# The Andrew Yang Presidential Campaign thread
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555
**Category:** Politics & Elections
**Created:** [February 14, 2019, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555 "2019-02-14T21:16:10Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 25
### Author:  [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)
#### Post date: [September 13, 2019, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/481 "2019-09-13T17:39:25Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#):
>
> His ethnic jokes were cringeworthy, too - “I’m Asian, so I know a lot of doctors” wasn’t the only one, either.
>
> Time to clear the stage, Andrew.
Unfortunately, it’s the age we live in.
We live in a viral world, a meme world, a YouTube replay world. He doesn’t have the name recognition the other candidates have, so he has to fight guerilla warfare style. I don’t like it either, but welcome to life in 2019.
---
### Author:  [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)
#### Post date: [September 13, 2019, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/482 "2019-09-13T20:18:00Z")
> [@asahi](#):
>
> Unfortunately, it’s the age we live in.
>
> We live in a viral world, a meme world, a YouTube replay world. He doesn’t have the name recognition the other candidates have, so he has to fight guerilla warfare style. I don’t like it either, but welcome to life in 2019.
How is “there’s lots of asian doctors” guerrilla warfare in a meme world? Did you mean to address criticism of his giveaway announcement? Because that’s viral and YouTube worthy stuff. But it will offend a lot of reliable voters.
---
### Author:  [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)
#### Post date: [September 13, 2019, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/483 "2019-09-13T20:40:18Z")
Resorting to stereotype reinforcing “jokes” is not a meme.
Whether is Harris and her ganja joke at the expense of the heritage of her father’s side or this and his math schtick.
You accept the negative when you accept the positive.
---
### Author:  [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)
#### Post date: [September 14, 2019, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/484 "2019-09-14T17:09:03Z")
> [@CarnalK](#):
>
> How is “there’s lots of asian doctors” guerrilla warfare in a meme world? Did you mean to address criticism of his giveaway announcement? Because that’s viral and YouTube worthy stuff. But it will offend a lot of reliable voters.
I mean that he’s doing what he can to gain attention, even if it’s potentially negative. I don’t take Yang seriously as a possible front-of-the-pack candidate, but it’s clear that he knows how to use modern media to market himself. He’s done that arguably as well as any candidate running. He’s willing to risk alienating some voters because he needs voters to know he exists in the first place. He can always apologize and change his position later.
---
### Author:  [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)
#### Post date: [September 16, 2019, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/485 "2019-09-16T21:12:43Z")
Yang has a lot of good ideas. Unfortunately, he has a few too many nutty ideas.
---
### Author:  [@Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heffalump_and_Roo)
#### Post date: [September 17, 2019, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/486 "2019-09-17T04:48:49Z")
Zach Graumann, Yang’s campaign manager, released some [stats](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1173561504110714881?s=20) about the debate:
> [@](#):
>
> Despite speaking the least amount of time last debate:
>
> $1m raised
> 450k email entries
> 3x more web traffic than all other candidates
>
> We are playing a different game. And it’s working.
The Yang2020 website has the [number of entries by state](https://www.yang2020.com/more-than-just-math/). One of the Yang Gangers calculated that [by population size](https://old.reddit.com/r/YangForPresidentHQ/comments/d56pcz/yang_shares_a_map_of_entries_by_state_for_the_ubi/). It’s amazlingly proportional by population in pretty much every state across the country. There are also stories of how the money would be used by some of the entries.
Politico reported [Andrew Yang’s campaign says over 450,000 people have entered debate contest](https://www.politico.com/story/2019/09/16/andrew-yang-campaign-debate-lottery-1497649)
> [@](#):
>
> Andrew Yang’s surprising debate gambit — giving away $120,000 to 10 families over a year to highlight his universal basic income proposal — helped the outsider candidate raise $1 million in the 72 hours since the debate and collect more than 450,000 email addresses from people who entered the online raffle, the presidential campaign told POLITICO.
>
> The campaign said that over 90 percent of the email addresses are new, a huge expansion of the candidate’s email list. He also gained more Twitter followers over the course of the debate than any other candidate.
Early indications were already positive. The day after the debate, some sources were reporting that Yang’s campaign website got 116K hits minutes after the announcement and got donations of $120K within hours.
Yang had the biggest increase of twitter followers than any other candidate. His sub count increased as well. Since my last update, twitter followers increased roughly 100K to 850K. Subs on Reddit increased to 64.3K (increasing 300 while I composed this note) People online at the sub also increased from a high of 3K to a high of 5K over the weekend. Yang’s Google searches were the highest or second highest after the debate. Biden was highest at times with the search word record player.
Yang [celebrating](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1172394385155059714) at the debate party.
The day after the debate, there were multiple reports in the Yang subreddit of people saying that instead of them having to ask people about Yang, everyone in their workplace or school was talking about him to each other and to them.
Alexis Ohanian, co-founder of Reddit, [offered](https://twitter.com/alexisohanian/status/1172314151777030145?s=09) to pay the $120K if the Yang campaign was disallowed.
> [@](#):
>
> Hey @AndrewYang I like this idea so much I’ll do it personally for those 10 people if you can’t.
>
> We talk about the future of AI often at @Initialized – our nation needs to start exploring ways to adapt to the massive automation shift that’s already happening.
Yang replied “Alexis you are a class act my friend. Will call you soon. Thank you.”
Multiple people have offered to give one or two people the equivalent of a Freedom Dividend over the course of the campaign. Justin Sun [offered](https://twitter.com/justinsuntron/status/1172533022555615233?s=20) to pay for 100 people. They haven’t done it yet because of campaign finance laws.
From the SF Chronicle, [Pundits laugh at Andrew Yang. Regular people don’t](https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/williesworld/article/Pundits-laugh-at-Andrew-Yang-Regular-people-14438748.php)
> [@](#):
>
> The Yang Thang is on a roll.
>
> Democratic presidential candidate and businessman Andrew Yang’s call to give every American a $1,000-a-month “freedom dividend” may be getting short shrift from pundits, but it has struck a chord with voters, who feel they rarely see a dime of their tax dollars coming back to them.
