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Getting Involved in Politics: Why Young People Need a Seat at the Table

• Adam Tomlin • Season 2 • Episode 28

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Welcome back to the ACT OUT podcast! In this episode, host Adam Tomlin sits down with Jayveon Tucker, President of the Norfolk State Young Democrats, for a candid conversation about youth engagement, political leadership, grassroots organizing, and what motivates the next generation to get involved in shaping their communities.

Jayveon shares his unlikely journey into politics, explaining how he wasn't inspired by a political party at all—but by an independent candidate who showed him the power of authentic leadership and grassroots organizing. What started as volunteering on campaigns as a teenager eventually led to him helping recharter the Norfolk State Young Democrats and becoming one of the leading student voices in Virginia politics.

Adam and Jayveon dive into the realities of political organizing on college campuses, discussing voter turnout, civic engagement, and why so many young people feel disconnected from the political process. Jayveon explains how student organizations can serve as a bridge between politics and everyday life, helping young voters understand how local and state elections impact their futures.

The conversation also explores leadership development, mentorship, and the importance of creating opportunities for the next generation. Jayveon shares why political organizations need to invest in young people through internships, fellowships, and mentorship rather than simply expecting volunteers to carry the workload. Together, he and Adam discuss the value of preparing future leaders, building sustainable organizations, and creating pathways for young people to make meaningful contributions.

Adam and Jayveon also tackle larger political topics, including political polarization, representation, race in politics, campaign strategy, and the challenges facing both political parties. Throughout the conversation, Jayveon emphasizes the importance of holding leaders accountable, engaging in thoughtful debate, and remaining focused on policies that improve people's lives regardless of political affiliation.

If you've ever wondered how young people get involved in politics, what grassroots organizing actually looks like, or why civic engagement matters at the local level, this episode offers an honest and insightful look at leadership, advocacy, and creating change from the ground up.

Learn more about Jayveon Tucker:

@‌Jayveonforva

@‌pres.jnt

@‌nsuyoungdemocrats

Tune in every Thursday for episodes that inspire, challenge, and entertain. Whether you’re here for laughs, lived wisdom, or action steps, the ACT OUT podcast is your space to rethink growth, embrace self-awareness, and act out your passions.

Other ways to follow and connect with the ACT OUT podcast:
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Credits:
Mural: Tara E. @‌taradiiiise and @‌tarayakisauce

SPEAKER_01

Welcome to the Act Out Podcast. I'm your host, Adam Tomlin. Today's guest is President of Norfolk State Young Democrats, J. Vion Tucker. Let's roll the tape. J.Vion, how are you, bud? Oh, great.

SPEAKER_00

Thank you for having me.

SPEAKER_01

Thank you so much for coming home, man. Uh I had um I I didn't really know much about like the young Democrats, like the, you know, kind of the organization as a whole. Uh, but there was a uh a convention in in Norfolk, you know, here in Norfolk. Uh, and I I got to meet um, you know, some of the some of the different folks, and I was like, oh my gosh, like they these these these kids are like really cool. Yeah. And they uh some powerhouses. Yeah, man. And it's so inspiring to see what y'all are doing. And like kind of it's it's like you're already taking the reins of uh of leadership and kind of like moving things forward. It's really cool to see. Yeah. Yeah. How did you get started in uh in the young Dems?

SPEAKER_00

So believe it or not, I've been working on campaigns since I was 15 years old. I'm from a small town in Roanoke, Virginia. I came here for college. And so I've just been working on campaigns since I was 15. And believe it or not, when I got involved in politics, it wasn't it wasn't a political party that got me involved. It was a candidate. And she actually ran as an independent. Okay. And um, it was during 2020 Black Lives Matter movement, all that stuff. And she was the one that made me get into politics, and then eventually a family member ran for um uh off elected uh elected office. Yeah. And then that's when I was asked to, you know, help us recharter the um young Democrats here in Roanoke and whatnot. And I was like, no. I was like, no, I don't like y'all. I don't like the Republicans, I don't like the Democrats, I don't like political parties. And that's kind of where I stood. And I was like, then I started thinking about when I wanted to um run for politics. I was like, independence, that's that's really not gonna get me nowhere. And so I said, eventually I'm gonna have to buckle down and do a political party. But I was like, no, I don't want to join one. And believe it or not, I just joined the Democratic Party in 2020, late 2020, no, early 2025. Real, okay, is when I joined, is when I joined um the um Democratic Party. And um, and what made me do it is because I met Abigail Spamberger on campus. It was during homecoming, and I had seen her, and I realized how this election, this next election, well, past election now, 2025 election was gonna be a big one. And I knew the um political atmosphere on campus that students they weren't educated. And I was like, I I'm already served in the NAACP and whatnot, state level, local level, all the above. And but I was like, that's not good enough. We need to, because the NAACP we're nonpartisan organization. I said, I can't be nonpartisan in this. I we need to elect Abigail Spentberger. And in order to do that, I said, you're gonna have to charter the young Dems on campus, and that's how you're gonna have to get started. And so that's what I did. I chartered the um young Dems on campus. I'm still the I'm the rechartering president and um still currently the president for a second term, and that's what we did. And ever since then, we've been boots on the ground.

SPEAKER_01

Were you at all interested in politics before um before like 2020 with the independent candidate, or was it kind of not at all? Yeah, you hadn't thought about it.

SPEAKER_00

I do nothing.

SPEAKER_01

Okay, like what was uh what was it about the candidate, do you think?

SPEAKER_00

Oh my God. She she didn't have, she wasn't assigned aligned with a political party. Yeah. Um, but she had this voice that other candidates didn't have. Like she didn't have a political party back in her, she didn't have the money back in her, definitely didn't have that money back in her. Well, from big organizations, but she was able to raise that money from grassroots. She was able to make that voice by herself with no platform. She made her own platform. And so that's what stuck out to me. And I was like, I like her. Yeah, we need her. That's the voice we need that will call out. It doesn't matter if you're a Republican or a Democrat, gonna call you're gonna call out the BS. And I loved it.

SPEAKER_01

Uh there is something, you're right, man, that is very powerful about that like outsider voice. Yes, that one that like it's like uh the establishment saying, Hey, this is this is our candidate here, you know, like buttoned up A. And then like you see that kind of that that long voice in the wilderness all of a sudden, and you're like, wait, no, there is actually a better way. Yes. And I I think that, but like I didn't really quite like I've I've kind of like assumed it was powerful, but like hearing you and like I wasn't even really that interested in politics. Still knew nothing.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, until the her whole election, I still knew nothing. I didn't know anything. Like, it was just crazy how little I knew it. Like, I still didn't know who the mayor was. I didn't know who city council, who was the city council members. I just knew her and I knew that's what she was running for. And I was like, we need her. Yeah, I don't care what she's running for, but I just said we need her. Like it was crazy.

SPEAKER_01

And so just that experience was enough where you kind of got the bug, so to speak, at that point. Absolutely. It's kind of hard. Like, absolutely. I mean, seeing your your personality, you're you're you're very jovial. Uh I I could see you like being like gregarious and like politics being a natural fit for you. So like it just with me, I would kind of assume like, oh no, Javion, he's always been interested in politics and glad-handing and stuff since it was uh since it was like Neeha the grasshopper. So it's just uh I love to see the organs stories.

