DNC Chair Tom Perez: Democrats Will Organize For Jon Ossoff | Morning Joe

20th. >> THE CHAIRMAN OF THE DNC, TOM
PEREZ, THANK YOU FOR BEING WITH US.
SOME GRUMBLING COMING OUT OF GEORGIA ACCORDING TO CASEY HUNT
SAYING DEMOCRATS ARE WONDERING WHY HE DIDN'T PUT THIS AWAY, WHY
HE SPENT SO MUCH MONEY, SO MUCH OF THAT $8 MILLION ON TV ADS.
WHAT DO YOU SAY TO THOSE CRITICS WITHIN YOUR OWN PARTY?
>> I WOULD RATHER BE JON OSSOFF RIGHT NOW THAN KAREN HANDEL.
YOU LOOK AT THIS DISTRICT, TOM PRICE WON BY 23 POINTS FIVE
MONTHS AGO, AND HERE YOU HAVE, AS YOU KNOW, JOE, JUST A FEW
WEEKS AGO THEY WERE SAYING DEMOCRAT CAN'T GET OVER 42%, 43%
OF THE VOTE. HE GOT 48%.
THE OTHER THREE DEMOCRATS GOT ROUGHLY A POINT.
HE'S ALREADY AT 49% OF THE VOTE. AND THERE'S A HECK OF A LOT OF
ENERGY OUT THERE AND KAREN HANDEL, YOU HAVE A PERSON WHO
REALLY PUT THE SUSAN B. KOMEN, WHEN SHE WOULDN'T FUND
SCREENINGS. SHE WAS CALLED A CAREER
POLITICIAN. ALWAYS SPENDING MONEY, LOSING
ELECTIONS. THERE'S A LOT OF ENERGY OUT HERE
RIGHT NOW AND THAT'S HOW WE WENT FROM TOM PRICE WINNING BY 23% TO
JON OSSOFF ON THE VERGE OF VICTORY.
>> ALL RIGHT. SO LET'S TALK, THOUGH, ABOUT
WHAT OUR CANDIDATE AND OUR PARTY CAN DO, THOUGH, BETWEEN NOW AND
JUNE 20th. WHERE CAN THEY IMPROVE?
A LOT OF MEDIA BUYS FOR ADS SEEMS LIKE HE SHOULD HAVE DONE
BETTER AND IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S SOME IMPROVEMENT THAT CAN BE
MADE IN TERMS OF THE GROUND GAME BETWEEN NOW AND JUNE 20th.
WHAT ARE THOSE IMPROVEMENTS THAT NEED TO BE MADE?
>> WE HAD A DARNED GOOD GROUND GAME AND OPPORTUNITIES TO DO
EVEN MORE. SO I'M VERY EXCITED ABOUT WHERE
THINGS ARE HERE. THE MILLENNIAL ENGAGEMENT IN THE
PRESIDENTIAL ON BEHALF OF DEMOCRATS.
WHEN THE PUNDITS KEPT SAYING YOU'RE NEVER GOING TO GET TO 43%
AND NOW YOU'RE FIRST AND GOAL AT THE 8 YARD LINE WE HAVE TO PUNCH
IT IN AND WE'RE GOING TO PUNCH IT IN BY ORGANIZING, ORGANIZING,
ORGANIZING. >> YOU KNOW WHAT WE'RE TALKING
ABOUT. WE HAVE A PARTY THAT NEEDS WORK,
THAT NEEDS TO GET BACK ENGAGED WITH THE AMERICAN PEOPLE IN A
WAY WHERE THEY CONNECT WITH THOSE WHO FEEL LEFT OUT.
WHAT DOES THIS CANDIDATE AND THIS PARTY NEED TO DO BETWEEN
NOW AND JUNE 20th TO BRING IT OVER THE TOP?
>> ORGANIZE. AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT WE'RE
DOING. WE'RE GOING TO BE OUT ON THE
STREET. THERE'S STILL OPPORTUNITY OUT
THERE. THERE'S STILL VOTERS WHO DIDN'T
VOTE BEFORE THAT ARE ELIGIBLE TO VOTE NOW.
WE'VE IDENTIFIED THEM, AND WE WILL BE OUT THERE KNOCKING ON
THEIR DOORS AND THEY'LL SEE YOUR VOTE CAN MAKE THE DIFFERENCE
BECAUSE WE'RE ALREADY AT 49% WHEN YOU LOOK AT BOTH JOHN
OSSOFF AND THE THREE DEMOCRATS WHO GOT ROUGHLY 1% OF THE VOTE
BETWEEN THEM AND SO I'M ACTUALLY VERY OPTIMISTIC.
YOU SEE THIS ENERGY EVERYWHERE ACROSS AMERICA.
I'VE BEEN TRAVELING ACROSS THE COUNTRY THIS WEEK AND THE ENERGY
IS PALPABLE. WE'RE GOING TO TRANSLATE THAT
ENERGY INTO MORE VOTES. >> GENE ROBINSON IS HERE.
HE HAS A PULITZER PRIZE. HE'S GOING TO ASK YOU A QUESTION
