Full interview with Juliana Stratton, Illinois Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate

[0:01] Thank you so much for sitting down with us, greatly appreciate it. [0:03] Glad to be here. [0:04] Let me put you in the headspace, assuming that you do win, let's make that assumption [0:08] just for a second, and put ourselves in the oxygen of Washington in early January. [0:12] Do you think there will be an effort to impeach President Trump, and if so, will you be part [0:17] of that? [0:19] Well, first of all, when you talk about sort of the energy of Washington at that time, [0:24] what I hope is that, first and foremost, we're able to flip the House and flip the Senate. [0:30] And that is something that I'm very focused on. [0:33] I want to walk into the doors of the U.S. Capitol in a majority and make sure that we can do [0:40] what the voters of Illinois and so many across the country have really been just aching for, [0:47] and that is a government that really works for them. [0:50] Look, I always say that it's important. [0:53] I mean, this president, to me, is the most corrupt president in history, this administration. [0:59] And this president and his administration and everyone who has helped enable his authoritarian [1:04] agenda needs to be held accountable. [1:06] We must investigate, we must call it out, ask the questions, provide oversight, which [1:11] I will have the authority to do, and I will make sure that I'm asking those questions. [1:16] You know here in Illinois, we have the Illinois Accountability Commission, because we know he's [1:21] not going to be in office always. [1:23] And so it's going to be important to do exactly what we did here in Illinois. [1:27] Ask questions, gather information and evidence, and be prepared to hold this president accountable. [1:34] If your caucus says we want to move forward with impeachment proceedings, would they have [1:38] your support? [1:40] Well, we'll see what happens. [1:41] I mean, I think I'm going to do whatever I can to hold this president accountable. [1:45] But the bottom line is, remember, this president has been impeached twice before, and he's serving [1:51] as the president of the United States. [1:54] So we need to make sure that we are focused on doing whatever we can do to, first and foremost, [2:00] of course, hold this president accountable, but also deliver for the American people and [2:05] for me, the people of Illinois. [2:07] What people have been asking for is making sure they have access to health care. [2:11] They want to make sure they have higher wages. [2:13] Those are things that I've campaigned on. [2:15] Those are things I want to deliver on. [2:16] So there's going to be a lot that we're going to have to address come January, and we will [2:21] see what direction that goes when we get there. [2:23] But accountability might have to come in a different format. [2:25] I'm kind of hearing you say we've impeached him before, and it's sort of been a mallet with [2:31] no power to it, right? [2:32] It just seems like there's nothing there? [2:33] Well, I mean, I certainly don't think this, that Donald Trump should be sitting in the [2:38] Oval Office. [2:40] He shouldn't be the president of the United States. [2:42] He is the most corrupt president, as I said, in history. [2:45] So if you get this seat, how will you effectuate change to that effect? [2:48] Well, I'm going to do exactly what I've been talking about doing. [2:52] First of all, we need to have a check on this president. [2:54] I will be a check. [2:57] You know, right now what we're seeing, whether we're looking at the Supreme Court or congressional [3:01] Republicans that have sort of ceded their power to this president, we need Democrats to [3:06] get in and be prepared to be a wall of resistance to stand up against what this president is [3:12] trying to do, which is to systematically dismantle every aspect of the federal government and [3:19] to create fear in our communities. [3:21] But the other thing that we must do, as I said, is we also must deliver. [3:25] And so I want Democrats to get in there and first be a block and stop the bleeding. [3:29] And then we have to get right to work. [3:31] Remember, millions of Americans have been stripped of their health care. [3:34] He's ripped food out of the mouths of hungry children. [3:37] There's going to be some real severe issues that we have to tackle right off the bat to [3:42] make life more affordable, to make sure our most vulnerable have what they need. [3:46] So we're going to be going in a lot of different directions. [3:49] And what I want is for us as Democrats to be focused on doing the work that the voters [3:54] are sending us there to do. [3:56] Those voters, those viewers, those