> . . . .
> I keep running into regular people who ask how to contact Yang. He’s connecting on a level we rarely see in politics.
A few people felt that the politicians on the debate stage were laughing at them (the people who needed the money). On [twitter](https://twitter.com/LullaLindsey/status/1172574051514167296),
> [@Lindsey Lulla](#):
>
> It’s easy to laugh off @AndrewYang and his #FreedomDividend when you’re a politician or news anchor who’s net worth is in the multi millions. 1k is pennies to them. 1k/mo for the average American would literally change lives. Let me share:
On [Reddit](https://old.reddit.com/r/YangForPresidentHQ/comments/d442nu/theres_something_i_must_get_off_my_chest/):
> [@\_\_Joshua\_\_](#):
>
> But NO…they laugh. We think they were laughing at Yang giving money to 10 families across the country, but who they were really laughing at is us.
>
> They don’t trust us to handle our own business and our own needs. When they snickered, they laughed at the homeless, they laughed at the needy, they laughed at those living paycheck to paycheck.
Some nice remarks from people on the debate:
[Ezra Klein](https://twitter.com/ezraklein/status/1172319087705219072) of VOX
> [@Ezra Klein](#):
>
> Outright defenses of the benefits of immigration are way too rare. America has no greater advantage than the millions of people who want to come here, work hard, and contribute their energy and ingenuity to this country. We should take them up on it. Yang’s answer here was great.
[Cenk Uygur](https://twitter.com/cenkuygur/status/1172477996181180416) of TYT
> [@Cenk Uygur](#):
>
> All of these snarky attacks on Democracy Dollars from idiots in establishment who support wholesale corruption in our politics. In reality, this proposal is one of the best policies of the 2020 election cycle. It empowers real people to compete with big money donors. #DemDebate
[David Pakman](https://twitter.com/dpakman/status/1172368091302359040)
> [@David Pakman](#):
>
> I’m seeing some “political analysts” claiming Kamala Harris OBVIOUSLY won tonight…what debate did you watch? @ewarren did really well. @AndrewYang had his best debate so far.
[Lawrence Lessig](https://twitter.com/lessig/status/1173632547538055173)
> [@Lawrence Lessig](#):
>
> Brilliant piece by Philip Howard. But let’s not forget that @AndrewYang is also the most aggressive campaign finance reformer left on stage. That too is a critical part of fixing government
Yang was the [top rated](https://equalcitizens.us/potus1/) Presidential candidate at Equal Citizens, Lawrence Lessig’s group.
On Yang’s supporters, a [Newsweek journalist](https://twitter.com/christinaxzhao/status/1171612917382303744?s=20) notes:
> [@Christina Zhao](#):
>
> . @AndrewYang’s supporters are legit the most reasonable, civil and polite group of people I’ve ever encountered on Twitter… By a very long mile #YangGang
>
> So unusual in this political climate…
On Yang’s donors, some of the Yang Gang are wondering why Pete Buttigieg spending [$300K to charter private jets](https://freebeacon.com/politics/pete-buttigieg-private-jets/) to travel to campaign events is not frowned upon but Yang giving money to the American people is. Most people in [this thread](https://old.reddit.com/r/YangForPresidentHQ/comments/d468k1/yang_giving_away_our_donations/?st=k0jzpdzm&sh=567dce0d)were proud to give to this cause and gave more after hearing the announcement. Some considered starting a Gofundme campaign for the funds.
Over the weekend, there was a drama with Shane Gillis, a new hire on SNL. A video surfaced where he was making racial slurs. Yang was the target of one of the slurs. Yang reached out to Gillis and offered to talk. He also [suggested](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1172924384539029511) that Gillis be offered forgiveness and not fired. SNL fired Gillis on Monday. Yang reported that Gillis did reach out to him to talk. CNN’s[interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=405&v=zAc2oZLhcto) with Yang, partially on that topic, is now trending on youtube.
On the day of the debate, a [podcast](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/13/podcasts/revisiting-andrew-yang.html) released at the NYT that, to me, exemplifies the campaign. A journalist, Kevin Roose, had interviewed Yang at the start of his campaign, wrote an article about it, calling Yang’s campaign a longer-than-long-shot. [Zach Graumann used that phrase to fire up the campaign and create benchmarks for the campaign team] Since then, the journalist revisited Yang since Yang is polling higher than that designation would allow, to try to understand what he missed.
Here’s what Kevin Roose missed.
> [@](#):
>
> The episode ended where it began, with Kevin articulating what he failed to foresee in his article back in 2018, when he called Yang’s platform a longshot.
>
> “Since then, he’s been able to turn it into a discussion about what it means to be a human — about what we would do if we weren’t so worried about making ends meet,” Kevin explained. “And I think that’s the part that I didn’t see when I first met him was that this argument — this sort of wonky economics argument about automation and U.B.I. and G.D.P. and all these other three-letter acronyms — that he could make it appeal to people on an emotional level by saying this is not just about giving you free money. But instead, he’s saying it’s not about the money. It’s about what the money can allow you to do. And that’s the part that I think I missed.”
The day before the debate, Ted Cruz challenged Yang to a basketball matchup. A Yang Ganger told Cruz that he should challenge Yang at basketball (since there were reports of Yang warming up on the courts before the debate. Cruz [responded](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1171971336580808710) with “Sorry. You gotta poll at 5% or more to play on my court.” Yang included a screen shot of a 5% poll and challenged Cruz. “Ted I would be delighted to beat you in basketball.” Cruz [offered](https://twitter.com/tedcruz/status/1172007679436439552) to play with 3 of his staff on his team. Yang countered to play one on one.
A couple fun things (to me anyway). A guy created a [huge replica of a math hat](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xt0YUC9YsDw) and put it on top of his van. Another Yang Ganger created an [anime video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1jUJ-2MsdA&feature=youtu.be) on Yang. It’s amazingly well done. I am in total awe. But wut? Still, the creativity and ingenuity of the Yang Gang continues to amaze me.