SPEAKER_00

You know what's it's funny because um one of my teachers, she always told it was my second grade teacher, she always told my mother, he's either gonna be the president or he's gonna be a preacher. But I can't put my finger on which one yet. He's gonna be one. And um hopefully president. Oh, hey, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01

I mean, I you've got the booming voice of the preacher. I can't uh, you know, man, but that could transfer to uh to politics very easily, man. Uh actually, I think um, you know, like one of my uh favorite speakers of all time, Barack Obama. Yeah. Uh if you if you listen to his his cadence and his rhythm, at his best, he is an old timey preacher. Oh yeah. You know, yeah. Whenever you listen to his speech, man, you you feel like you're in church, like the the church of democracy, you know. And it's I mean it's it's very powerful. I'll go to that church. I would go to that church. That's about the only one I would too. Yeah. Actually, man, I had a um, I had somebody on uh before, uh, it was like Patrick Henry from Colonial Williams, where it was like one of the you know people who played him. And we were um, you know, like we were talking about like what makes a great order, you know, like what what is it? And kind of what we decided on is that to be a great speaker, what you say isn't as important as how you make somebody feel. Like what that means is like with with Obama, you know, like his like the yes we can and all that, like those things. What made that powerful was how he made you feel. Absolutely. You know, like the the words he said, like the the Republicans were constantly like bashing what he was saying, like this is so stupid. Hope, like that's that's such a like nebulous word, like that's never gonna work. But it was the way he was speaking to people, and he made them feel that exactly it's that tone. Yes, and and that to me, that is the the most powerful speakers don't say words, they can they they speak emotion to and I I think that that's like one of the most like powerful things you could do as a speaker. Absolutely, I agree a hundred percent. Yeah, no, uh you I think you got that. You think I got that? Yeah, man, yeah. At least with me, man. You you've taken me on an emotional roller coaster so far, and it's only been like eight minutes. Hey, yeah. Man, it it's fascinating to me that like just within six years of like kind of starting to get into politics, you're rechartering uh of like a branch for uh for Norfolk State. Yeah. What is it, what's it like to get something like that started? Because I imagine it's kind of very difficult at the beginning to even get a stuff.

SPEAKER_00

That's right. So it wasn't as hard as I thought it was gonna be. Because as soon as I had that conversation with Governor Spanberger, I was like, okay, now I've said I'm gonna do this for her. Now I have to do it. And I was like, oh my God, I've never done this before. Like, okay, I know the procedures on campus, I know the procedures through the actual organization. You have to get it approved not only by the state but national committee. Like, I was like, oh my gosh, now I have to do this. And then I was also um thinking about my principles of the reasons why I never joined the Democratic Party at the beginning. Was like, I'm not gonna be told what to do. I endorse who I want to endorse and I don't want to hear about it. And so I knew there were certain things I would have to have to negotiate on. The beginning of it was you gotta get your members. You gotta get your members, you gotta get your constitution. And and then your officers, of course. And so um, one of the my um chief of staff that was supposed to be here today, I told her straight up, I said, You're gonna be my chief of staff, and that's what you're just gonna be. And she was like, Okay. And and at first she did give me a little back after the fact. She later, she said, Why did like what are we doing? Like, why did you tell me I was doing it? I said, Because I need somebody that's gonna hold me accountable. Because if I get too much power, it's a lose lose for everybody.

SPEAKER_01

It's gonna go straight to my head.

SPEAKER_00

It's a lose lose for everybody. And so I need somebody that's gonna hold me accountable. Um, and also I just need help. Yeah. And like, like, because I was like, I don't know how to do everything. I will try to do everything, and this will go slower than I need it to be. And so I said, I need help. And then, of course, my vice president, she's a great person. Um, she's another person that holds me accountable as well. She was like, JVion, you said we were doing this event. Why haven't we started planning it? And I said, You're so right. Let's, you got a pen and paper, let's start planning it right now. Um, and so after that, it was smooth sailing. And the biggest part of it, believe it or not, was giving getting our um social media plan. That was the hardest part. I was like, we need a logo. We can't just have a random logo. We need it to be spectacular, we need it to say NSU. And if you look at our logo, it literally in um in the D in Democrat, it literally has the Norfolk State Tower in it. Yeah. And so that is that was our standpoint.

SPEAKER_01

And I didn't I didn't know that was you, man. I bet like I follow y'all. Thankfully, yeah. And I was like, man, that is a really cool logo.

SPEAKER_00

Thankfully, it wasn't. I put a because I hate logos. I hate making I love logos, but I hate making them because they're so tedious work. Oh, yeah. And so I put a um a bolo out on Facebook and I was like, I need help right now. And this another young Dem from George Mason stepped in and said, I got you. He had it ready in two hours, and he had two different brands of logos. I was like, you're my new favorite person. And so after that, we um luckily we didn't have to go through the tedious process because it already was an organization on campus. It just needed to be rechartered. And so we didn't have to go through a committee to get it approved, presentation, all that stuff. Yeah. And we were just able to, hey, I got my 10 members, I got my officers, we're ready to start. I got my advisors, my advisor is great. I was like, let's go, let's go, let's get it started. And from there, it's been up every since.

SPEAKER_01

You said at first, like kind of uh there was a I I guess kind of a lack of like knowledge of lack of voter knowledge on campus. Uh was it a sense of like apathy that you were kind of encountering um among the students, or was it just simply like not having access to information? Uneducated. Okay. Uneducated.

SPEAKER_00

Um and it wasn't a bad thing because if it was a bad thing, they would just come by my table and say, look at it and keep it moving. But it's like they were, once we got it set up, we were partnering with organizations, they were eagered. They were eagered. And it's like the people that you wouldn't expect to care were the ones that cared the most. Like we would do um all the way up to this special election in the in April, we have voter um registration every other week. And we we would think, because we've been doing voter registration for so long, we thought we ran out of students to register, but there was always a student that had not registered to vote. This is Trump's worst nightmare. Right. And so, like, we we were able to register so many students, not just this election, but for the 2025 election, for the 2024 election. And 2024, I always tell this, my um advisor, she's chief of elections in a um um at another precinct at a Chesapeake, and she told she's friends with our precinct at Norfolk State. And she said, Um, and this was 2024 election, she said, we have such a close election. We cannot call because so many students went in the same day's voter registration, but they have filled something else, something out wrong. And it was quite an a few students that did that. And she said, We cannot call the city council election until we get in contact with these students that voted at this precinct. And I was like, What? Like, you mean to tell me that's how many students came and voted, like on this same day voter registration? Is literally they were able to call that election because of Norfolk State. And after that, I said, I've done my job, but there's still so much more to do. And this election, this past election, with such little time and it's a special election. Who's gonna come and vote in a special election, let alone students? And there was out of over 600 people that voted, only 49 people voted now. Really? And I was like, I did my job. Like, I like I don't know what else more there is to do, but there's always something to do. And so, yeah.

