Posted By Tyler Stone
August 19, 2022
On CNN Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams discussed the race against Brian Kemp:
ERIN BURNETT: I want to go OUTFRONT now to Stacey Abrams, Kemp's Democratic opponent in the Georgia governor race and the former minority leader of Georgia's House of Representatives.
So, Leader Abrams, Governor Kemp says the Fulton County D.A. is playing politics with this subpoena and is doing it to help your campaign.
What do you say to him?
STACEY ABRAMS (D), GEORGIA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: I think once again, Brian Kemp to wants to take credit but doesn't want to take responsibility. He has coasted on this notion that he is an anti-Trump moderate, but we know that he has described himself as a Trump conservative, that he is seeking Donald Trump's endorsement for this race, that he welcomes it, and that this subpoena has been outstanding -- or this request for him to testify has been ongoing for months.
He has had time to do this. And if he doesn't have time to show up to testify, he must not have time to go and raise money or do anything else because if he is as concerned about the state of our democracy as he would hope for people to think he is, he would show up for this incredibly important subpoena and he would provide testimony in a timely manner.
BURNETT: So, his lawyers say that the Fulton County prosecutors had an agreement but they rescinded it. And that that agreement was to lay out in advance the topics Kemp would be asked about before the grand jury and that they then rescinded it and then they cancelled a voluntary interview and then they went ahead and subpoenaed him.
If that's really what happened, would you testify under those conditions if you were in his shoes?
ABRAMS: First, I do not actually believe the -- if you look at the emails that have been released about the back-and-forth and having dealt with the Kemp administration, I would actually put my faith more in the Fulton County D.A.'s office. I know that this has been a meticulous and very thoughtful investigation and that he is not the only Republican who's tried to skirt his responsibility to provide information.
Rudy Giuliani has tried it. Lindsey Graham has tried it. Brian Kemp is trying it.
But the reality is Brian Kemp wants to win this election under the pretext that he is not a Trump conservative and he is. And you can tell that from his hard right policies from banning abortion to opposing marriage equality, to the voter suppression laws that he signed after January 6th.
Brian Kemp up and down the board is a Trump conservative, but he is afraid that if he actually shows up to testify, the world will know it.
BURNETT: There is one thing here though in all of this, and that is that Governor Kemp refused to go along with Trump's lies about the Georgia election. Trump directly pressured him to do it and Kemp didn't do it, right? Right? He certified the election two separate times for Biden.
[19:30:00]
So, when push came to shove, he was in a position to do right and do wrong. Didn't he ultimately do the right thing? STACEY ABRAMS (D), GEORGIA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: Let's be clear,
he refused to -- he agreed to certify the election and, yes, I am proud that he did not commit treason.
However, he also then pushed through one of the most aggressive voter suppressive laws that we've seen in recent years and it was entirely based on the big lie that there had been mismanagement and poor action in the election.
He used the Trump lie to justify a voter suppression law. And moreover, he said himself that he changed the laws in the state of Georgia regarding voting because he was frustrated by the results of 2020 and 2021.
Yes, Brian Kemp gets to cross the very low bar of not committing treason. But our bar for democracy should be higher. He should not only agree to certify the election as was his job but he should show up and tell the truth about what happened.
If he truly believes that Donald Trump did something wrong, then now is the time to say it. I'm not certain what he would be hiding from America, from Georgia, by waiting until after the election to tell the truth. If he could tell the truth before, he should be able to tell the truth now.
BURNETT: So let me ask you about the investigation itself. You've talked about it as being run meticulously and, obviously, you know it has come under some scrutiny. And that is because the district attorney, Fani Willis, has been rebuked once already from perceived political bias by a judge -- a judge who recently blocked her from investigating Republican State Senator Burt Jones.
Burt Jones was one of the alleged fake electors involved in the scheme to subvert Georgia's election. Jones is now the nominee for lieutenant governor, and Willis hosted a campaign fundraiser for the person who became his Democratic opponent.
You know, how much did that damage her credibility, to host a fundraiser -- a political fundraiser?
ABRAMS: I can't speak to why she chose to do that, but I can tell you that Brian Kemp has not only lauded Burt Jones, one of the fake electors, he has also appointed another fake elector, reappointed one, to a very important office -- appointed office in the state of Georgia. That he has suborned those who have used the big lie to justify their actions.
And so, while I understand the concerns that have been raised, we have to focus on who's actually responsible and who is in charge. Brian Kemp is a dangerous extremist who has tried to hide himself behind one good action, and he has distracted the rest of us or certainly distracted most of America from looking at his actual record.
He is trying to play both moderate and MAGA but he is just extreme. He wants credit standing up to Trump but he is refusing to testify to tell the truth. And I encourage people to go to the website, StaceyAbrams.com --
(CROSSTALK)
BURNETT: Do you believe though -- I understand your point. I understand your point. But, ultimately, look, there were plenty of people -- there were plenty of people running for office now, whether it'd be for governor, for secretaries of state who said they would not do what Brian Kemp did. They would not certify the election, and that they would have done what President Trump wanted, right?
What he did, and -- you know, it is no small thing in the world that we live in now, is it?
ABRAMS: It is an important thing to do your job. And I am not diminishing the fact that he did his job. But I would not lionize someone for not committing treason.
If we have lowered our standards so much that simply not doing wrong is the only metric, that is deeply problematic, especially when the person at -- in question, Brian Kemp, has a long and unfortunate history of voter suppression, of not only supporting Donald Trump, but seeking his endorsement and seeking his support even today.
He has not rebuked Trump. He has not rebuked his bad behavior. He's simply hoping that no one pays attention and that is not heroic. That is self-interested. That is hubristic and that is wrong for the future of Georgia.
BURNETT: All right. Leader Abrams, I appreciate your time. Thank you very much.
ABRAMS: Absolutely. Thank you.
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