Democratic Socialists score big wins in Colorado

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0:13Democrats are pivoting to the left in elections around the U.S.

0:26It's Wednesday, July 1st, and this is Here and Now Anytime. From NPR and WBR Boston, I'm Ashley Locke. Today on the show, it's really, really hot. Two in three Americans live in states that for the next few days are under a massive heat dome. And as baseball players get ready to celebrate America's favorite pastime on the 4th of July, we appreciate another, you could say, unofficial holiday today, Bobby Bonilla Day. It looks on its face like another classic New York Mets bungle. But first, Colorado is the latest state where an anti-incumbent wave is taking out Democrats. A 15-term congresswoman has been defeated, and a sitting U.S.

1:12senator has lost his gubernatorial primary. Kyle Clark covers politics for Nine News in Denver. He chats about the results with Scott Tong. Let's talk about Democratic socialist Maylat Kiros, 29-year-old lawyer. She won the Democratic primary, taking out longtime incumbent Diana DeGette. Tell us about Kiros. So Kiros is a former attorney who lost her job at a corporate law firm for writing an essay that was highly critical of Israel. She came home, enrolled in a Ph.D. program, started working as a barista, got linked up with the local chapter of Democratic Socialists of America and decided she's going to run for Congress.

1:51And what did she kind of talk a lot about in her campaign? I mean, did she mention this letter, you know, where she questioned the government of Israel's actions and its legitimacy? She did. She did. She made Diana Deget's support for Israel a key focus of the campaign. Kiro said that Israel's actions in Gaza amount to genocide. She called for an arms embargo that even included defensive weapons to protect Israeli civilians. And she went farther than that. Specifically, I asked her whether the firebombing of elderly Jews in Boulder, Colorado recently was an act of anti-Semitism or anti-Zionism.

2:30And there was a large community reaction when she told me that she wasn't sure which it was, that she didn't know what was in the heart of the attacker. Oh, well, Akiros is the latest member of the Democratic Socialist Party to win in this country. Two other party members in New York State won congressional primaries last month, and they were supported, of course, by the Democratic Socialist Mayor of New York City, Zoran Mamdani. Is there a sense of momentum for the party, at least in Colorado? I think so. And I think for folks around the country who are getting their first look and listen, Emilak Kiros, they're going to see that like Zoran Mamdami, she is a tremendous communicator.

3:10I wouldn't say that she picks her battles in the same way that New York City's mayor does. She is a bit more doctrinaire and more dogmatic and is willing to engage on any plank of the democratic socialist ideology. But she is a tremendously fluent communicator, and she does so in a way that does not often seem adversarial or contentious, right? She engages with an openness and with an invitation to say, I think a lot of people share my view. Let me explain it to you. All right, Kyle, let's talk about another congressional primary in Colorado in a rare swing district in America. 31-year-old progressive Democrat Manny Routanel won his primary, and he's going to face incumbent Republican Congressman Gabe Evans in the general.

4:04How is that shaping up for November? Well, it's likely to be more competitive than it would have been if Democrats had selected a centrist named Shannon Byrd. Instead, they have picked Manny Routenel, who, as you mentioned, is a progressive. He will not say that he is, and he's abandoning a number of his progressive principles over the years, including his commitment to veganism. He used to be a vegan activist, but now he talks about how much he loves the meat products produced by the farmers and ranchers of Colorado's 8th congressional district. He's also flip-flopped on fracking and on universal health care.

4:39So one of the mysteries for voters out here is which positions will Manny Routinel still hold when we get to the general election against Republican Gabe Evans? Wow. Well, they say tack to the center in the general. That's a version of it, I guess. Let's talk about Democratic U.S. Senator Michael Bennett. He also lost in the party's gubernatorial primary. What happened there? I think what happened there is he was the victim of strong anti-Washington sentiment in the Democratic electorate. I think that Attorney General Phil Weiser, who defeated him by 12 points, said that Michael Bennett was better suited to just remain in the Senate.

5:18And he said he needs to do better. He needs to oppose Donald Trump a bit more, but keep him there. Phil Weiser said Weiser for governor, Bennett for Senate. And I think that Michael Bennett is now stuck in a job that, frankly, he hates. He's pretty open about the fact that he doesn't think that the Senate is productive, and he thought he could get a lot more done as governor. And voters instead told him, don't quit your day job. And they sent him right back. Yeah. Kyle, the Republican primary for governor is still too close to call. State Senator Barb Kirkmeyer is still in, as well as first-time candidate Victor Marx.