SPEAKER_01

What what are the kind of the predominant issues that you see that like motivate students to get involved in politics? They just don't like Trump. He's he is a very um, he's a galvanizing figure. Yeah. I certainly like it's it's amazing to me how people either love him or absolutely hate him. But either way, you are going like he is going to inspire so much hatred that you're gonna do something. Right.

SPEAKER_00

Or so much love that you're gonna do something. It's and you want to know something, something I noticed. The students love who supports them. Yeah. When um Governor Spanberger came on campus, it was 2025 during her um campaign. It was the season opener. And I was um one of her people called me and asked if I could escort her around. I said, Yeah, like that's a crazy, that's a great opportunity. Yeah. And it was like, we need to, we need you to help us connect us to the students and whatnot. So I went there and um got her connected with the students. But the thing is, I did nothing. The students knew who she was. They was like, oh my God, I seen you on Disney Plus. Oh my gosh, you're on you're on a commercial from Hulu. And like people were like, they were starstruck to see her. And then um, we wanted to take her to the student section and the football game. And I said, because they're gonna love you. Yeah. Um, and but in the back of my mind, it was a quite a bit of fear because it's politics. Nobody's it's politics. And so I was like, we got Jay Jones, Attorney General Jones, and I said, they're gonna, they he's a Norfolk native, they know who he is, and they're gonna love him. And they got Abigail with him, that's gonna be even greater, and that's gonna draw attention to her as well. When she walked over there, they instantly started cheering for her. I was like, like they just seen her and got all excited, and they did this chant, and it went viral on um TikTok. Um, and they were able to use it as like a little campaign thing of when Governor Spanberger came on campus versus when Winsome Sears came on campus, they booed Lieutenant Governor Sears off the field. Yeah. But as soon as they seen um Governor Spanberger, they went wild. And I was like, wow, they are paying attention. And it just it was great. It was just a great, it was a great moment to see. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_01

I think I mean you said a lot of powerful things there, but like one of the like biggest things is like playing like kind of like token politics, so to speak, does not work at all. Authenticity will beat uh, you know, like the like, hey, this is this is who you're supposed to like every single time, man. Especially in politics, man. It's like because everything you you said politics is one of the fakest things on earth. It's ridiculous. I that's I hate that with every it's ridiculous. I I can't deal with the like with the politician. If I ask you a question and then like you give me that like answer that you're gonna give the NBC News, like I'm gonna ask it again. Right. I'm gonna ask it again. I'll tell you what, do you want to try to answer that again, maybe? Or well, answer it for the first time. Do you want to know something?

SPEAKER_00

That's something I loved about Governor Spanberger because um we did content and she has her moments, I'm not gonna lie. But um, we were doing content as we were walking, and it was like just a QA of where I answered questions, asked her some questions, and she was very honest in every last one of them. Like she didn't give me a political answer because I was prepared. I was like, all right, I'm gonna ask it again if you don't tell me straight up. And some of the I asked some tough questions, and she gave me a straight up honest answer. And she said, J Beyond, you know, that is something I would love to do, but it's just not in our budget, or it's not something we can do, but this is something we can do. Yeah. And like it's just was a such a real answer. And I said, there you go. Like, you do that with everything. You should you should win straight up, like easily.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

You know.

SPEAKER_01

It's one of those things, man, though, like, let's say you and I are running, uh, you you and I are running for governor. Right. Um, and or we're running for class president, I'd say that. And uh, and I say, we have all right, everybody's gonna have free ice cream parties. Yeah. You and we're like, hey, man, how are you gonna how you're gonna be like, how are you gonna pay for the ice cream parties, man? Like, this is impossible. Like, there's no like free ice cream thing. Does not matter. If I just keep saying we have we're gonna have free ice cream parties enough, I am probably going to win that election. Most likely. Even though what I am promising is so far like beyond what I am ever gonna be able to ever deliver. Extreme is the word extreme.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, extreme.

SPEAKER_01

But politics is well, uh just like any other profession, where honesty does not get rewarded, it gets punished a lot. Very much so. And so I wonder how we get to a place where those honest politicians, as oxymoronic as that may be, uh, where they have a shot at winning an election over the free pizzas.

SPEAKER_00

Cause nine times out of ten, the students know when you're BSing them. And I'm talking about my students because those are my classmates, those are the ones I go to school with, and these are the ones I know personally. They know when you're BSing them. Um, when you're not answering questions direct, they're gonna know. And this is where I want my clickbait at, right here. They know who supports them and who does not. They know when you say you're gonna cut funding for DEI, it's not gonna go well for you. We know when you say you're gonna support abortion ban, it's not gonna go well for you. We know when you say you're gonna cut funding from public educations to give to private institutions when we're a public school, it's not gonna go well for you. You can't say these things and not expect the reaction you got when, for example, when you walked out on that football field, we heard you say all of these things, and now you expect to get a cheer. Yeah. And your record shows for I can go on and on.

SPEAKER_01

But yeah, first of all, I think DEI and affirmative action are one of those things that they're so good that they are gonna work themselves out of business, essentially. Because if they are allowed to like be fully implemented, we are going to progress as a society to the point to where we're not where we're not gonna eventually need those things. But right now, we have got an administration that is showing you every single freaking day why you need DEI. Why I consider DEI talent in unexpected places. To me, that's what that means. That and instead of uh like, hey, I want to get a job at the White House. Oh, okay, all I need to do is go on Fox News a couple of times, and then I'm gonna be able to uh be able to get there for a little bit.

SPEAKER_00

It's an insult to um the people of diversity. Yes, when you say you're just getting a job because you're black or you're a woman, when you have look at the white house. Right. Donald Trump doesn't realize he's a DEI hire. Because what convicted failing can get a job as a president? 34 times at that. Yeah. Very true. He's a DEI hire.

SPEAKER_01

Which is crazy to me. He gets on every list.

SPEAKER_00

like one of my like so i i believe that you should like have to like work and like succeed and you know like your own grid this son like all he has done is just pissed away his dad's money and like falling into like one benefit after another with like no uh there's no talent to speak of if it weren't for his dad's money he'd be a virgin living in his parents' basement I love that I love that he would yeah the dude's a loser somehow though we live in a country where the worst kids get rewarded we have somebody who's running our Department of Health and Human Services like hanging out in a hot tub in blue jeans with Kid Rock drinking raw milk like right there's so many red that's not a mad look um something we say is red flags there's a bunch of red flags and it's like everybody is just ignoring them and putting them down oh that's a no it's a red flag it's a straight up red flag and unfortunately a lot of people fell for that red flag and I hate to say it but you fell for it for over a $1200 stemless check that you have yet to receive. Yeah this dude said he was going to give you $1200 and people fell for it like little do they know they've bled a little more than $1200 just in gas.

SPEAKER_01

Like where do you think it came from? Because I I think you and me from a country mile away saw that Donald Trump was going to do exactly what he's doing.

