WEBVTT - House Struggles on Budget Plan 0:00:00.080 --> 0:00:10.119 Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news. You're listening to the 0:00:10.119 --> 0:00:13.880 Bloomberg Balance of Power podcast. Catch us live weekdays at 0:00:13.920 --> 0:00:17.119 noon and five pm Eastern on Apple, Cockley and Android 0:00:17.160 --> 0:00:20.560 Auto with the Bloomberg Business App. Listen on demand wherever 0:00:20.600 --> 0:00:24.120 you get your podcasts, or watch us live on YouTube. 0:00:25.440 --> 0:00:27.240 Joe and I always have our eyes on what's happening 0:00:27.560 --> 0:00:29.920 on Capitol Hill in the way in which a legislative 0:00:29.920 --> 0:00:33.839 path forward for Congress, together with the Trump administration, is 0:00:33.880 --> 0:00:36.360 shaping up. It was actually at this hour yesterday that 0:00:36.360 --> 0:00:39.760 we were joined by Republican Senator Bill Haggerty of Tennessee, 0:00:39.840 --> 0:00:41.640 and Joe pressed him on whether or not it was 0:00:41.680 --> 0:00:43.879 the Senate or the House that was actually going to 0:00:43.920 --> 0:00:46.640 take those first baby steps. This was his answer. 0:00:47.440 --> 0:00:50.320 We know the American public expects us to address the 0:00:50.560 --> 0:00:52.839 tax package, and where we're going to do that. We 0:00:52.920 --> 0:00:54.360 have a number of other issues that we're trying to 0:00:54.400 --> 0:00:56.360 address at the same time. How we do it from 0:00:56.360 --> 0:00:59.120 a process standpoint, I'm much less concerned about. I think 0:00:59.440 --> 0:01:01.600 the concern is that we get it done quickly, that 0:01:01.720 --> 0:01:04.240 we get it done efficiently, and I'm optimistic that we 0:01:04.280 --> 0:01:07.560 will get it done despite the procedural back and forth 0:01:07.600 --> 0:01:09.680 between the House and the Senate. We're going to get 0:01:09.680 --> 0:01:10.920 it done, and we're very focused on it. 0:01:12.080 --> 0:01:14.080 We bring in a member of the Republican Conference in 0:01:14.120 --> 0:01:17.440 the House now, Congressman Frank Lucas, Oklahoma's third district. 0:01:17.840 --> 0:01:19.440 It's great to have you with us. 0:01:19.480 --> 0:01:22.600 Congressman, thanks for joining here on Bloomberg TV and radio. 0:01:22.680 --> 0:01:25.119 Our viewers and listeners should know that you have represented 0:01:25.120 --> 0:01:28.959 that district since two thousand and three, and you've been 0:01:29.000 --> 0:01:31.280 through a couple of funding battles here and I realized 0:01:31.280 --> 0:01:33.600 the concept of reconciliation is nothing new. 0:01:33.680 --> 0:01:36.240 So give us your voice of experience on this. 0:01:36.720 --> 0:01:39.600 The idea of marking up a reconciliation bill this week 0:01:39.600 --> 0:01:41.240 in the House appears to be out the window. 0:01:41.240 --> 0:01:42.760 How is this all going to work? Is it one 0:01:42.760 --> 0:01:43.400 bill or two? 0:01:44.319 --> 0:01:46.280 Well, first of all, I actually go back to nineteen 0:01:46.360 --> 0:01:48.720 ninety four. I was here for the last seven months 0:01:48.760 --> 0:01:51.160 of the old Democratic forty year majority. I was a 0:01:51.200 --> 0:01:54.160 part of the revolution of nineteen ninety four. I think 0:01:54.440 --> 0:01:56.120 the question becomes, do you want to base hit or 0:01:56.120 --> 0:01:58.040 you want a home run? The issues that are being 0:01:58.080 --> 0:02:00.720 talked about, my brethren and the other box would be 0:02:00.760 --> 0:02:01.920 basically be a base hit. 0:02:02.000 --> 0:02:03.000 It's the tax. 0:02:02.720 --> 0:02:06.080 Policy questions that really matter for the long term economy. 0:02:06.280 --> 0:02:08.040 If we run one belt, we get it all done, 0:02:08.240 --> 0:02:11.520 that's a home run. But I'm practical enough to know 0:02:11.680 --> 0:02:14.520 whatever the leadership decides, I'll be a part of because 0:02:14.600 --> 0:02:17.560 I want to make sure we don't let a massive 0:02:17.600 --> 0:02:19.760 tax increase take place immediately. 