Alright, we're ready to start. Good morning I am state Senator Nikita Williams, chairman of the Democratic Party of Georgia and the Democratic nominee for Georgia's fifth Congressional District The last 4 days have shown us exactly how disconnected Donald Trump and Republicans are from the lives of everyday Georgians while Donald Trump criminally held a political rally on the grounds of the People's House with taxpayer money, we hurt little to nothing about the very serious crisis that's facing our country crisis. Donald Trump made worse, we heard nothing about Corona virus, which Trump has worsened with an average of nearly 40000 new cases 1000 deaths per we heard nothing about Trump's economic crisis with one in ten workers unemployed and 6000000 jobs lost we heard nothing about racial injustice about Jacob Blake despite the fact that this president's rhetoric enabled and that claimed the lives of Americans in Kenosha this week, Republicans. The truth about Trump's chaos so instead, they told lies we know that Trump has diminished our standing in the world that he's made America less safe and that he's failed to address the serious racial disparities and across this country, and we know that he's trying to eliminate protections for as many as four in ten Americans with preexisting conditions by ending the Affordable Care Act as our country faces multiple pressing challenges and crises Trump. Not have the plan or the leadership to solve them. unlike Trump, Joe and Kamala will bring this country together to solve this crisis, not tear us apart. They're steady experienced leadership is what we need to get control of the virus. Rescue the economy tackle systemic racism and act on climate change. They're ready to get to work on day one to build this country back better than before for all of us during the DNC. Georgia's hundreds of virtual watch parties in every corner of the state cheering on a convention that was about celebrating every American, not one and after the convention wrapped, we mobilized thousands of volunteers across Georgia to talk to voters and connect to everyday Georgians because we know our country's future is about the people not about Trump. Remember American leadership is on the ballot the soul of this nation. Is on the ballot, Our lives are on the ballot. The choice could not be more clear and for the next 67 days we will work tirelessly to elect Joe Biden and Kamala Harris for our country's future. Now we're here from Georgia's next Democratic US Senator Jon Ossoff. John Thank you so much chairwoman and uh thanks to all the press and attendants today, just a few brief words on what we've seen in the last few days. First of all this wasn't a Republican national convention. This was a Trump convention. This was the coronation of one man who is seeking reelection to avoid accountability for his corruption who is cut it out. Supporter after supporter who spoke very little about the president's or the Republican party's vision for our country, but instead lavished praise on one man paying desperate tribute to him in the sort of formative uh sucking up routine that war in very swiftly, you would not know having watched the Trump convention that more than 180000 Americans have lost their lives. A deadly pandemic which this president assured us would go away magically which this president dismissed as nothing more than a hoax when he faced criticism for his denials and failure to swiftly respond, which this president and my opponent Senator David Perdue, both assure us pod low risk to our health and we have little impact on economic growth in America. We're now nearly 180000 Americans are dead millions of Georgians have had to file jobless claims and rather than taking. Moment to show some humility and some empathy and to try to unify this country behind a strong national response to this unprecedented crisis to try to unify this country behind the kind of changes to our health care system that we need to ensure that a disease like this doesn't prey upon the poor and the weak and those who have already been neglected. We saw nothing but partisan attacks narcissism self a grand and an attempt to pull. Wool over the eyes of the American people and pretend this year hasn't been one of the most catastrophic demonstrations of political incompetence in American history. We need new leadership, We need leaders who are stable and competent who will trust public health experts in the public health emergency who will level with us about the threats to our health and our prosperity that we face who will present realistic solutions and take responsibility for their own failures and shortcomings as we should expect as the basic standards of responsible public leadership. So I think that the last few days have made mistakes of the election in November, even clearer, we need a national effort to fight this virus. We need a national effort to rebuild our economy. These things require unity. these things require political leadership that calls us to our higher angels that reminds us of what we share rather than what we have apart. Donald Trump Cannot provide that leadership. he's incapable of it. He's not gonna change. That's why we need to elect Vice President Biden and Senator Harris to lead this country in the right direction to dig out from the rubble of what's been destroyed over the last 4 years and to build a more just and more prosperous America uh for decades to come and thank