SPEAKER_00

How did a small plurality of the country not you know when we was just talking about the extreme ideas and that it's so extreme that it's unrealistic he did the complete opposite it was so extreme he was able to do it and I said wow like when he because at first I will say I did not believe him when he said he was going to cut the Department of Education I said that's impossible.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah and he did just that I was like what he said he was gonna um cut back DEI policies I was like you can't do that because that's gonna make you just seem like a racist and you can't did it cut hundreds millions off of healthcare I said you can't do that like he did it so it seems like I'm I don't mean to cut you off but you're just saying the thing like it seems like before like I knew Donald Trump was racist um it would what clued me in was the like his claim to fame being that Barack Obama uh you know actually wasn't born in Hawaii. So like I just I thought he was absolutely absurd but I mean it turns out it should have been before then with the Central Park 5 and the lawsuits he had to settle and the signs were there.

SPEAKER_00

And we kept it no let me tell you something the alarm clock has been ringing and y'all kept pushing sneeze y'all yes I uh well a lot of us did.

SPEAKER_01

It seems like this time around though he's not even freaking trying to hide it. Oh no is just very up he has nothing else to lose he's in his last term he doesn't well he's trying to make it a third but he's in his second term and he has nothing else to lose but honestly I believe like at this point people say oh he can't do a third term at this point I don't put nothing past him right before the election um I was um I was in a restaurant uh downtown and um I could hear people like behind me talking um and they were like who who you gonna who you gonna vote for um and one of the guys said I'm gonna vote for Trump and his friend was like well are you aren't you worried he's gonna like be a dictator and the other guy said ah yeah he'll he'll try to be a dictator but it won't work and then just like they just kept on going about you know like like about their meal. And at the time I was like that is a ridiculously awful take. I'm glad he doesn't represent the majority of the country and then a couple weeks later I it turned out he did represent on plurality of the country.

SPEAKER_00

I had so much hope that election night I was like vice president here she's gonna sweep the floor I have no no she's gonna sweep the floor in the complete opposite I I I cried that next day I did yeah it was a hard pill to swallow oh yeah it was a very hard pill to swallow and but in a way we can thank him we can thank him because it opened a lot of people's eyes and I can I want to bring this back to my my classmates it opened up their eyes and we I thought my job this past election was going to be hard this past special election was going to be hard because we I got to explain this but they did they said no no we know to vote yes we know to vote yes and it made it just made my job so much easier knowing that they're educated somewhat more than what I started. It was improvement and there's still a lot more work to do but it was improvement that it made my job easier and that the students weren't stupid enough to do that. And I had I had people come in talk about it I had delegate Marcia Price come in I had a panel I had Senator William Graves I had local politicians come in and talk about it and just talk about the importance because they have um they have um their groups that they are that they peep that people that look up to them and I knew that they would listen to them and and it worked.

SPEAKER_01

It worked I'm glad it did do you uh do what do you see as avenues of like education uh for like getting uh it seems like the right uh the the right leaning groups have a lot of money and a lot of like creators that are spewing out a lot of misinformation what can the left do to help educate and kind of like you know so one thing that I've been trying to get a lot especially back home I had to do this a lot with the older politicians let the young people lead I think it's time for you to step back.

SPEAKER_00

I have no problem with a politician that wants to stay in office before you before until they die. I have no problem with that my problem is that you're not training up your replacement and all that knowledge because I believe you didn't you weren't you haven't been in that office for a long time for no reason. Obviously you have something that's teachable to somebody else that wants that will eventually take your spot because you will die eventually. I think that's the problem politicians think they're gonna live forever. No you're you have to die and um so like train up your replacement train them so they can take your spot know what they're doing and don't you want to leave a legacy that's just been my biggest problem lately with the Democratic Party. You gotta know when to let your seat up when to leave and trust that you've done the work that it will stick enough for you to go ahead and say I can step away yeah and you don't have to stay in your seat until you uh stay in your um position until you die that you can step away enjoy a little time before you do go on to glory and say I've I've left the path I've set the table let's see who's gonna take it now and that's what my um that's what my goal is that I would like the Democratic Party to take because it works. Yeah I promise you you training up the next generation it works. You investing in the next generation works you want um I always tell people um candidates running for office they say how do we get the young people involved in our campaign you want them to come work for you we can't afford to just volunteer no more not in this economy like students like you got to make it worth our time invest in the students have some paid internships have some paid fellowships after a while I stopped working for free I said I've been doing this volunteer work since I was 15. By the time I was 18 I said I'm I don't do the free work no more you want you need my expertise I'm willing to give it to you I'm not saying I'm gonna charge you an arm and leg, but you gotta invest in me. Give me a fellowship make a place on my team you know and I will say that's um a Senate candidate that ran in 2023. She's running again in 2027 back home Trish White Boyd that's what she did. I told her I said Trish you know I love you. You know I do anything to support your campaign. But unfortunately I got college tuition coming up I have to work and so the only way I can truly join your campaign is if you support and invest in me. I'm not saying you got to bring new one as deputy campaign manager, but I'm saying create a spot for me on your um campaign to not only pour back into me educationally but financially too I I I totally say that.

SPEAKER_01

Get that I and I'll I think kind of another thing uh uh is just to to actually like listen I think that a lot of times uh Democrats have uh have big brains and they like to try to use those big brains on problems that they are um quite sure that they're going to be able to solve but it'd be a heck of a lot easier just be like hey uh Javion I I think we're having a problem with like you know like younger groups uh what's what's going on and um instead of like telling you what the problem is like maybe like listening to you and be like oh okay so it seems like this is what's going on in in JVN's world this is what's going on there with with the students maybe we need to focus our solutions focus our efforts on those things and not this made up thing that that pulser told us uh would help with uh Midwestern moms. Yes I was watching uh um a a YouTube video um it's called Jubilee and they yeah yeah the the 20 versus one yeah I love it but they had a round table talk and this this candidate running for Congress somewhere in California and Republican candidate and he was just doing this every chance he got just talking talking talking and um the person on the liberal side was like how are you gonna run for Congress to represent people and you can't stop talking and he said part of the job is talking she said most of the job is listening most of the job is listening and that's a hundred percent correct if most of the all of the job is listening to your constituents that you represent and it's so that I think that is a really powerful example that you that you just shared because we are now in this like information or sorry entertainment cycle to where a politician their job is not to um it's not to like serve your interests it's to like have enough money to be able to run for reelection in a couple of years. And that means that they need to be talking the entire time and getting out as much as much content as they can get the likes clicks and subscribes and then completely not even listening to a single word a constituent says.

