Cenk Uygur is So Frustrated By Biden’s Lagging Poll Numbers That He’s Staffing Up for a 2024 Run

Cenk Uygur says he’s so mortified by the prospect of former President Donald Trump winning a second term over incumbent President Joe Biden, who he views as weak, that he’s staffing up for a 2024 run of his own.

The progressive thought leader and founder of The Young Turks appeared on Breaking Points with Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti Thursday morning to promote his new book Justice is Coming.

Toward the end of the interview, Ball asked Uygur for his take on the likelihood of someone like California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) mounting a serious primary challenge to Biden. Uygur argued there’s no chance of it because, like Biden, Newsom is a “corporate Democrat.”

He then explained that someone has to shake it up from the outside, but that he can’t convince any progressives to do so. Leaving him just the one option: get in to get it going.

Calling the Biden and corporate Democrat problem the “unsolvable riddle” of the election, Uygur presented his plan, which he has already talked to staff about and has money behind it, as being somewhat of a last resort against what he says is a certain loss if Biden is the nominee.

“For God’s sake, don’t make me do it! Like, have someone else run. Right? But I can’t get anyone to do it,” he said at one point. He went on to make the case why his entering the race — as opposed to the wild RFK Jr. moment or a doomed Marianne Williamson challenge — would be good for the party and a catalyst to a serious challenge against Biden.

The reason for the necessity, he said repeatedly, is that the press will “destroy” any challenge from the left.

“Look, if we’re being honest, the number one problem is mainstream media,” he said. “The mainstream media is the shock troops of corporate politicians, both corporate Democrats and corporate Republicans. Their job is to eviscerate any outsider.”

“So that’s — why do you think progressives aren’t running? I’ve talked to at least half a dozen progressives and tried to convince them to go in the race. And they’re like, I don’t want my life ruined. Who’s going to ruin their life? Joe Biden? He’s in a bunker somewhere,” he continued. “No, it’s going to be ABC and NBC and CBS and CNN and MSNBC, New York Times, Washington Post. They’re going to go at any outsider and shred them to pieces.”

Below is the transcript of that full portion of the interview.

BALL: My last question for you, Cenk, is like, how hopeful are you that we could end up with someone other than Joe Biden as nominee? Like, do you think.

ENJETI: Percentage.

BALL: Yeah because you say, yeah, I mean, because you say, listen, Gavin Newsom’s not going to run against him. That goes for every one of the corporate Democrats. I mean, Gavin Newsom is the one making the most, like doing the most right now. And it’s very clear he’s not going to jump in this race against Joe. So do you think there’s a chance?

UYGUR: Krystal we are definitely in a unsolvable riddle.

BALL: Yeah.

UYGUR: Because the corporate Democrats say I will not disobey. I will always bow my head. Right? And the progressive say, well, I can’t run, the mainstream media will destroy me. They’ll destroy my life, they’ll destroy my career, etc.. Right?

BALL: Right.

UYGUR: So how do we get past that? That’s why I’m desperate enough to think, maybe I should do it. And I’ll tell you why. Because let’s say that somebody like me gets in the race. The Democratic voters are dying for an alternative. They keep saying every poll, for God’s sake, give us someone else. Give us someone else. If someone like me were to get the 20 points, do you have any idea how quick Newsom and Whitmer would enter the race?

BALL: So are you serious? You’re seriously considering it? Like, tell me…

UYGUR: Yeah, I’m considering it.

ENJETI: RFK Jr’s at 20%. You know, Marianne’s at, like, 10% or something.

UYGUR: No. But RFK Junior, first of all, he’s not a 20 anymore. He peaked at 20 for a brief moment until Democrats found out he’s not a Democrat.

ENJETI: Okay.

UYGUR: Okay? Then he went – then he drove down. And Marianne got butchered by mainstream media. They made up things about crystals, etc.. So I love Marianne. And I, you know, if if she could somehow break through media, great, wonderful, etc.. But it’s taken a while and she hasn’t broken through yet. So we need someone to be super aggressive. And if they can … I’ll, let me ask you this way. If you get, agains, someone, anyone, it doesn’t have to be progressive, gets to 20 or 25, an outsider, right? This whole town panics and Newsom and Whitmer go in immediately.

BALL: I do think that’s a possibility.

UYGUR: Is that right?

ENJETI: I don’t know, because it already happened with RFK and they just ignored him and they went after him and like you said he went down.

UYGUR: No, that was before when they were convinced that Biden was going to win. And RFK, everybody knew, was a flash in the pan because he’s not really a Democrat.

