WEBVTT - Sen. Cory Booker: Living His Values 0:00:05.320 --> 0:00:07.760 So Katie, as you're gnawing on your almond butter, we're 0:00:07.920 --> 0:00:10.560 you're having pretzels with almond butter because you wouldn't share 0:00:10.600 --> 0:00:12.280 your sandwich on the train. Not that I'm going to 0:00:12.320 --> 0:00:17.200 hold that against offered both sandwiches, to be clear, But anyway, 0:00:17.320 --> 0:00:20.200 we're here on the north side of Capitol Hill where 0:00:20.239 --> 0:00:24.200 an impromptu rally has begun with a bunch of Democratic 0:00:24.280 --> 0:00:28.320 senators protesting the healthcare bill that the Republicans are trying 0:00:28.360 --> 0:00:31.560 to pass through the Senate. And they voted to discuss 0:00:31.880 --> 0:00:35.640 the healthcare bill and emotion to proceed, which means that 0:00:35.680 --> 0:00:39.440 they can commence debate. And these are the formal Brian 0:00:39.520 --> 0:00:42.360 they voted so they can discuss the bill. They voted 0:00:42.400 --> 0:00:47.159 to start talking. Anyway, we shouldn't we shouldn't overlook. This 0:00:47.240 --> 0:00:51.040 is the one year anniversary of our podcast, Katie Anniversary. 0:00:51.200 --> 0:00:53.680 The universary ran too, and we're back where it all 0:00:53.720 --> 0:00:56.320 started on Capitol Hill. That's right. One of our first 0:00:56.320 --> 0:00:59.400 podcasts was with Senator out Frankin and we walked around 0:00:59.400 --> 0:01:03.200 the halls of Congress and talk to folks. And this was, 0:01:03.280 --> 0:01:08.000 of course before the election. We are six months into 0:01:08.040 --> 0:01:11.920 the Donald Trump presidency, with a lot of Democrats standing 0:01:12.160 --> 0:01:15.880 in front of the Capital and basically talking about the 0:01:15.959 --> 0:01:19.400 need to preserve the Affordable Care Act. And we spoke 0:01:19.440 --> 0:01:21.880 to a lot of people who are gathered here mostly 0:01:21.959 --> 0:01:24.640 against what the Republicans are trying to do, but one 0:01:24.720 --> 0:01:27.600 or two Trump supporters as well. We did hear from 0:01:27.640 --> 0:01:30.040 a lot of people who are extremely upset. For many 0:01:30.040 --> 0:01:32.959 of these people, it's a matter of life and death, 0:01:33.040 --> 0:01:36.399 and especially for those who have children with disabilities who 0:01:36.440 --> 0:01:39.600 rely on Medicaid for their care. Um, there are a 0:01:39.680 --> 0:01:42.800 lot of very emotional people. Let's listen to what some 0:01:42.920 --> 0:01:47.319 of them had to say. I have a son with 0:01:47.400 --> 0:01:55.800 Down syndrome and his future depends on Medicaid. With these cuts, 0:01:55.960 --> 0:01:58.280 it's really hard to see how he live independently in work. 0:01:59.160 --> 0:02:01.160 That's why almost of us are you today, people with 0:02:01.200 --> 0:02:06.720 disabilities who rely on Medicaid simply to live. Do you 0:02:06.720 --> 0:02:08.720 think this is going to make a difference to have 0:02:09.080 --> 0:02:12.720 people come out like this, definitely, because this this cuts 0:02:12.720 --> 0:02:16.880 across party lines. Um, you know, disability doesn't discriminate. There's 0:02:16.919 --> 0:02:19.840 millions of families with a member who relies on Medicaid 0:02:19.840 --> 0:02:22.120 because of a disability or an aging parent. And also 0:02:22.160 --> 0:02:24.400 have two of those, so you know, this is a 0:02:24.400 --> 0:02:27.040 real crisis for a lot of people in this country. 0:02:28.520 --> 0:02:31.760 A lot of these people are here worried about what 0:02:31.919 --> 0:02:35.480 these changes will mean, specifically to their disabled kids. Tell 0:02:35.520 --> 0:02:39.040 me how you're feeling about the whole debate where I 0:02:39.080 --> 0:02:43.000 don't care, you don't care, I don't care about the 0:02:43.200 --> 0:02:50.000 bit about them. Um, just kind of just say I 0:02:50.040 --> 0:02:54.280 don't care. Whatever the president wants, I'm for, So I 0:02:54.280 --> 0:02:57.280 would say I'm for the along the place, and I'm 0:02:57.320 --> 0:03:01.720 not particularly concerned about how they license. You know, the 0:03:02.040 --> 0:03:05.040 Congressional Budget Office, as I'm