EXCLUSIVE: Rep. Clyburn says Democrats are NOT ‘energizing’ voters

[0:00] The U.S. Congressional District in South Carolina that has been represented by [0:03] Democratic Congressman Jim Clyburn for decades will remain intact through this year's midterms. [0:09] A dozen Republican state senators bucked their party and President Trump in order to vote [0:15] against a new congressional map that would have eliminated Clyburn's district and all but ensured [0:20] full GOP representation for the state. Clyburn sat down with MSNOW senior Washington reporter [0:28] and co-host of The Weekend Eugene Daniels this week to discuss that vote and the future of his party. [0:34] I'm happy to say that Eugene joins us now from Columbia, South Carolina. Great to see you, [0:39] my friend. Tell us more. This was noteworthy. We've seen Republicans throughout the nation, [0:45] particularly in the South, immediately acquiesce to President Trump's wishes to redistrict after [0:51] that Supreme Court decision of a few weeks ago. But South Carolina said no. Talk to us about your [0:57] conversation with the congressman. Yeah, it was pretty wide ranging. We talked about the [1:02] redistricting. We talked about the map coming back and whether or not he believes Republicans are [1:07] going to stand up again and try to maybe do a more fair map. The thing that was interesting about why [1:13] he said South Carolina stood up was because he said this is a state that has an independent streak, [1:17] that in his words, it was bad because they succeeded, seceded from the union, but then they were one of [1:23] the first to sign on for Reconstruction. We also talked about the Democratic Party, where it's going [1:29] 2028, 2026. And also he had a critique of his party that I thought was really interesting. Let's [1:36] listen to that really quickly. I think we ought not get sucked into playing the other person's game. [1:42] Politics is all about building relationships. Right. [1:47] And if you are going to be successful in it, you can't play the other person's game. [1:53] But Republicans are winning at the game. Yeah, because they play to their base [2:00] much more effectively than we play to ours. For some strange reason, most Democrats seem to feel [2:09] feel that they can convert voters. I don't think conversion therapy ought to be placed on voters. [2:21] What you've got to do is energize voters and motivate them. And I don't think we spend enough time [2:30] motivating and energizing people. He, the critique is something we've heard before. [2:40] He also talked about, though, that we, the Democratic Party spends too much time focused [2:45] in paying on for consultants and what they have to say instead of listening to their constituents. [2:50] One of the things that was really interesting is this is a man who has been in politics for a long [2:55] time. And for him, the fundamentals have not changed, which is you have to get to your base, [3:00] but you most importantly, have to understand who your base is. And for the Democratic Party, [3:03] especially for the Democratic Party, even now, older black voters are still the base [3:09] and foundation of the Democratic Party. And that's something that they need to pay attention to, he says. [3:16] Yeah. Eugene, listen, I got a big question for you. Talk about consultants and the money spent. [3:23] But the other thing the Democratic Party has always done is spend a boatload of money on trying to get [3:29] people to vote, getting people out to vote. Is your sense on the ground there in South Carolina, [3:36] and in talking to other political leaders, black political leaders, particularly in the South, [3:43] do you think this is a moment where maybe we won't have to spend the kind of money we typically spend [3:48] on GOTV, that black voters are going to be more motivated now because it's plain to them what's going [3:55] on here, that the Republican Party is trying to cancel their representation in Congress? [4:00] Yeah, Senator, one of the things that's so interesting is I have deep roots here in South Carolina. [4:06] Both my parents are from here. My aunt lives in Columbia. And so I saw her this week. And what [4:11] she said is that at churches here in Columbia in and around South Carolina, they were saying, [4:17] come out during this primary as if it's Super Tuesday, come out for early voting so we can tell people [4:23] that black voters have a big voice here. So you've seen these incredible numbers of voting here in [4:28] South Carolina. So the motivation is coming from them. And this South Carolina has a rich history of that. [4:34] But one thing I also hear a lot from black Democrats and folks who want Democrats to win [4:40] is that at the end of the day, you still have to convince black voters. And that is something that [4:44] you hear every once in a while. Don't drop in in October and say black voters come back home. [4:50] You have to work on it beforehand. And so whether or not they're spending, [4:53] you know, money on it, they want to actually hear from folks early on. And that includes the 2026ers. [5:00] But most importantly, also includes those 2028ers because they want to see them, [5:04] they want to touch them, and they want to have conversations with them about what's bothering [5:07] them. And most importantly, Senator, they want them when they get in power to actually do things [5:12] that affect black people's lives in a positive way. And that's one thing they say has been missing [5:16] for a long time in politics. You can see the full interview with the Congressman tomorrow morning [5:22] on the weekend right here on MSNOW. Senior Washington reporter Eugene Daniels, [5:27] thank you so much for bringing it to us. We appreciate it.