0:02:21.160 --> 0:02:23.240 Well, Congressman, I guess the question is whether this is 0:02:23.280 --> 0:02:25.520 really up to leadership or if this is more about 0:02:25.520 --> 0:02:28.360 what is going to take to appease the Freedom Caucus. 0:02:29.840 --> 0:02:32.320 Well, we have a two seat majority in the United 0:02:32.400 --> 0:02:35.480 States House of Representatives. In the Republican Conference. Soon we'll 0:02:35.480 --> 0:02:38.440 have a one seat majority. That's about as thinly as 0:02:38.480 --> 0:02:41.080 you can slice. It makes the sentence three seat majority 0:02:41.200 --> 0:02:44.320 look like a huge majority. And we have factions within 0:02:44.360 --> 0:02:47.560 our conference who have various agenda items. But the bottom 0:02:47.560 --> 0:02:50.919 line is this. If we don't extend the Trump Tracks 0:02:50.919 --> 0:02:54.239 relief from twenty seventeen, if we don't do the border issues, 0:02:54.240 --> 0:02:56.880 if we don't address the whole package, we're going to 0:02:56.880 --> 0:02:58.800 pay a price for it on down the road. I 0:02:58.840 --> 0:03:01.280 know the Senate's a different place. I respect him greatly, 0:03:01.600 --> 0:03:03.920 but I know in the House we need to do it. 0:03:04.000 --> 0:03:05.840 We need to do it one time and be done 0:03:05.840 --> 0:03:09.840 with it because of the environment we're in over here. 0:03:11.160 --> 0:03:14.600 We've got a funding deadline six weeks away. Congressman, are 0:03:14.639 --> 0:03:17.000 we going to be in a world a month from 0:03:17.000 --> 0:03:19.880 now where we're talking about another continuing resolution to kick 0:03:19.960 --> 0:03:20.400 the cans? 0:03:20.400 --> 0:03:23.160 So all the rest of this can be written. I 0:03:23.200 --> 0:03:23.560 hope not. 0:03:23.840 --> 0:03:26.560 I wanted to finish funding out the government to last 0:03:26.560 --> 0:03:29.959 December and not go through this gyration again. But funding 0:03:30.000 --> 0:03:33.040 the government is much like passing the budget resolution, much 0:03:33.160 --> 0:03:37.520 like dealing with budget reconciliation. We have a force that 0:03:37.680 --> 0:03:39.960 is available to us that we haven't had in a 0:03:39.960 --> 0:03:43.440 long time. It's called President Donald Trump. And when he 0:03:43.560 --> 0:03:46.920 engages on any or all three of these issues, I 0:03:47.040 --> 0:03:49.760 have to believe that my naysayer friends, and there's one 0:03:49.840 --> 0:03:51.720 or two of them in the conference, we'll see the 0:03:51.800 --> 0:03:54.800 light and we'll move forward together. Because if we fail, 0:03:55.960 --> 0:04:00.520 it makes it more difficult for the president, and President 0:04:00.560 --> 0:04:02.400 doesn't accept failure. We all know that. 0:04:04.440 --> 0:04:04.640 Well. 0:04:04.640 --> 0:04:06.560 I do wonder to what extent this is really just 0:04:06.600 --> 0:04:09.600 about President Trump and about you and your colleagues in 0:04:09.640 --> 0:04:12.920 Congress and the executive and legislative branches working together. If 0:04:12.920 --> 0:04:15.960 this ultimately is about budgeting and spending in the US government, 0:04:16.000 --> 0:04:20.400 what role is Elon Musk playing in these conversations, considering 0:04:20.480 --> 0:04:23.080 how quickly he has been trying to move at DOGE. 0:04:24.040 --> 0:04:26.640 I think all the factors are moving together, and DOZE 0:04:26.760 --> 0:04:30.040 is a classic example of trying, in the spirit of 0:04:30.120 --> 0:04:33.279 Trump forty seven, to make a dramatic difference. Anyone involved 0:04:33.320 --> 0:04:35.320 in business knows that ever so often or ever so 0:04:35.400 --> 0:04:37.840 many years, no matter the size of the corporation of 0:04:37.880 --> 0:04:40.320 the private enterprise, you bring in the efficiency experts, you 0:04:40.360 --> 0:04:43.080 look at everything, you sort out all the cobwebs, you 0:04:43.120 --> 0:04:46.680 make adjustments to keep the enterprise moving forward. I see 0:04:46.720 --> 0:04:48.320 that as what DOZE is all about. 