sure you probably have heard, 0:03:05.200 --> 0:03:08.920 estimates anywhere from twenty to thirty two million people will 0:03:08.919 --> 0:03:12.359 lose their healthcare if Obamacare is repealed. And I'm curious 0:03:12.360 --> 0:03:17.160 how you feel about that. Sad, but it's not enough 0:03:17.320 --> 0:03:21.840 for you to speak out against the president or this 0:03:22.240 --> 0:03:27.040 pending legislation. What medical conditions do you have? I have 0:03:27.120 --> 0:03:31.480 sereal posing and I just require um in home care 0:03:32.160 --> 0:03:34.920 people to get me out of bed, help me do 0:03:35.040 --> 0:03:38.120 the things that everybody does to get ready for the day. 0:03:38.360 --> 0:03:43.400 And if services get cut with this healthcare bell um, 0:03:43.440 --> 0:03:46.760 I would wind up in a nursing room. Our services 0:03:46.840 --> 0:03:50.760 like mine would be the first to go. You walked 0:03:50.840 --> 0:03:54.600 all the way here to Washington. We'll have to get 0:03:54.680 --> 0:03:57.400 them to hear her voice. Tell me about Lauren and 0:03:57.840 --> 0:04:04.360 why you're here representing her. She can top should never speak. 0:04:04.600 --> 0:04:07.800 She came off. She can't stand up, So I walked 0:04:07.840 --> 0:04:10.680 for her because she can't walk, and I stood up 0:04:10.680 --> 0:04:12.600 for her because she can't stand, and I'll speak for 0:04:12.600 --> 0:04:15.160 her because she can't speak. They need to leave children 0:04:15.240 --> 0:04:18.239 like her out of politics. This is not a political issue. 0:04:18.360 --> 0:04:20.760 This is humanitarian. This is his life. This is a 0:04:20.880 --> 0:04:23.520 human life. Has nothing to do with a Republican or 0:04:23.520 --> 0:04:26.480 a Democrat, or left or right, or conservative or liberal. 0:04:26.920 --> 0:04:33.520 This is like, of course, we're hair Brian though to 0:04:33.960 --> 0:04:37.160 sit down and talk with Corey Booker. Uh, he's here 0:04:37.200 --> 0:04:40.400 at this rally. He's actually still m seeing the event 0:04:40.600 --> 0:04:43.160 on the steps in front of the Capitol and apparently 0:04:43.240 --> 0:04:49.440 can't stop talking. It's just an editorial observation, our interview slightly. Well, 0:04:49.600 --> 0:04:53.560 I'm looking forward to hearing from Senator Booker about all 0:04:53.680 --> 0:04:56.679 kinds of things, what's happening here in Washington and the country, 0:04:57.480 --> 0:05:02.040 his views on this health care legislation and Russia, President Trump. Yeah, 0:05:02.160 --> 0:05:05.480 and his presidential aspirations. Many people have seen him as 0:05:05.520 --> 0:05:08.080 a rising star, so we'll hear what he has to 0:05:08.160 --> 0:05:10.520 say about that. Although, Katy, you can't swing your purse 0:05:10.640 --> 0:05:13.240 where we are right now without hitting a potential Democratic 0:05:13.279 --> 0:05:15.640 presidential candidate. I think I've seen a half dozen of 0:05:15.720 --> 0:05:18.960 them in the last twenty minutes. That's true. Here is 0:05:19.000 --> 0:05:25.960 Senator Cory Booker. Welcome to our podcasts and what a 0:05:26.080 --> 0:05:28.280 day here in Washington, d C. God to say, for 0:05:28.320 --> 0:05:30.240 a second, you and I've been friend for a long time. 0:05:30.320 --> 0:05:32.960 I feel I feel at a disadvantage when I'm being 0:05:33.040 --> 0:05:35.760 interviewed by you because I feel so comfortable with you. 0:05:35.839 --> 0:05:37.640 I might just be telling all, well, if you want 0:05:37.680 --> 0:05:41.159 to break some news and announce your candidacy for feel free. 0:05:41.200 --> 0:05:44.479 I will announce I am running in for re election. 0:05:45.279 --> 0:05:47.560 Does New Jersey law permit you to run for both? 0:05:48.240 --> 0:05:53.840 I don't even know the question, Brian interesting, Sure you're 0:05:53.839 --> 0:05:56.440 going to figure out the answer that question pretty too. 0:05:56.520 --> 0:06:02.080 Are very mischievous and and Brian is very prepared. But 0:06:02.400 --> 0:06:04.599 he was pulling stuff out of my bio in the elevator. 