WEBVTT - Rep. Jim Clyburn Talks Tax Bill, Biden's Cancer Diagnosis 

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

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<v Speaker 2>We turned out a Democratic Congressman, Jim Clyburn of South Carolina,

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<v Speaker 2>joining us here on balance of power. Congressman, it's so

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<v Speaker 2>good to have you this evening as we consider the

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<v Speaker 2>changes the speakers trying to navigate here with the various

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<v Speaker 2>factions of his party. They include bringing forward potentially stricter

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<v Speaker 2>work requirements for Medicaid, bringing forward rollbacks to subsidies, and

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<v Speaker 2>the Inflation Reduction Act. All of that could get us

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<v Speaker 2>closer to the midterms in twenty twenty six. Does that

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<v Speaker 2>actually serve you and your party better in thoughts about

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<v Speaker 2>reclaiming the House majority?

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<v Speaker 3>Well, thank you very much for having me.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm not too sure that we are concerned about the

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<v Speaker 1>conduct at this moment. We are concern about the people

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<v Speaker 1>that are going to be affected by all of this.

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<v Speaker 1>I always say, if we take care of our jobs,

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<v Speaker 1>if we take care of the American people, that will

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<v Speaker 1>do all we need to do for us as Democrats. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>we don't know, or at least I don't know yet

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<v Speaker 1>exactly what all there is to this legislation. I do

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<v Speaker 1>know this, there is no knee jerk opposition to work requirements.

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<v Speaker 1>We Democrats another pose to work requirements if they make sense.

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<v Speaker 1>And the problem we've got now is that people tend

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<v Speaker 1>not to remember that.

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<v Speaker 3>We've had work requirements.

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<v Speaker 1>In these pieces of legislation for several years now.

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<v Speaker 3>We don't oppose that.

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<v Speaker 1>We do oppose balancing the budget on the backs of

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<v Speaker 1>working men and women. And I don't understand how they

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<v Speaker 1>investor class they make their money off of people spending money,

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<v Speaker 1>or so against people having money to spend. It seems

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<v Speaker 1>to me that you would be interested in your products

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<v Speaker 1>being afforded by the people who work in these companies

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<v Speaker 1>and on the manufacturing places that you invest in and

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<v Speaker 1>that you own.

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<v Speaker 3>It's just like this Medicaid.

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<v Speaker 1>Medicaid has beneficiaries, but the people who benefit from medicaid,

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<v Speaker 1>or the people who own the nursing homes, the people

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<v Speaker 1>are on these hospitals, these are the people who get

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<v Speaker 1>the benefit.

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<v Speaker 3>And so I just think that the.

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<v Speaker 1>Time for us to start pushing a serious narrative about

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<v Speaker 1>who or the beneficiaries as well as who gets the benefits.

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<v Speaker 3>And that's what we Democrats are concerned about.

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<v Speaker 4>Congress soon, it's good to have you back. I'm sure

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<v Speaker 4>you saw the news from Moodies on Friday.

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<v Speaker 3>The US no.

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<v Speaker 4>Longer has a triple A credit rating by any of

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<v Speaker 4>the major ratings agencies, and we've got the debt limit

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<v Speaker 4>to deal with here. We're waiting for a more firm

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<v Speaker 4>X state on this, but it looks like it will

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<v Speaker 4>probably be part of this massive reconciliation project. How do

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<v Speaker 4>you reconcile potentially voting no on this bill knowing the

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<v Speaker 4>debt ceiling needs to be raised.

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<v Speaker 3>Well, you know, I've always been one for getting rid

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<v Speaker 3>of the debt seimit.

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<v Speaker 1>Ever since I've been in the Congress over thirty years now,

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<v Speaker 1>I've always advocated by getting rid of that. We know

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<v Speaker 1>on the company left doing that. I just think I

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<v Speaker 1>think there may be one of us and said, I

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<v Speaker 1>think of what we ought to do is separate that

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<v Speaker 1>from everything else.

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<v Speaker 3>We ought not have that as a part of this package.

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<v Speaker 1>And so I would be voting against this bill irrespective

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<v Speaker 1>of the fact that they're putting things in the raising

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<v Speaker 1>the debt limit, because for raising the debt limit, I've

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<v Speaker 1>got to vote yainst people having income or being able

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<v Speaker 1>to occur in.

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<v Speaker 3>The debt at all. And so that's the fool's eerrand

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<v Speaker 3>that I'm not going to go on.

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<v Speaker 2>Congressman, I'm sure you are familiar with the thinking of

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<v Speaker 2>some Republicans in the Senate, including Senator Josh Holly, for example,

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<v Speaker 2>who is also not in favor of Medicaid cuts of

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<v Speaker 2>any kind. President Trump suggests he doesn't really want to

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<v Speaker 2>see Medicaid touched for eligible individuals as well. To what

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<v Speaker 2>extent do you expect that the other chamber may actually

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<v Speaker 2>be the one that make sure these policies don't come

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<v Speaker 2>to law, and that it's not just Democrats not voting

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<v Speaker 2>for this in the House, but Senate Republicans saying no

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<v Speaker 2>to some of these policies.

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<v Speaker 3>Well, I think there'd be some Senator Republicans saying no.