ENJETI: Maybe.

BALL: So Cenk, tell me tell me more about your thinking. Timeline. What are you weighing? How serious are you? Give us the details?

UYGUR: So I already thought about it before and I rejected it because I know what they’re going to do. Oh, you know, you’re an outsider, a radical. They’re going to dredge up things from 1987. And when you were in junior high school. And he.

BALL: They already did that that to you.

ENJETI: They did that to you already. That’s right.

UYGUR: Of course. And and look, if we’re being honest, the number one problem is mainstream media. The mainstream media is the shock troops of corporate politicians, both corporate Democrats and corporate Republicans. Their job is to eviscerate any outsider. So that’s — why do you think progressives aren’t running? I’ve talked to at least half a dozen progressives and tried to convince them to go in the race. And they’re like, I don’t want my life ruined. Who’s going to ruin their life? Joe Biden? He’s in a bunker somewhere. No, it’s going to be ABC and NBC and CBS and CNN and MSNBC, new York Times, Washington Post. They’re going to go to any outsider and shred them to pieces.

BALL: Sure.

UYGUR: And I’m now so desperate for making sure that we win that I think, I’m already destroyed. Right? Like, they’ve already attacked me 10,000 times, right? So come at me, bro. So, Krystal, it’s crazy for me to consider it. Right?

BALL: Yeah.

UYGUR: But that’s the times we’re in if, like, literally no one else will do it. It’s insane. So I don’t want to go quietly into that good night. And right now, we are 100% on a track to go quietly into that good night.

ENJETI: So what’s the timeline as Krystal said, when are you going to decide?

UYGUR: No, look, if I if I’m going to do it, if anybody’s going to do it, they’ve got to go now.

ENJETI: Well announce it then, ,go ahead and announce it!

BALL: Are you, Have you thought about staff? Have you thought about a plan? Have you reached — I mean, we know, you know, donor networks, all those sorts of things. Have you started taking real steps?

UYGUR: So if you’re going to run a campaign this late, you can’t go traditional, right? You can’t be like, oh, I’m going to collect endorsements from politicians. Oh,and I’m going to build up my base tiny bit– no, you got to go and hope for a grassroots tsunami. The good news is, when I ran for Congress, I mean, it was a tiny little race and we raised like 1.3 million in in three months. I mean, if anybody can raise money, it’s me from the grassroots. Right. And I’m a successful businessman, if I might say so myself. I have some credibility in running things, managing things, etc.. So have I reached out to staff? I have. Okay. Now the problem is everybody thinks, well, how the hell are we going to beat these guys? Right? So if I go in, it’s going to be threadbare staff, threadbare website, and we’re going to see: is there momentum? Because if there is a momentum and people go, “No, no, no, no, no. Biden, Biden. Even if he’s in the twenties, I don’t care. I don’t want, I don’t mind losing. I don’t mind losing. You’re being impolite,” which is totally possible. Right. So if that’s.

ENJETI: Yeah, I think there’s a decent contingent, though. I think that.

UYGUR: Yeah. And if that’s the case, then at least I left it all on the battlefield. Or whoever does it. For God’s sake, don’t make me do it! Like, have someone else run. Right? But I can’t get anyone to do it. And so I want to leave it all on the battlefield. And I don’t want to say, “well, like everyone else, I wanted to be polite. So we lost democracy because we thought it would hurt Mussolini’s opponent’s feelings.” Right? Does anybody remember Mussolini’s opponent?

ENJETI: I don’t actually.

UYGUR: Of course, no one does. Yeah. No one does!

ENJETI: Yeah.

UYGUR: Okay. Because Mussolini ran him over and he probably sat on a couch, just like Joe Biden is right now. You guys were on it. And I know how mad Democrats get. I know how mad media gets when you point out an iceberg. But we did it before. We pointed out the Hillary Clinton iceberg. And they said you made the iceberg appear. No, you’re knuckleheads. It’s right there. The country, the voters despised establishment and they’re like, so let’s pick the most establishment candidates we can: Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden. Guys, he barely won last time! There’s no way he’s going to win now. Let alone if Cornel West is in the race and Larry Hogan’s in the race and these guys are in the race. Then there’s no chance at all. So, no, I’m not going quietly into that good night. So somebody better announce before I do.

BALL: All right.

ENJETI: Well, all right.

BALL: Well, I never thought to ask you in your appearance if you were considering running for president.

ENJETI: Glad you made the news.

Watch the clip above, via Breaking Points.