0:06:05.360 --> 0:06:07.520 How did you know my favorite breakfast cereal was Captain 0:06:07.560 --> 0:06:12.440 Crunch Crunch berriers, drink Diet Mountain even though your girlfriend 0:06:12.480 --> 0:06:14.559 tells you not to. Well, before we talk more about 0:06:15.080 --> 0:06:18.560 you and your background, it is a eventful day. Yeah, 0:06:18.640 --> 0:06:22.360 let's talk about from your perspective, how do you process 0:06:22.440 --> 0:06:28.560 what just transpired? It is so unconscionable for and I 0:06:28.640 --> 0:06:30.400 think for those of you don't know. John McCain gave 0:06:30.440 --> 0:06:32.880 a very dramatic speak in the Senate after he voted 0:06:33.200 --> 0:06:35.680 to proceed to a bill when he didn't even know 0:06:35.839 --> 0:06:38.080 what was in the bill. I mean, this whole process, 0:06:38.200 --> 0:06:41.880 from this very beginning is a betrayal of every Senate tradition, 0:06:42.080 --> 0:06:44.800 every Senate custom. Uh, it's even a betrayal for all 0:06:44.800 --> 0:06:48.039 those people who thinks Obamacare was just shoved through. Obamacare 0:06:48.120 --> 0:06:54.320 had hundreds of bipartisan meetings, committee hearings, hundreds of witnesses. 0:06:55.120 --> 0:06:59.040 He actually was amended multiple times by the Republicans. Did 0:06:59.120 --> 0:07:02.040 pass with nary a Republican vote. Absolutely, but there was 0:07:02.080 --> 0:07:04.360 a process that was akin to what the Senate is 0:07:04.400 --> 0:07:06.840 supposed to do, where lots of people are invited in. 0:07:07.240 --> 0:07:10.080 As John McCain himself said, this was a process that 0:07:10.160 --> 0:07:13.240 was done in secrecy, behind closed doors. Just a handful 0:07:13.240 --> 0:07:17.560 of Republicans, no hearings, no witnesses, no input. It was 0:07:17.760 --> 0:07:21.040 roundly condemned by non partis and not by parts of 0:07:21.080 --> 0:07:24.920 a non parts and groups the American Medical Association, American 0:07:24.960 --> 0:07:28.080 Hospital Association, American Cancers ACIDE, I mean, everybody who we 0:07:28.280 --> 0:07:31.600 think of as beyond politics in the medical and healthcare 0:07:31.640 --> 0:07:35.680 industry world condemned this bill the a r P. And 0:07:35.760 --> 0:07:39.560 so then suddenly, literally the people are being interviewed in 0:07:39.640 --> 0:07:42.040 the in the days before this Republicans and saying, I 0:07:42.120 --> 0:07:44.400 don't know what's in this bill, and they just voted 0:07:44.440 --> 0:07:46.280 to proceed to a bill that they don't even know 0:07:46.480 --> 0:07:49.080 what's in it. And that's what's uncomfortable to me that 0:07:49.160 --> 0:07:51.560 this is what has just transpired in the United States Senate. 0:07:51.600 --> 0:07:55.400 But what didn't they basically say, and didn't John McCain 0:07:55.520 --> 0:07:59.480 say in his speech Senator that we need to discuss this, 0:07:59.800 --> 0:08:03.720 we need to consider it, and as a result, isn't 0:08:03.720 --> 0:08:07.680 it possible that the ultimate final bill could look very 0:08:07.800 --> 0:08:11.280 different than the one that they've just sent to Yes, well, 0:08:11.320 --> 0:08:14.120 he actually went even further, which again said he wouldn't 0:08:14.160 --> 0:08:16.160 vote for it, wouldn't vote for it and its current 0:08:16.200 --> 0:08:18.840 incarnation and its current recarnation less. It changed quite a bit. 0:08:19.320 --> 0:08:23.000 But he like others, I'm glad I've expressed skepticism about 0:08:23.040 --> 0:08:25.880 voting for a bill. They gave massive tax breaks to 0:08:25.920 --> 0:08:29.160 the wealthiest amongst us, savage Medicare to the tune of 0:08:29.240 --> 0:08:33.679 ten to fifteen million Americans, drove up costs for older Americans, 0:08:33.880 --> 0:08:38.840 undermine access to Medicaid for people in extended care. There's 0:08:38.840 --> 0:08:40.480 a lot of parts of this bill that were hard 0:08:40.520 --> 0:08:43.280 to pack the stomach for House members who were hoping 0:08:43.720 --> 0:08:46.760 Republicans over here would change it. But I haven't seen 0:08:46.800 --> 0:08:50.079 a change in which Mr mcconnells could hold together the 0:08:50.200 --> 0:08:53.280 disparate members of his co coalition from the Rand Paul's 0:08:53.360 --> 0:08:56.480 and Mike Lee's Susan to the