0:04:48.480 --> 0:04:48.720 Now. 0:04:49.000 --> 0:04:52.800 There's been lots of discussion about what DOGE has access to, 0:04:53.560 --> 0:04:56.120 and I was in a conversation with a number of 0:04:56.160 --> 0:04:58.679 other members with the Secretary of the Treasury on Monday evening, 0:04:58.880 --> 0:05:02.159 and it was made quite clear to us that that 0:05:02.240 --> 0:05:04.560 those people have the ability to view lots of things, 0:05:05.040 --> 0:05:06.560 they don't control those things. 0:05:08.520 --> 0:05:11.880 So as long as it's a read only status, you're 0:05:11.880 --> 0:05:15.200 comfortable with Elon Musk not having been confirmed by the Senate, 0:05:15.279 --> 0:05:20.520 not being an actual government employee, having access to that information. 0:05:20.279 --> 0:05:22.400 Even if it does not involve stopping payments. 0:05:23.160 --> 0:05:26.599 I'll just say that Elon has the confidence of the President. 0:05:26.960 --> 0:05:30.039 The president clearly on election, they had the confidence of America. 0:05:30.520 --> 0:05:33.120 And I believe that my Republican colleagues in the House 0:05:33.160 --> 0:05:36.920 and the Senate need to be very respectful of that situation. 0:05:37.480 --> 0:05:41.400 Will we agree with everything he does? Will everything he proposes, 0:05:41.560 --> 0:05:45.400 I should say, actually become law. No, this is the 0:05:45.480 --> 0:05:48.360 legislative process. But he's going to lay out before us. 0:05:48.400 --> 0:05:52.800 I believe a set of issues and circumstances that need 0:05:52.839 --> 0:05:56.000 to be addressed. Again, just like any good consultant brought 0:05:56.000 --> 0:06:00.080 in in a business enterprise to make sure it's running efficient. 0:06:01.520 --> 0:06:01.680 Well. 0:06:01.720 --> 0:06:03.880 And as you say, Elon Musk has the confidence of 0:06:04.040 --> 0:06:06.440 the president. Should he also have the confidence of the 0:06:06.480 --> 0:06:09.880 people in Oklahoma's third District who may be wondering about 0:06:10.440 --> 0:06:13.160 Elon Musk and those close to him seeing their personal, 0:06:13.240 --> 0:06:15.200 sensitive financial data and information. 0:06:16.320 --> 0:06:19.800 Well, the people in the third District of Oklahoma overwhelmingly, 0:06:19.920 --> 0:06:22.640 not unanimously, because that's not the way this country works. 0:06:23.240 --> 0:06:26.880 The people in Oklahoma have tremendous confidence in President Trump. 0:06:27.400 --> 0:06:30.800 And again we'll see how this process evolves. As long 0:06:30.839 --> 0:06:34.240 as it's viewing, as long as it's making recommendations, as 0:06:34.279 --> 0:06:36.360 long as it's not turning the switches on and off. 0:06:36.920 --> 0:06:41.120 How can you argue with trying to make things work better? Now, 0:06:41.160 --> 0:06:43.360 along that lines, I'm a part of a task force 0:06:43.440 --> 0:06:46.359 dealing with the federal reserve system and Trad's reason liquipment 0:06:46.400 --> 0:06:48.520 the issues to try and make sure those issues work 0:06:48.600 --> 0:06:49.280 more efficiently. 0:06:50.360 --> 0:06:55.000 Okay, if it involves closing a federal agency, however, and 0:06:55.040 --> 0:06:58.599 that could be us AID or the Department of Education, 0:06:58.640 --> 0:07:01.240 where it's told is the next target, Congressman, does the 0:07:01.240 --> 0:07:04.880 House of Representatives? Does the legislature need to have the 0:07:04.880 --> 0:07:05.680 final say on that? 0:07:06.839 --> 0:07:09.000 I'd say, ultimately we will have the final sale on 0:07:09.040 --> 0:07:12.120 whatever happens, because all of the actions so far have 0:07:12.240 --> 0:07:15.600 been challenged very aggressively in court. All the executive orders, 0:07:16.040 --> 0:07:18.760 that's regular process, that's regular order. We'll work our way 0:07:18.800 --> 0:07:23.160 through that. Ultimately, good