Deep Dive
Shownotes Transcript
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Themes are carefully selected, speeches are tightly scripted, and there are few moments throughout the week that feel natural or unexpected. Which is what made this moment on Monday so distinct. Ladies and gentlemen, the 45th president of the United States and soon to be the 47th president of the United States, please welcome Donald J. Trump. Donald Trump, just days after surviving an assassination attempt,
made his first public appearance after the shooting at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Somber and clearly emotional, Trump emerged with a bandage over his right ear and pumped his fist in the air. And playing behind him was Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA," Donald Trump's unofficial theme music on the campaign trail and here at the convention. The song was performed live as Trump walked out by none other than Lee Greenwood himself.
As I focused on him walking up the stairs, he turned and looked at me and I got eye contact for just a second. He and I both understood the power of the moment. We talked to Greenwood, and he said that moment felt distinct to him, too.
— I have sang "God Bless USA" for 40 years. It is the closer of every one of my concerts, no matter where I go. It sometimes becomes business as usual. In this case, I'm singing for someone who I want to put back in the White House so America can get back on track. — This week, in Milwaukee, "God Bless the USA" has felt less like a politician's walk-up song and more like an anthem for Trump's America, which got me thinking.
How did a song about togetherness and the diversity of the country become tied to a party and a candidate that's often represented division and chaos? So today, as Trump prepares the culminating speech of the Republican National Convention with a newfound message of unity, I wanted to explore that message through the lens of the song that's become its unofficial soundtrack.
talking to Republicans, including Greenwood, about what defines American values and whether those values are reflected in Donald Trump. From the New York Times, I'm Ested Herndon. This is The Run-Up. Hello, how are you? Hi, Ested. Yeah, I'm great, thank you. Thanks for having me on the podcast and excited to meet you this way. I knew Greenwood and his song were going to be part of the story of this convention and Trump's nomination.
So just before I headed to Milwaukee, Greenwood and I connected. When I was performing in Vegas, many times I would perform right along some of the biggest stars of my time, one of whom was Elvis. I realized pretty quickly that Lee Greenwood loves a story. And the story of God Bless the USA actually starts with the king of rock and roll,
and the medley he used to perform, called an American trilogy. Elvis was very reverent. And when he sang Battle Hymn of the Republic and the tribute to the country through his reverence, he could have been probably a preacher. I mean, he was very religious. Yeah, yeah. And I said to myself at that point, if I ever have my career, I ever get a career, I'm going to do the trilogy as my closer. Greenwood wanted the trilogy of his own.
A patriotic, reverent anthem that he could share with his fans. So one night, while on his tour bus, he decides to give it a try. And this particular night, I probably went back in the stateroom, grabbed a cup of coffee, because I'm still wired up. And that's the best time to be creative. And take stock of all the things he's most proud of. I put God first. I'm a Christian. His faith. The first line of my song, if you remember this, it goes...
If tomorrow the things were gone, I'd work for all my life. That was basically a dedication to my grandparents, who, in the 50s, while I was in high school, lost their ability to farm. His family. We've done numerous USO tours around the world, and one of my passions is supporting our military. His dedication to the military. It was the moment I needed to express my feelings about our country. And above all, his love for America.
The song is a hit and very quickly gets the attention of both political parties. Did you have any reservations about a song that you say you were writing and kind of bringing folks together, being used for politics, which, you know, has notoriously sometimes divided folks? Well, let me tell you how that happened. In 1983, after I'd already penned the song, I did a performance on Solid Gold in Los Angeles, California.
I think that got the attention of a lot of people. And then God Bless USA then came out right after that. And I got a call, my office got a call from the Democratic Party, and they wanted me to sing at their convention.
And I emphatically told my manager then, I am not going to make this song political. Interesting. The Democrats called first. Yes, they called first. And shortly after that, the Republican Party called and wanted me to sing at their convention. I also said no. Wow.
It was not long after that, and remember, I'm from California. Ronald Reagan was former governor of California. They called and asked if they could use my song in a film that honored the president of the United States, Ronald Reagan. I said yes. That was the turning point, which then aligned me as a conservative to the conservative of the Republican Party.
This decision kicks off a 40-year arc for Greenwood and the Republican Party. And in fact, it's easy to see how God Bless the USA acts as a through line between two figures who have reshaped the Republican Party in their image, Reagan in the 1980s and Trump right now. And Trump's version of the Republican Party is mostly what I wanted to talk to Greenwood about.