Susan Collins and UM 0:08:56.760 --> 0:08:59.719 Senator Murkowski from from Alaska. But of course he held 0:08:59.760 --> 0:09:03.679 the Allian together. Today, I don't past the motion to proceed, 0:09:03.840 --> 0:09:06.880 and so that a lot of Democrats believe that these complaints, 0:09:07.520 --> 0:09:12.199 these criticisms among Republicans ring hollow because ultimately their votes 0:09:12.240 --> 0:09:15.800 are different than their statements. Absolutely, well, let's go to 0:09:15.840 --> 0:09:18.160 the president. I mean the president. If you just take 0:09:18.240 --> 0:09:20.240 him on what he said, I won't cut Medicaid. I 0:09:20.280 --> 0:09:22.920 won't cut Medicare. I'm going to provide healthcare that because 0:09:23.040 --> 0:09:26.800 greater access that is more affordable. And I think the 0:09:26.880 --> 0:09:30.200 exact word he used was terrific. Healthcare is gonna be terrific. Well, 0:09:30.240 --> 0:09:34.800 this bill on account on an unqualified manner. CBO as 0:09:34.840 --> 0:09:36.960 well as many other outside experts have said, this will 0:09:37.520 --> 0:09:40.280 make healthcare more expensive for the average American, it will 0:09:40.720 --> 0:09:43.599 restrict access for tens of millions of Americans, and it 0:09:43.679 --> 0:09:46.520 will drive down the quality of the care that that 0:09:46.640 --> 0:09:49.199 many Americans have access to. So this is nothing like 0:09:49.440 --> 0:09:52.240 what people have been saying. Where we should be and 0:09:52.280 --> 0:09:55.000 even what John McCain said today is we should all 0:09:55.080 --> 0:09:57.800 take a breather. What did the affordable care acter that 0:09:57.880 --> 0:10:01.880 we like? Most Americans love, the pre existing conditions preserving 0:10:02.160 --> 0:10:06.120 Most Americans like Medicaid expansion. Obviously some governors didn't do it. 0:10:06.920 --> 0:10:09.520 Most Americans are like a lot of aspects, parity between 0:10:09.800 --> 0:10:12.560 mental health care and so called physical health care. There's 0:10:12.559 --> 0:10:14.640 a lot in this bill that people liked, and so 0:10:14.800 --> 0:10:17.120 let's hold the line on those things and try to 0:10:17.200 --> 0:10:21.280 improve the things that are some what problematic. It's problematic 0:10:21.320 --> 0:10:23.840 for example that in the health care exchanges, a small 0:10:23.920 --> 0:10:26.320 percentage of people weren't getting subsidies and more. Well, are 0:10:26.360 --> 0:10:29.960 you hopeful then that there will be uh some kind 0:10:30.040 --> 0:10:33.079 of compromise going on as things move forward? Or do 0:10:33.120 --> 0:10:36.839 you think that now Republicans have been emboldened by this 0:10:37.120 --> 0:10:39.520 motion to proceed or whatever you call it. So the 0:10:39.640 --> 0:10:42.120 Senate doesn't give me hope. What gives me hope is 0:10:42.440 --> 0:10:46.520 what the American people have been doing. Incredible outpourings of 0:10:46.600 --> 0:10:49.640 protests from people on both sides of the political aisle, 0:10:49.880 --> 0:10:53.720 cramming into people's town hall meetings, demanding that they walk 0:10:53.760 --> 0:10:56.240 away from a bill that would hurt them and their families. 0:10:56.720 --> 0:10:59.520 This is the week I would say that people who 0:10:59.600 --> 0:11:01.400 have to have to speak up again and let let 0:11:01.480 --> 0:11:04.199 folks know there'll be consequences if they vote on such 0:11:04.240 --> 0:11:07.760 a disastrous bill that will hurt American families of all backgrounds, 0:11:08.080 --> 0:11:12.280 all geographies, all races, all parties. Democrats have spoken in 0:11:12.400 --> 0:11:16.600 very general terms about fixing Obamacare. Your position is sort 0:11:16.600 --> 0:11:20.760 of mended, don't end it, But what specific improvements or 0:11:20.880 --> 0:11:23.800 changes do you think should be made? Well, look, I'm 0:11:23.800 --> 0:11:26.559 one of those Americans that believes that we need to 0:11:26.679 --> 0:11:31.080 have a different philosophy of healthcare needs to be made 0:11:31.120 --> 0:11:33.920 real and legislation, which is that healthcare is are right, 0:11:34.400 --> 0:11:36.800 that we need to have a nation in which everyone 0:11:37.000 --> 0:11:41.320 is covered, in which everyone has affordable and quality healthcare. 