Yang held a rally in Boston today. It looked like it was [well-attended](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1173743877360148480).
Tomorrow, 9/17/19, there will be another [rally](https://www.mobilize.us/yang2020/event/118858/) in Philadelphia, PA at at 6:30PM.
Then on Thursday, 9/19/19, Yang is [scheduled](https://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwtv/article/Scoop-Upcoming-Guests-on-LATE-NIGHT-WITH-SETH-MEYERS-916-920-20190916) to be on Seth Meyers.
> [@Jonathan\_Chance](#):
>
> As a moderator, I want to give you a ‘well done’ for this. This sort of action is exactly how spin offs should be handled. Thanks for doing so.
Thanks, **Jonathan Chance**.
---
### Author:  [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)
#### Post date: [September 17, 2019, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/487 "2019-09-17T06:42:50Z")
Wow, Yang got lots of web traffic after announcing a big cash give away? Innovative guerrilla tactics.
---
### Author:  [@Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heffalump_and_Roo)
#### Post date: [September 30, 2019, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/488 "2019-09-30T22:37:51Z")
The DNC released [qualifications](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/dnc-raises-qualification-threshold-november-debate-n1057751) for the November debate. Candidates need over 165K donors and 4 national polls of 3% or higher or 2 polls of 5% or higher in early states.
Yang has passed the donor mark with over 200K donors. He has hit 3 qualifying polls with 3% or more. He needs 1 more qualifying poll to make it to the November debate with over a month to qualify.
He is a lock for the October debate. Gabbard and Steyer also made it to the October debate. The October debate is scheduled for October 15 and so far, is said to be slated for one night only. 12 people on the stage at the same time.
I was just about to link the debate qualification spreadsheet some guy from Politico is updating, but the Yang Gang crashed it the other day and the author couldn’t update it, so I decided to refrain. Zach (PR mgr) was [proud](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1176217018015653889).
Some notable recent polls. Yang hit 10% in a [poll](https://twitter.com/PopulismUpdates/status/1178032553086730240?s=19) (not verified by me) of college students, placing him in third among college students. He hit 7% in California in an Emerson [poll](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1173995380666765312), placing him in 4th place in that poll. He also had a 7% in a SurveyUSA [poll](https://twitter.com/SisiLiliDidi/status/1174152750004932609). Yang also hit 8% in a [national Emerson poll.](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1176534227657121792)
Some interesting [information](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2BvFdgqx-k) (from Nerds for Andrew Yang) from that Emerson poll is that Yang is polling higher with hispanics, Republicans, people aged 18-34 and people making over $100K/yr.
Business Insider has Yang [ranked](https://twitter.com/oakfive/status/1175238977613262848) at 5th on 9/20.
Yang opened 2 new offices in Iowa to a [good reception](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1175779660732481537). There were people going down a long hall, down the stairs and out the door to get a selfie with him.
When Yang showed up to play some basketball with his staff at Georgetown University, a [bunch of students](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1174483926808764416) showed up to take selfies that created a line around the gym.
There was [an interview](https://twitter.com/CBSNews/status/1177321963120922634) with a guy who received one of the first Freedom Dividends. He was skeptical at the time, not committing to vote for Yang, but he has since been more positive. He makes a nice analogy of getting a cash benefit as better than a monitored program to getting a cash gift or a gift card that you might not be able to use.
There were several nice interviews with Yang this week. The View did a[positive interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srSH40ea7Ds). Van Jones also did a [nice interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzvi4QBBnec). Firing Line did an [interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o954RBH3S6o). He was also on [Seth Meyers](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnUAlTPlMz0). Yang was also on Rachel Maddow but got shortened time due to the impeachment inquiry news. The Takeout by Major Garrett released their [interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqLtKl40nek&feature=youtu.be) in its entirety in March. They only released a one minute clip in March. It was a pretty nice interview. Too bad they didn’t release that in March. The Hill also did a nice[interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0GTulhxZmM) with Yang. The Hill also had a [segment](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXYbjGAS-w0) on UBI when a poll taken recently showed a big increase in favorability of UBI. After the Houston debate, Nate Silver and team (Galen) ran into Yang at the airport. They decided to do a [podcas](https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/politics-podcast-we-ran-into-andrew-yang-at-the-airport/)t in the airport lounge. Yang was on CNN’s[climate town hall](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7hiD-TLZDE).
A NYT [article](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/27/business/yang-warren-taxes-mankiw.html) by a Harvard economics professor, N. Gregory Mankiw ([wiki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N._Gregory_Mankiw)) compared Yang’s VAT against Elizabeth Warren’s wealth tax and found Yang’s plan to be better in practicality and the likelihood of wealth distribution success.
> [@N. Gregory Mankiw](#):
>
> In the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, Senator Elizabeth Warren, of Massachusetts, and Andrew Yang, a former tech executive and entrepreneur, have both proposed bold plans for redistributing economic resources.
>
> Their plans are as different as can be. Only Mr. Yang’s is practical.
> . . .
> Instead, let’s consider a simpler question: Assume that one way or another, the government is going to pursue new policies to increase the equality of economic outcomes. Given that assumption, what is the best approach?
> . . .
> The Yang proposal would not only be more workable than the Warren plan, but it would also target those who spend lavishly.
> . . .
> The Warren proposal hits the frugal executive hard but leaves the spendthrift without a scratch. The Yang proposal hits the spendthrift hard and takes a smaller bite from the frugal person who has saved his money. If you, like me, think that society could benefit from fewer spendthrifts and more savers, Mr. Yang’s proposal makes much more sense than Senator Warren’s.
>
> And if the goal is to raise substantial revenue from rich taxpayers to strengthen the social safety net, Mr. Yang’s plan is more likely to succeed.