5:52You pressed Victor Marx in a recent primary debate about his truthfulness. Tell me about that. Victor Marx claims to have led this extraordinary life as a high-risk missionary who goes into difficult situations around the world to rescue women and children from captivity and abuse. But a lot of his claims have really crumbled under scrutiny. And his Republican opponents say he's a con man and a grifter, that he's built this$7.5 million a year ministry that benefits him and his family but might not actually do what he says it's done. He brags about the necessity to kill people in these high-risk situations.

6:31But when I directly pressed him, how many people have you killed? He wouldn't tell me and instead said, does it matter? My goodness. Okay. You're going to be busy. Kyle Clark covers politics in Colorado for Nine News in Denver. Kyle, thanks so much. Always, Scott.

6:54Coming up next, it's freaking hot. My hair is like a mop, and this weather pattern has only just started for much of the country.

7:12independence from back pain and sleepless nights with a handcrafted luxury mattress from Sattva. You'll save up to$625 when you visit sattva.com slash NPR during their July 4th sale. This message comes from Grainger. This is the story of the one. As a procurement manager for a hospital system, she keeps every facility in her network stocked and ready. That's why she counts on Grainger to be her single source for thousands of products, from disinfectants to lighting, air filters, and more. And with fast, dependable delivery, Grainger helps her keep every facility stocked, safe, and running smoothly.

7:49Call 1-800-GRAINGER, click grainger.com, or just stop by. Grainger, for the ones who get it done. Extreme heat warnings are in effect across dozens of states, from Kentucky to New York and Illinois to Pennsylvania, and even where I am, here in Massachusetts. I wanted to go backyard camping with my kids this weekend, but now I'm worried about staying safe. Indoor museums it is. The potentially record-breaking heat is expected to last through at least the 4th of July. Indira Lakshmanan has more context from climate scientist Catherine Hayhoe. We have always had heat waves in the summer. That's a normal part of our weather.

8:27But as climate changes, as the planet warms decade by decade by decade, our heat waves are getting longer and stronger, more intense, and more dangerous. So the heat waves that we were used to when we were kids, that's not what we're experiencing now in the places where we live. And that's putting us all at risk. Well, you talk about the heat when we were kids. The U.S. today experiences twice as many annual heat waves on average as we did back in the 80s when I was a kid. Why is it so much worse now? Well, what we're seeing is natural weather patterns of hot and cold, wet and dry, superimposed over a long-term warming trend.

9:07And the reason the planet is warming is 100 % up to us. By digging up and burning coal and gas and oil, and by cutting down and burning trees, we are producing heat-trapping gases that are building up in the atmosphere, wrapping an extra blanket around the planet. And just like you would if someone snuck into your room when you already had a low-grade fever, that would be our heat wave, and they put a pile of extra blankets on you when you already were experiencing a fever, you'd be that much worse. And that's exactly what we are doing. Just look at last week in Europe, and then look at what's coming for us this week.

9:43Right. And heat and humidity during the heat wave here that's covering the central and eastern United States is going to be off the charts. Remind us what the difference between the actual temperature and the heat index is? So we look at the thermometer, and that tells us the temperature outside, but our body feels temperature depending on how humid it is and even how windy it is because that determines how our body can cool off. So when you look at what the temperature is going to be at, like, you need to look at the humidics and you need to remember that heat affects us all, but it doesn't affect us equally.

10:19Children, senior citizens, women who are pregnant, people who have chronic illnesses, they're much more at risk from heat. So given what you just explained to us about the heat index, just how high could the temperatures feel in the coming days in two-thirds of the country? Well, for example, New York, which you would not exactly think of as heat central, the National Weather Service is warning that heat index values could reach as high as 115 degrees Fahrenheit, height, which we have to understand, you know, if you live in, you know, the Death Valley area, that might be something that you are not only accustomed to, but you know how to deal with.

11:01But when we have people who don't understand how risky it is, how dangerous it is to spend time outside during those extreme heat events, that's when we see the enormous devastating impacts. Do not take heat lightly. It is very, very serious and it can kill. And some 1 ,300 have died in Europe since June 20th, according to the World Health Organization. A lot of those people were children who were jumping into the water trying to cool off and who tragically drowned. All right. Tell us, Catherine, you're a climate scientist. Barring any dramatic course correction in our fossil fuel consumption or intervention to actually radically change the advance of greenhouse gases and global warming, are these heat waves just going to keep increasing in frequency and duration year after year?

11:54The changes that we're seeing in heat waves are directly correlated to our emissions of heat-trapping gases. But here's the good news. We are already seeing a course correction. In the U.S. this year, solar has produced more electricity than coal for the first time ever in the U.S. Now, you might say, what about China? China installs more solar in a single year than the U.S. has in its entire history. So the world is changing. The question is just how fast is it going to change? I live in Texas where we already get almost 40 % of our energy from the wind and the sun that won't run out on us and don't produce heat trapping pollution.