0:11:41.480 --> 0:11:43.680 That should be the end that we should express now. 0:11:43.720 --> 0:11:45.880 I believe there's lots of avenues to get there. Should 0:11:45.920 --> 0:11:48.559 there be single care well less, I'm saying medicare for all. 0:11:48.720 --> 0:11:50.959 We we almost we were one vote shy, I say we, 0:11:51.040 --> 0:11:53.160 I wasn't in the Senate. Then when the Affordable Care 0:11:53.200 --> 0:11:56.120 Act pass of extending Medicare down to people aged fifty, 0:11:56.480 --> 0:11:58.599 I believe that would have been the small end of 0:11:58.600 --> 0:11:59.959 the wedge. I believe at the end other end of 0:12:00.000 --> 0:12:02.319 that would have been people saying, Wow, it's working. Medicare 0:12:02.400 --> 0:12:04.560 is working for now, for people all the way down 0:12:04.600 --> 0:12:06.640 to fifty, Let's expand it for everybody. So I think 0:12:06.679 --> 0:12:10.280 the Medicare for all idea is a really good idea. 0:12:10.640 --> 0:12:12.920 Public options are a really good idea. But I do 0:12:13.280 --> 0:12:15.040 I'm a big believer that the way we're trying to 0:12:15.120 --> 0:12:18.679 go about this is actually giving lots of profits to 0:12:19.280 --> 0:12:22.719 private interests that that uh that are taking money out 0:12:22.800 --> 0:12:25.880 of the health care system and adding great expense to it. 0:12:26.320 --> 0:12:28.440 But in the meantime, I'm also a realist, as John 0:12:28.800 --> 0:12:32.200 McCain said today, that you know, given where we are 0:12:32.360 --> 0:12:34.959 right now, with the Democrats in the minority and Republicans 0:12:35.000 --> 0:12:37.599 in the majority, and Republicans and controlling two Houses of 0:12:37.720 --> 0:12:40.400 Congress and the White House, that we're going to have 0:12:40.520 --> 0:12:43.560 to try to do what you said, men, Obamacare, don't 0:12:43.679 --> 0:12:46.680 end it, make it better, and do some incremental changes 0:12:46.800 --> 0:12:50.640 before we see unless we see Congress change that doesn't 0:12:50.679 --> 0:12:53.800 seem very desirable politically, does it. I mean, the they, 0:12:54.520 --> 0:12:56.800 the president, and many of these people ran on the 0:12:56.880 --> 0:13:01.640 platform of getting rid of Obamacare, appealing Obamacare. I think 0:13:01.679 --> 0:13:04.600 they're not going to want the appearance of mending, not ending, 0:13:04.800 --> 0:13:07.160 because it will still be Obama. This is the thing 0:13:07.240 --> 0:13:09.960 that almost right. Well, no, I don't think. I don't 0:13:09.960 --> 0:13:12.280 think you're right, because here's the president we have found 0:13:13.240 --> 0:13:16.600 can lie to the American public, can have Fox News 0:13:16.679 --> 0:13:19.280 respeating everything that they're saying. You don't think he could 0:13:19.320 --> 0:13:22.240 have said I'm bringing in trump Care and we're going 0:13:22.280 --> 0:13:23.800 to do this and this and this, but the real 0:13:23.880 --> 0:13:25.880 bill would have just amended it. He could have called 0:13:25.920 --> 0:13:27.880 it anything you want. He's one of the best carnival 0:13:27.920 --> 0:13:31.240 barkers I've ever seen in American politics, who could tell 0:13:31.320 --> 0:13:34.040 people that he was transforming healthcare and really what he 0:13:34.120 --> 0:13:37.040 did was keep everything people liked and made things better. 0:13:37.160 --> 0:13:39.600 He could have done it that way, in a bipartisan way. 0:13:39.640 --> 0:13:43.360 Here's a president who has missed opportunity after opportunity to 0:13:43.480 --> 0:13:45.240 be who he said he was going to be, the 0:13:45.360 --> 0:13:47.920 great deal maker. This is a guy who had a 0:13:48.080 --> 0:13:51.160 wide opportunity to be a unifying force in this country, 0:13:51.480 --> 0:13:54.600 to bring people together to deal with our major issues. 0:13:54.960 --> 0:13:58.120 But he has completely botched it, and instead he's appealing 0:13:58.160 --> 0:14:03.120 to a very narrow base with outrageous demonization and demagoguery, 0:14:03.960 --> 0:14:06.800 the kind of things that are hurting America given his campaign. 