folks who are taking these polls are saying time and [4:00] again that affordability is the number one issue. [4:03] What is your 1A thing you can do to help bring the family budget back in line? [4:08] What would be job one for you? [4:10] Job one for me is expanding access to affordable health care. [4:13] And I personally will fight for Medicare for all. [4:18] You know, when I think about the issue of affordability, we have to break it down. [4:22] Everything's too expensive right now. [4:24] And we have a president of the United States and Donald Trump who said on day one, he was [4:27] going to lower inflation, he was going to lower costs. [4:31] He has not only just not succeeded in that, he's made everything worse. [4:37] Everything is too expensive. [4:38] And so when I talk to families, health care is one of those big issues. [4:42] You may recall that one of the reasons I ran for office, the reason I ran for office in [4:46] the first place 10 years ago was my story as a caregiver of my mother who had Alzheimer's. [4:51] And that has been the driving force to make sure people who need a doc to see a doctor can [4:57] see one. [4:58] I also have a daughter, by the way, who has her health care under the Affordable Care [5:01] Act. [5:03] And it's so expensive. [5:04] She's, you know, downgraded her plan to make sure she can get something more affordable. [5:09] That is not what the American people or Illinoisans deserve. [5:13] We should be able to have the health care that we need. [5:17] That's an expensive cost. [5:18] We've lowered the cost of prescription drugs here in Illinois. [5:21] We've eliminated over a billion dollars in medical debt. [5:24] I passed the birth equity initiative. [5:26] Let's do those same things at the federal level. [5:28] True or false, you are open to Supreme Court term limits and expanding the court from nine [5:33] justices. [5:34] I think we should look at every possible option when it comes to addressing a Supreme Court [5:41] that has forgotten it's supposed to be a co-equal, independent branch of government. [5:47] But a check on this president's power, that is not how this Supreme Court is operating. [5:52] And so I think we should do several things. [5:54] Number one, we should have strong ethics reform and requirements. [5:58] And if a Supreme Court justice does not follow those ethical considerations, they should be [6:02] kicked off the court. [6:04] But secondly, yes, I would be open at least to looking at expanding this court, term limits [6:10] for the court. [6:11] And I'll tell you something else. [6:12] I'm not going to vote to confirm any of President Trump's nominees to the court. [6:18] He does not identify people who are qualified to carry out the job. [6:23] Do you think that in this day and age, when we talk about all of these norms being broken, [6:28] taxpayer dollars being spent on promotions for the White House, the courts this weekend intervened [6:34] and tried to shut down? [6:36] Does it seem like we're just in a world of the rules are like written in sandpaper that [6:44] just quicksand that just vanishes? [6:46] How do you do that? [6:48] How can you put rules on the books and the rules get blown through? [6:52] How can we do something that can prevent that from happening again in the future? [6:56] Because we thought we had a system that would prevent a lot of these things and we don't. [7:01] Yes. [7:03] Well, I mean, we have a system, we have a constitution. [7:06] What we have is a president who does not believe he has to follow the constitution. [7:11] What we have is congressional Republicans and an administration surrounding this president [7:16] who don't have the courage to stand up to this president, don't have the backbone to [7:21] tell him that he is violating the rule of law, he is violating the constitution. [7:27] And so that's what we see happening. [7:28] So what can we do with that? [7:30] Well, yes, as a senator, I'm going to look at every possible outcome. [7:35] First of all, we have to call it out. [7:37] The American people, Illinoisans, deserve to hear what their government is doing. [7:42] And I'm going to be transparent. [7:43] I'm going to find ways to shine a light. [7:46] I often quote what Ida B. Wells said, the best way to right wrongs is to shine the light [7:51] of truth on them. [7:52] I'm going to shine the light of truth on this president when I get to the Senate. [7:56] And the second thing is, there might be, and this is something that we certainly will have [8:00] to talk about with colleagues, there might be opportunities to make sure that we enshrine [8:06] certain things into the law, into legislation, or even potentially the constitution if that comes up. [8:13] What is the right pathway