In the "State of the Union With Jake Tapper and Dana Bash" (CNN), Ruben Gallego discusses what the key takeaway for the Democrats should be from this election.
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Transcript:
GALLEGO: “Look, I think really the economy is what resonated with people. And that’s what I heard in Arizona a lot. People were worried about the cost of everything. And I think some of the frustration was that we were spending money, but not necessarily helping people. And that’s also —”
TAPPER: “Spending money like in Ukraine, you mean?”
GALLEGO: “Yes, exactly.”
TAPPER: “Okay.”
GALLEGO: “And part of my frustration was, we would love nothing more to help you out, but also, we don’t have the votes from Republicans. But even getting to that discussion starts going down a long conversation. The biggest lesson we have to learn here is, when people are hurting economically, they’re going to take care of themselves first. And that’s what we have seen for the last — change elections for the last 20 years. And I think it’s important for Democrats to remember that from now on. You have to take care of people at the bottom line. You have to give them some level of economic security, especially Latino men. Latino men believe they can work themselves out of any problem. Like, I remember growing up, when I didn’t have enough money to travel back home for Christmas, I just went and worked extra hours.”
TAPPER: “When you were a Marine?”
GALLEGO: “When I was at school. And so I would — I literally went to a convention center and threw on a costume and handed out leaflets, right? That’s the mentality of Latino men. This election — I’m sorry — this time is the first time I’d ever heard many of them say, ‘I just don’t feel like I’m doing anything to provide for my family. I don’t feel like I’m bringing them security.’ Until we actually focus on that and understand that, we’re going to have problems really bringing them back into the Democratic fold.”
TAPPER: “Senator-Elect Ruben Gallego, congratulations again.”
GALLEGO: “Thank you.”
TAPPER: “And please come back a lot. We’d love to have you. We love hearing from you.”
GALLEGO: “Appreciate it.”
TAPPER: “We will be right back.”
Date: November 17, 2024
