WHO FOUNDED THE ADVOCACY GROUP, "NEED TO IMPEACH."

NOW, HE'S RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT.

PLEASE WELCOME, TOM STEYER!

( CHEERS AND APPLAUSE ) ( BAND PLAYING )

>> Stephen: NICE TO HAVE YOU ON.

>> FUN.

>> Stephen: THANKS FOR BEING HERE.

WELL, I HOPE IT'S FUN FOR YOU AND FOR ME.

BECAUSE I'M TALKING TO A POLITICIAN, NOW.

YOU'VE NEVER BEEN A POLITICIAN BEFORE, RIGHT?

>> RIGHT.

>> Stephen: BECAUSE YOU'RE A POLITICIAN, I KEEP MY PEN AND I

CHECK MY NOTES, OKAY, BECAUSE I'VE GOT TO MAKE SURE I HOLD

YOUR FEET TO WHATEVER FIRE HAPPENS TO BE BURNING TONIGHT.

NUMBER ONE, EVERYONE'S TALKING ABOUT THE DEBATE MOMENT LAST

WEEK BETWEEN SANDERS AND WARREN, AND YOU'RE PART OF THIS, TOO.

JIM?

( APPLAUSE ) >> I THINK YOU CALLED ME A LIAR

ON NATIONAL TV?

>> WHAT?

I THINK YOU CALLED ME A LIAR ON NATIONAL TV.

>> LET'S NOT DO IT RIGHT NOW.

YOU WANT TO HAVE THAT DISCUSSION.

>> ANYTIME.

YOU TOLD ME -- ALL RIGHT, LET'S NOT DO IT NOW.

>> I DON'T WANT TO GET IN THE MIDDLE.

I JUST WANT TO SAY HI, BERNIE.

>> OKAY, GOOD.

( LAUGHTER ) ( CHEERS AND APPLAUSE )

>> Stephen: DID YOU NOT -- I KNOW YOU'RE NO PART OF THAT

ARGUMENT, BUT, OBVIOUSLY, I'VE NEVER BEEN A WAITER BECAUSE --

( LAUGHTER ) -- YOU'VE GOT TO READ THE ROOM.

HOW ARE YOU GOING TO NEGOTIATE MIDDLE EAST PEACE IF YOU CAN'T

TELL WHEN TWO PEOPLE ARE FIGHTING?

>> OH, I KNEW THEY WERE FIGHTING.

>> Stephen: YOU WERE GOING OVER THERE TO BREAK IT UP?

>> NO, I WAS GOING OVER THERE TO SAY HI.

IT WAS THE END OF THE EVENING, WE SPENT TWO HOURS ON THE DEBATE

STAGE, AND I JUST WANTED TO SAY, SO NICE TO SEE YOU BOTH, SEE YOU

LATER, AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I DID.

>> Stephen: YOU ALMOST DIDN'T MAKE THAT DEBATE BECAUSE THERE'S

FUNDRAISING.

WHAT'S THE STANDARD?

>> 225,000 INDIVIDUAL DONORS.

>> Stephen: AND WHAT IS THE STANDARD FOR FOLLOWING SNOLG.

>> YOU NEEDED SOME COMBINATION, EITHER FOUR POLLS OR TWO POLLS

AT SOME LEVEL.

>> Stephen: AND THE LAST TWO POLLS THAT CAME IN, NEVADA AND

SOUTH CAROLINA, IS WHAT GOT YOU OVER THE TOP, RIGHT, FOR

POLLING?

>> YES.

>> Stephen: YOU HAVE SPENT MORE MONEY THERE THAN ANYONE ON

ADS, $24 MILLION.

TOM STEYER, IS MONEY SPEECH?

>> WELL, LET ME SAY THIS -- IN THIS RACE, EVERY SINGLE PERSON

IS GOING TO BE JUDGED ON THEIR MESSAGE.

>> Stephen: MM-HMM.

AND THERE IS MONEY MATTERS.

I'M NOT TRYING TO SAY IT DOESN'T MATTER.

BUT IF YOU DON'T HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY THAT RESONATES, THEN

MONEY DOESN'T MATTER.

