Maxwell Frost
Appearances
The Rachel Maddow Show
Special coverage of Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress
Of course. Thanks for having me on.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Special coverage of Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress
I think it's important for people to see that their leaders understand that this is not a normal moment. We're in the middle of a billionaire administrative takeover and coup of our country where they want to cut Medicaid, cut Social Security, cut Medicare, cut all the things that we fought for and earned in order to give tax breaks to billionaires and corporations. It's
The Rachel Maddow Show
Special coverage of Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress
not a news story for this country, but it is the most overt I think it's ever been. And so I, in the spirit of being a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, but also coming from organizing, decided to do a walkout with a group of members wearing a message that not only the press could see, but that the president could see.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Special coverage of Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress
He calls himself a king, but we're a country of no kings, especially when these kings want to do nothing for the people and take all the money and give it to themselves. That's exactly what Donald Trump wants to do.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Special coverage of Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress
It's not hyperbolic at all. And this shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. It is all in Project 2025. Donald Trump is the president, but he is also the Speaker of the House, effectively. He has an entire Republican Congress that is allowing him to do whatever he wants
The Rachel Maddow Show
Special coverage of Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress
None of them utter a peep against what he's saying, unless their town halls are stormed and either they're running out or they say, maybe I disapprove a little bit. But Donald Trump has complete control over the Republicans in Congress.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Special coverage of Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress
And so what the founders set out to do is have a Congress and have a presidency that were co-equal branches of government, checks on one another, checks and balances. But we don't have that right now. We have one person who runs the Congress because he runs the entire majority.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Special coverage of Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress
I had a town hall about a week and a half ago when we put out the link. Within four hours of one email, we had over 600 RSVPs. And at this standing room only town hall, the message was clear from everybody. Two things. They wanted to learn about how serious and dire the situation is. And two, they wanted to be put to work.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Special coverage of Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress
And as someone who comes from an organizing background, March for Our Lives and other organizations, It is a goldmine when the people contact you and say, what can I do? You know, I come from going to people and knocking on their doors and begging them to volunteer, begging them to get involved. And now the people are saying, put us to work.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Special coverage of Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress
We want to fight for our democracy, for our country, for Medicare, for Medicaid, for programs that help and that working people have earned. And so I think it is important to make sure people know that the United States, our democracy can break. We can lose it if we don't defend it. And fascism and authoritarians, they gain power when there is no opposition.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Special coverage of Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress
That's part of the reason I've told people you have to make the decision. Are we the minority or are we the opposition? Because I do believe an authoritarian can take hold when it's just a minority. But when there's a strong opposition, we can fight it back and we can come back stronger than ever. And so I agree with giving people something to do.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Special coverage of Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress
But first off, you've got to explain to people how serious the situation is.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Special coverage of Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress
Thanks for having me on.