Some fun stuff. The artists and musicians are showing up more and more. I loved this acoustic guitar [piece](https://twitter.com/adamrayburton/status/1177417864799608833) done for the Yang Gang done by Musician for Yang on twitter. There was a amazing [piece of art](https://twitter.com/Sunscribes/status/1177342454829158400) done with a magnifying glass and the sun to burn wood of a medallion of Yang. Yang was parodied [on SNL](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1178163893589426176). Yang has been looking forward to this for a while. Yang [wrote](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1178374032846049280), “If you give me some notice @nbcsnl I am happy to come in and play myself.” Zach[jokes](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1175513230980071428) about his life on the campaign trail, “This picture about sums up my life right now. At a steak-fry in Iowa. Yang having more fun than he’s supposed to. I’m holding a plate of something deep fried while fending off a reporter.”
Milk+T in LA made a BobaYang [drink](https://old.reddit.com/r/YangForPresidentHQ/comments/db0iny/milkt_in_los_angeles_made_an_andrew_yang_drink/)in honor of Yang’s love of Boba tea, as well as a sticker of a Boba drinking Yang. Some of the proceeds get donated to the campaign.
The campaign put out a call to raise a $1.5M about a week before the end of the quarter. In contrast to last quarter, when the call fell short of the goal, the Yang Gang surpassed the $1.5M and is trying for $2M by the end of the quarter. [Right now](https://www.yang2020.com/), they’re at $1.675M with about 9 hours to go.
The Yang Gang have been doing community service [projects](https://old.reddit.com/r/YangForPresidentHQ/comments/d86lml/the_philly_yang_gang_was_inspired_to_clean_up_all/) on the weekends, like picking up trash. There are a several groups doing this in different areas.
The Philadephia [rally](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1174133128320946176) went well. Yang jogged in to the tune of Rocky. He had just hit 7% in CA in the Emerson poll.
Today, 9/30/19, is an exciting day for the Yang Gang. There’s a rally planned for LA at MacArthur Park. The Yang Gang is planning to fly a [banner](https://old.reddit.com/r/YangForPresidentHQ/comments/d94zsg/skybanking_update_its_happeninggood_thing_i_have/)over the event. It’s also the end of the quarter. Hours before the rally, Yang is [seen](https://twitter.com/erickmsanchez/status/1178787808208535552) riding a scooter in LA.
---
### Author:  [@John\_Stamos\_Left\_Ear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Stamos_Left_Ear)
#### Post date: [October 1, 2019, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/489 "2019-10-01T06:28:39Z")
Not reading the thread. Just want to say that The Cult of Yang on social media has been nothing short of off-putting and screaming that the media is giving more time to someone polling at 1% when you’re only getting 3% is not some conspiracy against your outsider candidate. It’s _because you are_ an outsider candidate - the media wants to talk to Senators (Klobuchar, Booker) and elected reps (Gabbard) regardless of their poll numbers. When literally 97% of people are picking someone other than you, it doesn’t take anti-media conspiracy theories to explain the dearth of coverage.
---
### Author:  [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)
#### Post date: [October 1, 2019, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/490 "2019-10-01T18:27:36Z")
> [@John\_Stamos\_Left\_Ear](#):
>
> Not reading the thread. Just want to say that The Cult of Yang on social media has been nothing short of off-putting and screaming that the media is giving more time to someone polling at 1% when you’re only getting 3% is not some conspiracy against your outsider candidate. It’s _because you are_ an outsider candidate - the media wants to talk to Senators (Klobuchar, Booker) and elected reps (Gabbard) regardless of their poll numbers. When literally 97% of people are picking someone other than you, it doesn’t take anti-media conspiracy theories to explain the dearth of coverage.
Thank You!!! I am really trying to follow Pete’s rules of the road, but the nastiness of the Yang Gang has really made me angry. When Yang releases his fundraising numbers, I’m not going on Twitter just to troll him. I’m not sure Ron Paul had this devoted of a cult and such fervent conspiracy theories.
---
### Author:  [@Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heffalump_and_Roo)
#### Post date: [October 9, 2019, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/491 "2019-10-09T00:35:41Z")
The LA rally last Monday was epic. Zach [claims](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1178879162213228544) there were 5K people in attendance. There were multiple livestreams going on at the same time. Paget Kagy did a [livestream](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9YeOIVcZO0) as well as Problem Solver Politics and[Yangstream](https://www.twitch.tv/videos/488614518). Paget spoke in the introduction. [MC Jin](https://twitter.com/iammcjin/status/1180941205850529793) (rapper) did a rap, and a friend of Yang, Brian Yang (no relation), from back in Yang’s first failed business made some comments. Brian Yang also set up the fundraiser function the next day in LA.
The [LA rally](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1179039242384576513) had [break dancers,](https://twitter.com/adam22/status/1178823376741101569) pyrotechnics, and people chanting through the whole thing. The whole thing felt electric, even just watching the livestream. After one of the rallies, Yang rode some guy’s skateboard that was trying to get him to sign. Zach [posted](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1179611906912313344) out the nice parts of the ride that got played on the Colbert show. The owner of the skateboard showed it until the end when he [wiped out](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJoYyeThpGA&feature=youtu.be). Still, he was pretty impressive.
The next week, Yang had interview with the Snapchat CEO, NPR, The Real, [John Harwood](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1RUfwnw9RQ), Alyssa Milano’s podcast [Sorry Not Sorry](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nw-xJYzr_5g), Eric Weinstein’s podcast [The Portal](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yi5Y7Yggzoo). He had the [largest surge](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1179053413268541440) in polling of college students, jumping to 10.4%. Twitter followers passed 900K, reddit subs passed 70K (now close to 72K; reddit being reddit celebrated at 69K and forgot about it at 70K). Yang moved up to #4 in the Business Insider [ranking](https://www.businessinsider.com/2020-democratic-presidential-primary-power-ranking-2019-4?utmSource=twitter&utmContent=referral&utmTerm=topbar&referrer=twitter).
The campaign announced that they had picked and notified the 10 Freedom Dividend winners.