recommendations. Even if the courts stop 0:07:23.240 --> 0:07:26.800 the executive orders, we'll still have the ability to legislatively 0:07:26.880 --> 0:07:31.120 address that. Now we have a simple majority one seat 0:07:31.120 --> 0:07:33.160 in a few days, maybe back to three seats or 0:07:33.160 --> 0:07:35.880 four seats by the summer. The Senate still has that 0:07:35.960 --> 0:07:38.720 sixty book culture rule to deal with again. That's why 0:07:38.760 --> 0:07:42.120 we need a budget resolution and reconciliation and not just one, 0:07:42.200 --> 0:07:45.160 but maybe three reconciliation bills in this calendar year to 0:07:45.240 --> 0:07:47.920 move legislation. This is not a checker game we're a 0:07:47.920 --> 0:07:50.280 part of. This is a chess gain and we have 0:07:50.400 --> 0:07:53.760 to be prepared to move the pieces carefully to accomplish 0:07:53.800 --> 0:07:54.600 what needs to be done. 0:07:56.120 --> 0:07:59.440 Three bills would certainly be something to behold. Congressman, you 0:07:59.480 --> 0:08:01.960 mentioned that you are leading this new task Force on 0:08:02.000 --> 0:08:04.720 Monetary Policy and Treasury market Resilience. Have you had a 0:08:04.800 --> 0:08:07.720 chance to speak with FED Chair J. Poweller? Will that 0:08:07.800 --> 0:08:11.120 wait until he testifies before the Financial Services Committee next week? 0:08:11.320 --> 0:08:14.760 Well, I'm having ongoing conversations a lot of people on 0:08:14.760 --> 0:08:18.080 a regular basis, and we are working with Chairman Hill, 0:08:18.440 --> 0:08:21.200 who chose to create this, and I appreciate the opportunity 0:08:21.200 --> 0:08:23.200 to lead it and the members who've been named to 0:08:23.240 --> 0:08:27.080 the committee. As we work through all of this, bear 0:08:27.120 --> 0:08:30.160 in mind it's not just a review of monetary policy 0:08:30.400 --> 0:08:32.400 and the Federal reserve system. We're not going to argue 0:08:32.400 --> 0:08:35.360 about interest rate setting. It's the policies and the laws 0:08:35.520 --> 0:08:38.400 since nineteen thirteen that make this process what it is. 0:08:38.640 --> 0:08:42.640 But we're also looking at Treasury's ability to keep the debt, 0:08:43.040 --> 0:08:45.920 the bonds, the bills, the notes moving. And in the 0:08:46.040 --> 0:08:48.840 last what twenty thirty years, we have half as many 0:08:48.880 --> 0:08:51.080 market makers as we used to have, but yet we're 0:08:51.080 --> 0:08:55.760 moving eight times as much paper. One bad treasury sale 0:08:56.200 --> 0:08:59.280 sets off repercussions that my folks back home don't even 0:08:59.440 --> 0:09:01.600 have a clue who what the net result will be. 0:09:01.960 --> 0:09:04.720 That's what we're looking at, making sure does not happen. 0:09:05.040 --> 0:09:09.439 A fluid, liquid, rational market and government securities. 0:09:10.679 --> 0:09:12.880 Well, we look forward to hearing more about how that 0:09:12.920 --> 0:09:16.720 work develops. Republican Congressman Frank Lucas of Oklahoma joining us 0:09:16.760 --> 0:09:19.000 live from Capitol Hill. Thank you so much. And I 0:09:19.040 --> 0:09:21.280 believe kind of throwing out a new number in the 0:09:21.320 --> 0:09:26.160 reconciliation bills, not just one or two three bills. 0:09:26.520 --> 0:09:27.880 We'll be here for it if that happens. 0:09:28.120 --> 0:09:30.160 Yeah, and our political panel will be as well, our 0:09:30.160 --> 0:09:32.720 signature one at that Rick Davis stone Court, Capital partner 0:09:32.760 --> 0:09:35.199 in Jeanie Shanzino, Senior Democracy Fellow at the Center for 0:09:35.240 --> 0:09:38.240 the Study of the Presidency and Congress. Rick is we're 0:09:38.240 --> 0:09:40.280 all here playing the one to two games. Should we 0:09:40.320 --> 0:09:41.800 be throwing new numbers into this equation? 