You know, I wanted to ask you specifically about Donald Trump's place in the Republican Party. We've talked to a lot of people who have been kind of historic conservatives, conservative Christians, and were, you know, the ways that he has upended the party has sometimes changed people's relationship with it. I'm curious what you thought about Donald Trump when he first came onto the scene.
I think he's terrific. I really like the point that he was going to Washington, D.C. to shake up, if I may use the term, the swamp. And he did make enemies on both sides, the Republican and Democrat. Nobody liked that. I think everybody likes status quo. Everybody gets comfortable with that. And I loved what he did. I've been in his presence.
in his presence many times. I think he's a great American and a patriot. And I just, you know, his style is a little different than most Americans.
But I'm very positive about being in his company and singing for him while I'm on stage. Yeah. I want to go back to your kind of original intention of the song, the desire for it to be something of unity. You know, Donald Trump is many things. But, you know, that initial presidential run was certainly controversial. He was saying things about fellow Americans. He was kind of calling, you know, I remember the Mexicans as rapists. I remember the kind of controversial way that he kind of broke onto the political stage.
Did you have any uncomfort with the fact that the song that you wrote with an intention of bringing together was being used by someone whose political brand was, I would say, at minimum, like...
brash, you know, at maximum antagonistic. Well, I, I think overall, I, you know, you can raise your eyebrows at, at something he would have said and, uh, he's got a different style. And I think that's, that was so interesting when he came on the scene is people just don't know how to take him. I worked with a lot of comedians in Vegas and, uh,
Buddy Hackett and Shecky Green and a few others and Don Rickles. And a guy like Don Rickles who became popular, he just pissed everybody off. I mean, he would degrade and make jokes about every religion, every nature of human being. And I don't say that Donald Trump does that, but he does
make people pay attention. And if that's what it took to have people get awake and say, we're moving forward as a country, but we all need to be aware of who we are and where we are. And I think he was good at that. And so I don't judge him by that standard. Yeah, but is it unity, though? Like, I mean, just saying in the message of the song, when you look at Donald Trump, do you think that he's bringing the country together?
You know, maybe that's not the way we're tied. But my song is for unity, no matter what he says. You know, at that point, you know, I just, I wish him, I wish him well. There was a couple of moments that I wanted to ask you about specifically. And I think the biggest one that comes up in relationship to Trump is probably January 6th.
You know, in the view of what it means to be an American, a lot of voters we talk to, even some of the folks who like Trump, sometimes say that that's a moment that they struggle with, that feels kind of outside of the kind of nationalism core that I think the song represents. As someone who, you know, has clearly structured their career around supporting the military and kind of supporting patriotism, what did you think of that day, and how do you fit it into the box of what is American or un-American? Well...
I was shocked. I was shocked that we turned into a third world country with people storming the Capitol. I just it's beyond me how anybody could possibly think that that was right. I have no comment about anything that Trump had said. I think President Trump basically was a little astonished.
about election results. And I'm not versed enough to know whether or not that was right or wrong. I just, I don't like what happened to the process. I think it was interrupted. And for all those people that felt it was compelling to go into the Capitol and break windows and stuff like that, you know, I'm ashamed that any of them did that. Did it give you any pause about your alignment with Republicans or the way the song has even been used by Trump?
No, it didn't. And there are great Americans on both sides of the aisle. So, you know, I always look for the best in everything. I want to end this conversation by asking you a lot of the questions we're actually going to be posing to RNC delegates this week. Part of our premise here is to use your song to ask Republicans what they think it means to be American and what are the values that they think define that. So I wanted to pose that to you. What do you think is the greatest problem that America faces today?
Illegal immigration. I think that's the biggest problem. The people who came here from all around the world and came through Ellis Island and said, I want to be an American. It wasn't about simulation as it was about chasing the bright light of freedom that the Statue of Liberty represents and our culture represented, moving east to west and covering wagons and fighting Westerners.
weather and settlers and robbers and thieves and the gold rush and good times and bad times, and then facing international pressure. Illegal immigration will bring us to a point where we are changing and we have to protect our right to vote. And if illegal immigrants are allowed to vote, it will change the complexion of who we are. Believe me, there's a silent majority who believe that we are still all Christian. We're patriotic.
and we want to retain America as the greatest country on earth. And that's my greatest threat. How do you think Trump solves that problem? Well, I thought he solved it when he started building the wall. I thought we should continue to do that.