Then the Yang campaign [announced](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/02/us/politics/andrew-yang-fundraising.html?smtyp=cur&smid=tw-nytpolitics) his fundraising haul of $10M. It was a [257% increase](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/andrew-yang-257-fundraising-surge-smashes-all-other-candidates-103531806.html) over his $2.8M raised in Q2. The Yahoo Finance graph show who is gaining momentum and who is losing speed.
The Yang campaign gave the exclusive story about his raising $10M in Q3 to CNN. CNN returned the favor by not adding Yang to any of their [graphics](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1179941190537547781). Instead they chose to feature Cory Booker with $6M and leaving Yang out entirely. MSNBC did the same but said it was a timing issue. CNN didn’t have that excuse. In protest, the Yang Gang started donating to the campaign and posting their receipts.
\*
Rolling Stone\* did an article on Yang called [Inside the Making of Andrew Yang 2.0
The dark-horse Democrat just raised $10 million. He’s on a hiring spree and building a legit campaign. But how far can he go?](https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-warren-sanders-primary-new-hampshire-894641/) This is a great behind the scenes look at Yang’s campaign as it unfolds. It tells of Yang’s new campaign hires and how much political experience they have and a bit about strategy.
Saturday, Oct. 5th was National Yang Gang day. A bunch of the Yang Gang got together and organized a day when Yang Gang from all over the country got together with people in their local area. There were pictures of Yang Gang getting together in cities all over the country. The LA Yang Gang had about [150 people](https://twitter.com/LAMomTweets/status/1180561700371648512) getting together. They were gathered together on the steps near the Santa Monica Pier when a street performer started yelling at them to go away and stop taking his spotlight. The [Yang Gang](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wP33KxZygA) stopped doing what they were doing, went over to the street performer and filled his bucket with donations, then stood as his audience as the guy started singing “Hallelujah” to them. Later, they had a movement going to get that guy’s subscriber count on youtube up to the threshold where he could get his channel monetized. Paget was there livestreaming. It was an incredible moment.
The LA Yang Gang also helped a homeless woman who was telling her story to a camera crew at the gathering. She told Paget Kagy to thank all of them for all the money she received which was about the equivalent of a Freedom Dividend.
Personally, these are the best parts of the campaign for me. I’ve read so many stories of how this campaign has lifted people out of depression or given people hope. There’s a guy who says in twitter that he had tried to commit suicide by setting himself on fire and had lost all hope until he found this campaign. I saw him at the LA fundraiser talking to Paget. Yang retweets a bunch of tweets all the time about people saying that this campaign has lifted them out of depression because they feel hope for the first time. There was a woman at an early rally who gave her story about how the campaign took away her depression. Several people with autism have written about how they feel acceptance for the first time with Yang talking about his son with autism. It’s heartwarming to read these stories about how the campaign has changed people’s lives.
Last night, Andrew Yang[showed up](https://twitter.com/E_Diep/status/1181403876970373120) at the _Rich Brian_ of _88Rising_ opening of the _Sailor_ tour. Yang introduced _Rich Brian_. When Yang [appeared on the stage](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORcERfy1olE), the crowd went wild, chanting “Andrew Yang”.
Yang just made the [November debate](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1181688438799704064) which will take place on November 20 in Atlanta. So far, 8 candidates have made it to that debate in November. Yang is already scheduled for the debate in October on October 15.
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### Author:  [@Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heffalump_and_Roo)
#### Post date: [November 8, 2019, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/492 "2019-11-08T03:43:59Z")
By some accounts, the 4th debate went well for Yang. Unlike the past 3 debates where there was more of a consensus of the winners, the 4th debate was a bit of a Rorshach test for the pundits. MSM generally had Warren winning. The progressive left channels had Bernie winning. The Yang Gang had Yang winning.
There were a few places that had Yang winning. Chris Cillizza on [CNN](https://www.cnn.com/2019/10/15/politics/who-won-the-democratic-debate/index.html) has Yang winning. The [Humanist Report](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlYm8Exk8YU) had Yang winning at minute 27:30. And Saagar at [The Hill](https://thehill.com/hilltv/rising/466174-saagar-enjeti-no-question-andrew-yang-won-ohio-debate) had Yang winning. There were a number of articles like Vox that had UBI or automation winning. The [AP fact check](https://apnews.com/7cf3f5fabe1147098354d02396bd1817?utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=APFactCheck) on automation went against Warren, who Yang was arguing against. According to the AP, automation was a major cause of the manufacturing jobs decline. The [WP fact check](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/10/15/fact-checking-fourth-democratic-debate/) also played in Yang’s favor on the wealth tax being tried in several countries and being repealed.
In the 4th debate, Yang mentioned his friendship with a Republican trucker. Some backstory on that trucker. He’s Fred the felon. Yang went on a [ridealong with Fred](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFZBPf3RkvE) in his truck when Yang first started his campaign. Fred was dubious when he first heard Yang’s platform, but today, Fred is a huge supporter. Fred put up a crowdsource campaign to get $8.4K to wrap his truck with Yang’s picture and campaign info. He now drives the truck around the country, attending Yang’s events. [Here](https://old.reddit.com/r/YangForPresidentHQ/comments/do49vp/freds_truck_in_front_of_san_francisco_city_hall/)’s his truck in SF before the SF rally. Now they give shout-outs to each other at rallies.
After the announcement of the $10M third quarter, most of MSM left Yang off their charts about it. But since then, some pundits have changed their predictions about his campaign.
Two of the most dismissive and snarky pundits to Yang’s campaign have been [Nate Silver](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFa6uXjb398) and [Chuck Todd](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbLok69LXTU). Both of them have now said that if Yang finishes in the top 3, they wouldn’t be surprised.
Zach Montellaro, a writer for Politico who is keeping track of the race, [tweeted](https://twitter.com/ZachMontellaro/status/1184482958545211401) out some news about the cash on hand for the candidates and found Yang to have a decent amount of cash on hand, putting him in cash-positive category.
