WEBVTT - US Representative Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY) Talks Ceasefire Talks, Reconciliation Push

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<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news.

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<v Speaker 2>Listen to what we have heard from the President over

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<v Speaker 2>the course of the last two weeks about the prospects

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<v Speaker 2>for this agreement.

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<v Speaker 1>All I can tell you is that begging to make

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<v Speaker 1>a deal, if there is no deal, we are going

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<v Speaker 1>to hit each and every one of their electric generating plans.

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<v Speaker 1>We have to have a deal that's acceptable to me,

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<v Speaker 1>and part of that deal is going to be we

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<v Speaker 1>want free traffic of oil.

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<v Speaker 2>So for more we turn to Republican Congressman Nicole Malia

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<v Speaker 2>Takis of New York, who is in our New York

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<v Speaker 2>headquarters right now joining us on Bloomberg TV and Radio. Congresswoman,

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<v Speaker 2>is wonderful to have you back on balance of power.

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<v Speaker 2>I think clearly there is a sense in the White

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<v Speaker 2>House here in Washington that the hope is that diplomacy prevails,

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<v Speaker 2>but the President maintains that there is the military threat

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<v Speaker 2>still there that he is willing to use if necessary

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<v Speaker 2>if no deal can be reached, and the absence of

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<v Speaker 2>a diplomatic break through this weekend, would you be supportive

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<v Speaker 2>of the President resuming military operations and specifically going as

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<v Speaker 2>far in those as he is indicated He is willing to.

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<v Speaker 3>Well, look, we don't know the specifics of what he

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<v Speaker 3>means by military action. What we do know is that

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<v Speaker 3>he has three leverage points. Right. He has the economic,

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<v Speaker 3>which we've implemented multiple sanctions sanctioning those who are providing

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<v Speaker 3>support and equipment and missiles too Iran. We also have

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<v Speaker 3>the diplomatic which is going to be taking place this weekend.

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<v Speaker 3>And then you have the military, which we've seen the

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<v Speaker 3>decimation of so much of Iran's capabilities, whether it be

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<v Speaker 3>manufacturing capabilities of drones and missiles, or whether it be

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<v Speaker 3>the overall components of its military, naval, and air. So look,

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<v Speaker 3>I think that we need to really just wait and

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<v Speaker 3>see what happens this weekend, but I have faith that

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<v Speaker 3>we'll be able to get a good outcome. Obviously, the

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<v Speaker 3>Strait is the most important thing right now for us economically,

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<v Speaker 3>making sure there is that free flow of oil, making

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<v Speaker 3>sure that these gas prices come down. That is critical

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<v Speaker 3>for so many of our world partners as well. But

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<v Speaker 3>we need to make sure that Iran is removed as

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<v Speaker 3>a threat. And we've already made a tremendous amount of

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<v Speaker 3>progress in a short time frame, and we'll see now

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<v Speaker 3>that they are weakened, if we will be able to

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<v Speaker 3>make some more progress in these negotiations, because they are

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<v Speaker 3>in a much weaker position today than they were just

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<v Speaker 3>five weeks ago. And President did give them, Remember at

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<v Speaker 3>the beginning of all this gave them an opportunity to negotiate,

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<v Speaker 3>they wouldn't negotiate. Maybe now they're rethinking that.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, to your point, Congresswoman, about the importance of the

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<v Speaker 2>straight off meus economically, you said specifically it is important

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<v Speaker 2>economically for the United States, which is something that the

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<v Speaker 2>President has disputed. His argument is that actually, when it

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<v Speaker 2>comes to the energy flowing out of the Middle East,

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<v Speaker 2>that is much more a concern for other countries European

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<v Speaker 2>Asian ones, not so for the United States. Is that

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<v Speaker 2>a sentiment that your constituents would agree with, especially as

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<v Speaker 2>they're looking at prices of the pump as you alluded.

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<v Speaker 3>To, Well, he's right in this sense that the oil

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<v Speaker 3>that is going through that strait really goes to many

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<v Speaker 3>of our partners in Asia, but it does affect the

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<v Speaker 3>overall world market. So I think that it is kind

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<v Speaker 3>of both a little bit of both. The reality though

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<v Speaker 3>here on the ground here in my community as well

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<v Speaker 3>as parts of the country gas prices have increased. We

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<v Speaker 3>need to get those those prices back down. We were

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<v Speaker 3>under three dollars a gallon, about two eighty nine was

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<v Speaker 3>the national average. And I think this is a temporary spike,

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<v Speaker 3>and it is an important long term investment that is

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<v Speaker 3>being made for the security of our country, for the

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<v Speaker 3>Middle East and the world. The reality is we need

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<v Speaker 3>to make sure Iran is weakened here and that there

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<v Speaker 3>is regime change. That is important, I think because they

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<v Speaker 3>continue to try to kill Americans. They've attacked our military

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<v Speaker 3>bases over the last decades, They've killed Americans, They've killed

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<v Speaker 3>their own people, tens of thousands of their own people,

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<v Speaker 3>And we need to make sure that there is a

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<v Speaker 3>change there because they are the most destabilizing factor in

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<v Speaker 3>that Middle East, which affects the entire globe. And so

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<v Speaker 3>I think the objective here is to come out of

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<v Speaker 3>this with some type of agreement to open up that straight.