to exit the war in Iran? [8:19] Well, let's talk about what this is, by the way. [8:21] That is, you've asked the question, which is the question that everyone should have been [8:25] asking from day one, including Donald Trump. [8:28] He had no path. [8:30] He had no way to exit this war. [8:32] He had no plan. [8:34] And while he entered this war and he's dragged us into an illegal, unconstitutional war of [8:40] choice, Illinoisans are, you know, footing the bill in so many ways. [8:46] Everything is too expensive, including gas. [8:49] So you know, it shouldn't have happened. [8:52] I'm not going to be someone that will help with any supplemental funding for him to carry [8:56] out this illegal war of choice. [8:58] That's one of the things that's important. [9:00] And then we have to come back and make sure that there are adults in the room. [9:04] And that's not going to be Donald Trump. [9:05] It's going to be those of us who are elected who are going to sit down and really look at [9:09] that strategy and make sure that when we have a government, when we have a president that's [9:14] alienating our allies, cozying up to dictators, that there are some people who take this seriously [9:21] and understand that you don't put people at risk just because you want to stroke your [9:25] ego. [9:26] So what exactly needs to happen to get us to that exit ramp? [9:30] What would, what would, what would the Senator Stratton advocate? [9:33] Exactly what I just said. [9:35] We have to, first of all, recognize that we shouldn't have been there in the first place. [9:39] I will not support any additional funding or supplemental funding. [9:43] We have a president, as you know, who has not only, he's requested trillions of dollars [9:50] for a military budget while at the same time claiming that there is no money for childcare. [9:57] He says there's no money for healthcare. [9:59] But he's requesting trillions for an illegal war that no one asked for. [10:05] So we have to first start there. [10:07] And then secondly, again, what efforts might be taken from, you know, what we do as a legislature, [10:13] as the Senate or the Congress as a whole? [10:16] Those are the things that we'll have to look at what that plan might be. [10:19] But we need people who have the expertise and who are going to make sure that we look [10:23] at that from a steady lens. [10:25] You know my background is as a mediator. [10:28] My job has, throughout my career, has been to bring people to the table, understand what [10:32] all the issues are and find a real solution. [10:35] But are there certain red lines? [10:36] Do we have to reopen the strait? [10:38] Do we have to prevent them from getting nuclear weapons? [10:40] Can you get a little more granular in what you'd like to see from a policy standpoint to [10:44] end that thing? [10:45] What, look, what I would say is this president started this war with no plan. [10:52] Why are we there? [10:53] Okay. [10:54] That's in the past, though. [10:55] Let's talk about the future. [10:56] How do we get out of it? [10:57] I'm not hearing a plan. [10:58] Yeah. [10:59] It's important to recognize that the fact that he got us there without a plan means [11:03] that we all have to be at a place where we close this out. [11:07] And we have to do so recognizing that he is not making any decisions that are in the best [11:12] interest of the American people. [11:13] So we will continue to take those steps and follow accordingly. [11:18] Who should ultimately be in charge of governing AI? [11:21] Does the U.S. government have a reliable track record of being the proper vessel to put guardrails [11:27] up? [11:29] I think we can be and we must be. [11:32] We know that right now AI has immense potential for innovation. [11:39] It also has immense potential to cause harm. [11:42] So here in Illinois, we've put up some guardrails. [11:45] We want to make sure that we do that. [11:46] But we also need to make sure that there are guardrails. [11:48] And yes, the federal government should be taking that on. [11:52] They should be taking it on post haste. [11:54] And it can't just be the federal government. [11:55] We have to include the global community as well. [11:58] Does it need to be someone like a czar or like an NTSB or an atomic energy council? [12:06] How does the structure work? [12:07] How would you advocate for the government to say, this is the framework for keeping us [12:14] safe? [12:15] I don't know if I can tell you this specific framework. [12:17] What I do know is that we have to do something. [12:20] There are concerns in communities that I'm hearing from voters all over the state of Illinois. [12:24] And we even hear people directly from the industry who are saying that this is really