Someone who was following social media growth after the debate showed Yang with the [highest twitter growth](https://twitter.com/rycrist/status/1184324359105777664) following the debate.
After the debate, Yang did a [10](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWWFQRBaXMc) [hour](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GjJ5oCV4fk) [AMA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFe01jitoAE) [that](https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/djpf40/iama_presidential_candidate_andrew_yang_ama/) he had announced during the debate. They called Alyssa Milano and David Arquette during the AMA.
One of the leading economists, Greg Mankiw, while [speaking at a conference](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ANhbCOkoxk) on wealth inequality said that he favors Yang’s plan. He did an interesting thought experiment. He asked some Harvard students to pick between two plans that would help to redistribute wealth. Plan A is a means tested transfer. Under plan A, there would a transfer of $1K for people with zero income, phasing out 20% for every dollar going up to $60K. It would be funded by a progressive tax on people making over $60K. Under plan B, a UBI would transfer $1K/mo to everyone, paid by a 20% flat tax on earning. 90% of the Harvard students picked plan A. According to Mankiw, the plans are identical in term of economic impact. Because of the reduced administrative costs, among other factors, Mankiw favors plan B which he calls Yang’s plan. He noted that his hypothetical plan B is taxing income and not sales. He said that taxing sales is even more preferable because it doesn’t punish higher earnings which is one of the reasons that Yang chose the VAT.
Mankiw notes that journalist and pundits who talk about the taxes without the transfers that accompany them are being misleading to the point of deception.
Greg Mankiw announced in [his blog](https://gregmankiw.blogspot.com/2019/10/i-am-no-long-republican.html) that he will be unregistering as a Republican to vote in the upcoming primary election.
> [@Greg Mankiw](#):
>
> I just came back from city hall, where I switched my voter registration from Republican to unenrolled (aka independent).
> . . .
> Second, in Massachusetts, unenrolled voters can vote in either primary. The Democratic Party is at a crossroads, where it has to choose either a center-left candidate (Biden, Buttigieg, Klobuchar, Yang) or a far-left populist (Warren, Sanders) as their nominee for president. I intend to help them choose the former. The latter propose to move the country too far in the direction of heavy-handed state control. And in doing so, they tempt those in the center and center-right to hold their noses and vote for Trump’s reelection.
Interestingly, Mankiw considers Yang to be center-left. Others have called him left of progressive. Still others have called him libertarian.
In the midst of this upswing, the polls took a downward dip and the tone of the subreddit turned negative. That’s uncharacteristic of the Yang Gang. It took about a week for people to start questioning what was going on. I suspect that people from the outside were bringing in the negativity because I could see my upvote count of the people who were negative, and they seemed to be new. Things have turned back to positive in the subreddit, thankfully, along with the direction of some of the polls.
There was a UBI march around the world over the weekend on 10/26/19. It started out with Scott Santens’ group starting a NYC UBI march. As word about it spread through the Yang Gang, it turned into an international event. After a poll that showed an upward favorability of UBI, Andy Stern (President Emeritus SEIU and advocate for UBI) [noted](https://twitter.com/AndyStern_DC/status/1177258854813491205) “The “Yang Effect”: Voter support for universal basic income grows.” Based [on](https://twitter.com/ChicagoYangGang/status/1188156969871462400) [some](https://twitter.com/SoCalYangGang/status/1188194519948247041) [pictures](https://twitter.com/scottsantens/status/1188195780978454528) [Yang](https://twitter.com/eoisn/status/1188174234222243849)[is](https://twitter.com/WhirledBeFree/status/1188152080877412352) [tweeting](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1188158541661474817) out, it looks like a success.
The requirements for the December debate have been announced. Yang has met the donor requirement and has 1 of 4 required polls to make the December debate stage.
On Halloween, Yang [called](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1189903565579382784) 60 donors in 60 minutes to try to hit $1.5M in a week to end out October well. The goal of $1.5M was [reached](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1190095517977661440) by the end of the night. Lots of pictures of Yang Gang dressed up as Yang were shared. The campaign made its goal of $1.5M in the last week of October to put out more ads in the early states.
Yang made the [cover of Newsweek](https://twitter.com/Newsweek/status/1190033260132421632).
Yang had a cameo appearance in a ZHU [video](https://edm.com/music-releases/zhu-partywithray-came-for-the-low), “[Came for the Low](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DvNOC_277A).”
On Nov.1, Yang went to an event in Iowa and set up a separate event in the same area called [Yangapalooza](https://twitter.com/bfmitchell/status/1190432411898851331). Rivers Cuomo of Weezer performed. The Yang Gang traveled out there in full force. Fred the felon drove his truck out there, and a bunch of Yang Gang youtubers and others got together to travel with him. Some people drove for hours and stood in the freezing rain for hours to take part in the event. Then they [marched](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1190406282995490816) to the Liberty and Justice event where Yang spoke.
The campaign hired Bernie Sanders’ PR firm from the previous campaign, Devine Mulvey Longabaugh. They have been testing ads online for the past week that will be rolled out on TV going forward. The first ads feature Yang’s wife, Evelyn. CNN did an [interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrFc13MfGIw) with Andrew and Evelyn Yang. The ad airing on TV is called [A New Way Forward](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgQb2NNQ43w). They appear to be working. Twitter followers are increasing fast, approaching 1M (currently at 994K).
---
### Author:  [@John\_Stamos\_Left\_Ear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Stamos_Left_Ear)
#### Post date: [November 8, 2019, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/493 "2019-11-08T13:58:13Z")
Either Yang should pay you or you should pay the Straight Dope for political advertising.
Or both.
Sent from my SM-G935P using Tapatalk
---
### Author:  [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)
#### Post date: [November 8, 2019, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/494 "2019-11-08T14:25:39Z")
And they say Yang doesn’t have a cult.
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### Author:  [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)
#### Post date: [November 8, 2019, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/495 "2019-11-08T14:57:40Z")
Who’s this guy Yang, and what’s he all about?
