5 chapters across the catalog
Adam Curry and Moe discuss the delay in releasing episode 54 due to a lack of concrete data following the 2020 United States election. Moe highlights his focus on tracking national black voter turnout numbers, noting a "buffering of information" from mainstream sources. The hosts establish that the episode will provide a unique perspective on the election results beyond common theories like "the Kraken" or voting machine glitches.
LaTasha Brown of Black Voters Matter discusses how black voters are primarily concerned with healthcare and the coronavirus. She predicts a record turnout despite a drop in 2016. The hosts question how such massive registration and turnout were achieved during a pandemic when "ground games" and door-knocking were restricted.
A 1964 clip of Malcolm X's "The Ballot or the Bullet" speech emphasizes the power of the Black voting block to determine who stays in the "doghouse" or goes to the White House. The hosts discuss the strategy of withholding votes in the 2020 election to signal dissatisfaction with both parties, arguing that a low voter turnout is a conscious political message. They reject the media narrative of "voter suppression," asserting that Black men are becoming "politically mature" by demanding tangible results in exchange for their support.
Analysis of the 2020 Iowa Caucuses focuses on the Democratic Party's reliance on black voter turnout, which dropped from 67% in 2012 to 59% in 2016. Candidates are criticized for using the term "people of color" while competing in a state that is over 90% white. The discussion emphasizes that Democrats cannot win the general election without significantly increasing black voter participation back to Obama-era levels.
Donald Trump's 2016 performance benefited from a "negative vote," where traditional Democratic voters stayed home due to a lack of tangible results during the Obama administration. Despite Trump's occasionally awkward or offensive phrasing, some Black voters found his stances on illegal immigration and economic competition more relevant than Democratic platitudes. The sentiment "what do we have to lose" became a catalyst for the modern reparations movement as a demand for political leverage.
