO MANY PEOPLE WILLING TO BE SILENT. TOO MANY PEOPLE FOCUSED ON SELF-PRESERVATION INSTEAD OF PRINCIPLE AND TOO MANY PEOPLE WILLING TO BE QUIET AND WALK THE COMPANY LINE SIMPLY TO ASCEND THAT LETTER. >> Laura: THEY QUIETED YOU DOWN. >> MY SIDE DID IT AND FRANKLY, LAURA, MOST OF MY REPUBLICAN COLLEAGUES EXCOREIATED DONALD TRUMP PRIVATELY IN THE HALLS OF CONGRESS. WHO DID DONALD TRUMP I MEAN, WHERE WAS THE EFFORT TO SILENCE HIS OPPONENTS? >> WHERE WAS THE EFFORT? >> Laura: REPUBLICAN OPPONENTS. HE DIDN'T MAKE ANY EFFORT. >> I'M NOT THROWING STONES. ALL I'M SAYING IS THAT NO, I DON'T THINK DEMOCRACY IS IN PERIL. DONALD TRUMP LACKS CHARACTER THAT IS TRUE. >> Laura: WE HAVE NEVER HAD PRESIDENTS BEFORE, INCLUDING. SO BEST PRESIDENTS WHO HAD ANY CHARACTER ISSUES, CONGRESSMAN? >> LOOK, I THINK IT'S FAIR TO SAY EVERY HUMAN BEING HAS CHARACTER ISSUES. LAURA, LOOK, I KNOW MOST PEOPLE WATCHING RIGHT NOW PROBABLY ADORE PRESIDENT TRUMP. I SPENT TIME WITH HIM IN THE WHITE HOUSE. I SAW BOTH SIDES. BUT THE SIDE THAT SO MANY FIND DISTASTEFUL AND ALSO THE SIDE. >> Laura: KAMALA SAYS GERNZERS ARE DUMB IS THAT GOOD CHARACTER WHEN SHE SAID THEY ARE STUPID. ALL THE NEWSPAPER ARTICLES CAME OUT AND SAID HER STAFFER HATED HER AND QUIT BECAUSE SHE WAS A NIGHTMARE TO WORK FOR. IS THAT ALL ROSES AND SUNSHINE FOR KAMALA HARRIS? I DON'T THINK SO. >> THERE IS NO ROSES AND SUNSHINE IN AMERICAN POLITICS. >> Laura: HERE IT. >> I WOULD SAY WE HAVE ANGERTAINMENT INDUSTRY HAVE US BELIEVE WE SORE UTTERLY DIVIDED IT'S IRRETRIEVABLE. THAT IS NOT TRUE. I WILL TELL YOU I WENT TO A DONALD TRUMP RALLY WHEN I WAS CAMPAIGNING IN NEW HAMPSHIRE BACK IN THE WINTER OF '23. I WAS MET WITH HAND SHAKES AND FRIENDSHIP AND HOSPITALITY AND DECENCY. >> Laura: YOU SHOULD BE A REPUBLICAN. >> I SHOULD BE A REPUBLICAN. >> Laura: THAT'S WHY YOU ARE BASICALLY A REPUBLICAN. I'M RECRUITING A LOT OF PEOPLE TONIGHT INTO THE REPUBLICAN PARTY. >> DID I NOT KNOW THIS WOULD BE RECRUITMENT HOUR BUT MY POINT IS TO ANYBODY WATCHING, ALL OF US, GIVE EACH OTHERRANCE CHALLENGE. MOST OF US ARE DECENT PEOPLE. GIVE EACH OTHER A CHANCE AND I WANT TO SEE MORE DEBATE AND MORE POLICY CONVERSATION. >> Laura: WE ARE NOT SEEING A LOT OF THAT HERE. DO YOU THINK SHE IS GOING TO WIN? >> I WILL TELL YOU A MONTH AGO, I WOULD HAVE SAID FIRST OF ALL, WHEN JOE BIDEN WAS RUNNING IT, IT WAS SO CLEAR. POLLS WERE AWFUL. >> Laura: YOU THINK SHE IS GOING TO WIN. >> I THOUGHT WOULD BE CLOSER. BUT RIGHT NOW, LAURA, RIGHT NOW, BASED ON WHAT I'M FEELING, SENSING BOTH IN MY DISTRICT AND THIS ROOM AROUND THE COUNTRY, I THINK -- I THINK THE TABLES ARE TURNING. IT'S GOING TO BE A CUT THROAT DOWN TO THE WIRE RACE. I WOULD BET NOW AFTER HAVING BET THAT TRUMP WOULD WIN THIS ENTIRE YEAR, I THINK THAT SHE IS GOING TO WIN. PRIMARILY BECAUSE SHE SELECTED A GUY WHO I THINK CAN FINALLY SPEAK TO VOTERS IN THE PART OF THE COUNTRY. >> Laura: YOU JUST TOOK MY BREATH AWAY. CONGRESSMAN, TO BE CONTINUED. IT'S GREAT TO HAVE YOU ON THE SHOW. >> ANY TIME,