You know, you mentioned kind of illegal immigration as a problem, and you also mentioned the kind of pride of the Ellis Island as an inspiration for you to write the song for, you know, generations of folks who came here in a different way. I would love for you to make a distinction about why you see the kind of current influx of immigration as a threat to the country, where previous, you know, influxes of immigration were a boon to the country. Um...
That's a complicated question. The only thing I say is that because of the immigration that's taking place, it disturbs me that they're allowing it to go around the laws of the country. The laws of the country, you should come here legally. And that's what bothers me. They're coming here illegally. And what makes you most proud to be an American is the last question.
Not just being born here. That does make me proud. But that America is the land of opportunity like no other on the planet. That's what makes me proud. Well, thank you so much for your time. I know we went over a lot and this has been very helpful. I can say I'm excited to see you perform in person and I would love to connect to Milwaukee. So thank you so much for your time. I look forward to it, Stad. Thank you very much for the interview.
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Like we said to Lee Greenwood, one of our missions ahead of Trump's big speech was to talk to Republican delegates about the themes of God Bless the USA. And I didn't just want to ask how they define American values or what it means to have pride in this country. I wanted to know how they square the values that Greenwood mentioned, like unity and positivity, with their support of Donald Trump and his party. So, with the song still stuck in our heads, Because there ain't no doubt
I love this land. My colleague Anna and I walked over to the convention arena. God bless the U.S.A. There we go. Get up on that stage. And put these questions to several Republican delegates from different corners of the country who were gathered in Milwaukee for the festivities this week.
Oh, hey, how are you? My name's Estedis and I'm from the New York Times. We're talking to people about how they're feeling about November and then we're actually asking people specifically about actually that Lee Greenwood song, Proud of You to Be an American, asking people what they think defines American values, things like that. You have five minutes? Sure. Thank you. Can you tell me your name, where you're from? J.D. Stallings and I'm from Thomaston, Georgia. Thomaston, Georgia. J.D. is a great name to have this week. It's a good name.
I'm telling everybody he's the other JD and I'm this JD. I'm a little older than him, so I was very first. You had it first. You had it first. Is this your first RNC? How many times have you come? This is my third, actually. Okay. So you're involved with a party in Georgia? Yes, been involved in a party for several years. How are you feeling about where the party is right now heading into November? I think we're good.
We're in a good spot now. I like the idea of the unity that's being talked about. I think that's great. You know, Georgia's been a place where it had a lot of push and pull of Republicans over the last several years. The unity that we're hearing on the stage, do you think it's real on the ground when you talk to Republicans? I do. I think that people are fed up with the Biden policies. And when it hits your pocketbook, when you go to the gas station, when you go to the grocery store,
That speaks volumes, and that'll get people, talk about food, that gets people to bond together and see we've got to get these prices down. We've got to do something different than what's going on now. What do you think Trump does differently to win Georgia this time, considering he wasn't able to win it last time?
I just think more people rally. I think they have to get past some of their issues that they may have with some of his gruffness, you know, because you just got to look at the values and what the conservative stance is that Donald Trump has. So what I'm hearing is you're saying that Biden's administration in first term has been such that you think Republicans have united against that and that put some of those differences that were true in 2020 to the side. Exactly.
So I want to ask you about the song. Part of the reason we're talking to people today is because this song kind of feels like the theme music of Donald Trump whenever he walks in, things like that. What would you define as kind of American values? What makes that up? A lot of, to me, it's just small town America. The waking up in the mornings and...
Going to a small community that you live in and seeing your neighbor driving down the road and waving, and they wave back in a friendly feel of community. And to me, that's America. Is there a way that Donald Trump represents that or speaks to that? I mean, as you said, this is a big city guy. How does he fit within that value of America? I think he does. I think he sees the value of the importance of that small town America, the rural America.
And I think that's why he picked his running mate, J.D. Vance, who also knows that, to emphasize that strong point of conservatism, small town, American values. You know, Donald Trump wasn't seen as a unifying figure generally. I know they're talking about unity a lot here. What is it about Trump that makes you think he can bring people together?
I think he knows that's what America needs. And I think that through everything he's faced in the past four years, losing the other election, the incident Saturday, being shot, that puts it back in perspective, I think. And I think that he realizes, hey, that's what we need in America is unity. The last question I will have is the one that we asked all the folks, which is, is there a moment that you were most proud to be an American that you can remember?
