Lindsey Graham’s sister dealt FATAL BLOW to her campaign

We now have a massive gaff at the hands. of the official Republican nominee for. the US Senate in South Carolina, Darlene. Graham. Here's a clip of that moment. >> My parents worked long hard hours to. make make ends meet. We didn't take. vacations. If they were sick, they had. to get up and go to work because the. doors weren't open. We weren't making. money. My mother passed away when I was. 11 and my father just over a year later. For the past 30 years, I've worked hard. for the people of South Carolina. And. for the past seven years, I've led a.

state agency and I understand the. struggles facing South Carolina families. because I've faced them, too. >> So, I'm joined now by the Democratic. nominee for the US Senate in South. Carolina, Dr. Annie Andrews. Uh, Dr. Dr. Andrews, I I have to ask first and. foremost for your reaction to this new. idea being perpetuated by Darlene Graham. and I guess the right more broadly that. what we should aspire to is that. Americans will get so sick that they. pass away before their kids even reach.

13 years old. And somehow that is the. the message of hope and inspiration that. we should have moving forward. >> Yes. Well, thank you for having me. I. don't think Darlene intended to unroll. her health care plan on that uh stage. last night, but she certainly did, and. it seems to be what you just said, work. hard even when you're sick and then die. I believe that Darlene's parents. deserved better than they got. I believe. that healthcare is a human right. I. believe we need to work every single day.

to shift this profit motivated health. care system to a patient- centered. health care system. I've seen it. firsthand as a pediatrician. I've worked. in children's hospitals my entire 20. year career. taking care of sick and. injured children. This isn't just a. policy paper for me. This is real life. or death. >> Well, to that end, it's not just Darlene. Graham who is kind of um offering up the. a disastrous healthc care plan in real. time. We've also seen the consequences. play out by Republicans who are actually. in power. Measles has now taken the.

lives of two people in Pennsylvania. Can. I have your reaction to the fact that we. have our nation's health apparatus which. is being led by an avowed antivaxer and. the consequences of that are as. predictable as you could imagine. >> Exactly. Because science is going to. science no matter if you believe in it. or not. The day RFK Jr. was nominated to. lead HHS was the day that I really. started to seriously consider getting in. this race for the US Senate because as a. pediatrician, he's been my professional. arch nemesis for decades. He's nothing.

more than a grifter and a conspiracy. theorist who's been pedalling an. antivaccine conspiracy theories for. decades while simultaneously enriching. himself. Over my 20-year career, I've. watched as rates of vaccine refusal and. vaccine hesitancy climb and climb and. climb because of the disinformation that. RFK Jr. has injected into our public. health system. And of course, now he is. leading the department of HHS. And. because of this disinformation campaign. of his, we've seen outbreaks of. preventable infectious diseases. You. know, we also had an outbreak of the.

measles in South Carolina. In. Spartanberg County, we had we had nearly. a thousand cases of documented measles. And it's not going to stop at the. measles. We're going to have increased. cases of flu and RSV of whooping cough, polio, tetanus, and one that I think a. lot of people don't hear a lot about, bacterial menitis. because we give two. really effective vaccines to prevent. bacterial menitis to infants at 2, four. and 6 months of age that has drastically. reduced the incidence of this. devastatingly often fatal condition. So.

we need to win in November so that we. can get RFK Jr. out of his current. position as secretary of HHS and it it. is going to take us decades to recover. from the level of disinformation he's. injected into our public health system. Well, I think that's that's in in large. part what makes Darlene Graham so so. dangerous in this moment is because. she's shown that she's not particularly. competent or or um qualified for this. job. And so the reason that she's there. is is expressly not because she has. anything to bring to the Senate seat,

but rather because she would be. completely obsequious and and pandering. to Trump and RFK. And so when they want. to put forward some idea, dangerous. though it may be, she's going to be. there to rubber stamp them because she. doesn't actually have any qualifications. of her own to back up some informed. decisions. Yeah, that's exactly right. And I think. that's why the entire Republican. Washington machine got behind Darlene. Graham. They spent millions and millions. and millions of dollars. You know, Trump. came to Myrtle Beach to rally for her.