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<v Speaker 3>If he can get them to turn over any enriched uranium,

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<v Speaker 3>that's also critical. We need them to stop funding these

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<v Speaker 3>proxies hamas Hesbela Huthi's as well, and that should be

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<v Speaker 3>really the main objectives of this and I think again,

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<v Speaker 3>they're in a much weaker position today than they were

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<v Speaker 3>five weeks ago. So hopefully the United States and these

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<v Speaker 3>negotiations can extract those concessions well.

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<v Speaker 2>And what roles should Congress play, if any? And ultimately

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<v Speaker 2>the finalization of an agreement. As we know, the President

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<v Speaker 2>didn't ask you in your colleagues first before launching these operations.

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<v Speaker 2>You didn't have a direct say. But should there be

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<v Speaker 2>a say in how this ends? Senator Lindsay Graham, of course,

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<v Speaker 2>who has been an advocate for this war, says any

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<v Speaker 2>agreement should have a vote in the Senate, that they

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<v Speaker 2>should get to take a look at it. I wonder

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<v Speaker 2>if you agree with that notion.

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<v Speaker 3>I don't know that we need to have a vote

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<v Speaker 3>on a particular agreement. The President did abide by federal law.

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<v Speaker 3>He gave the FED, He gave the federal government or

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<v Speaker 3>his partners in the federal government Congress, the forty eight

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<v Speaker 3>hours notice that was necessary. The President does have under

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<v Speaker 3>the War Powers Resolution of nineteen seventy three, sixty days,

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<v Speaker 3>and so I think after that sixty day period, he

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<v Speaker 3>certainly should come back to Congress. We should be briefed

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<v Speaker 3>and updated on what is going on, and we should

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<v Speaker 3>talk about the next steps together. But I think that

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<v Speaker 3>we have faith in the president's negotiating ability here. We've

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<v Speaker 3>seen what he's been able to do with other conflicts

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<v Speaker 3>around the world, helping mediate conflicts around the world, and

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<v Speaker 3>he is known as the deal maker. So let's see

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<v Speaker 3>what comes out of this weekend before we discuss next steps.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, I'd also like to talk about the next steps

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<v Speaker 2>for lawmakers, for you and your colleagues in the House,

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<v Speaker 2>as you get set to return from recess next week.

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<v Speaker 2>Pretty quickly, it seems you're going to have to take

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<v Speaker 2>action on a reconciliation bill to fund at least parts

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<v Speaker 2>of the Department of Homeland Security. The President wants it

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<v Speaker 2>on his desk by June first. What is your expectation

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<v Speaker 2>as to how quickly this will get done, and if

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<v Speaker 2>it is going to be narrowly targeted to just those

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<v Speaker 2>specific components of the Department of Homeland Security or if

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<v Speaker 2>other members may want to be adding things to this package.

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<v Speaker 3>I think it's important that we fund the entire Department

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<v Speaker 3>of Homeland Security that does include ice and border protection.

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<v Speaker 3>Just over the last few weeks, we saw multiple American

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<v Speaker 3>citizens and multiple states killed by people in the country illegally,

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<v Speaker 3>and it is unfortunate that with the changes that have

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<v Speaker 3>already been made to ice some of the de escalation

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<v Speaker 3>that we've seen in cities, as well as the removal

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<v Speaker 3>of Christinome from the agency, that Democrats will not work

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<v Speaker 3>with us in a bipartisan manner to fund those critical

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<v Speaker 3>agencies that do important jobs, know who was coming in

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<v Speaker 3>and out of our country and removing those who should

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<v Speaker 3>not be here. We just saw any three year old

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<v Speaker 3>man here in New York City killed being thrown on

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<v Speaker 3>the subway tracks by somebody who should not have been

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<v Speaker 3>here and had multiple prior arrests. There was a lack

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<v Speaker 3>of cooperation between these municipalities and our federal government to

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<v Speaker 3>have that person removed prior to this eighty three year

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<v Speaker 3>old veteran being killed. Completely preventable. We've seen that taking

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<v Speaker 3>place again over the last few weeks of multiple states.