Always. I think growing up, I remember going to vote with my parents in the 80 election, Jimmy Carter versus Ronald Reagan. And we were living in Texas at the time and I could not understand why.
My parents wouldn't vote for somebody from Georgia over some guy from California, you know. But they explained conservatism to me as a four-year-old kid, and I probably was more informed than many voters are and was able to see that and could go with it. And growing up watching the Reagan administration, the Cold War, I mean, back then you had the Rocky movies. You had all the...
Rambo, you know, it was all that America's the greatest thing. And I think we've kind of stepped back from that and like been ashamed of being a great country. And I think that's what Donald Trump brings back. He says, hey, slogan, make America great again. Look how it was founded. Look at the history. And that's why we're a great America. You feel like that sense of pride that you remember as important for yourself growing up, Donald Trump is bringing back.
I do. I believe that's that part that's coming back, and you can see it in the first administration, and I hope it continues. Good. Thank you so much. We really appreciate your time. Have a great day. Hi, how are you all? My name's Estetis, and we're from the New York Times. Y'all maybe have a couple minutes to chat with us? Sure. I appreciate it. Can I have y'all's names and where you're from? Yeah, sure. My name is Michael McDonald. I'm from American Samoa. Okay. Paula Stevenson McDonald from American Samoa.
Ann Longnecker, and I spent 30 years at American Symbol. Oh, awesome. Can you all tell me, is this your first RNC? Have you come to Republican conventions before? No, this is my first. Tell me how you all feel about kind of where the party is heading into November. Just give me your thoughts.
Yeah, well, I think the party's energized, or at least our delegation is very energized. We came in really unsure of what to expect, and having had some conversations with the rest of our delegation, everybody's pretty optimistic about our chances of getting Donald Trump back into the White House come November. What makes you most confident that you think Donald Trump has a good shot for November? Because Biden is very, very weak.
And Trump is stronger all the time. And the Republican Party will get stronger. But it's going to be a tough four years, whoever wins. One question I also have is, like, you hear a lot of talk about unity in here. Do you feel kind of on the ground in your delegation? Have you felt that sense of unity as you've been here? Is it true? Well, I think seeing...
Nikki Haley out there speak really sent a very clear message that the party is united. It was very interesting when I saw her on the speaker's list, wasn't quite sure what to expect, but right off the bat she made it clear that she was invited here by the president in the spirit of unity and I think that message will resonate throughout the party and hopefully throughout the rest of the country.
Trump hasn't always been the most uniting figure, to say the least. Do you have confidence that he can be the candidate that really holds this together and sends a unifying message before November? Well, he's been in the public eye for a while now, and I think most people have come to realize that that message that came out from, I think for the most part, from the mainstream media,
painting him as a divisive president is starting to fade, in my view, anyways. Yeah, he is a New Yorker. He's not a politician. And sometimes he says things that rubs people the wrong way. And I think that tone has kind of changed this time around, at least, again, in my view. And given his choice for the VP, I think...
a message of unity will really reach pretty far. At least that's my hope. I'll ask the questions we've been asking specifically about the song. Can you just tell me what American Values means to you? How would you define what makes up American Values? Well, the soundtrack to that is certainly Lee Greenwood's
And, you know, every time he sings that, it reminds me of my boot camp because my company commander played that after Hell Week. And it stuck with me, you know, for 25, 30 years now. And so American values to me is country, God, family and hard work, you know, respect. Yeah. The last question I have, is there a moment where you felt most proud to be an American that you can think of?
Well, gosh, I can tell you this, as a veteran from American Samoa, I'm always proud to be American, knowing that our little tiny territory
constantly ranks at the top with regards to enlistment rates in the military service throughout the United States. It's a badge of honor for us. We love to serve our country in that regard, and so every time that comes up, I personally feel proud to be an American, yeah, and an American Samoan. Thank you all so much. I really appreciate it. Can you say your names and then tell me what you're wearing? I'm Dennis Giesemann, and this is...
-I'm Karen Giesemann, and we're married 44 years. -And we're part of the Texas delegation to the RNC. -We're both veterans. We met in the Air Force. -She's an alternate delegate.