SPEAKER_00

And you want to know something crazy I got in trouble for this post but nine times out of ten don't let them lose the election that they've been talking so much about because once they lose you're not going to hear from them again. When you don't or unless they're running again they lose you you won't hear from them because nine times out of 10 they're gonna try to run for that seat again and you're not gonna hear from them. But all of a sudden it's election season and now everybody is starting to rise up again revamp their social media pages attend the community meetings again um revamp their logos and now all of a sudden you haven't heard from them. Right since the last election I promise you I got in trouble for this post because I said it was local candidates back home. I want this clickbaited too this last election cycle there was a candidate it was two candidates it was a city council member and a former mayor. Both of them ran for a mayor again well ran for mayor in 2024 they lost hadn't heard from them now city council's up now all of a sudden we're revamping our social media pages we we're revamping our uh we're starting to go to community meetings and we're trying we're starting to ask questions what do what are some issues but where have you been since the last election cycle I'm going on a listening tour here and yeah and I said do not be fooled do not be fooled these candidates do not care about their community they care about self-interest and I got in big trouble well a lot of comments and you know but I was able to say show me where the they said a bunch of stuff like people were replying in these big paragraphs but none of them were able to address my um my claim I was like address the claim you said a bunch of nothing just now you just degraded me but I which I can take but you didn't say anything about my claim obviously I'm not wrong and obviously I struck a nerve I struck a nerve you know if it took you eight sentences to say absolutely nothing I'm I'm awesome absolutely nothing I'm still trying to get to my claim get to my claim where have they been yeah and so I just think and if that's not enough proof right there that they're not running for their own self-interest, you know?

SPEAKER_01

I think there was a time not very long ago where performative politics could get you pretty far. Yeah you know um maybe like I think social media to a certain extent uh and having like access 247 you know to people's lives where if somebody kind of you know like 25 years ago if I just like you know something came up like the cicada you know every four years or whatever and you were like I I mean I bet he was probably around he's just probably on the other side of town I just didn't really see him that often but now though you know exactly like oh he was like hanging out hanging out at like the the resorts and he was going to these parties he wasn't here in the community whenever we needed him absolutely not you know like I where where where was he whenever Snap was getting cut and all yeah he he was absolutely he was uh he was hanging out in Cancun with Ted Cruz you know like where were you when the roads needed to be fixed in my community this a lot of people think it's everything's just federal federal federal your local politics is messier than that federal than the federal government where were you when this single mother of three broke her car like messed up her car going over a pothole in in her city to get to work or drop the kids off at daycare stuff like that you know yeah where were you when teachers' pay was getting cut in a city like this is community stuff this is stuff that directs you directly that and that's the part that because I'm not a federal person I hate I hate federal politics I don't want to never go up there for not even to work as a staffer I hate it local politics is where I pay attention yeah and now that I've come to college I have more than one city to pay attention to politics to and but I was like I was telling somebody this just because I've moved away from my city doesn't mean I don't know what's going on.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah like this this is still my hometown this is still where I vote and so I pay attention to a lot and because I have to because I believe a vote is very precious and I'm not wasting my vote like it takes a it takes an effort. I make candidates work for my vote.

SPEAKER_01

And so you know do you subscribe to the uh maxim that all politics is local that was something I had heard my entire life all politics is local.

SPEAKER_00

So at the end of the day how people are like feeling in there like thinking about it yeah because just because and this the way I look at it say a billion dollars get approved for certain communities on the federal level a billion dollars got approved and each city can can get a cut of it your elected official still got to go advocate and say this is why we need it this is why we need the ad this is why we need it this is what we're gonna do with the $100 the $100,000 that we're gonna get of it or the million dollars that we're gonna get of it this is what we what we why we need it. You still have to go advocate to your senator to say hey we need a chunk of that money this city needs a chunk of that money. So I I I do I do like that claim it's it's a very true claim because who you elect on a local level still have to advocate for you on a state and federal level.

SPEAKER_01

So do you I I I guess you do you kind of see where like state and local is where the most amount of change can take place? Oh yeah most definitely like I said federal is yeah that's it's just a playhouse.

SPEAKER_00

It's it's a playhouse it really does kind of almost as if it were designed that way um you know like the way I really look at it is the federal government really just decides whether or not we go to war because I worked in the General Assembly this past session and because of the cuts that the federal level did to like snap benefits healthcare and whatnot the state had to make up for that for that because we was like we're they were like we're not gonna let our citizens the people of the Commonwealth suffer just because the federal government doesn't want it. We're gonna make up for that and so they kind of made up the difference of it and so that's you know and so because of stuff the federal government did the state had to come in and say we're not letting our citizens suffer and we're gonna make sure they don't have to pay an extra dime for food and they don't have to pay out of pocket for healthcare. We're just gonna make up the the difference of it. And so I really believe the state is the most powerful it's the most powerful and that they honestly have more power than the federal government it's a blessing and a curse because I'm like now we're wasting all these money on federal elected officials. I'm like what are you up there for? You know like you're supposed to be advocating to for us to get more money but we're not getting that we're having to pay more money out of state taxes and state taxes to make up the stuff in federal you know was this like your first session working well so what what was it like being like where the sausage is made. I love okay and so I worked um I worked I was one of very few if any interns to work for three for three um elected officials and Senator William Graves um delegate she's amazing by the way uh I'll tell you more about that um delegate price and delegate Clark three very power powerhouses loved each one of them Senator William Graves is where I learned the most delegate price and delegate Clark great people great offices great staff but delegate William Graves were I know we're running out of time no no no you're fun you're fine but delic um Senator William Graves was like it was like I learned everything like I would I was able like sometimes when she wasn't in a committee or in um in session I was able to go in her office I had a list of questions that I would go with and say I have a question about this I've always wondered about this um why didn't this pass through I'm curious and she would sit there like she would literally sit there we'll sit on her couch and she'll answer she'll have her legs crossed and she'll answer every last one of them and we could be sitting there for at least an hour before upset or you have a meeting like we gotta you know but like she would sit there and she really invested time in her interns and her staff and like session didn't start until January but she her she had her staff prepping us and her staff was amazing. Like they're my homies I call them my homies and I call um her chief of staff I always call her all the time and say hey mom I got a question but you're talking about Lindsay Lindsay is great. I love Lindsay so Lindsay gave me your contact information like she's how I like yeah yeah because we were at something we were at a networking event and she was like do you want to go on this I was like yeah let's do it and but yeah she was great she was prepping us We were again we as soon as we got I got my assignment the next day I got an email from Lindsay saying, All right, let's have our one-on-one meeting. I got a list of things I need to go over. And she had us fully prepared. Like things that she had us binders, snacks, medicine, cough drops, like she was prepared for everything. And so her office, like I truly loved her office. Yeah. It was great. There was not a dull moment. And I told Lindsay, she was like, What is something that you would like to do? I said, believe it or not, I want to feel very important. I want to be senator's body person. Like wherever she goes, I want to be the person saying no questions at this time. And she let me do that. And the senator loved it. And was that fun? Oh my God. It was the most fun thing ever. Like it was great. It was great. Like I got to walk her to committees. I got to sit in, like, I was her own personal security guard. I got to sit in the meetings and take um in her committee hearings, her committee meetings and take notes and have a report for Lindsay by the time I got back up to office. Like it was great. And I loved it. And Senator let me live my fantasy. And so she didn't question any of it. She loved it. I loved it. We would have some conversations. We would talk. Um, there were some personal things I like in my life that I would just talk to her about and she would give me advice. She always had the best motivational speeches for me. And I like I take none of that for granted.