They really leaned into this because. exactly what you said. I think they. believe they can control her. I think. she's being told what to say. She has. explicitly said she supports 100% of. Donald Trump's agenda. She will be a. rubber stamp for this administration. You know, she has completely forgotten. the fact that Congress is meant to. provide checks and balances over the. executive branch. I've been talking to. voters in South Carolina for over a. year. I know they deserve better. I know. they want better than this. We don't. want a rubber stamp for any president or. any political party in this Senate seat. We want a thinking person who will work.

hard every day to solve the problems. South Carolinians are facing. and that's. what I'm offering them on the ballot in. November. >> To kind of um hammer down that point. even further, here's a quick clip that. went pretty viral from uh from Darlene. Graham's debate, primary debate against. her Republican opponent, Ralph Norman. >> On the national security question as. well, um Senator, are Taiwan and the. South China Sea national security issues. for the United States? If so, why? >> Um I'm sorry. Could you repeat the.

question? if are Taiwan and the South. China Sea national security issues for. the United States and if so why or how? >> I'm just going to be honest here. I'm. not on national security that I'm not. that informed on national security. So, but I do support the military. My. brother was in the Air Force for 33. years. So, I will do everything I can to. support the military. So, right there. you can see that she's again not coming.

with any qualifications or or knowledge. about what it is she's going to be uh. litigating and writing laws about, presumably writing laws about. She's. just there to kind of be a rubber stamp. for this administration. What was your. reaction to seeing that moment in. particular right there where she just. kind of gave the game away and and. offered up, you know, I I don't actually. know anything about foreign policy, but. but here's a here's a boilerplate. platitude. I love the troops.

>> Yeah. I mean, it was just it was. embarrassing, honestly. And it just. shows how deeply unprepared she is. And. being new to politics is not an excuse. to being unprepared. I'm a pediatrician. If I showed up to work unprepared a. child could die. This is a very serious. job she's applying for and a job she. actually has right now. So, if she. doesn't know the answers, I suggest she. maybe like schedules some study. sessions, maybe pulls an all-nighter, does the hard work to get prepared for. the very important job she has and the. job that she's asking South Carolina.

voters to give her for six more years. >> Why is it important that there is an. actual health care professional um in. Congress at this particular moment? You. know, we're witnessing a truly. unprecedented coordinated attack on. every aspect of America's health care. system. Whether it's the impending. Medicaid budget cuts, the threats to. Medicare allowing the Medicare Part D. tax subsidies to expire, the ACA tax. subsidies to expire, you know, whether. it's what RFK Jr. has done to totally.

dismantle the routine childhood. immunization schedule, the defunding of. the CDC or the NIH, all of the foodborne. illnesses we've seen across the country. Like, there's never been a more urgent. time to elect physicians to all levels. of office, but in particular in this. race, I would be the first ever. pediatrician senator. I can go. toe-to-toe with RFK Jr. and hold him. accountable for the lies that he's been. spreading and the disruption that he's. wre havoc on our federal department of. health and human services. I won't just.

be a yes vote for healthc care reform. I. will bring my lived experience from. working within our broken health care. system to these conversations. I can. lead these conversations. And to me, again, it's not just about policy. It's. not just about the bullet points in the. bill. This is life or death. This is. very, very real life. Every American. should be able to afford to see a. doctor. Every American should be able to. afford their prescription medications. A. trip to the emergency department should. not send you into bankruptcy. We are the. only developed country in the world who. hasn't figured out how to build a health.

care system that actually meets the. needs of everyone in the country. >> Are you in service uh in favor of. Medicare for all? >> I'm a pragmatic person. I believe we. need a health care system that meets the. needs of everyone in this country. I. believe with every cell in my body that. healthcare is a human right. But I'm a. person who lives and is running in South. Carolina. And I know that this country. is not politically ready for a shift. from this deeply profit-driven health. care system we have to a universal. health care system. What my plan is, number one, stop the impending Medicaid.

budget cuts. Number two, reinstate the. tax subsidies. Use the negotiating power. of this country to lower prescription. drug prices broadly. but then take a. really important pragmatic step towards. developing a health care system that. actually serves everybody and that is a. public option. Because if we offer a. public option and people like me who. don't have employer based health. insurance can choose to purchase a. health care plan from the federal. government that removes the profit. motivation from that transaction. The. people who purchase that plan will look. around and say, you know what, this is. actually way better than the plan I was.

paying for that so much of my money was. just going to pad private insurance. company shareholders pockets. And so. there will be a domino effect. More and. more Americans will choose this public. option and then we can have a productive. bipartisan conversation about te taking. the next step to to the ultimate goal. But again, I don't think we need to let. perfect be the enemy of good. We all. recognize the system we have now is. failing miserably and we need to talk to. each other, compromise, work across the. aisle to move the ball down the field.

What is the latest polling show in South. Carolina in terms of uh in terms of this. race? >> We have some really exciting polling. that we just released today that shows. that I'm tied with Darlene right out of. the gates. It's 41 to 41. And on the. informed ballot, I go up five points. And the informed ballot is just neutral. information about me and neutral. information about Darlene. Importantly, I'm um plus 33 with independence. Darlene, even though most people didn't. know who she was six weeks ago, is. deeply underwater. Her net favorability.

rating is minus something double digits. It's not good. Um, so we have a real. path to victory here. You know, this was. an unexpected circumstance. I've been in. this race for over a year. I never. anticipated I would be running against. Lindsey Graham's sister, but here we. are. She's a really bad candidate. She's. a weak candidate. She's unprepared. She's not doing the work. We have a. national political environment that is. very favorable to Democrats. And then in. me, we have a not your average. Democratic candidate. You know, I'm.

overperforming a generic Democrat in. South Carolina by 25 points with. independents and 19 points with non MAGA. Republicans. So, that creates a real. path to victory in an environment like. this. >> You know, I'm sure in campaigning in. South Carolina, you've had plenty of. conversations with independents and. Republicans or at least Republican. voters. What has been the one issue on. which those voters are are seeing their. confidence fall in their own party and. instead are showing support for you?