Yeah. And I just got involved this year heavily because I'm really worried that our country's going down the tube. This election made you get involved with the delegation? Oh, yeah. Much more heavily than before. Yeah. And you have on the Trump hat and the Texas t-shirt. Absolutely. Yeah. I'm not ashamed anymore. Of what? Of being a conservative. I'm not ashamed anymore. Yeah.
Everyone tried to shame you. Oh, yeah, they would beat you up if you wore a Trump t-shirt. You know that? I'm saying even in Texas, I feel like y'all are in the same place. You could travel anywhere and like you wore Trump, man, they would come in, they would key your car, they would beat you up. Yeah. We wanted to ask people, what do they think defines American values to them? How would you define what it means to be an American?
It's liberty to make your own choices if they're within certain bounds. Yeah. And definitely support the Constitution, the right to carry arms. I mean, the right to say things without being thrown in jail. I mean... This is part of the whole populist constitutional movement.
It's going to take America back. And it's people that are just tired of it. Some people that weren't paying attention, they are paying attention now. What do you think caused that shift? What do you think caused this kind of constitutional populist movement, as you describe it, to come forth? Because they can see the oligarchs taking over. So even for the minorities, they can see the oligarchs are treating them as chattel. Yes, exactly. And here you've got open borders. I mean, who's that going to help?
I mean, really. It's designed to hurt the minorities. That is designed to hurt the minorities. Right. And the... That's safe. Let me ask about Donald Trump. How does he fit within those values that you describe? How do you see him as someone who's representative of those values? We were Cruz supporters from the very beginning when he actually ran for president.
And Donald Trump is not perfect, but he's providential. What do you mean by that? That he is the one that can break loose from the oligarchy and the deep state. You can't buy him, and he'll poke him right in the eyes and say, no, that's not right, and this is the way it should be. This is not about Trump. This whole movement is not necessarily about Trump. It's about...
constitutional populism. Totally. I mean, the right as a woman, if you want to buy a gun, I mean, you want that taken from you as a woman? No way. And you want to be able to say what you want to say? I mean, if you really support women's rights, like the liberals say they do, then why would you support men in women's sports? Why would you support women not being able to buy a gun if they wanted to without having, like, your whole lineage being checked for craziness? I mean, it's just...
You should be able to, like, if you're a woman, pack. My last question would be, what makes you most proud to be an American? I serve for... We both serve. We're both veterans. Proud to be Americans that we're... Really, they'll portray us as cocky. They'll go after the grandma that's praying in front of an abortion clinic. They'll go after the parents that are trying to protect their kids at the school board. But...
They won't go after the criminals coming across the border. The last thing I would say is, like, you know, there used to be a sense that, you know, no matter Democrat or Republican, everybody's kind of on Team America. Do you still feel like that? It's getting back to that through Trump. Yeah. It's getting back to that. You're going to see...
I can see it on the bus. We'll see a landslide if it's not too big to rig. Yeah, there you go. In my heart, I believe it. I've been stationed all over. I know people all over the U.S. I grew up a Yankee. This country is ready for a change. It's absolutely ready for a change. That's all the questions I have. Thank you all so much. We really appreciate your time. Thank you. Can you just tell me your name and again say where you're from? Sure. Robin Medeiros-Scranton. Home of President Joe Biden? Yeah.
Well, not for a long time. Can you just tell me how you're feeling about November, about President Trump's chances to return to the White House? And then tell me what your top issue is when you think about this election. Sure. Well, there's a couple, but I think this is it. I think we have sealed the deal for November 5th.
Republicans are uniting together. If anything, this convention is showing that. It's tremendous. It's exciting. And I think most people were concerned with the border, even in my area. And then families are suffering. We go to the grocery store, my husband and I, it's just two of us, and have grandkids and everybody come over to eat. It's so costly now.
The average family can't afford this economy. And the fentanyl has to stop. It's killing not just our young people, but even our middle-aged and older people.
Your area matters a lot. Pennsylvania matters a lot when it comes to this election. What are you seeing in Pennsylvania that gives you this confidence around Trump? Everybody just joining together, even Democrats. Four years ago or eight years ago? So much different. Is there a moment that changed that, or is there something that's driving that difference this time rather than last time? Well, I think the debate changed a lot of that, watching the debate. But then, of course, the incident that happens on Saturday, that gives it a whole new perspective.
People are behind President Trump. We all lived a better life under his administration. So we need that back. You know, we actually talked to Greenwood on Friday because we are doing an episode about his song. And we're asking people specifically about what makes them proud to be an American. Why would you define what makes up American values to you?