SPEAKER_01

Uh so Cinder Williams Graves, uh friend of the channel, actually. Um I man, I I think at the time, I whenever I reached out to her, I probably had like maybe like 35 followers on Instagram. Like some just like very small, where it was very clear she was not gonna get like much from you know coming on. But she still like agreed. She's uh she came in and I mean uh we ended up talking for like I I can't even like over time that uh that was allotted for, but just incredibly like kind and like she is so eloquent. Yes, the like the way, so you know, like I'll I'll get an idea in my head and I'm like, oh, this is a really good idea, let me say it. And then by the time it comes out of my mouth, I sound like a dumbass because you know it's like my my brain hadn't kind caught up with the vocabulary. With her, she can have a thought and then just with like perfect elocution is just delivering yes, it's it's unreal, man.

SPEAKER_00

Like, like it was and it was just it was just great. And because there were certain times, um, and I know she won't mind me saying this, there were certain votes that she took, and I didn't agree with them, or I was confused by it because I was like, I thought we were gonna go this way. And she and I would ask her, those would be some of the times I asked her, like, what change? And she would give me detail blow by blow. Like, like it wasn't motivated by her party, it wasn't motivated by some special interest. She would give me blow by blow of why she did, like why she changed her vote or why she voted a certain way. And she sold me. I was like, okay. By the end of the conversation, I was like, okay. Like, yeah, you're right. She seems like she's playing chess. Yeah. You know, like a lot of times we're uh like and but like and by the time she goes and vote, it's like checkmate. Like, I can't say that fooled, that fools her, but checkmate, mofo. Like it was perfect. I loved it. I loved it. And so I'm telling you, she was great. And believe it or not, before I even came to industry, we were Facebook friends, and she supported me even then. Like I would say, um, I would say, like, hey, because I come from a low income. I didn't have everything. Like, I built up everything I have by myself and with the support of my family, but they didn't have money to send me to college. They didn't have certain things that I needed. And so I would reach out to my community on on social media. I was like, y'all say y'all support me. This is the time I need y'all to show it. I say, I'm moving into college within three weeks and I don't have this. Or um, I don't have a ride back to campus and I live four and a half hours away and I needed that support. And there would be times where she supported me financially. And I was like, wow, like this is a servant. Like, this is not even more of a servant. This is a mentor. This is somebody I can look up to. And even now at a session, I have her phone number. I might text her something or I might post something. And she said, JVN, I don't think we should have posted that. Um JV. And I say, yes, ma'am, yes, ma'am. It's coming down immediately. And um, and so it's like she really just she's been a great person. Like her and Lindsay, like those two, they've been phenomenal. She supports um my campus, my organizations on campus. If I say, hey, young Dems need this, NAACP needs this, she says, okay, we're gonna help you out. We're gonna find you some financial support. Even if I can't do it, we're gonna find you find you it somewhere else. But we're gonna make sure you get to this conference, we're gonna make sure y'all have the supplies y'all need. They've been so supportive. What's the biggest lessons that you learned from uh Sunder Williams Graves? It's actually a funny one. So when we were in um the General Assembly, um, our first week, she had a sit-down with all the interns. And she said, Let me tell you this. You're all consenting adults, but none, no business of the Virginia General Assembly ever happens outside of these of this building. She said, So if you decide you want to go and have a drink, then I'm warning you. And so that was one of the it was funny, but it was so real because we are interns, and this is stuff we don't know. And that's just one of many, many, many, many. Um, but even when I was um doing um, I applied for uh started real estate school and she's a realtor. Yeah, yeah. And so she gave me so many, so many of so much advice on that. And she's like, Javion, I know you want to do real estate school, but I can really see you doing this, and you can make even more money on it. And she's like, I'm not saying this because you're gonna do whatever you want at the end of the day, but I'm just giving you a piece of advice. Yes, real estate is great, but I know where you can get a real sustainable income. And she was like, This is some other trades you can do. I know this person. It was always a connection somewhere. By the time I asked her for the advice, and she gave it to me, she said, I have this person that can help you with this. And so that's that's some some of the positive things. But there's so many to just scroll through. Like, like I froze when you said I was like, oh God, which what? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

That's that kind of confirms like the the vibe that like you can just whenever you're talking to somebody, you can you can get a good like read on like like she seems like a very genuine human being.

SPEAKER_00

Real. Even like, even sometimes, even sometimes when she when she doesn't like something, she's gonna tell you she doesn't like it. And she makes it real. And I was like, you know what? It kind of hurt my feelings that you didn't like it, but I'm gonna remake it because you were honest with me. And so, yeah, and she's just a genuine real person. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

I think that's actually, you know, like we were going back earlier about like the the folks who um, you know, you only see every uh you know, like every four years or whatever, whenever election time comes. But with Senator, like folks like Senator Williams Graves, you know, like you are still talking to her outside of session and she like continues to be a resource. What steps can we take to have more Senator Williams Graves running for office as opposed to clickbait uh Lauren Bober, you know?

SPEAKER_00

Holding them accountable. And when I mean when I say that, if they're not doing what you think they should be doing by the end of their term, you have a chance to vote them out. Senator William Gray, she doesn't have to do the thing she does. She's in a Democratic safe seat. The only thing she might get is a primary, and that they obviously, by her last primary challenger back when she first ran, that didn't go so well for them. Yeah. And so she doesn't have to do the thing she does because she she's pretty much set. As long as she does the right thing, she's pretty much set. But she does it because it's it's that's just the heart of the chance. That's her heart. Yeah. And so I just say holding them accountable. Holding them accountable, and by doing that, holding them accountable at the election box, at the ballot, at the voting, at the voting place precinct. And we can hold them accountable, you know?

SPEAKER_01

Where would you like to see the Democratic Party go? Like what what what's the future of the Democrats in your mind?

SPEAKER_00

I would like them to start by admitting when we didn't do something right. Everybody have seen the autopsy report from the 2024 election. The first step is admitting that we have a problem. Yeah. Admitting that we're we we botched that first step in the very beginning. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I think we gotta go from there. Admitting that we have a problem and not sulking on it, okay, have our little couple hours of sulking. All right, now we got another elect. We got midterms coming up. We gotta keep it moving. And realizing there's another moment I'm gonna get in trouble. But um realizing that all money isn't good money. How many can we can we be honest? How many APAC people lost their seat? You know? All money isn't good money. I mean, I I have a problem with corporate money, period. You know how many corporate people that corporate people that take corporate money lost their seats. Yeah. The Democratic Party, we want to go somewhere with this. And like we we want change. And we've made it known we don't want corporate money. We don't want dirty money. We don't want APAC money. Like, we don't want it. We don't want billionaire money. We want honesty. We want somebody to run without having their own personal set agendas because that person that ran that took corporate money, that took APAC money. Now their agenda isn't our agenda anymore. They have certain votes that they gotta, you know, they gotta vote for this because they took that money and they need it again next election cycle. So starting there and then realizing that it's time for the next generation, too. You don't, I don't think these this next generation is running against these people just for, excuse me, shits and giggles. Oh, y'all can edit that out. But for shits and giggles, I think they're no fucking words, they're running for it for a reason. They want change. And you know, like I don't, I, uh, it's everything that I think, I'm not the only one. Oh, yeah, yeah. It's in their face. You just gotta be willing to accept it. You gotta be willing to accept that in 2024 we did not want Joe Biden to be our nominee, but we definitely didn't want Trump to be our nominee. Right. We definitely didn't want Trump to be president. I would have voted for Joe Biden's corpse before I voted for Trump. Exactly. But people were willing to do that instead of speaking up and saying we needed a new generation. Yeah. And instead, we waited until three months before the election, 107 days before the election, and start a new campaign. Put her in an impossible bond.