you again to my colleagues for joining today. Thank you, John and now we are here from state Senator Jim Jordan. Good morning everybody. Um I'm state Senator Jim Jordan and I've represented large parts of Fulton and Cobb County since 2017 um when I won a long-held Republican district, my district is made up largely of the suburbs that the current occupant of the of the White House likes to talk about and I strongly believe that my victory in 2017 was largely a response and really a reputation of this administration's policies um that are not only anti woman but also family. I'll tell you. After speaker at Republican National Convention tried to stoke fears playing to the basis um really the basis fears of so many people and while they did that there was just really a passing reference to what is really driving those fears. let's be honest um covid-nineteen is really all that we think about there is a lot of anxiety over what's gonna happen in the future and clearly there is no plan at the top. And there's no plan really with respect to the leadership of this state. Um there's a lot of anxiety out there and I know with respect to women and families and children women are bearing the burden right now in terms of virtual school, there are millions and millions of kids in virtual school right now and the moms are at home and you know there are some instances where dads kind of coming into the picture, but I'll tell you what the women really bare the burden here um in terms of making. Sure that their children are taken care of in this time when they can't go to school and there doesn't seem to be a plan with respect to how do we get schools back go and how do we get them reopened so teachers can teach safely and children can finally go to school and women can go back to work um because listen women are such a significant part of our economy and I think what we've seen with respect to the virus. It's kinda shown a light on just how important um specific. Are in terms of policies that really support women really support families. I mean leave sick leave paid um, especially in the time of the virus. Paid family leave. Um we have so many women that are really the caregivers or a lot of our most vulnerable Georgians um the elderly who um really need somebody taking care of them right now and what we see is that a lot of jobs don't offer that and specifically with. I actually hold jobs that really don't have any benefits that has to change um and the only way it's gonna change is if we actually change the leadership um and get rid of the current occupant of the White House. These are just some of the reasons that I am supporting Vice President Biden and Senator Harris um II am afraid, but I am not afraid for the reasons that President Trump tells me I should be afraid of but. Afraid of is him continuing in office and him continuing to pursue policies that are gonna hurt me that are gonna hurt my children and get hurt the people of this state. Thank you so much senator jaren now we're gonna hear from state Representative Matthew Wilson. Good morning I am fortunate to be one of five openly LGBTQ um legislators for the state of Georgia um and I'm grateful to be here today to speak to President Trump's record on LGBTQ rights. What we've seen this whole week is Donald Trump trying to use his convention as a smoke screen against his record as president but LGBTQ Georgians and Americans aren't fooled by. Armageddon Fear porn We've been paying attention for the last 4 years and we know we can't risk our rights and the very survival of our community on another 4 years in a Trump administration this past week, Trump has repeatedly elevated the voices of conspiracy theorists hateful ideologues and shameless hypocrites just like he has throughout his administration if you've been paying attention. You know this is just par for the course as a candidate, Trump repeatedly argued his administration would be pro LGBTQ but as president he has consistently and continuously fought to repeal civil rights protections for all Americans Black Brown gay disabled This president is only pretending to protect civil rights to protect the conscience of well intentioned Americans, who wouldn't even think about voting for him if they knew the truth. And to those citizens, I can only say don't be fooled by this reality show throughout his time as President Trump has persistently attacked our community systematically undermining and eliminating the rights that LGBTQ Americans have fought so hard to achieve. President Trump has supported employment discrimination against LGBT Q and non-white Americans He has banned transgender service members from the military and he is undid the Obama era non-discrimination laws that protected workers from harassment on the basis of gender identity. He has worked to remove protections and health care access for families of LGBTQ workers and he continues to push for the elimination of the entire Affordable Care Act, jeopardizing people. Preexisting conditions. Donald Trump continues to endanger grade school students by refusing to give them their civil rights protections and he continues to allow schools to discriminate against LGBTQ students while still accepting federal funding our money in the courts Trump's administration has been fighting to end protections for LGBTQ Americans and he has pushed forward and anti anti equality judges like Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh. 