😉
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### Author:  [@Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heffalump_and_Roo)
#### Post date: [December 10, 2019, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/496 "2019-12-10T13:27:21Z")
By some accounts, Yang did really well at the last debate in November despite not getting to speak until 32 minutes into the debate. During that time, Yang said that he had raised one hand, then raised both hands and then just started talking. None of those strategies worked. I saw a pundit who was in the room confirm the frustration he saw on Yang’s face as he tried the different strategies to get some speaking time. Despite that, he got some accolades from a debate coach and from a correspondent at 538. [Debate coach: Buttigieg and Yang stole the show](https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/21/opinions/buttigieg-yang-stole-the-show-debate-opinion-graham/index.html) From [Geoffrey Skelley](https://fivethirtyeight.com/live-blog/fifth-democratic-2020-debate/247364/) at 538 on the night of the debate:
> [@](#):
>
> As for Yang, I think he had one of the stronger nights of any candidate on stage. The response to how he’d have his first chat with Putin was most notable, saying he’d start off by telling Putin that “I’m sorry I beat your guy.” But then the rest of his answer was cogent and sharp, which may not have been the expectation for someone without traditional presidential credentials. It’s possible Yang did what I thought he needed to do – become more than just the universal basic income guy, someone seen as a viable candidate for his party’s nomination.
538 also gave some [polling stats](https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/democratic-debate-november-poll/) that showed Yang having the second highest rise in net favorability post-debate.
> [@](#):
>
> We also asked likely Democratic primary voters how favorably they felt about each candidate both before and after the debate. Andrew Yang and Klobuchar saw the largest jumps in net favorability (favorable rating minus unfavorable rating) — 4.6 points and 4.0 points, respectively.
Yang also got some positive feedback from a Forbes contributor. [Why Andrew Yang’s Democratic Debate Closing Statement Was A Mic Drop Performance](https://www.forbes.com/sites/danabrownlee/2019/11/24/why-andrew-yangs-democratic-debate-closing-statement-was-a-mic-drop-performance/)
In the backdrop of this positive news, there was some drama happening with MSNBC. In the days prior, MSNBC had left Yang out of a graphic, one of many to date. The Yang Gang protested and MSNBC apologized. They put up the graphic with Yang included but also included every candidate, even the ones polling at zero, which drowned out Yang’s presence on the graph. Zach Graumann, Yang’s campaign manager put out a [statement](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1196247412727115778) calling out MSNBC’s apology, so tensions were already high before the debate happened.
> [@](#):
>
> Thank you @MSNBC for making this apology for the 15th time. The #YangGang is very excited for #16.
The lack of coverage during the debate led Yang to put out a [statement](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=21998413&postcount=5) of the media blackout by MSNBC.
Also in the background, UBI is gaining traction. During the 4th debate, Tulsi Gabbard said she would support it. Castro said he would be willing to trial it. Williamson has been supporting UBI since she met Yang in the beginning of the campaign. The favorability rating in the US has risen. [Almost Half of Americans Now Back Yang-Style Basic Income](https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/almost-half-americans-now-back-yang-style-basic-income-83616) on Sept. 26, 2019.
> [@](#):
>
> Americans are increasingly in favor of universal basic income (UBI), according to a Hill-HarrisX poll released Wednesday.
>
> The national poll, which asked 1,001 registered voters whether they believe the “government should have a [UBI] program,” found that 49% are in favor of such a policy — up 6% from a similar poll released in February. Voters who oppose a UBI policy dropped from 57% in February to 51% in Wednesday’s poll.
Support for UBI has risen from 43% in February 2019 to 49% in September 2019.
In a fascinating (to me) Washington Post [survey](https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/policy-2020/economic-inequality/) on income inequality originally posted toward the end of November 2019, Elizabeth Warren was listed as “open to it” for UBI. In a Business Insider [article](https://www.businessinsider.com/elizabeth-warren-universal-basic-income-option-to-consider-andrew-yang-2019-11), Warren is quoted:
> [@](#):
>
> “We absolutely must raise wages and strengthen the social safety net so that every American has basic financial security. Universal basic income and universal living wages are options to consider,” the Democratic presidential candidate told The Washington Post.
Yang noted that he had sent his book, “The War on Normal People” to Elizabeth Warren and that she had told him shortly after the last debate that she was half way through reading it.
Even the GOP now has a [candidate running](https://old.reddit.com/r/YangForPresidentHQ/comments/dzwlce/gop_has_a_ubi_candidate/) on UBI - [Zoltan2020](https://zoltan2020.com/). He did a [youtube podcast](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9grWo5ZofmA&feature=youtu.be) with Joe Rogan. [wiki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoltan_Istvan) He was a reporter for National Geographic and is well-spoken.
Yang released his [tax returns](https://old.reddit.com/r/YangForPresidentHQ/comments/e2s50q/yang_released_tax_returns_our_chief_is_a_normal/). It looks like he took a pay cut to run for President. He had the lowest income of any Presidential candidate still in the debates.
Some headlines:
[Can Andrew Yang ride high charisma and innovative ideas into the Oval Office?](https://www.thestate.com/opinion/article237757944.html) From The State in South Carolina (opinion piece)
[College Pulse CEO: Yang is most electable? among the 2020 candidates](https://old.reddit.com/r/YangForPresidentHQ/comments/e2zm41/college_pulse_ceo_yang_is_most_electable_among/) (1 in 5 Republican college students would vote for Yang over Trump, 2/3rds of Independents would vote for Yang instead of Trump. Yang has the highest crossover support in the Chegg college voter support poll.)