0:14:06.840 --> 0:14:11.000 Are you really surprised? I'm disappointed. His campaign was outraged me. 0:14:11.120 --> 0:14:12.920 I mean, I I was so company he was gonna 0:14:12.960 --> 0:14:15.719 lose because I did not believe anybody can ascend to 0:14:15.760 --> 0:14:18.240 the White House in this day and age by demeaning 0:14:18.280 --> 0:14:22.360 and degrading other Americans, whether it's Mexicans, Muslims, uh, people 0:14:22.400 --> 0:14:25.720 in inner cities, even the way you talked about African Americans, 0:14:26.120 --> 0:14:30.440 all these things, Uh, not to mention women Um, I 0:14:30.480 --> 0:14:32.560 didn't think that was possible, but hey, I was wrong, 0:14:32.960 --> 0:14:34.960 And I think a lot of Democrats were wrong because 0:14:34.960 --> 0:14:39.080 they didn't understand the level of pain that people were 0:14:39.120 --> 0:14:43.440 going through and how Donald Trump was founding a way 0:14:43.480 --> 0:14:46.240 to talk to that pain, um in ways that Democratic 0:14:46.360 --> 0:14:47.960 leaders were not. And so here we are in this 0:14:48.040 --> 0:14:50.600 condition right now. I just I'm curious in terms of 0:14:50.680 --> 0:14:54.040 this healthcare legislation. Is this going to come back to 0:14:54.240 --> 0:14:57.600 bite Republicans in the butt in two thousand and eighteen 0:14:58.240 --> 0:15:01.480 if they in fact support a bill that leaves many 0:15:01.560 --> 0:15:04.840 people uninsured? I certainly hope. So, I mean, are you 0:15:04.920 --> 0:15:07.520 guys going to really make Hay with this? Listen if 0:15:07.600 --> 0:15:11.440 you hurt my neighborhood, my community. I live in Newark, 0:15:11.480 --> 0:15:14.960 New Jersey. I live in the Central war The median 0:15:15.000 --> 0:15:19.280 income in my neighborhood is fourteen dollars UH per household. 0:15:19.720 --> 0:15:23.160 When I walk around my community, people are really worried 0:15:23.360 --> 0:15:26.200 and really afraid. And this bill that they just proceeded to, 0:15:26.280 --> 0:15:28.400 which we don't really know what's in, but if we 0:15:28.480 --> 0:15:31.000 listen to the CBO and their past versions, this bill 0:15:31.040 --> 0:15:35.720 will devastate communities like mine, rural communities, cities across this 0:15:35.840 --> 0:15:39.960 country people with disabilities. I mean, it's a devastating bill. 0:15:40.040 --> 0:15:42.600 So will I politically say if you guys do this, 0:15:43.160 --> 0:15:46.520 you should suffer the consequences at the polls? Heck yeah, 0:15:46.560 --> 0:15:49.080 I hope that happens. But I got hours now, and 0:15:49.080 --> 0:15:51.520 I'm gonna do everything I can to fight to prevent 0:15:51.600 --> 0:15:53.960 that from happening, because I'm not looking for political advantage. 0:15:54.160 --> 0:15:56.400 I'm looking for helping people, and we should stop this 0:15:56.640 --> 0:15:59.320 bill um from happening. What do you make of the 0:15:59.440 --> 0:16:01.800 argument that just as the Republicans have moved too far 0:16:01.840 --> 0:16:05.440 to the right, Democrats have gone off the left side 0:16:05.480 --> 0:16:08.800 of the cliff, Because how so? I mean, well, I 0:16:08.880 --> 0:16:11.200 think on trade, you could make the argument that they've 0:16:11.240 --> 0:16:14.600 abandoned the Trans Pacific Partnership, buying a bunch of arguments 0:16:14.640 --> 0:16:16.640 that aren't really legitimate about what it would have done 0:16:16.680 --> 0:16:19.520 to American workers, when really it's automation far more than 0:16:19.680 --> 0:16:22.920 trade that have cost jobs. On single payer, my home 0:16:23.000 --> 0:16:26.840 state of California, which has Democratic supermajorities, tried to pass 0:16:26.880 --> 0:16:29.720 single payer and it didn't work because the cost of 0:16:29.760 --> 0:16:32.440 it was more than the whole state budget and there 0:16:32.520 --> 0:16:36.040 was no answer for how it could be affordable. Um, 0:16:36.320 --> 0:16:38.920 and some of the rhetoric. This is not my opinion, 0:16:39.080 --> 0:16:44.080 but the opinion of many independent analysts is us versus them. 0:16:44.200 --> 0:16:46.960 But