SPEAKER_01

Uh, you know, like she did better than I thought. She did. She did. Like, I thought I thought I thought she would lose I I I thought that Trump would end up with a majority of the vote, which he did not get. Uh which that's that's good. But yeah, I know it was it's still it's still crazy. Like also had a lot of hopium, though, and I and like towards the end, I was like, she's gonna win.

SPEAKER_00

She is going to win. I can't. Because he lost it. Donald Trump lost his mind. Oh, yeah, man. I he was long gone.

SPEAKER_01

I should say this for a league for legal purposes, allegedly. I think my opinion that that man is suffering some from some type of cognitive decline. I'm not a doctor, he may have dementia. Once again, just my opinion. Should say that for legal purposes. But yeah. But the dude, he he came out on stage, like to the to for his rallies, to a wrestler's themed song, and the guy's the wrestler, his gimmick was being a dead man going to a funeral.

SPEAKER_02

Like, what how is that real life?

SPEAKER_00

But the thing that hurts the most, it was also an eds auto to black women. Because not only like you put like she's already a black woman running in politics, she's black, a woman. And then on top of that, you only give her 107 days to already climb up Mount Trash. Mount Mount, not Mount Trash more, but it was Mount Rushmore. Mount Rush. I think you had it right the first time, man. Even then, that's still an uphill battle for her. Like, and they I just took the trash as a metaphor. Yeah. They set her up for failure, and it was an insult.

SPEAKER_01

Senator Williams Grays and I were talking about this, and it just it pissed me off to no end. Where like Kamala could give you the like most straightforward answer that you could about giving like housing policy. And her being like, well, actually, I think we cut rates and blah, blah, blah. Where if afterwards you're like, okay, like that is that that's an answer in any other like campaign, like, yeah, okay, you can critique that, but like, okay. With Donald Trump, he'd be like, um, we want houses and uh maybe we can have playgrounds. Or something like this guy's a freaking genius.

SPEAKER_00

He is a genius. And believe it or not, they thought that that's what they were gonna do with Winsom Sears. But little did they know, the same battles that Kamala Harris ran on, it's the same thing. Number one, you're a Republican. Yeah, you're a Republican, but you're a Republican black woman. And the thing that I hate most is that I wanted Winsom Sears to lose because her policy was just ass. Oh, yeah. But she but the thing about it is she didn't lose because her policy was ass. She lost because she was a black Republican woman. What do you think hurt her more being black or a woman? Oh god. You can't like it's gotta be both. Yeah. It can either be a black Republican or a black Republican or a black woman. Like both of it did not work. But when you look at this, it's funny, but it's not. Because you look at this in North Carolina, too, when um Mark Robinson, like it was a loss. Like, people that voted for Donald Trump voted for um voted for um what's Josh Stein. Yeah, people that voted for Trump voted for Abigail Spanberger, you know? That's crazy. Yeah. And so as much as I, and again, it hurts me to say, as much as I wanted her to lose because her policies were just horrible, she's lost because she was a black woman, and there was racist that did not want a black woman. And that's horrible. That's just horror.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, that was so you know, uh, as you and I are uh talking, there's been like kind of a lot of uh, you know, a few vetoes and uh with in the state legislature, and so there's kind of back and forth on like, you know, what happened, um, you know, like it's you know, what is there a betrayal, whatever. I I don't I I personally don't think so. I I think that there's some growing pains, uh, you know. Um but there is one thing that I am concerned with is that her team, uh Abigail Spanberger's team, saw a 15-point victory and uh like misread how popular Abigail Spanberger was. Uh because I think the I think that 15 points speaks more to her who her opponent was and the climate that she was running in, yeah, as opposed to how popular she was.

SPEAKER_00

And I hate the vetoes, like they're horrible. Um, but there's a couple of things I look at. Number one, I take those couple of vetoes any day over Winter C.

SPEAKER_02

Right. Oh, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Um, and set and and second of all, I'm going to trust, I'm going to trust that Governor Spanberger is still doing this for the what's best for the Commonwealth. I believe that um she's not gonna veto them and not have another plan because obviously that's what the majority wants. And so I'm gonna give it a little time, but I'm trusting, and just because I voted for her doesn't mean I'm gonna call her out on her bowl. I'm not gonna call her out on her bowl, but I'm gonna trust that she still has the best interests at heart and she still, you know, got some things up her sleeve. But those couple of vetoes, I'm not gonna take that away from what she's accomplished already. Come on, pay, pay family leave? What? Oh yeah. We definitely wasn't getting that with um Winsome Sears. Um getting ice out of our we definitely wasn't getting that from Winsom Sears. You gotta take the victories here. There were certain things we was definitely not gonna get. Oh, yeah. Like, so I take the things we did get over the couple of things that we $15 minimum wage. I don't care, I can't believe how I forgot that. Like, what? Yeah. That's that's crazy. And so again, I'm just gonna trust that she has the best interest at heart and that she she can she got something up her sleeve, you know? And but when you I'm gonna say this because I know again, I know we're running out.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, there you're man, this is my show. We can go we can go 100 minutes. I don't care.

SPEAKER_00

But when you looked at the campaign websites, because I did. Mm-hmm. Well, I'm serious. You click on one issue, it had three or four sentences. You go on Abigail Spanberger's website, you click on it, it had links. It had you had to go to separate links to get to her full policy. Like that's how much of a policy she had and issues she had. And so you just can't compare the two, you know? And so it was no doubt in my mind, you know.

SPEAKER_01

The the purest in me would love to be like, well, these are my non-negotiables, or this is what I wanted in a candidate. You did not deliver on 100% of these, off with your head. That would be ideally, or ideal, but we don't live in Adam Stand, you know. Um we um we actually live in a place with a um fascist authoritarian wannabe, um trying to uh trying to tyrant his way around the states. Yeah. And it is quite literally you either the choice is like having a puppy that is going to like poop in your house sometimes or dick cancer. Which one do you want? You know?

SPEAKER_00

Like I'm gonna I'm gonna take the I'm gonna take the cute dog that's gonna poop that, you know, just throw it away, you know, move on with my life, you know. It's and even though that dog pooping was a little pain and a little inconvenience, we just gotta move on with our day.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. You know? At least the dog getting trying to make your vote only count for like three-fifths of my vote, you know. Hello.

SPEAKER_00

Like it's you know, and there's so there's just so much that we want, but it's impossible to accomplish in one go around. You know? Um like my advice to Governor Spamberger, like you said, that 15-point victory, that was great. But you have to realize your policy was great, and your issues that you ran on was great, but we can't take for granted who you your k your opponent did the did your bidding for you. Like, I am speaking. I got I made a post the day after the election. I said, I think we did it, guys. I haven't heard I'm speaking all day. Like that was just horrible.