>> The one issue I mean honestly it the war. really tipped a lot of people sort of. over at the deep end. People who were. already growing really frustrated just. by the rhetoric in Washington DC how. broken it is you know seeing you know. the behavior out of Donald Trump. But. this entry into this war really flew in. the face of everything the hardcore MAGA. Republicans in South Carolina thought. that Donald Trump stood for. And so that. turned them off. And then meanwhile, there's a lot of Mitt Romney, John. McCain style Republicans on the center.

right in South Carolina. Republicans. like my own dad who are just so deeply. disgusted by the level of corruption and. dysfunction in Washington DC. They're. embarrassed by what their party has. become. They're looking for another. option like me. And that is what I am. offering them. But I think it's the. whole wide range of issues that Trump. campaigned on, failed to deliver on. You. know, you cannot be simultaneously, pardon my language, an and also. have a bad economy and expect to win an. election. And that's the situation we're. in. The economy is not meeting the needs.

of your average American. Income. inequality, wealth in inequality. continues to grow and grow and grow. And. we have politicians in DC who spend. their days enriching themselves, >> right? I mean, it would be bad enough. having this economic environment, but. for a party that had campaigned. expressly on bringing down costs only to. see those costs surge, a party that had. campaigned expressly on releasing the. Epstein files only to suppress those. files. A party, as you said, that had. campaigned expressly on no new foreign. wars that's now engaged in a brand new. foreign war in the Middle East that's.

cost over $130 billion that should be. going to domestic priorities. I mean, it's not the Democrats who pushed this. idea of America first. That was Trump's. campaign slogan. And now watching. billions and billions and billions of. dollars either go overseas or into his. own pocket, I think is sending a message. loud and clear to his voters uh that. it's not the forgotten guy that's. getting the attention in this. administration. It is the it's the polar. opposite. It's the very elites who. Donald Trump and Republicans had railed. against during the entire campaign.

>> Yeah. And I think there's a lot of signs. that everything you just said is exactly. right because yes, Donald Trump, you. know, supported Darlene, spent millions. of dollars in this race. Darlene barely. won last night. She only won by five. points. She lost in the upstate. Ralph. Norman's supporters are talking online. about a riding campaign. They're talking. about staying home. They're talking. about voting for me. We have a really. divided Republican party. Also, I got. more votes on my primary night on June. 9th than Darlene got last night after. millions of dollars were spent on her. behalf. [clears throat].

Right. So, the Republican party is not. this. They don't have this stronghold, this strangle hold on South Carolina. anymore because they've lost sight of. what they used to be. And we need a. healthy two-party system in this country. if we really ever want to make any. progress because the people on the far. left are never going to convince. everybody on the far right to think like. them. And vice versa. We have to. remember that there's, you know, way. more that unites us than divides us. If. we ever want to make progress in this. country, we need to talk to each other, work across the aisle, and move the move. the ball down the field. For those who. are looking to help your campaign, where.

can they go? >> Dr. Annie andrews.com. They can chip in. what they can. Obviously, there's going. to be a ton of money poured into this. race once Republicans catch wind of the. fact that we're tied once they settle, you know, come to terms with the fact. that they have propped up an incredibly. weak, unprepared candidate and that we. have a really strong Democrat running in. this state. So, I need people all across. the country to support my campaign, chip. in what they can, follow along on social. media, and you know, this is a way we. can expand the Senate map that people. weren't really considering just a few. weeks ago. And it's really exciting for. me to be a part of that, for me to help.

deliver a Senate majority in November so. that we can actually do the work of. governing on behalf of Americans. everywhere. >> Well, I'm going to put a link to your. website right here on the screen and. also in the post description. For those. who are listening on the podcast, I'm. going to put it in the show notes. Um, if Democrats are able to win this race, Democrats have the US Senate. So, this. race is monumentally important. Also. just says like a point of personal. privilege. I am the child of of two. healthcare workers. And if ever there. was a desperate need to have a. pediatrician in the US Senate, it's.

right now. Also, I I went to my. pediatrician until I was like 23 years. old. So, I [laughter] never actually had. I never had like an internist or a. general practitioner. I just kept going. to my pediatrician. So, I am a a big fan. of uh of that space. So, with that said, thank you uh so much for taking the time. today and best luck in the campaign. trail. Thank you so much for having me. [music].