for them, isn't a Muslim or a Mexican. It's 0:16:47.040 --> 0:16:50.480 a billionaire or a banker, or somebody in one of 0:16:50.560 --> 0:16:55.120 the industries like prescription drugs or healthcare that Democrats have 0:16:55.200 --> 0:16:58.240 decided are not good for America. So I'm a former mayor, 0:16:58.560 --> 0:17:01.480 and um, you know, I think the Wall Street Jurnal 0:17:01.480 --> 0:17:03.280 said I was the twenty one person in American history, 0:17:03.320 --> 0:17:04.720 goes straight from being a mayor to being a United 0:17:04.720 --> 0:17:07.480 States Senator. I had to fix stuff, um that I 0:17:07.520 --> 0:17:10.600 couldn't use philosophy. As Fiolor Litt Guardias said, there's no 0:17:10.640 --> 0:17:12.800 Republican or Democratic way to fix a pothole. You just 0:17:12.840 --> 0:17:15.000 gotta fix it. And and that's the way I view 0:17:15.040 --> 0:17:19.639 the country right now. And I've seen I've seen Trump 0:17:20.000 --> 0:17:23.200 trash trade deals as much as you see people on 0:17:23.760 --> 0:17:25.800 on either side of the aisle doing it. I don't 0:17:25.840 --> 0:17:28.800 think my party, in a very pragmatic way, is going 0:17:28.880 --> 0:17:31.920 off the rails in some way. I don't want to 0:17:32.040 --> 0:17:34.600 use the spectrums of left and right, because I'm not 0:17:34.640 --> 0:17:37.040 even sure what is left what is right anymore? I 0:17:37.119 --> 0:17:39.200 think that that what we, what the core of my 0:17:39.400 --> 0:17:43.440 party is saying, are pragmatic things that in a balance 0:17:43.520 --> 0:17:46.199 sheet analysis UM, which is what I had to use 0:17:46.359 --> 0:17:49.600 every day as a mayor, that net net they create wealth, 0:17:49.680 --> 0:17:52.520 they create growth, um to create opportunity. And I'll just 0:17:52.560 --> 0:17:54.480 give some things that people might want to characterize as 0:17:55.000 --> 0:17:59.440 left like, let's say something like funding housing. Well Seattle 0:18:00.240 --> 0:18:03.320 to study a great organization called Plymouth Housing Group out 0:18:03.359 --> 0:18:07.080 there said what is more expensive supportive housing for people 0:18:07.119 --> 0:18:09.800 with special needs and mental health issues or keeping them 0:18:09.840 --> 0:18:11.440 on the streets. They actually found out they saved the 0:18:11.520 --> 0:18:14.320 million dollars to taxpayers by taking people off the streets 0:18:14.320 --> 0:18:16.439 and putting in support of housing. Why well, people who 0:18:16.520 --> 0:18:18.600 ran cities know this. They end up in our emergency rooms, 0:18:18.680 --> 0:18:21.280 end up in our jails. It's more expensive to do 0:18:21.359 --> 0:18:24.160 the morally on sound thing. Let's use another example. Why 0:18:24.359 --> 0:18:27.080 is it that all of our competitors have paid family 0:18:27.160 --> 0:18:30.919 leave and universal preschool because they know when you invest 0:18:31.040 --> 0:18:34.280 in children, it is in a global knowledge based environment. 0:18:34.600 --> 0:18:37.600 It is the most valuable natural resource of country has 0:18:37.680 --> 0:18:40.040 is no longer coal or gas or oil. It's the 0:18:40.160 --> 0:18:42.520 genius of your children, and you've got to put an 0:18:42.600 --> 0:18:45.920 environment to cultivate that. So I can show you all 0:18:46.000 --> 0:18:48.560 the things are the core base of the Democratic Party 0:18:48.800 --> 0:18:52.000 that appealed to people from Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren 0:18:52.240 --> 0:18:55.360 all the way to Mark Warner, uh And and Joe Mansion. 0:18:55.800 --> 0:18:58.639 Things that we believe in, like raising the minimum wage. 0:18:59.040 --> 0:19:01.880 We now have data that looks at places like Seattle 0:19:01.920 --> 0:19:04.640 and other places. It shows that you don't crush small businesses. 