EPISODE 26: Protesting with the Middle Finger

We are thrilled to have a discussion with Juli Briskman, who famously was out riding her bike when a photographer for Agence France Press captured her flipping the bird to Trump’s motorcade.

Juli Briskman is an American politician, marketing analyst, and journalist. She is supervisor for the Algonkian District of Loudoun County, Virginia. Briskman garnered international attention for flipping off then-President Donald Trump in Sterling, Virginia, as he returned from a golfing trip in 2017. She once again received international attention when she was elected to the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors in 2019.

Timestamps:

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Guest socials:

Twitter: @julibriskman

Accomplishments of 2020 Democratic Board

Took down Confederate Monument

Initiated inventory of infrastructure with confederate and segregationist names (Saines, Briskman); renaming Route 50, Route 7; Renamed Kephart Bridge Landing.

Supported ERA in first year as Virginia became 38th state to ratify

Passed Collective bargaining

Passed plastic bag tax

Created environmental commission

Endorsed and funded Unmet Housing Needs Strategic Plan to bring more attainable housing and creative programs to help all income levels afford housing in Loudoun. (Briskman motion sent $5 to housing trust fund in 2022 from general fund overages)

Briskman Specific

• Restricting firearms in county buildings and parks, #gunsense

• Data center study to prevent data centers in Route 7 corridor

• Worked with schools to mark tennis courts for pickleball in resurfacing

• Initiated study of impacts and reconciliation for the operation of segregated schools and the forced sale of Douglass School Property to the county for $1

• Demanded COVID testing sites for Eastern Loudoun

• Working to make sure ARPA money is used to lower the costs of childcare for residents

• Working with school board counterpart from Algonkian, accelerated school repairs and secured proffers for new playground at Sugarland Elementary; weight room at Potomac Falls High School and theater upgrades at

• Initiated pedestrian safety study around Countryside Elementary School

• Initiated bike paths on Whitewater Drive

• Launched social media channels and online monthly newsletter to better communitcate with the community. Have hosted monthly townhalls on various subjects since taking office

• Effected two safety studies in response to community requests in Cascades and River Crest neighborhoods

• Advocated for Countryside trail and bridge construction to continue the Potomac Heritage Trail west toward the county signature project and the Broad Run

• Helped advocate for Adams Law in the general assembly.cofounder of the Beer Hall Project a Super PAC dedicated to pushing back against the erasure of January 6th and Republican anti-democratic efforts since. He is currently a senior advisor to several Democratic Congressional races against key members who voted against Electoral College certification as well as ‘Voters for Tomorrow’ a Gen Z voting rights group. He previously served as the Executive Director and a Senior Advisor to the Lincoln Project and was CEO and Founder of his own public relations firm focused on veteran and military family issues for almost a decade after retirement from the Army. Wellman served for 22-years as an aviator and public affairs officer including four combat tours over Operation's Desert Storm and Iraqi Freedom. He retired out of the Pentagon in 2010 and embarked on a civilian career as an entrepreneur and veterans advocate. Early in the pandemic crisis he served as Administrative Chief of Staff of a COVID Field Hospital in New York City staffed by military special operations veterans. He is Ranger-qualified and a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point and the Harvard Kennedy School. He is from Kirkwood, Missouri and recently returned to St. Louis for family.

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RADICALIZED: Truth Survives is a weekly investigative podcast exposing the strategies and techniques used in disinformation and the rise of far-right extremism with Heidi Cuda, Jim Stewartson, High Fidelity, and Sean Conner.

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