50 years after Stonewall LGBTQ Americans are still persecuted for who they are and who they love and Donald Trump has made it worse. Joe Biden is committed to signing the Equality Act and on day one he will reinstate the anti-discrimination protections for the LGBTQ community that President Trump has systematically dismantled. That is why I'm so proud to support Vice President Biden and Senator Harris The bid in Harris ticket is the most pro equality ticket ever when he defeats Donald Trump. Joe Biden will make sure the setbacks we've experienced in the past 3 years in our march towards justice and equality will be an aberration. And we will truly fight for equality for all. Thank you so much representative wolf and now we're here from um state representative Brenda Lopez Romero Good morning Good afternoon Everyone. Thank you for joining us again. My name is Brenda Lopez Romero and I have the great pleasure to represent House District Ninety-nine in Gwinnett County, which has been one of the most diverse counties now well over a decade, and it's very representative of our country. That being said that is one of the reasons that we're all here, but especially I to support uh both Biden. Senator Harris to make sure that we change what's going on in the White House and that starts by acknowledging what is the reality and the fact that Trump has basically from the beginning of his campaign, attacked the values and the contributions of immigrants has in fact, attacked my family and me personally by saying that we are criminals and drug dealers rapists, in fact to go further than that. His actions have also shown his disregard for immigrant communities and the contributions that we make by his administration attempting to end the Daca program for dreamers and when the court. Those actions he nonetheless has continue to make it burdensome to be able to reapply for Daca protection by limiting it from the 2 year protection to a 1 year protection and further than that not allowing First-time applicants for Daca to be able to apply for this protection. In addition to that we saw when we have natural disasters and tragedies that we are not supporting everyone that is part of the United States and we saw that clearly with his neglect that he um his. In Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria and in fact the speeches for speech, including this convention, we continue to hear Latinos and immigrants at being casted as less than Americans and we have emphasized his failures on containing the spread of Corona virus and also ensuring for economic relief, particularly for working class and low income families and also middle class families since we've already discussed with the concerns that we have with our schooling but that failure. Corona of the containing Corona virus has been a exasperated to the Latino community that is disproportionately being affected by co nineteen. We have multiple millions of Latinos out of work and are facing economic uncertainty. why mostly because we have had as I mentioned a high disproportionate amount of infection rates within the Latino and Hispanic community tend to be those front line workers that continue to service us despite the risk to their own health and the health of their families and we're again. Support Joe Biden and Senator Harris because they will fight for the Latino and the immigrant families here in Georgia and throughout our country and we will make sure to be there as a community with them on day one to ensure that we push all the policies promised during this campaign and those go hard to the heart of what's important to our families and that is ensuring that we have reform on in our immigration system that includes a pathway to citizenship. Sure that Latino families and immigrant families have access to affordable health care as a right and to ensure that we are part of the economic relief and recovery of our next administration that's gonna focus on ensuring equitable access to both the economy and health care, and we can start also by ensuring that Biden will be raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour and most importantly, the reason that I support Biden and Harris is because we will return to a conversation about the dignity. Value and contributions that every Latino and every immigrant makes as part of the American fabric. Thank you so much Representative Lopez Romero now we're gonna hear from state Representative Calvin. Thank you, Madam chair and foreman. I appreciate it and I'm looking forward to working with you and uh to everyone on the call here this morning and um I'm happy to be here on behalf of the Harris campaign and speak on the economy and the voting rights and uh after watching last night and I'm just so starving that's such an event could be held on the grounds of the of the People's House. It's just awesome um uh Republican. I've ever seen and uh it's just was not a great picture and a great situation to have that kind of event on the grounds of the White House. but let me say I said that um uh President Trump inherited a strong economy from the Obama administration and just like everything he's inherited. uh he's squandered it uh the Obama Biden administration inherited the deepest recession since the Great Depression and handed president. Long as it's expansion on record uh the economy has lost 6000000 jobs on the President, Trump's and over 3000000 Georgians have applied for employment I didn't have to be this bad, but it can get worse. uh we need more compassion as Americans that suffer with job losses and unemployment with tens of millions of families unable to pay rent uh President Trump is cut aid to the unemployed workers and proposed new tax cuts. I'm happy to say. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris and support expanded unemployment insurance for millions of Americans and have a plan to prevent evictions and know how to build our economy back better on the situation of voting rights with uh this election, the most consequential election of my lifetime, everything is on the line and it has never been more important for us to make our voices heard our very. Is at stake and we must turn out and show up in record numbers to fight voter suppression and to stop Trump once and for all, we know that the president is counting on us, not showing up at the polls, but Georgians and Americans are determined and powerful and we will fight to protect every single vote in my strongest voice. I urge every single Georgia voter to make their plans to vote now to vote early. His plan for a ballot or make a plan to vote early in person if you need help give us a call at the Democratic Party of Georgia call 888-730-5816 that's eight seven. Georgia Democrats will be there volunteering and making sure that you receive the assistance that is needed. Our vote is the most powerful and most important power that we have people have died. For us to have the right to vote and it's up to us to use it and save our sacred democracy I have also stated that we need to vote as if our lives depend on it it does and the importance of voting is at hand everyone should vote and every vote should be counted. Our energy and our destiny is tied to voting voting matters voting matters, so please let's get out and vote. Thank you very much Madam Chair Thank you representative and now I'm gonna turn it over to Maggie Chambers, our communications director at the Democratic Party of Georgia to facilitate our Q and A. Thank you so much chairwoman if any members of the press would like to ask a question uh please just use the raise hand function on zoom and we'll be happy to meet your line. Alright looks like our first question is from uh Matt Sarah at WSB. I'm if you could just go ahead and just let us know what speaker you're hoping to try to facilitate on so you should be unneeded now. Thank you. Hey, this is actually Richard Elliot. Matt's um um my photographer are you hearing me. Yup. You're good. Okay. Um my question is uh after hearing the president's speech last night, we didn't hear a lot about the protests, including the protests going on right outside the White House. um what do you make of that and um uh just a general tone and tenor of it. I will I'll start if anyone else wants to answer this is um to Williams and I got pictures from a sixteen Year-old student who actually page with me during the um the legislative session, Jaden and Jaden was with his family outside of the White House last night, protesting Jaden is a young black boy who was living here in Atlanta and he was there with his dad and he wanted me to know that he was gonna continue to raise his voice until someone was willing to listen to him because he was afraid for his life. He's afraid for his dad's life. He's afraid for his friends. And I'm afraid for Jaden. I'm raising a little black boy here in the state in this country and I'm afraid for Carter's future. He started school on Monday, the first day of kindergarten in front of a computer because our president has failed him. our country is continuing to build our children under the current leadership President Trump did not mention the people that were outside. He's not willing to listen to him and the only way to get this right is to get him out of office elect Joe Biden and Harris as the next president and vice president of the United States because our children's future depends on it. I say this, I received a call from Washington last night and uh some people that uh that uh I've been talking with that will be attending the march uh uh get your knee off for our next march uh sponsored by uh and uh in Washington and uh they were very disturbed because of the the turbulence and the activity and and for all this to be going on in America for the current events that will be going on in America and for them not to be. Uh uh last night is very disturbing so with that in mind uh they mentioned that to me and that they were there to fight and to uh to protest and to March and to lend support today uh in the in the reference to all the current events that are going on in America today. I am seeing that we have a question from Maria Boynton from Maria. I'm gonna try to see if I can unmute your line. I saw you text me um but give me so Maria your line should be unmute if you wanna ask your question. Looks like we might be having a difficulties give us one second if any other members of the press want to. I'm ask a question, go ahead and raise your hand. You hear me now, yes, we can thank you. Hey, thanks so much everybody and thanks for having this particular forum. my question is we've seen the Democrats Democrats everyone on the national stage. What will you do uh here in Georgia Atlanta to make sure that those folks who don't historically you know, vote up to par or there's lack luster voting in that respect. What are Georgia Democrats planning to do? I have