RIGHT NOW. >> TOM, IT'S GENE ROBINSON.INSO.
SO WHAT ARE YOU DOING? WHAT IS THE PARTY DOING ON THE
GRASSROOTS LEVEL AROUND THE COUNTRY?
THE DEMOCRATS HAVE LOST TWO-THIRDS OF STATE LEMMINGS LAY
TOURS, TWO-THIRDS OF GOVERNORSHIPS.
THE FUTURE STARS OF THE PARTY HAVE TO COME FROM THE
GRASSROOTS. WHAT ARE YOU DOING AT THE
GRASSROOTS? >> ORGANIZING, ORGANIZING,
ORGANIZING. WE HAVE TO GET BACK TO BASICS.
WE NEED A 50 STATE PLUS THE TERRITORIES.
THE MISSION IS NOT SIMPLY TO ELECT THE PRESIDENT OF THE YOU
STATES BUT TO ELECT PEOPLE FROM THE SCHOOL BOARD TO THE SENATE.
ONE OF THE BEST WAYS IS TO BUILD STRONG PARTIES AND TO HAVE AN
ORGANIZINGING PRESENCE 12 MONTHS A YEAR.
JOE KNOWS VERY WELL DOWN IN FLORIDA AFTER 2012 THEY BUILT AN
ORGANIZING PRESENCE ON THE
REPUBLICAN SIDE. 12 MONTHS A YEAR, FOUR YEARS
STRAIGHT THEY FOUND ABOUT 130,000 REPUBLICAN VOTERS WHO
ARE OFF THE POLITICAL GRID AND THAT MADE THE DIFFERENCE IN
2016. THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT WE'RE DOING
AS DEMOCRATS, GETTING OUT THERE, GETTING BACK TO BASICS, TALKING
TO VOTERS, REGISTERING VOTERS, WORKING WITH CANDIDATES, WITH
PARTNERS WHO ARE RECRUITING FEMALE CANDIDATES AT A
REMARKABLE CLIP, HELPING THEM TO TRAIN CANDIDATES.
THAT'S WHAT WE HAVE TO DO. THE BASICS OF PARTY BUILDING,
THE BASICS OF ORGANIZING. WHEN YOU GET BACK TO BASICS YOU
DO WELL. WHEN YOU LEAVE WITH YOUR VALUES
I THINK WE DO WELL, TOO. >> I WANT TO SEE HOW THAT
CHANGES OVER TIME. HEIDI?
>> THIS IS A MORAL VICTORY LIKE IN KANSAS.
MORAL VICTORIES ARE IMPORTANT BUT LOOKING AT THE MAP WHERE DO
YOU ACTUALLY WIN BETWEEN NOW AND THE MIDTERMS THAT WILL GIVE US
AN INDICATION THAT THIS ISS IS ACTUALLY GOING SOMEWHERE, THAT
THIS IS TRANSLATING INTO ELECTORAL VICTORIES?
I'M LOOKING AT MONTANA AND THEN SOUTH CAROLINA.
THOSE DON'T LOOK MUCH BETTER. THIS SEEMS TO HAVE BEEN YOUR
BEST SHOT OF ACTUALLY WINNING. >> WELL, WE HAVE A RUN-OFF ON
JUNE THE 20th AND OUR CANDIDATE HAS ROUGHLY 48% TO 49% OF THE
VOTE GOING INTO THE RUN-OFF AND WE HAVE STILL VOTES OUT THERE
THAT ARE MODERATES BECAUSE THEY'RE GOING TO SEE THIS, KAREN
HANDEL IS FAR TO THE RIGHT. SHE IS SOMEONE WHO SAID I DON'T
SUPPORT THE AFFORDABLE CARE CAR. WHEN THAT VOTE TO REPEAL THE
AFFORDABLE CARE ACT COMES UP, SHE'S ON THE SIDE OF THE TEA
PARTY. 17% OF THE AMERICAN PUBLIC
SUPPORTS THE REPEAL OF THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT.
SHE HAS SOME EXPLAINING TO DO ON THAT.
SHE HAS SOME EXPLAINING TO DO TO WOMEN ABOUT WHY SHE WOULDN'T
FUND BREAST CANCER SCREENINGS AT PLANNED PARENTHOOD.
SHE HAS EXPLAINING TO DO ON WHY SHE WAS GOING AFTER THE VOTING
RIGHTS OF MINORITIES. WHEN I WAS AT THE JUSTICE
DEPARTMENT WE WERE INVOLVED WITH THE STATE OF GEORGIA WHEN SHE
WAS SECRETARY OF STATE. SHE'S WAY OFF THE MAINSTREAM AND
I'M CONFIDENT THAT THE ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTION, HEIDI, IS JUNE
20th OF THIS YEAR.

DNC Chair Tom Perez: Democrats Will Organize For Jon Ossoff | Morning Joe | MSNBC

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