SPEAKER_01

And her concession speech was so it was it reminded me of like all the times I tried to give a presentation in college about a book that I didn't read. And she because it was essentially like you you you must not ever ever give up.

SPEAKER_00

Because if you've give up, then you believe it or not. Okay I have to differ on this. Believe it or not, I don't think her concession speech was horrible. I felt bad for her. I felt bad for her. I was like, she's so calm. I said, and a lot of people I heard a lot of a lot of this. They said if she would have run like this, she probably would have had a winning shot, but she wanted to be a black Donald Trump. Trump wanted to be. And just because I I was on the debate stage that night for the governor's debate. And I was assigned, I was assigned to Abigail Spanberger. And when we um, because I was one of one of four student representatives, and when we walked by, we went to each dressing room, we got to meet um Lieutenant Governor Sears. And I was like, I was in awe, politics aside, I was in awe. I said, this is a black woman. And not only is she running for governor, but she's the lieutenant governor, first ever black woman ever elected to statewide office. I said, I'm in awe of her. And I was like, she came by and shook everybody's hands because they was trying to rush her to the state. She's like, no, the students, I gotta, I gotta talk to the students. I want to say hello to the students. And she said hello to us and spoke, asked our names. And after the debate, she even remembered our names. And so, like, yeah, like I was in awe of this powerful black woman. Then she got on stage and acted a plum fool. And everything that I had just thought about in those couple of minutes went straight out. Really? I was like, I was just in awe of you. And you just went out there and embarrassed black people. Because why you got up there and sounded like an idiot, number one. Because what's gonna happen when the sun goes down? Their solar panel. And what was funny is because again, I was backstage, and so I um Abigail's security guard was on um was on the side, and I have a video of it, and I just kept seeing him go like it was hilarious because he just kept going, like, mind you, he's just a security guard. Yeah, like, but he just kept going. And eventually he left his post and came back and said, Doesn't solar panels absorb solar, absorb the sun? Like, he's like, doesn't that? I was like, Yeah, I think so. Like, I kind of feel like an idiot, so I'm not really sure right now. And he was like, that's what I thought. And then he just went back to his post and he kept just doing like the because that's how embarrassing it was. And it wasn't even so much I was embarrassed, you know, because as a Democrat, I was like, yeah, like she's acting a fool. We're about to win this. But after the fact I was just embarrassed as a black person, I was like, what the world? You didn't stick your policy, you talked about Jay Jones and um quote-unquote biological boys in bathrooms. You talked about that the entire debate stage. The entire debate time. That's all you talked about. I said, that was embarrassing. And every time Governor Spanberger tried to get out of her through policy answer, like that was embarrassing.

SPEAKER_01

What what was amazing to me is you're as you're saying that and you're talking about how embarrassing, you know, it is whenever like someone who looks like me and sounds like me, if they say what she said, that's just Tuesday. Not only that, that's Tuesday for the front runner for whatever seat that y'all are going up against. I don't know what's worse. The double standard, the hypocrite the hypocrisy of it, or just how freaking ignorant some folks can be.

SPEAKER_00

And what I tell people, yes, we're supposed to be in a new time. Ah, this is a good one. Somebody just clickbaited to you. This is a good one. We don't have the luxury of acting like everybody else. We don't have that luxury. I always like to go back to my scandal quote of um Papa Pope. You have to be twice as good to get half of what they have. We don't have the luxury to go on stage and act like Donald Trump. Donald Trump is a multi-billionaire. You're running for governor. It's just stupid. Like, why would you? And that also um, it was another thing because another, a lot of people always something um black people always talked about. We always talked about her hair. It looked a hot ass mess every time. It's not funny anymore because this is you would no other black person would let you walk around with your hair like that. And like at first, because at first everybody thought it was funny, but it was like, no, it's not funny, because that just shows you the company she keeps. Because no other brother or sister is gonna let our sister walk out like that. Yeah. And so, like, I was like, yeah, it's not funny no more. It's kind of sad. Because you know, it's just horrible. It's just a sad moment, you know.

SPEAKER_01

I it's so interesting what you were um what you had said about uh Winston Merrill Sears, because I I I'd only seen the debate part. You know, I I hadn't seen the like the stuff in the back to uh and so to know, well, clearly, like you can't just be fall on your uh face doofus and be lieutenant governor or something. You know, like you you gotta have you gotta have some smarts, I guess.

SPEAKER_00

So I I in hindsight I should have known that that was almost like a character or character that she was kind of because if you paid attention, I paid it because uh again, as a black person seeing another black person run for office, I I you uh let alone the state office, but on a Republican side, you're gonna catch my attention. And so in 2021, when she ran for lieutenant governor, if you notice, she wasn't like this. It's two different campaigns. She did not act like this, she had real issues that she was that she wanted to implement. Did I agree with them? Absolutely not. Right. But it had she was not like this at all. And to see the code switch to a please the Proud Boys side of things, it's sad. It's sad. And you know, it's and then she's one of those like you haven't heard from her since she lost. She actually didn't make a post about it until Thanksgiving that she lost. And she was just saying she's thankful for her supporters and whatnot. But I'm like, what's next for her? Because like you haven't seen her since the election post. But once you start, you know, updating social media pages, here we go again. You know, because I remember when she was lieutenant governor, there was a post every day. She she was very transparent. She kept a post every day up about what was happening, what was going to do. Like she was very transparent, but now nothing. You know? So I noticed certain things. I could be in somebody's war room because I know how to do it. I know how to, I know how to, I know the political uh mindsets of people, you know.

SPEAKER_01

And so I'm I'm gonna uh kind of put you on the spot, Mikey. Be a uh prognosticator here. Uh how do you see the uh midterm elections playing out?

SPEAKER_00

I had hope when we had the 10-1. You know, I had hope. And now that that's out the window, and um I'm gonna be one of those to say it's not fair because other states get to do it and they get to do it out repercussions. Right. Um and without their people's input. And we actually went through our people's input and we still didn't we got the v vote to do it, and then all of a sudden, the same Supreme Court decided it was okay for this state to do it, they're saying we can't do it. I just think that's absolutely ridiculous. And don't get me started. Don't get me started. But hopefully people are outraged enough to flip that Trump 30 seat by and make it go to a dim 30 seat. Hopefully, that's enough anger to let you know, okay, we're gonna do it anyway. We don't need a Supreme Court to redistrict us. We're gonna do it anyway, we're gonna flip it anyway, you know? So I I have hope that we can do it. Um, and I'm gonna go a little more and say, I have faith. Okay. And so it's it's a prayer, I will say that. We was talking about that before, a little religion before. And so I'm gonna say I have faith and I have a prayer. It's a prayer that we can do it, you know. With hard work, if we keep if we did do what we did in 2025 and were able to flip 13 delegate seats and seats in the house of delegates, I think we can do it, you know? And so I'm, you know, I'm not gonna say never, but I think we can do it. I think we can do it. I'm gonna stay optimistic.

SPEAKER_01

Well, JVO, man, this has been a blast funny episode. I know I had a great time.

SPEAKER_00

I had a great time. This was fun.