0:19:04.760 --> 0:19:07.640 But I thought, I thought, Uh, correct me if I'm wrong, 0:19:07.720 --> 0:19:10.159 But I thought that it really did cause a lot 0:19:10.240 --> 0:19:12.480 of people to lose their jobs in Seattle according to 0:19:12.560 --> 0:19:15.440 a study that a lot of businesses had to fire 0:19:15.520 --> 0:19:17.680 people when they raise the minimum wage. So I saw 0:19:18.040 --> 0:19:20.440 it was out on Fox News or something exactly. Know, 0:19:20.600 --> 0:19:23.200 there's been some data that's come out that's been highly 0:19:23.240 --> 0:19:25.359 disputed about the impact of minimum wage. But let's pull 0:19:25.400 --> 0:19:28.560 back in from Seattle. There's so much study about places 0:19:28.640 --> 0:19:31.359 that raise the minimum wage, including New Jersey, that raises 0:19:31.400 --> 0:19:34.680 in the minimum wage um did not affect a business growth. 0:19:34.720 --> 0:19:37.159 And in fact, the best evidence for that is that 0:19:37.240 --> 0:19:39.640 when the minimum wage was established in the nineteen sixties, 0:19:40.119 --> 0:19:42.879 in real dollars, it's much higher than it is now. 0:19:42.960 --> 0:19:45.200 If you just had kept up with inflation, it would 0:19:45.200 --> 0:19:46.879 be over fifteen dollars an hours. So if it was 0:19:47.119 --> 0:19:50.480 undermining growth back then, um um, it wasn't. In fact, 0:19:50.520 --> 0:19:53.800 those years sixties seventies were some of the greatest expansions 0:19:53.800 --> 0:19:56.560 of the middle class we've ever seen. So so I 0:19:56.680 --> 0:19:59.760 just wanted, I just believe that that I forget democratic 0:19:59.840 --> 0:20:04.520 rep publican investing in children, investing in seniors, investing in 0:20:04.560 --> 0:20:07.080 the poor. Uh, We've got to be a nation like 0:20:07.240 --> 0:20:09.840 our past, like in the forties and the fifties and 0:20:09.920 --> 0:20:13.440 the sixties and the seventies that invested in Americans and 0:20:13.520 --> 0:20:18.200 invested in America education, infrastructure, science and research and development, 0:20:18.440 --> 0:20:21.480 all those things that this generation of Republicans have turned 0:20:21.480 --> 0:20:24.760 our government away from. And other nations including immigration, by 0:20:24.760 --> 0:20:29.240 the way, other nations Canada, Germany, Japan. What are they saying, 0:20:29.280 --> 0:20:31.679 Oh my god, look what America's turning away from its past. Well, 0:20:31.680 --> 0:20:34.119 we're gonna out America. You. We're gonna invest in our 0:20:34.160 --> 0:20:36.880 infrastructure more than you are, except for building prisons. We're 0:20:36.880 --> 0:20:39.040 gonna invest in education more than you are. We're gonna 0:20:39.040 --> 0:20:41.400 invest in immigration. What do they have out in Silicon Valley. 0:20:41.400 --> 0:20:43.520 They say, hey, can't get your H one B visa, 0:20:43.840 --> 0:20:46.479 come to Canada. We want you because college presidents come 0:20:46.520 --> 0:20:48.680 to me and say, we're graduating people in degrees I 0:20:48.720 --> 0:20:52.240 can't even spell micro immunology, biology, whatever it is, And 0:20:52.320 --> 0:20:54.200 as soon as they finish their student visa, the brightest 0:20:54.200 --> 0:20:56.119 minds of the planet Earth, we kicked them out of 0:20:56.160 --> 0:20:58.560 our country. So we've got to get back to doing 0:20:58.680 --> 0:21:00.760 what actually worked in a are going to build out 0:21:00.800 --> 0:21:03.200 the middle class, to close the race gap, to give 0:21:03.240 --> 0:21:08.120 more people avenues out, social mobility, out of poverty, into 0:21:08.160 --> 0:21:10.440 the middle class. That other countries are not doing better 0:21:10.480 --> 0:21:12.320 than us. We need to get back to being better 0:21:12.400 --> 0:21:14.639 at being America than other people are. Why do you 0:21:14.720 --> 0:21:18.359 think Hillary Clinton was unsuccessful of prosecuting the argument that 0:21:18.480 --> 0:21:20.320 you just made, and why do you think that it 0:21:20.480 --> 0:21:23.479 seems I think there was another survey I read recently. 0:21:23.480 --> 0:21:25.600 I read so much sometimes you can't even remember what 0:21:25.760 --> 0:21:28.520 you read and where that said people still don't know 0:21:28.600 --> 0:21:34.440 what Democrats stand for. It wasn't there a recently. Y're 0:21:34.480 --> 0:21:36.720 trying to fill in that gap with the agenda you 0:21:36.800 --> 0:21:41.920 announced this week. But why have Democrats failed to make 0:21:42.040 --> 0:21:46.280