0:09:43.160 --> 0:09:46.200 Yeah, this was a bit of an interesting interview there, guys. 0:09:46.679 --> 0:09:49.760 You know, first Republican in the House that I've heard 0:09:49.800 --> 0:09:53.040 who chairs a committee that we should pay attention to, 0:09:53.240 --> 0:09:57.720 saying that he's probably going to see multiple reconciliation bills. 0:09:57.720 --> 0:10:00.640 I know that committee chair on ways of me wants 0:10:00.640 --> 0:10:04.719 one big beautiful bill, and the Speaker wants one big 0:10:04.760 --> 0:10:08.160 beautiful bill. So it'll be interesting to see if anybody 0:10:08.160 --> 0:10:11.160 in the leadership here's this interview and calls up Frank 0:10:11.200 --> 0:10:13.240 and says, hey, what in the world are you talking 0:10:13.280 --> 0:10:17.880 about three reconciliation bills. Look, I think that the House 0:10:17.920 --> 0:10:21.640 Republicans are on their heels. They he aptly described the 0:10:21.679 --> 0:10:26.120 fact that the margins are so thin they can only 0:10:26.760 --> 0:10:31.319 govern with one hundred percent of their majority towing the line, 0:10:31.480 --> 0:10:32.560 and they don't have it. 0:10:32.640 --> 0:10:33.880 I mean, they're not even close. 0:10:33.960 --> 0:10:38.440 They're you know, many, many dozen votes probably short of 0:10:38.480 --> 0:10:41.160 being able to do one big beautiful bill. So my 0:10:41.200 --> 0:10:43.760 guess is they'll struggle with that continuing through the balance 0:10:43.760 --> 0:10:45.760 of this week. The Senate will continue to push their 0:10:45.760 --> 0:10:48.840 bill through. They've got a little more comfort, as Frank mentioned, 0:10:48.880 --> 0:10:51.360 and you're going to see the Senate sort of take 0:10:51.400 --> 0:10:55.560 over the agenda here and start pushing their two bill 0:10:55.600 --> 0:10:59.240 strategy that is highly likely to succeed, certainly in the Senate. 0:11:00.280 --> 0:11:02.200 What we heard from Congress and Smith, let's hear from 0:11:02.200 --> 0:11:04.960 the Chairman was on Bloomberg's surveillance this morning. You want 0:11:04.960 --> 0:11:06.400 the view of the House, at least we thought it 0:11:06.480 --> 0:11:07.080 was here you go. 0:11:08.160 --> 0:11:11.959 The House is focused on one big, beautiful bill. It's 0:11:12.000 --> 0:11:14.600 the Senate that continues to say that they're going to 0:11:14.640 --> 0:11:18.000 do two. But I would just remind all of my 0:11:18.120 --> 0:11:22.200 colleagues look at history. It has been thirty eight years 0:11:22.240 --> 0:11:26.320 since two different reconciliation bills were signed into law in 0:11:26.400 --> 0:11:29.760 the same year. We have smaller majorities in the House 0:11:29.760 --> 0:11:33.240 of Representatives now than in the history of Congress. Why 0:11:33.240 --> 0:11:35.599 do we think we can defy those odds is beyond me. 0:11:37.400 --> 0:11:39.559 Well so, Genie, based on what we just heard from 0:11:39.679 --> 0:11:43.680 Frank Lucas and what we have heard from John Thune 0:11:43.679 --> 0:11:46.160 and those in the Senate, is the call coming from 0:11:46.240 --> 0:11:47.280 inside the House or not? 0:11:49.080 --> 0:11:52.280 Please tell me that some great Bloomberg reporter is on 0:11:52.360 --> 0:11:56.520 the hill right now replaying your interview with Lucas. For Smith, 0:11:56.840 --> 0:11:59.320 and we can get his reaction of his head blowing 0:11:59.360 --> 0:12:02.520 off when he it's worse than two now, in fact, 0:12:02.559 --> 0:12:05.920 it may be three. At this point. I happen to 0:12:06.000 --> 0:12:09.040 think he is right when you look at the history here, 0:12:09.120 --> 0:12:11.520 which is all we can go on in these predictions 0:12:11.880 --> 0:12:16.640 with a majority this or a margin this small in 0:12:16.720 --> 0:12:19.920 the House, the idea that they could do this more 0:12:20.000 --> 0:12:25.280 than once, you know, really defies history. The idea that 0:12:25.320 --> 0:12:28.520 they could do it twice maybe, but three times it's 0:12:28.600 --> 0:12:30.199 gonna be really, really tough. 