[Researchers Find A Remarkable Ripple Effect When You Give Cash To Poor Families](https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2019/12/02/781152563/researchers-find-a-remarkable-ripple-effect-when-you-give-cash-to-poor-families?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=npr&utm_medium=social&utm_term=nprnews) in NPR (cash given to poor families increases the economy of the entire community)
[Andrew Yang having fun, but Democrat’s message is serious](https://apnews.com/119f0be897ffa9b7c12dfd4b34312f09) - AP
[Andrew Yang puts his universal basic income plan to the test](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/andrew-yang-universal-basic-income-plan-put-to-the-test-with-freedom-dividend-pilot-program/?ftag=COS-05-10aaa0g&taid=5dea23f6ee0d2300017ca3fe&utm_campaign=trueAnthem:+Trending+Content&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter) - CBS News interviews some recipients of the Freedom Dividend giveaway
Some Yang media:
[The Daily Show](https://twitter.com/TheDailyShow/status/1197900851056132096) with Trevor Noah
[Jimmy Kimmel](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4keL94_8Z4)
[Patriot Act](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwFr6RX2Y40)with Hasan Minhaj
[The Axe Files with David Axelrod](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yHQWz-flZs)[(podcast)](https://luminarypodcasts.com/listen/the-institute-of-politics-and-david-axelrod-124/the-axe-files-with-david-axelrod-284/ep-359-andrew-yang/a54d79e7-d745-432d-a8d1-26cb49d791fd?country=US)
[Useful Idiot/Rolling Stone](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ieg8sfGPORg) (starts around minute 40)
The Yang campaign held a [Pledge for Humanity](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1201310182904610821) effort on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. The Yang Gang were asked to give an hour on Sunday to giving back to the community.
The Yang campaign [contacted](https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/472928-yang-campaign-receives-death-threats-in-new-hampshire) the FBI over death threats against Yang and people in his campaign.
The campaign’s fundraising goals have become more audacious in the past few weeks. Without more media coverage, the campaign is hoping to use more money to fund more ads, particularly in the first 4 states. For the last week of November, the campaign set a $2M goal. It didn’t look like the goal would be hit, but $750K was donated on the last day, most of it within the last few hours. They extended the deadline by a couple hours to make it. The media highlighted the $750K raised in a day. [Andrew Yang raises $750,000 in 24 hours: The haul reflects the campaign’s ability to attract funds via grassroots appeals.](https://www.politico.com/news/2019/12/01/andrew-yang-fundraising-campaign-074654)
[Jason Elia](https://twitter.com/jedijamesdean/status/1203875106465996802?s=09), traveling in Iowa,is saying that just visually looking at yard signs, Yang has a chance in Iowa.
> [@](#):
>
> Everyone in larger cities, that might not think @AndrewYang has a chance… I just drove through Iowa w/ @thatothermax & to see the yard signs & banners for Yang. He’s won a large number of people in the heartland. He’s a real candidate despite the media
Yang is launching a [bus tour in Iowa](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1203025814402600960) next week.
Yang just had a [big rally in Chicago](https://old.reddit.com/r/YangForPresidentHQ/comments/e6qb0k/standing_room_only_chicagoyanggang/) and then a [fundraiser in Dallas](https://old.reddit.com/r/YangForPresidentHQ/comments/e7eqzq/just_a_photo_showing_how_huge_the_crowd_was_at/). [Zach Graumann](https://twitter.com/Zach_Graumann/status/1202750851149893632) notes:
> [@](#):
>
> Either every single @AndrewYang supporter comes to every single rally… or the polls are drastically underestimating our campaign. 🤷🏼♂
>
> Thanks for the warm welcome Chicago
On a fun note, Yang [tweeted out](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1202060815639175171):
> [@](#):
>
> #YangGang we just found out that @Zach\_Graumann had a role in a movie in college. We must find this footage. 😀
Within 20 minutes, the Yang Gang had found the footage. Then they found Zach in a boy band video and a cologne ad. Memes about Riley (Zach’s character) abounded.
The Yang Gang is eagerly anticipating the last poll to qualify Yang for the December debate. They have plans for January called Yangweek where a bunch of them (separate from the official campaign) are clanning to go canvassing for the campaign in early January in Iowa. Kai Watson, a youtuber, is taking a semester off school to do this while another Yang Ganger just quit his job to help.
Yang is [scheduled](https://old.reddit.com/r/YangForPresidentHQ/comments/e78yvs/andrew_yang_is_meeting_with_obama/) to meet with Obama in early January. (Personally, I don’t feel Yang needs to go ‘kiss the ring’ but I haven’t seen anyone else with this opinion in the Yang Gang. Everyone else seems thoroughly thrilled.)
---
### Author:  [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)
#### Post date: [December 10, 2019, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/497 "2019-12-10T13:58:48Z")
There’s just so much positivity around that campaign. While acknowledging that his chances are poor, he’s the only guy at 3% who has a real chance to break out and shock people.
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### Author:  [@Hermitian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hermitian)
#### Post date: [December 10, 2019, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/498 "2019-12-10T14:26:31Z")
> [@adaher](#):
>
> … he’s the only guy at 3% who has a real chance to break out and shock people.
Like [squirting cream](https://www.gannett-cdn.com/presto/2019/12/05/USAT/9c17b1b0-d086-4360-a80b-1cb74280e995-VPC_ANDREW_YANG_WHIP_CREAM_DESK_THUMB.jpg) in the mouths of kneeling supporters. Complete with O face.
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### Author:  [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)
#### Post date: [December 10, 2019, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/499 "2019-12-10T14:32:24Z")
Yang is the kind of norm breaking candidate I think people think of when they say they want change, not a guy like Donald Trump.
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### Author:  [@Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heffalump_and_Roo)
#### Post date: [December 10, 2019, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-andrew-yang-presidential-campaign-thread/829555/500 "2019-12-10T15:24:17Z")
Yang just [tweeted](https://twitter.com/AndrewYang/status/1204405352294424576) this:
> [@](#):
>
> My grandmother passed away yesterday. I brought Chris to see her a little while back. She was 94 and watched the debates avidly to see her grandson. Rest In Peace grandma.
>
> Passing away peacefully surrounded by family and love having lived a full life with 6 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren - there are worse ways to go. She’s in perfect health now.
Tulsi Gabbard [replied](https://twitter.com/TulsiGabbard/status/1204406309522673665):
> [@](#):
>
> Our condolences and aloha to you and your family, Andrew.
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