dangerous. [12:30] And we have to get our arms around it and put some guardrails up. [12:34] But I know it can't, what it can't happen is what we hear Donald Trump saying, let's bring, [12:40] you know, big tech together and they're going to sort of police themselves. [12:46] They're going to be the ones to decide. [12:48] That is not sufficient. [12:49] We need to make sure that there are some real guardrails. [12:52] And I'm going to make sure that that is the case when I get to the Senate. [12:55] Should there be better and firmer guardrails around investing from U.S. senators and members [13:00] of Congress? [13:01] There's been a pox on both houses here. [13:03] Some in a larger degree than the others, a lot of criticism of how this White House [13:07] has enriched itself. [13:08] Similar questions about how Nancy Pelosi has invested over these years. [13:11] What say you about making sure that our elected officials, namely the 100 most influential [13:17] in the Senate, don't get rich off of insider information? [13:21] I've made it clear that I want to see campaign finance reform and it looks a lot of different [13:27] ways. [13:28] First of all, yes, I want to ban congressional stock trading. [13:33] But I also want to make sure that we get big corporate money out of politics. [13:38] So those are the things that I'm going to fight for. [13:40] I've said that every day on the trail. [13:42] But yes, I want to ban congressional stock trading. [13:45] And that essentially, define that for me. [13:47] What does congressional stock trading mean? [13:49] Just as you just talked about. [13:50] I don't want, you know, I don't think that members of Congress should be trading, owning [13:56] and trading stocks in that way. [13:57] Their investment should be in a blind trust that they have no hand on. [13:59] I don't want them. [14:02] Any congressional stock trading should be banned. [14:06] If you win, how long do you think you should be allowed to be in this job? [14:09] Talk to me about term limits from Julianna Stratton's point of view. [14:13] I am going to serve as long as I can keep bringing the fight, not just against the things that [14:19] are threatening the people of Illinois, but also the things that I am fighting for, for [14:23] the people of Illinois. [14:25] And I think that that's kind of how I look at it for anybody that's running. [14:29] If you have the fight and you are doing what needs to be done to deliver for the people [14:33] that you represent, then I'm okay. [14:36] That's how I'm looking at it. [14:38] I only have, first of all, I've got to get elected. [14:41] Election day is November 3rd and I'm working very hard to get there. [14:45] So that's the first step that I have to get to. [14:47] If I'm fortunate enough and the people of Illinois believe that I should represent them, then [14:52] I'm going to focus on my first term and that's all that I'm being elected to. [14:57] And anybody who gets reelected, it's up to the voters the next election cycle. [15:00] And so when somebody like Charles Grassley files paperwork to run again, he'd be over [15:04] a hundred years old at the end of his next term. [15:07] Does that strike you as a little off? [15:10] I'm sure the voters will tell us if it's a little off. [15:14] Let me ask you, you have said there's nothing that you agree with President Trump on and [15:19] you want to be part of that wall to stop a lot of their movement. [15:23] There are some people out there who look at both parties, the Republican Party and the [15:27] Democratic Party are suffering with very, very low approval ratings. [15:32] Is there any olive branch effort that you can point to to say, you know what? [15:36] We need to turn the page. [15:38] There's got to be a little bit of kumbaya here. [15:42] What avenue could you see perhaps that occurring? [15:45] Well, let me be very clear. [15:49] I am not going to Washington, D.C. to extend an olive branch to a wannabe dictator like Donald [15:57] Trump. [15:58] Are there any areas that you could say, let's try and find some common ground to work? [16:02] With Donald Trump? [16:03] Yes. [16:04] No. [16:05] That does not mean that as I think about my role as a senator, that there will not be opportunities [16:12] for me to find opportunities within my colleagues to try to advance legislation that supports [16:18] the values that I have, that supports what the people of Illinois are looking for. [16:23] You know, when I got to the Illinois House of Representatives, I got 10 bills passed and [16:27] signed into law. [16:28] I'm a Democrat. [16:29] They were signed by a Republican governor. [16:32] All of them were passed on a bipartisan basis. [16:34] Many of them were passed unanimously, working with my colleagues