I think it's because we're all diverse and we can all live together. And if we can prosper and build better lives for even our kids and then our grandkids, that's a great thing. We haven't done that in the past four years. We've gone backwards and we can't let that continue to happen. The last question I was asked is, do you have a moment where you felt most proud to be an American? Is there something you can point to that doesn't have to be politics, maybe it is politics, but just the moment that made you feel most proud?
There's so many of them. There really are. Even with President Trump, he supports police officers. My son-in-law was a state police officer on the special search team in PA. My dad was military. He was a lieutenant commander in the Coast Guard, captain to ship in Vietnam, my brother's Air Force. We support all of the things that President Trump supports. Those are true Americans.
Republican value specifically to the party. Like, do you think that there's a kind of shared agreement about American values between Republican and Democrat? Or do you think that there's a different language that the parties are speaking? OK, so I think at this point in time, we're starting to come together a little bit. I have had Democrats in the recent weeks tell me I am voting for Trump. First time I'm voting Republican. It's great.
I think you're the first person we've talked to from Pennsylvania since everything happened on Saturday. Can you kind of give me an understanding of like how are you feeling coming into this week after what happened on Saturday in Butler? OK, so we were really excited to come in and support President Trump, especially after what happened. And I'll tell you what, he showed true grit, didn't he? He really is a tough guy.
gentlemen. So we just wanted to show up here and support him. And for him to show up every night of the convention has been amazing. He knows how to unify these people together. And I see it for the first time in my lifetime. I see all these Republicans coming together. And I think it's a wonderful thing. Thank you so much.
One thing is clear. From our week at the RNC in Milwaukee, Republicans are united around Donald Trump like maybe never before. And there's a sense of confidence, almost cockiness, that he's on track to beat Biden in November. But what's driving their sense of unity isn't necessarily a set of policy goals. It's a belief that the other side, the Democrats, have pulled the country away from its values. So much so that
that it almost doesn't matter if Donald Trump is brash or controversial. In fact, that's what makes him American. God bless the USA.
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On Wednesday, President Biden tested positive for COVID, which forced him to cancel a campaign event in Las Vegas and fly back to Delaware to self-isolate. Still, Biden faces a mounting revolt within his own party as Democrats continue to wrestle with the fallout of his poor debate performance. This week, Representative Adam Schiff of California, a close ally of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, publicly called on the president to drop out.
This makes him at least the 20th Democratic member of Congress to do so. Meanwhile, President Biden has been trying to reassure voters and quiet ongoing concerns. Why don't you guys ever talk about the 18 to 28 lies he told? Where are you on this? Why didn't the press ever talk about that? 28 times it's confirmed he lied in that debate. I had a bad, bad night. I wasn't feeling well at all.
He pushed back against Trump and the media, while conducting an interview with NBC and BET, where he specifically addressed the question of age. Originally ran to May Remember It. I said I was going to be a transitional candidate. And I thought that I'd be able to move from this to pass it on to someone else. But there's more to do, and I'm reluctant to walk away from that. At the same time, Vice President Kamala Harris continues to make campaign stops, which have now taken on an increased importance.
Harris also targeted Trump's newly announced running mate, Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio. Trump looked for someone he knew would be a rubber stamp for his extreme agenda and make no mistake, J.D. Vance will be loyal only to Trump, not to our country. Harris and Vance spoke on the phone after Trump's announcement and have tentatively agreed to debate one another as soon as later this month. We are 32 days from the Democratic National Convention.
in 110 days from the general election. See you next week. The Run-Up is reported by me, Ested Herndon, and produced by Elisa Gutierrez, Caitlin O'Keefe, and Anna Foley. It's edited by Rachel Dry and Lisa Tobin, with original music by Dan Powell, Marion Lozano, Pat McCusker, Diane Wong, Sophia Landman, and Alicia Baitube. It was mixed by Sophia Landman and Chris Wood. And fact-checked by Caitlin Love.
Special thanks to Paula Schumann, Sam Dolnick, Larissa Anderson, David Halfinger, Maddie Maciello, Mahima Chablani, Nick Pittman, and Jeffrey Miranda. Do you have questions about the 2024 election? Email us at therunupatnytimes.com. Or better yet, record your question using the Voice Memo app on your phone, and then send us the file. That email again is therunupatnytimes.com.
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