Tavis Smiley: Poverty threatens American democracy

2011 Winter TCA Tour - Day 5
Tavis Smiley
Frederick M. Brown | Getty Images 2011

PBS television and radio host Tavis Smiley believes poverty is the greatest threat to American democracy today. It is a matter of national security, he says.

A presidential debate exclusively about poverty is needed, Smiley told a Minneapolis audience at Wednesday's Westminster Town Hall Forum. Smiley co-authored "The Rich and the Rest of Us: A Poverty Manifesto" with Cornel West.

Smiley was a featured speaker at Minneapolis' Westminster Presbyterian Church, Thursday, Oct. 1, 2015. It was part of the Minneapolis Idea Exchange. MPR News editor Toni Randolph was the event's moderator.

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