a short time to do it. What are you planning to do to make sure that those folks are encouraged that they do actually end up going to the polls to make their quote unquote votes count as if their lives depended on it, quote unquote. I'd like to address the fact that it's really important and key that we know that we're back and the thing that we only the present of course uh we're also gonna focus the down ballot uh particularly with the ability of Gwinnett County to increase uh the voter base for the state of Georgia that actually can make the difference between winning and losing for our US Senate seats that we both have to flip in this addition to that, obviously all of the down ticket ballot, but how do we do that is precisely what you're? We have to realize that our voter base here that needs to be increased is particularly the Latino and the Asian American community and those are the targets of communities that despite the fact that they may be low, propensity voters or may not have voted for the first time yet, this is the election cycle that we have to invest real resources and real money into those two communities. If we really expect our state to turn blue. Doctor if I might weigh in briefly here that the resources and energy that is uh pouring in to voter empowerment and education and turnout in Georgia is unprecedented and I would point to turn out in the June primary, which was tripled Democratic primary turnout from 2016 and double Democratic primary turnout from 2018 from just 2 years ago, We went from 500 something thousand Democratic primary voters to one point. Million and that speaks to a few things first of all the long-term investment that's been made in organizing and turn out and mobilization and education here in Georgia, but also the times people are galvanized to come out and make their voices heard and to see that kind of massive spike in participation over just 2 years and in 4 years to triple participation in the primary speaks to the energy right now in this state and the recognition. Broadly not just among folks who are the most reliable election after election after election voters, but the recognition by everybody that we're at a fork in the road in American history and if there were ever a time to participate in our democracy, it's now. And I'd like to add this uh this uh to your question. Uh I think it's the urgency of the times. I think that uh the public understands that they feel it and uh and and characteristic uh George is not been on the political horizon in many years and uh and I can tell you that in 2000 2020 uh that the judge has been recognized as a battleground state now is on the political and you can look at the resources that are coming to the state and I for one have. In this national politics for a long time and for a long time had been the forgotten state. now we've been the recognized state and for that, I think that's understandable because of the characteristics of our voter registration and the voters that we have reached and put on and the June primary is a strong signal as well. So and then also there's another factor of the Biden team has got a full team on the ground here in Georgia they. A complement the state they are on the ground here in the state and they have not quit hiring and they're filling out not only the strategic team in the communication team, but a ground team and and those of us on this call, we know we have not seen Georgia with the ground team uh presidential and in a long time so uh with that in mind, uh I think we're all encouraged. We're all enthusiastic and we all understand that this is the most consequential election of our lifetimes and I believe that people. Let us down, I think that we're gonna keep pushing the envelope. We're gonna keep pushing the GOTV uh novel that we have in our disposal and we're gonna do everything we can to encourage people to vote and then we're gonna make sure that every vote is counted and just to add um some of this work is kind of happened in the last year for the last 2 years, specifically with respect to recruiting candidates um to challenge Republican incumbent. Um for a long time a lot of these seats went unchallenged and you know the deal is usually people especially locally um folks who may not be so partisan they come out to vote for people they know and so the fact that we have Democrats um challenging so many seats up and down the ballot with respect to um state House state Senate. um you know they're gonna reach out. Communities and they're gonna get their voters out and they're also gonna be communicating to folks about how to vote. Um there's been a big push with respect to making a plan to vote. What is that look like um do you wanna do an absentee? This is how you do it um if you wanna vote in person here are the opportunities um and if you have any questions, you know we're here to answer them. So I think it's one of those things where it's the work that has happened already. It's the work we're doing now and it's the work. Continue to do until November 3rd. Wonderful um we'll take you get it looks like it's all the questions we have. I want to take the next 20 seconds if folks wanna raise their hand, I'll be happy to take one more question. It looks like we're all set um thank you so much to all of the members of the press for joining us and thank you so much to all of our speakers. um have a great rest of your day. Thanks everyone. Bye. Thank you.