on the other side of the [16:38] aisle. [16:39] I believe in bipartisanship. [16:41] So when you have a president who is trying to ban the press from having access to the [16:45] White House, sending armed, you know, agents to the streets of Chicago and all over this [16:53] country where people are getting killed, shot in the streets by masked agents, his private [16:58] police force. [17:00] When you have a president who has made $2 billion since he came back in office, you don't negotiate [17:09] with dictators. [17:10] He does not want us to have another election. [17:13] So no, I'm not there to give an olive branch to Donald Trump. [17:17] I'm there to get things done for the people of Illinois. [17:20] We sat here with your competitor a couple of weeks ago who said that your ad, the F Trump [17:26] ad, was very uncivil. [17:27] Do you stand behind that spot? [17:29] Yes. [17:31] Is there anything you've heard from constituents that say, boy, this scorched earth approach [17:36] may be a little much. [17:38] Do you hear that at all? [17:39] Or does everybody give you gas in the tank to say, go give them hell? [17:43] Look, people are looking for a fighter right now. [17:46] They are watching what is happening every single day. [17:49] I'm a mom of four. [17:52] And I think about the kind of world that I want my children to inherit. [17:57] And I am fighting so hard for the people of Illinois because I refuse to let my children [18:02] or anyone's children inherit a world where we turn our backs on the people that need help [18:10] the most. [18:12] I refuse to let them inherit a world where we let fear and hate defeat us. [18:21] So right now, when we've seen what we've seen, people are scared. [18:25] They're feeling uncertain. [18:27] And I can tell you that if there's anything that I've heard from people more than anything [18:31] else, I just want to know if you're going to fight for me, Juliana. [18:36] And I'm proud that I can look them in the eye and say, I'm going to be that fighter. [18:40] And I'm going to get to Washington, DC. [18:42] And every day I'm going to remember the communities of Illinois and the people who have told me [18:47] their stories of how they didn't have health care, how they don't have reproductive freedom, [18:52] how they're worried about their children and our immigrant communities who someone just [18:57] told me my grandparents still are scared to come out of the house. [19:01] We need fighters right now. [19:03] And that's what I'm going to be. [19:04] Mr. Tracy also said that he thinks my opponent, you, is a democratic socialist. [19:09] She doesn't admit it, but her issues, her positions align with the democratic socialist [19:13] party. [19:14] On what topics or areas do you disagree with the DSA? [19:17] What are the specific areas? [19:19] He said that she supports Bernie Sanders, who's an avowed admitted democratic socialist. [19:23] His signature issue is ditching a really good health care system, not perfect, but really [19:26] good in favor of government health care. [19:28] Let's talk about that. [19:30] Don Tracy says we have a health care system that's pretty good. [19:35] I want to fight for Medicare for all. [19:37] And the reason why is because millions of Americans have been stripped of their Medicaid coverage. [19:44] I'm a Democrat. [20:07] I'm a proud Democrat. [20:09] I'm a member of the Democratic Party, and fighting for health care is what the voters [20:15] are asking for. [20:16] I don't hear people saying our health care system is so great. [20:20] Well, he also talked about expanding... [20:21] Chris, sorry, I got it. [20:22] The mic's died. [20:23] Oh. [20:24] Oh. [20:25] I'm so sorry about this. [20:26] No problem. [20:27] That's okay. [20:28] Both of them? [20:30] Both of them? [20:31] It's being transmitted. [20:32] What's that? [20:33] Yes, the process. [20:35] Yeah, we have two more questions and we'll be all done. [20:36] I'm so sorry about that. [20:37] Is it me? [20:38] Okay. [20:40] Oh. [20:45] Yeah. [21:08] I didn't hear what you said, so if you could replay it. [21:09] Absolutely. [21:10] Yeah. [21:16] Okay. [21:21] All good? [21:22] We're color coordinated. [21:23] I know. [21:24] I didn't know what you were going to be. [21:25] Okay. [21:27] You're good, you said? [21:28] Okay. [21:29] So you were asking me to enumerate what else he was saying. [21:31] She's packing the Supreme Court. [21:33] She's a $25 an hour national minimum wage. [21:36] Even in rural communities, in the smallest states, that would be the death sentence for [21:39] small businesses. [21:40] Are those all accurate? [21:41] Are those positions that you do hold? [21:43] I want to raise wages. [21:44] $25 an hour? [21:45] Yes. [21:46] And that is because