>> Stephen: WHAT IF TWO PEOPLE HAVE SIMILAR MESSAGES OR

MESSAGES THAT RESONATE SIMILARLY BUT ONE PERSON GETS IT OUT AT

THE TUNE OF $24 MILLION BECAUSE MONEY IS A PROBLEM WITH OUR

POLITICS NOW.

SHOULD YOU BE ALLOWED TO DO IT, IN TOM STEYER'S OPINION?

>> LOOK, I AM FOR PUBLIC FINANCING OF ELECTIONS SO

EVERYBODY GETS A CHANCE.

I ACTUALLY HAVE A PLAN OF HOW EVERYBODY CAN GET A CHANCE TO

GET MONEY ENOUGH TO GET THEIR MESSAGE OUT.

BUT I'M RUNNING -- STEPHEN, I'M RUNNING FOR A VERY SPECIFIC

REASON.

AS YOU KNOW, I DIDN'T THINK I WAS GOING TO RUN --

>> Stephen: NO, LAST JANUARY, YOU SAID NO.

>> RIGHT.

>> Stephen: THEN THIS SUMMER YOU SAID YES.

WHAT CHANGED YOUR MIND?

>> I THINK, A, I BELIEVE I WAS LISTENING TO THE DEBATES AND

PEOPLE WERE TALKING ABOUT DIFFERENT PROGRESSIVE POLICIES,

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MEDICARE FOR ALL AND A PUBLIC OPTION,

DIFFERENT GREEN NEW DEALS, BUT NO ONE WAS TALKING ABOUT WHAT I

THINK THE TWO MOST IMPORTANT THINGS ARE IN THE WAY I THOUGHT

THEY SHOULD.

ONE IS WE AREN'T GET ANYTHING OF THOSE PROGRESSIVE POLICIES UNTIL

WE BREAK THE CORPORATE STRANGLEHOLD THAT THEY HAVE ON

OUR GOVERNMENT.

( APPLAUSE ) BASICALLY, THIS GOVERNMENT WORKS

FOR CORPORATIONS, IT'S BEEN BOUGHT -- LOOK, IF WE BREAK THE

CORRUPTION OF OUR GOVERNMENT, IF WE TAKE BACK THE GOVERNMENT FROM

THE CORPORATIONS, WE'RE GOING TO GET HEALTHCARE AS A RIGHT,

AFFORDABLE HEALTHCARE AS A RIGHT, PUBLIC EDUCATION STARTING

WITH PRE-SCHOOL, CLEAN AIR AND WATER AS A RIGHT FOR EVERY

AMERICAN.

( APPLAUSE ) BUT I'M RUNNING BECAUSE I THINK,

AMERICANS NEED TO KNOW THE ISSUE IS CAN WE BREAK THIS CORPORATE

STRANGLEHOLD AND ARE WE GOING TO SOLVE CLIMATE CHANGE, THOSE TWO

THINGS.

DWOA THOSE TWO THINGS -- WE DO THOSE TWO THINGS, IF YOU STOP

FOR A SECOND AND IMAGINE THAT WERE TRUE, WE WOULD BE IN THE

BEST POSITION OF ANYBODY IN THE HISTORY OF THE PLANET.

>> Stephen: LET'S TALK ABOUT THE ECONOMY.

YOU'VE SAID THAT DEMOCRATS HAVE TO BEAT TRUMP ON THE ECONOMY.

WHAT'S YOUR RESPONSE TO THE PRESIDENT AND SUPPORTERS WHO

SAY, YOU KNOW, GOOD ECONOMY, GOOD JOB NUMBERS, THE HOW HAS SO

MANY DOW POINTS NOW.

WHAT'S YOUR RESPONSE TO THAT?

>> I WOULD SAY GOOD FOR WHOM?

IF YOU LOOK AT THE G.D.P.

NUMBERS, WHICH HE ALSO TALKS ABOUT, IT ISN'T A SUCCESSFUL

ECONOMY OR COUNTRY IF THE ECONOMY GROWS BUT ALL OF THE

EXTRA INCOME ONLY GOES TO A SMALL, SMALL PERCENTAGE OF

PEOPLE WHO ARE VERY RICH, ALREADY.

THAT IS NOT A SUCCESS.

( APPLAUSE ) >> Stephen: OKAY.

THE DOW, THE DOW -- 10% OF AMERICANS OWN 85% OF THE STOCK.

