Daily Kos' The Brief

Longtime Daily Kos readers might remember Emily Cain, as she was a Daily Kos-backed candidate for Maine’s 2nd congressional district in 2014 and 2016—the swingy rural Maine district that Democrats currently hold, but was won by Donald Trump in both his presidential races. We’ll talk to Cain about Emily’s List 2022 recruitment efforts, our chances to hold Congress, the importance of women when it comes to winning, and the double standards that women candidates and elected officials (like Vice President Kamala Harris) face.

Today, Markos and Kerry speak with polling guru Drew Linzer. Linzer is the Director of Civiqs, a nationally representative online survey panel for creating scientific, real-time public opinion research.

Daily Kos founder Markos Moulitsas and senior political writer Kerry Eleveld talk about everything from Arizona in 2022 to Sen. Kyrsten Sinema and what is going in her mind with Rep. Ruben Gallego (AZ-07). It also Daily Kos’ The Brief’ 25th episode!

Today we’re looking at the youth vote—how important it was in 2020, and how critical it will be in 2022 to have any chance of retaining control of both chambers of Congress. Our guest is Ben Wessel, the former executive director of NextGen America, an organization focused on youth voter turnout. His advice on how to keep young people engaged can’t be missed.

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• It's not Trump's "grip" on GOP that's driving its descent into madness

Republican attacks on transgender Americans and transgender youth, in particular, have skyrocketed in 2021. Roughly 150 anti-trans bills combined have been introduced in over 30 state legislatures this year, setting a new record for anti-trans legislation in a single session. Today on Daily Kos’ The Brief Kerry and Markos explore the personal, political, and legal implications of the GOP's latest attack on the LGBTQ community and trans youth, in particular, with Vivian Topping, director of advocacy and civic engagement at the Equality Federation, and Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

Remember when Republicans used to claim that America was “center-right”? They don’t claim that anymore. They don’t even pretend. At this point, they realize they’ve lost the battle for the hearts and minds of Americans, and are doing everything they can to undermine, and maybe even destroy, American democracy. We also talk with Amanda Litman of Run for Something, an organization that emerged during the first year of the Trump Resistance that has helped recruit, train, and support amazing young candidates.

It is the one-year anniversary of the George Floyd murder. That murder shook up the world, leading to protests around the globe. Yet today’s guest, Yale historian Dr. Elizabeth Hinton, writes in her new book, AMERICA ON FIRE: The Untold History of Police Violence and Black Rebellion Since the 1960s, that this is nothing new—that the Black rebellion against militarized police is decades old.

We spoke with Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II about the inspiring activism he has spent decades working on. Like many who have come before him, Rev. Dr. Barber believes that his faith and an honest accounting of one’s faith demands that we keep the fight up for the poor. 

This week Markos and Kerry talk with Daily Kos Elections guru Jeff Singer. Singer knows every race, every district, and every potential in the historically important upcoming 2022 midterm elections. Incumbent parties tned to lose ground during midterms but we are living in interesting times and Jeff has some insight into what might be different this time around.