0:12:30.679 --> 0:12:31.560 And they know this. 0:12:31.679 --> 0:12:34.640 I mean, this is what Mike Johnson signed up for. 0:12:35.320 --> 0:12:39.400 He still has the hardest job on the hill trying 0:12:39.440 --> 0:12:43.080 to negotiate this forward. But the problem is, as we 0:12:43.120 --> 0:12:46.240 look at these numbers, they are still very very far 0:12:46.320 --> 0:12:49.000 apart when you look at what the conservatives are saying, 0:12:49.040 --> 0:12:52.440 you know, sometimes four to five trillion versus what we're 0:12:52.480 --> 0:12:55.120 hearing from the moderates, which is a much more moderate 0:12:55.200 --> 0:12:58.120 as you'd expect, you know, five hundred billion to a trillion. 0:12:58.240 --> 0:13:00.840 So can they do this, yeah, but it is going 0:13:00.920 --> 0:13:02.720 to take a lot of work. And the problem is, 0:13:02.760 --> 0:13:05.160 as usual in the House and the Congress as a whole, 0:13:05.520 --> 0:13:09.600 the calendar and really the clock doesn't work for them while. 0:13:09.400 --> 0:13:13.520 Here well, and this is just on reconciliation, let alone 0:13:13.600 --> 0:13:16.080 keeping the government funded beyond mid March or raising the 0:13:16.160 --> 0:13:19.120 debt ceiling, which is going to be required in the 0:13:18.679 --> 0:13:22.160 next few months here, Genie, Historically you would probably see 0:13:22.200 --> 0:13:26.160 bipartisanship and Democrats playing ball on those things. Is that 0:13:26.200 --> 0:13:27.520 going to happen this time around. 0:13:28.760 --> 0:13:31.520 It's such a good question, Kayllie. I was just listening 0:13:31.640 --> 0:13:36.360 to Kristin Gillibrand talk to some of her constituents, and 0:13:36.400 --> 0:13:38.520 I have to say, now, you know, this is not 0:13:38.600 --> 0:13:41.320 a broad swath, but just you know, people talking to her, 0:13:41.800 --> 0:13:44.680 they are very critical the base of the Democratic Party 0:13:44.720 --> 0:13:49.040 for Democrats going with the White House even on some 0:13:49.120 --> 0:13:53.559 of these nominations. So when you talk about supporting them 0:13:53.600 --> 0:13:56.000 as they try to keep the government open, I think 0:13:56.040 --> 0:13:58.959 Democrats are going to have a very tough time doing that, 0:13:59.360 --> 0:14:02.840 given that the President is going whole full hog in 0:14:03.080 --> 0:14:05.480 shutting down programs they care about, and what he has 0:14:05.480 --> 0:14:07.680 done in the last two weeks. So I think the 0:14:07.720 --> 0:14:10.760 pressure is going to be on Democrats not to go along. 0:14:10.800 --> 0:14:13.520 They're going to say, Republicans, you're in the majority, you 0:14:13.760 --> 0:14:15.080 do this on your own. 0:14:14.920 --> 0:14:15.880 You own it. 0:14:16.120 --> 0:14:19.640 And then of course the numbers don't work for Republicans. 0:14:19.680 --> 0:14:22.120 They're going to have to negotiate and they're going to 0:14:22.160 --> 0:14:24.320 have to give Democrats some of what they want. But 0:14:24.600 --> 0:14:26.240 you know, you're hard to press to see how that 0:14:26.280 --> 0:14:27.280 can happen at this point. 0:14:28.320 --> 0:14:31.120 So, Rick, does all that make a shutdown in March 0:14:31.160 --> 0:14:31.760 more likely? 0:14:33.600 --> 0:14:34.160 Hard to tell. 0:14:34.240 --> 0:14:38.240 I mean, I think it's a little bit premature. I 0:14:38.280 --> 0:14:40.920 think there will be a Senate bill, and I think 0:14:41.000 --> 0:14:45.359 that it'll be interesting to see whether or not Republicans 0:14:45.480 --> 0:14:47.960 can can hold their cauc escape together. 