12:32But the faster we make this change, the safer we'll be because climate change is not just some environmental issue that doesn't affect our lives. It is literally a health issue. It's an economic issue. It's a human issue. If you're a human being living on this planet, you have every reason to be concerned about the impacts and to advocate for and support the solutions that will give us a safer and healthier and better world. Catherine Hayhoe is chief scientist of the Nature Conservancy and distinguished professor at Texas Tech University. Thanks so much for joining us. Thank you for having me.

13:09coming up indira tells us about a former baseball player who is getting another big payday and he doesn't even play anymore america am i right

13:25this message comes from wise the smart way to manage your money around the world With Wise, you can send, spend, and receive money in over 40 currencies at the mid-market rate. Learn more at wise.com. T's and C's apply. This message comes from Grainger. This is the story of the one. As a procurement manager for a hospital system, she keeps every facility in her network stocked and ready. That's why she counts on Grainger to be her single source for thousands of products, from disinfectants to lighting, air filters, and more. And with fast, dependable delivery, Grainger helps her keep every facility stocked, safe, and running smoothly.

14:05Call 1-800-GRAINGER, click grainger.com, or just stop by. Grainger, for the ones who get it done. Happy Bobby Bonilla Day! Every July 1st, a former All-Star, who hasn't played for 20 years, collects a$1.2 million check from his former team, the New York Mets. It's more money than some current baseball players will make in a year. And Bonilla will continue getting the annual payments until 2035. You might be wondering, why on earth would the Mets do this? Kenny Malone is here to explain. He's the co-host of NPR's Planet Money podcast. It looks on its face like another classic New York Mets bungle, where they're like entered into some weird contract where they have to keep paying this guy.

14:50But the simple answer is they signed what's called a deferred contract with Bobby Bonilla back in the year 2000, where the Mets were going to owe Bobby about$6 million. They're terminating a contract with him. And instead of paying him that money then, they said, do you mind if we pay you this money in the future, which would give the Mets some flexibility to pay new players, make the team better back in 2000. And they entered into a deferred contract where Bobby would get more than$6 million because he was functionally loaning them$6 million. And so it would make sense that they would pay him back with interest in some way.

15:25Well, you explain in your podcast so nicely how basically the Mets and Bonilla and his lawyer worked out a sort of 8 % average rate of return. And that means that they, instead of paying him$6 million at the time of retirement or the severance of his contract, they said, OK, 8 % a year, compounds, blah, blah, blah. We will actually owe you five times more,$30 million. I mean, my goodness, it sounds like a great deal for Bonilla, but you explained that it's also a good deal for the Mets. Yeah, so they did, around that same time, pay new players to come in. They made the World Series the next year.

16:00And then Bobby made a savvy retirement move. He was like, well, 8 % per year compounding. So compounding means every time you make interest, that goes back into the pool of money, and then that pool is bigger, and it earns more interest, and so forth and so forth. And so it looks magical. Like, yeah, I think arguably it's just a reasonable deal struck by two people. And the fact that it was the Mets makes it funny. Well, you and your co-host James Sneed interviewed Bonilla for Planet Money back in 2021. Let's listen. No one forgets July 1st. No, no, they wouldn't. No one. But it's a good thing if it helps, you know, athletes really see the advantage of putting away money and not thinking that you have to have everything all at once.

16:43I think it's a good thing. MLB players and team owners are clashing now over a new collective bargaining agreement that could delay next year's season. Players are rejecting the league's proposal for a hard salary cap. How does Bobby Bonilla Day play into the larger debate about money in baseball? I mean, this is increasingly part of modern baseball. We've seen the biggest contract ever signed by Los Angeles Dodger Shohei Otani. $680 million of that contract was deferred into the future. So Bobby wasn't the first, but he certainly is the most famous and, I guess, infamous at this point. Kenny Malone is co-host of NPR's Planet Money podcast.

17:20Thanks so much, Kenny. Oh, thank you so much. Happy Bobby Bonita. Here and Now Anytime comes from NPR and WBUR Boston. Today's stories were produced by Lynn Menegon, Wilder Fleming, and Sam Rafelson. Today's editors were Todd Bunt, Miguel Rodriguez, Michael Scotto, and Kat Welch. technical direction from caleb green and matt reed our theme music is by mike moschetto max lehman and chris bentley our digital producers are allison hagan and grace griffin here now's executive producer is alan price thanks for listening stay cool and a special thank you to our recent tour guests from sbs back with you tomorrow

18:10Thank you.