>> Stephen: OKAY.

MR. TRUMP PASSED A TAX BILL THAT, IN MY MIND, IS THE WORST

PIECE OF ECONOMIC LEGISLATION IN AMERICAN HISTORY, AND IF YOU

LOOK AT WHAT IT MEANT FOR CORPORATIONS, THE BIGGEST

GIVEAWAY EVER FOR PEOPLE IN BIG CORPORATIONS.

TOP 400 CORPORATIONS NOW HAVE AN EFFECTIVE TAX RATE OF 11%.

IF YOU DON'T PAY ANY TAXES, YOUR COMPANY BECOMES A LOT MORE

VALUABLE, AND IT REALLY IS STILL ONLY HITTING THAT TOP FEW PEOPLE

IN THE UNITED STATES.

AND LET'S TALK ABOUT JOBS FOR A SECOND, UNEMPLOYMENT.

>> Stephen: HOW HAVE YOU DONE UNDER TRUMP'S TAX CODE, JUST

CURIOUS.

>> JUST TO BE CLEAR, MR. TRUMP'S TAX CODE ACTUALLY TARGETS PEOPLE

IN BLUE STATES LIKE CALIFORNIA BY NOT ALLOWING PEOPLE IN BLUE

STATES TO DEDUCT THEIR STATE INCOME TAXES.

SO IN EFFECT, MY EFFECTIVE TAX RATE WENT UP, JUST TO BE CLEAR.

>> Stephen: THAT'S GOOD TO KNOW.

>> HE DID THAT, CLEARLY, TRUE IN NEW YORK, ALSO.

>> Stephen: BECAUSE HE KNOWS HE'S NOT GOING TO WIN THOSE

STATES.

>> YES.

>> Stephen: SO IN THE MOST LEGISLATIVE WAY POSSIBLE, SCREW

YOU.

>> YES.

AND HOW IS IT FOR HIM?

YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT HOW IT DOES FOR REAL ESTATE DEVELOPERS?

>> Stephen: SO HE'S FEATHERING HIS OWN NEST.

>> I KNOW IT COMES AS A SHOCK TO YOU.

>> Stephen: I'M SHOCKED AT ALL THE DIFFERENT WAYS IT HAPPENS.

>> EGREGIOUSLY.

>> Stephen: EGREGIOUSLY.

LET ME TALK ABOUT UNEMPLOYMENT, BECAUSE I THINKETH

REAL IMPORTANT.

WE HAVE A REALLY LOW UNEMPLOYMENT RATE, BUT PEOPLE

CAN'T LIVES ON THE JOBS THEY HAVE.

( APPLAUSE ) IS IT REALLY A SUCCESSFUL

ECONOMY -- >> Stephen: IF YOU NEED TWO

JOBS.

>> NO, IT ISN'T.

HONESTLY, ONE OF THE THINGS I SAY BECAUSE I LOOK IT UP MYSELF

IS WE HAVE A $7.25 NATIONAL MINIMUM WAGE.

IF YOU TOOK THE MINIMUM WAGE IN 1980, WHEN RONALD REAGAN WAS

ELECTED, AND JUST INFLATION INVESTED IT SO THERE'S NO

INCREASE IN BUYING POWER, IT'S THE SAME, IT'S JUST IN $2,020,

IT WOULD BE 11 BUCKS.

BUT THAT ISN'T REALLY THE WAY WAGES ARE SUPPOSED TO GO BECAUSE

PEOPLE GET A LOT MORE PRODUCTIVE OVER TIME.

AMERICAN WORKERS GET A LOT MORE DONE IN THEIR WORK HOURS.

IT'S NORMALLY SPLIT BETWEEN WORKING PEOPLE AND EMPLOYERS.

IF YOU INCLUDE THE INCREASE IN PRODUCTIVITY FOR THE WORKERS,

THEIR SHARE, IT WOULD BE A $22 MINIMUM WAGE TODAY, NOT

$7.25.

>> Stephen: WE HAVE TO TAKE A BRIEF BREAK FOR COMMERCIALS.

PLEASE DON'T GO AWAY, AND WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK WITH MORE MR. TOM

STEYER.

HE'S RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES!

( CHEERS AND APPLAUSE ) ( BAND PLAYING )