0:14:47.680 --> 0:14:49.200 To do it. 0:14:49.200 --> 0:14:54.360 It may require House Democrats to go along, and what 0:14:54.160 --> 0:14:57.840 the what are the givebacks for that? And we've certainly 0:14:57.880 --> 0:15:02.160 seen bipartisan reconciliation bills in the past, and so the 0:15:02.240 --> 0:15:05.600 question is is one in the mix here? But look, 0:15:05.680 --> 0:15:09.840 I mean, you know, sure, Chairman Smith's right, I mean, like, 0:15:09.960 --> 0:15:13.000 we rarely do two reconciliation bills, but we used to 0:15:13.120 --> 0:15:17.440 rarely do reconciliation bills. So like, where's the regular order 0:15:17.520 --> 0:15:20.800 that the House leadership promised us as part of their 0:15:20.880 --> 0:15:24.480 slate to get elected in leadership? How many of the 0:15:24.560 --> 0:15:27.520 appropriations bills are currently being worked on for next year. 0:15:27.600 --> 0:15:30.080 I mean, you know, it's just we're going to extend 0:15:30.120 --> 0:15:32.520 the do nothing Congress from last cycle to this cycle. 0:15:32.640 --> 0:15:36.560 Trouble is, they're party out in power running for reelection 0:15:36.680 --> 0:15:39.880 in a year, and if they don't get their act together, 0:15:40.320 --> 0:15:43.800 they better plan on having other alternative employment. 0:15:45.600 --> 0:15:47.680 Then the least dephonic makes it one. Right, they'll be 0:15:47.720 --> 0:15:51.720 a majority of one. Rick Davis and Genie Shanzo our 0:15:51.760 --> 0:15:53.640 signature panel back together against Today, guys. 0:15:53.640 --> 0:15:54.200 Thank you so much. 0:15:54.240 --> 0:15:57.640 As always, Rick's partner at Stone Court Capital or Republican strategist, 0:15:58.000 --> 0:16:00.480 and of course Genie is our democratic analyst. S Bloomberg, 0:16:00.520 --> 0:16:05.480 politics contributor, political science professor at Iona University. Project twenty 0:16:05.520 --> 0:16:08.440 twenty five came up a couple of times over the 0:16:08.480 --> 0:16:10.360 past twenty four hours here with regard to what the 0:16:10.400 --> 0:16:12.080 Doge was doing, whether this alliance or not. 0:16:12.280 --> 0:16:13.880 We're going to talk ahead with one of the authors. 0:16:14.000 --> 0:16:16.520 Yeah, the president of the Heritage Foundation is on his 0:16:16.600 --> 0:16:19.200 way into the studio, Kevin Roberts. We'll be here with 0:16:19.280 --> 0:16:21.400 us next on balance of power. Have a lot of 0:16:21.440 --> 0:16:23.160 questions for him now that we're a little over two 0:16:23.160 --> 0:16:26.200 weeks into this administration. And that's straight ahead right here. 0:16:26.320 --> 0:16:28.200 On Bloomberg TV and radio. 0:16:30.480 --> 0:16:33.960 You're listening to the Bloomberg Balance of Power podcasts. Catch 0:16:34.040 --> 0:16:36.880 us live weekdays at noon and five pm. E's durn 0:16:37.040 --> 0:16:37.840 on Apple. 0:16:37.560 --> 0:16:40.440 Cocklay and Android Auto with the Bloomberg Business App. 0:16:40.520 --> 0:16:43.520 You can also listen live on Amazon Alexa from our 0:16:43.560 --> 0:16:48.080 flagship New York station, Just say Alexa Play Bloomberg eleven thirty. 0:16:49.520 --> 0:16:52.280 Keeping in mind, it has only been sixteen days since 0:16:52.280 --> 0:16:54.920 Donald Trump was inaugurated as the forty seventh President of 0:16:54.920 --> 0:16:58.120 the United States, and very quickly, through executive orders and 0:16:58.160 --> 0:17:00.000 other means, has gotten to work on things he promised 0:17:00.120 --> 0:17:02.120 on the campaign trail, that's sure, and some of that 0:17:02.240 --> 0:17:04.800 not just executed by the President but by those close 0:17:04.840 --> 0:17:08.240 to him, including an unelected unconfirmed by the Senate, Elon 0:17:08.320 --> 0:17:10.120 Musk in the Department of Government Officials. 0:17:10.200 --> 0:17:10.639 What are they calling it? 0:17:10.680 --> 0:17:13.240 A special government employee, Yes, which gives you a certain 0:17:13.280 --> 0:17:15.399 period of time to do your thing. But he has not, been, 0:17:15.440 --> 0:17:17.160 of course confirmed by the Senate, which is why we've 0:17:17.160 --> 0:17:19.840 been asking some folks if maybe that should change, considering 0:17:19.840 --> 0:17:22.920 the level of access that he has. We've also heard 0:17:23.640 --> 0:17:26.440 the Project twenty twenty five come up a number of times. 