people deserve a livable wage. [21:50] The federal minimum wage right now is $7.25. [21:54] And that might seem like it's okay for Don Tracy. [21:58] But to me, what I hear families saying is not only do we need to lower costs, but we need [22:02] to put more money in people's pockets. [22:05] $7.25 an hour is just over $14,000 a year. [22:10] And it's why so many families are working two jobs. [22:13] We raised the minimum wage here in Illinois to $15 an hour. [22:17] And we included the small business community as we did so. [22:20] And that's what I'm going to do. [22:22] I'm going to bring the small business community to the table and all of the other stakeholders [22:26] and say, how can we do this? [22:28] And in Illinois, what we did is we made incremental changes. [22:31] But even at this point, $15 an hour is probably not enough for many people. [22:36] And so we need to do more. [22:37] Yes. [22:38] So what areas of the DSA do you disagree with? [22:40] I'm a Democrat. [22:43] But that's a Democrat. [22:44] Socialists are different than Democrats, right? [22:46] And that's my point. [22:48] Don Tracy is in his position. [22:50] But look, we're a big tent Democratic Party. [22:54] And what I want to do is make sure that Democrats win. [22:57] And I'm not sure exactly that's why I asked where is he going with that. [23:02] But what I can say is I'm going to fight to expand access to health care, to raise wages. [23:08] I support Medicare for all. [23:10] Those are things that I support. [23:12] And I'm not doing it just because of some label. [23:16] I support those things because when I went to voters for the last year and a half and said, [23:21] what do you care about, developed my policy platform and it's called give the people what they want. [23:27] That's what the people have asked for. [23:29] And I think that's what we have to deliver as Democrats. [23:32] Have the people asked for more than one debate? [23:34] We're doing a debate. [23:36] Just one though, right? [23:37] Why is that? [23:38] Well, there's an opportunity, lots of opportunities to get out. [23:42] We're talking right now, so they're going to hear a lot about my policy platform here. [23:47] I'm doing lots of interviews. [23:48] I'm getting around to every corner of the state. [23:51] We talked about how many, what my schedule looks like right now and how I'm traveling all over Illinois. [23:57] And we're going to make sure that this debate is a great opportunity for Illinoisans to hear the difference between me and my opponent. [24:04] That I'm someone that's going to stand up to Donald Trump and fight to make their lives more affordable. [24:09] Versus my opponent, Don Tracy, who is going to be a rubber stamp for Donald Trump and who says that, you know, higher costs are a required sacrifice, he says, for Trump's illegal war. [24:21] Last question. [24:22] And this is more about the future. [24:24] What do you want? [24:26] What do you think history should remember Dick Durbin for? [24:30] Oh, there's so much to remember Dick Durbin for. [24:32] And I've been so proud to spend so much time with him during this transitional phase. [24:38] First of all, they should remember that he's working hard every single day despite announcing his retirement, but he is still providing, you know, fighting for working families all over Illinois. [24:49] But I think the thing that for me always sticks out, it's something that he taught me when I was running for state representative and certainly when I became the lieutenant governor. [24:58] Always remember the communities who think you're not going to come back. [25:02] Represent the whole state. [25:04] Show up and be there. [25:07] That's what I've done as lieutenant governor based on his advice. [25:10] And he is the perfect example of what it means to be a senator for the whole state. [25:15] And that's exactly what I plan to be. [25:17] along with the American mansplanning. [25:18] So, that's what I plan to try to, to some extent, come back to her and even go back to normal home. [25:20] And that that's, what she says, your mother, will, OK, you have justala popped up to her every single day or you have just a работ. [25:21] To take a beating. [25:22] What steps were and not Soci ことは行この場に? [25:23] And as I plan to remember the situation I plan to be. [25:24] And that there were. [25:25] Where is she also been like when she passed away. [25:26] Where is she from now and as the circumstance, she sees aalı know and story I plan to look at her now. [25:27] That's the majority of her. [25:28] Weoung's mostмы had assumed how she's been following a trip to how the women grew up, and not the actual acts that grown up so far [25:29] to her, and not those out, I plan to look forward to my love.