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<v Speaker 1>I think that's some House Republicans who would like to

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<v Speaker 1>say no as well. It just so happens that people

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<v Speaker 1>tend to put priority over whether or not they remain

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<v Speaker 1>in this Congress or whether or not they get challenged

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<v Speaker 1>in the primary. That's never been a priority for me.

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<v Speaker 1>I get challenged every year, and that's fine. I'm here

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<v Speaker 1>to do everything I possibly can to make those greatnesses.

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<v Speaker 1>And the people say, I'd hear me say this, but

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<v Speaker 1>this is a great country. We got a great educational system,

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<v Speaker 1>We've got a great healthcare system, energy, We've.

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<v Speaker 3>Got it all. The problem is.

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<v Speaker 1>All Americans can't affod it. All Americans need to be

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<v Speaker 1>able to forward these things. And so that's what I

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<v Speaker 1>am going to be voted for trying to do the

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<v Speaker 1>things are the necessary so that all irrespective of what

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<v Speaker 1>side of town you may live on, irrespective of what

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<v Speaker 1>zip code you exist in, whether or not you can

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<v Speaker 1>afford to educate your children, whether or not you can

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<v Speaker 1>afford to have health care, whether or not you can

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<v Speaker 1>afford to pay your energy costs. These are the things

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<v Speaker 1>we ought to be about. And to the extent that

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<v Speaker 1>there are Republicans in the House and the Senate who

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<v Speaker 1>would agree with us, I'm pleased to have them and

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<v Speaker 1>I'm pleased to be associated with them.

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<v Speaker 4>Harrison Kleinberg, I want to ask you about former President

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<v Speaker 4>Joe Biden's health and this terrible cancer diagnosis that we

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<v Speaker 4>have all learned about. I know you two are close.

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<v Speaker 4>Have you had a chance to talk with them.

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<v Speaker 1>I have not talked to the former president about this diagnosis.

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<v Speaker 3>I do believe that.

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<v Speaker 1>I received calls from him last week, which I did

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<v Speaker 1>not get I saw this thing that I could not

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<v Speaker 1>return a call to and I was told on the

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<v Speaker 1>last evening those calls were coming from him.

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<v Speaker 3>So I have not talked to him, but I do

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<v Speaker 3>know this.

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<v Speaker 1>I know what it is to be associated with people

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<v Speaker 1>going through dehabilitating illnesses. My late life spent thirty years

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<v Speaker 1>fighting diabetes that led to heart failure or stroke, told

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<v Speaker 1>kidney failure, and I know what that's like. My father

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<v Speaker 1>died from prostrate cancer, my mother from multiple my MoMA,

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<v Speaker 1>and so these diseases that he has worked so hard

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<v Speaker 1>to help alleviate and eliminate, to see him become a

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<v Speaker 1>victim to one, it's a little bit disheartening. But I

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<v Speaker 1>hope he will come along well, and I plan to

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<v Speaker 1>talk with him very soon.

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<v Speaker 2>Well. And we extend our well wishes to the former

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<v Speaker 2>president as well, and we're sorry for your loss as Congressman.

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<v Speaker 2>But we just heard from President Trump in the Oval

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<v Speaker 2>Office suggesting that somebody is not telling the facts around

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<v Speaker 2>this diagnosis. There's dark corners of the Internet where people

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<v Speaker 2>are also questioning the timing of this announcement, And I

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<v Speaker 2>wonder if it saddens you, sir, to see this kind

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<v Speaker 2>of erosion of trust.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, trust has been erouting for a long time in

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<v Speaker 1>this country when it comes to our governmental process.

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<v Speaker 3>This is not anything new.

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<v Speaker 1>I've been talking about this now for about ten years.

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<v Speaker 1>I just left the meeting before coming out here when

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<v Speaker 1>I talked about the erosion of trust in our government,

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<v Speaker 1>erosion of trust in the system. Whether or not we

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<v Speaker 1>are going to continue to work together to try to

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<v Speaker 1>build a more perfect union.

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<v Speaker 3>We're going to go the way the country went back in.

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<v Speaker 1>The eighteen seventies when we initiated that which became known

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<v Speaker 1>as Jim Crow. I referred to Project twenty twenty five

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<v Speaker 1>as Jim Crow two point zero. And if you look

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<v Speaker 1>through that project, you will see throughout that those nine

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<v Speaker 1>hundred ages or all kinds of things that undermined the media,

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<v Speaker 1>undermine the government, undermine the private sector.

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<v Speaker 3>These are just things that are eroding.

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<v Speaker 1>And so I know that people, no matter what they

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<v Speaker 1>see here these days, they're not going to believe it.

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<v Speaker 1>So I have no idea when the cancer was first detected.

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<v Speaker 1>I do know this that hindsight is twenty twenty which

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<v Speaker 1>all of us because they have the benefit of hindsight

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<v Speaker 1>as we go through the process of making decisions about

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<v Speaker 1>our lives and our livelihoods.

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<v Speaker 3>It's good to have you.

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<v Speaker 4>Back with US Congressman Democratic Congressman Jim Clyburn of South Carolina.

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<v Speaker 3>We thank you.