0:17:27.800 --> 0:17:29.959 The thought that it was a roadmap for what we 0:17:30.040 --> 0:17:32.320 are seeing now, because this was a team that was 0:17:32.359 --> 0:17:34.320 ready to talk about flooding the zone. 0:17:34.400 --> 0:17:35.280 Hundreds of eos. 0:17:35.280 --> 0:17:37.840 He's going to sign another one later today, not to 0:17:37.880 --> 0:17:40.440 mention some of the sort of proposals that we've heard 0:17:40.520 --> 0:17:43.000 the president float here. Which is why it's a great 0:17:43.000 --> 0:17:45.720 opportunity to spend time with Kevin Roberts. He is back 0:17:45.760 --> 0:17:48.080 with us here on Bloomberg TV and Radio, the president 0:17:48.400 --> 0:17:50.880 of the Heritage Foundation, one of the authors of that document, 0:17:51.119 --> 0:17:52.639 the Pride of Lafayette, Louisiana. 0:17:52.680 --> 0:17:53.800 It's great to see you. Welcome back. 0:17:53.880 --> 0:17:55.399 It's kind of you to say that, and kind of 0:17:55.560 --> 0:17:56.159 hell back. 0:17:56.359 --> 0:17:56.920 By all means. 0:17:56.960 --> 0:18:00.720 So I'm curious to hear a lot of from you today. 0:18:00.800 --> 0:18:03.840 Number One, how you're dealing with the fire hose, the 0:18:03.920 --> 0:18:06.480 shock in awe here, is this what you foresaw? And 0:18:06.520 --> 0:18:09.280 to the extent that you're kind of squinting your eyes 0:18:09.320 --> 0:18:11.960 looking at the campaign and looking at the new administration. 0:18:12.400 --> 0:18:15.639 The document that you crafted has quite a bit in 0:18:15.720 --> 0:18:17.840 common with what we have seen over the past couple 0:18:17.880 --> 0:18:18.800 of weeks, hasn't it. 0:18:19.200 --> 0:18:21.960 I look at this as a historian. I was educated 0:18:21.960 --> 0:18:24.439 as an early American historian, and I'm hard pressed to 0:18:24.480 --> 0:18:28.680 think of another American president who has started with this pace. 0:18:28.720 --> 0:18:31.560 It really is from a conservative policy point of view, 0:18:31.720 --> 0:18:34.880 to your question, Joe Shock and Awe. To be clear, 0:18:35.040 --> 0:18:38.919 President Trump and Vice President Vance deserve one hundred percent 0:18:39.040 --> 0:18:41.439 of the credit. It is those two men and the 0:18:41.480 --> 0:18:43.720 great men and women they've assembled, I think what will 0:18:43.720 --> 0:18:46.600 be the greatest cabinet in modern American history, who deserve 0:18:46.640 --> 0:18:49.560 all that credit. I think the conservative movement, to your question, 0:18:50.119 --> 0:18:53.320 understood that we needed to be much better prepared in 0:18:53.400 --> 0:18:56.359 serving this president than we were the last time. And 0:18:56.400 --> 0:18:58.520 to the extent that any of us, you know, whether 0:18:58.560 --> 0:19:02.200 it's us at Heritage or a million other conservatives, had 0:19:02.240 --> 0:19:06.240 some tiny role in suggesting a menu of options. That's fine, 0:19:06.320 --> 0:19:08.640 We've done that at Heritage for forty five years. We'll 0:19:08.640 --> 0:19:10.200 do it for the next one hundred and forty five. 0:19:10.520 --> 0:19:12.440 But Trump advances your credit for this moment. 0:19:12.960 --> 0:19:14.920 Has anything, though, that we've seen take place in the 0:19:15.000 --> 0:19:18.160 last two weeks and change not aligned with that point 0:19:18.200 --> 0:19:21.560 of view, with the American leadership picture that was outlined 0:19:21.600 --> 0:19:23.000 in those nine hundred something pages. 0:19:23.280 --> 0:19:25.960 The real thrust of the work that we do at Heritage, 0:19:25.960 --> 0:19:29.280 as you know is to articulate an aspirational vision for 0:19:29.359 --> 0:19:34.520 revitalizing self governance, restoring freedom to American people. As President 0:19:34.560 --> 0:19:37.960 Trump said in his inaugural a revolution of common sense. 0:19:38.320 --> 0:19:42.040 And there is no exception to the fact that everything 0:19:42.080 --> 0:19:44.359 that he has done up to this point is going 0:19:44.400 --> 0:19:47.280 to do all of those things. Heritage stands ready, not 0:19:47.480 --> 0:19:51.159