Political speech, timestamped and in context

Elissa Slotkin: “We need to show people that the government can work in concrete ways.”

Featuring: Elissa Slotkin, Democratic | U.S. Senate, Michigan

Slotkin delivers speech on protecting democracy and fighting authoritarianism

Published October 1, 2026

So what can we offer? A big, broad coalition that's willing to vote against a dictator. In my mind, we owe them three things. First, We need to show people that the government can work in concrete ways. It's actually really striking. I hear the same thing from Trump voting farmers in Kansas to the sheet metal workers of Chicago to college students in Michigan. (12:53–12:58)

STATEMENT

Asserts the need for the government to demonstrate its effectiveness to the public.

This is an excerpt from a raw transcript. The assertions have not been audited or verified. Tap the video to view the source footage and understand the context.

See the main statements from Elissa Slotkin in this video

“A month after my speech at Brookings last year, the President called for me to be investigated, arrested and hanged on charges of sedition.”
Asserts that President Trump called for Elissa Slotkin to be investigated, arrested, and hanged for sedition.01:26-01:35
“This year, he took me to the grand jury in an attempt to criminally indict me on charges of sedition.”
Asserts that President Trump attempted to indict Elissa Slotkin on sedition charges.01:39-01:45
“Best estimates are that he and his family have increased their net worth by more than $3.5 billion.”
Asserts that Trump and his family have increased their net worth by over $3.5 billion.06:13-06:20
“He has sued 30 states for their voter rolls.”
Asserts that President Trump has sued 30 states regarding their voter rolls.11:15-11:19
“We've seen the president weaponize the U.S. government against, by my count, at least 20 of his perceived adversaries.”
Asserts that President Trump has used the government against at least 20 perceived adversaries.01:18-01:25
“At this point, Donald Trump is on track to be the most successful corrupt leader in the world's history.”
Asserts that Donald Trump is on track to be the most successful corrupt leader in history.06:05-06:13
“Add to that the sheer number of federal contracts thrown to Trump friends and family, and the true scale will take years to unearth.”
Asserts that federal contracts have been awarded to Trump’s friends and family, with the full scale yet to be revealed.06:20-06:28
“The President is already using every tool at his disposal to intervene in our elections this November.”
Asserts that President Trump is actively intervening in the upcoming November elections.11:09-11:15
“He's tried to ban mail in voting, and when that didn't work, he tried to make the post office the official judge of who gets to vote by mail.”
Asserts that President Trump attempted to ban mail-in voting and influence the post office's role in mail voting.11:18-11:26
“Luckily, Trump is failing to win in court.”
Asserts that President Trump is not succeeding in court with his election-related actions.11:26-11:29
“The most important agenda to help real people is a Project 2029 for the Middle class.”
Asserts the importance of a Project 2029 initiative aimed at assisting the middle class.13:17-13:24
“We need to hold accountable the people and institutions who stole billions of our taxpayer dollars and weaponize the government against its people.”
Asserts the necessity of holding accountable those who misused taxpayer dollars and weaponized the government.13:38-13:46
“Jeanine Pirro used the Department of Justice to go after the president's enemies, including me.”
Claims Jeanine Pirro used the DOJ for political retribution against the president's enemies.14:18-14:24
“Abusing taxpayer money for personal and political gain can land you a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.”
States that misuse of taxpayer money for personal/political gain can result in a 20-year prison sentence.14:30-14:38
“We need to Trump-proof the government.”
Advocates for measures to prevent any leader from having excessive power, referencing Trump's presidency.14:51-14:55
“After Trump's first term, we talked about setting up a task force to do just this.”
Mentions discussions about creating a task force to prevent future abuses of power after Trump's first term.15:01-15:06
“Too many leaders on both sides of the aisle believe that the Trump era was behind us and not worth the heavy lift of changing laws to protect the future.”
Claims bipartisan leaders underestimated the need for legal reforms post-Trump era.15:07-15:16