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<v Speaker 3>So I think that we're going to go in there

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<v Speaker 3>and fund this agency, and we're gonna have to do

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<v Speaker 3>it with only Republican votes through reconciliation. Then we will

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<v Speaker 3>work together to get that done. We were hopeful that

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<v Speaker 3>the Democrats would work with us on a bipartisan matter,

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<v Speaker 3>but clearly that has not happened, and the reality is

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<v Speaker 3>this agency needs to be funded. Is a twenty fifth

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<v Speaker 3>anniversary of nine to eleven, you have the FIFA World

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<v Speaker 3>Cup coming, you have all these America two fifty events happening.

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<v Speaker 3>This can no longer be delayed. The agency needs to

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<v Speaker 3>be fully funded, from Coast Guard to TSA, to ICE,

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<v Speaker 3>to CBP, to counter terrorism to cybersecurity.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, and to be clear, Congress women, to get all

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<v Speaker 2>of the parts of the agency fully funded. Are you

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<v Speaker 2>supportive of the plan to pass the Senate pass DHS

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<v Speaker 2>funding bill x IC and CBP and then handling those

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<v Speaker 2>portions with reconciliation? That two track plan is that one

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<v Speaker 2>that works for you.

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<v Speaker 3>That may be the only way we can get it done.

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<v Speaker 3>But a lot of members, including myself, would like to

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<v Speaker 3>see ICE and CBP funded first. Now, if the White

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<v Speaker 3>House can reassure us that they have the necessary funding

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<v Speaker 3>to fund those organs, because we remember we did this

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<v Speaker 3>in the first reconciliation. We did put additional money in

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<v Speaker 3>there so ICE can continue its operations and enhance those operations.

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<v Speaker 3>If they have the resources, perhaps we'll be able to

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<v Speaker 3>do the other parts first. But I think a lot

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<v Speaker 3>of members would feel a lot better knowing that we're

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<v Speaker 3>funding ICE and CBP first or at the same time

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<v Speaker 3>as the rest of the department.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, and of course, this is a reconciliation two point

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<v Speaker 2>zero that we're talking about here. But congresswomen, I'm sure

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<v Speaker 2>you're well aware that there's a lot of buzz about

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<v Speaker 2>a third reconciliation package. In fact, to your chair on

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<v Speaker 2>the House Ways and Means Committee, Jason Smith, has suggested,

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<v Speaker 2>if there's going to be one, there's going to be

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<v Speaker 2>some tax measures included. What would you like to see

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<v Speaker 2>included in a third reconciliation package? Do you think achieving

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<v Speaker 2>that as a realistic legislative outcome in a midtern election year.

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<v Speaker 3>Look, I think that well, first of all, what I

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<v Speaker 3>think we really do need to do is address some

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<v Speaker 3>of the expiring provisions. We have a film tax credit,

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<v Speaker 3>there's a NASCAR tax credit. Things that are important for

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<v Speaker 3>our local economies that have expired that need to be addressed,

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<v Speaker 3>and that could be done in a bipartisan way. Doesn't

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<v Speaker 3>necessarily need reconciliation, But no doubt that Ways and Means

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<v Speaker 3>will play a big role if there is a third

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<v Speaker 3>Reconciliation Bill. Look, we delivered a significant tax cut for

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<v Speaker 3>middle class families. We are seeing the benefits of that

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<v Speaker 3>take place right now in my district. The salt deduction

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<v Speaker 3>is helping New Yorkers. The Senior deduction are helping eighty

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<v Speaker 3>eight percent of seniors across the country refunded to them

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<v Speaker 3>what they paid in taxes on their Social Security Tipped

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<v Speaker 3>workers are seeing an average increase of about thirteen hundred

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<v Speaker 3>dollars in savings, so or over many overtime workers. So

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<v Speaker 3>we delivered a significant product that was yes, tailored to

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<v Speaker 3>the middle class. But let's not forget the significance of

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<v Speaker 3>what President Trump did going back to twenty sixteen. If

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<v Speaker 3>you look at twenty seventeen, when he came in and

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<v Speaker 3>passed that initial bill, you have seen tax revenue despite

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<v Speaker 3>the tax cuts, tax revenue increase as well as our

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<v Speaker 3>GDP significantly from eighteen trillion to about thirty one trillion dollars.

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<v Speaker 2>All Right, we have to leave it there. Thank you

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<v Speaker 2>as always for joining US Republican Congress. From Nicole Molly

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<v Speaker 2>Takas of New York on Bloomberg TV and Radio.