MSNBC "Hardball with Chris Matthews" - Transcript: Immigration

Interview

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

MATTHEWS: One of the Senate Democrats that Mitch McConnell`s targeting is
Democratic senator Mark Warner of Virginia, who has gone on record
criticizing the president`s executive actions on illegal immigration. Last
fall, he told reporters, "A big issue like immigration, the best way to get
a comprehensive solution is to take this through the legislative process."

Senator Warner joins us now from Capitol Hill. It looks to me, Senator,
like Mitch McConnell has been very much the wily fox here. He`s gotten the
heat off his party by saying he`s not going to hold up funding for Homeland
Security at this time of theories and worries about terrorism coming at us.
At the same time, he`s making folks like you, who are more moderate
Democrats, deal with the issue of the way the president handled the issue
of illegal immigration last fall.

SEN. MARK WARNER (D), VIRGINIA: Well, Chris, let`s take them one at a
time. You know, the fact is, it would be crazy to cut off funding to
Homeland Security. We have 17,000 DHS employees in Virginia alone, the
idea of al Shabaab putting out videos, threatening American malls -- this
is not the time to stop funding for Homeland Security.

And both sides, Democrats and Republicans, had already agreed on the
numbers. So this is a simply add-on by the Republicans. Now, at the end
of the day, whether this plan that the majority leader has put forward -- I
think you`re (ph) still going to be seeing what will happen in the House.
If we end up coming back and the House simply sticks back on these
conditions, we`ve not made progress. So we need to see a bill get to the
president that he can sign before Friday night at midnight so that
Americans can go around their daily lives recognizing that Homeland
Security`s going to get funded.

MATTHEWS: But why doesn`t the Senate just do its job and pass a clean
bill? Why (INAUDIBLE) Harry Reid number (ph) -- He`s up to something here,
Harry Reid. He is doing something here. You guys, especially him, seem to
be worried that you have to vote on this immigration freestanding part of
it.

WARNER: No, I`m not -- no, I -- listen, as someone who said I wish the
president would have done this legislatively, I think they should have
taken up the immigration bipartisan bill that the Senate passed, 14
Republicans voted for. And we have already seen now the court put a hold
on that action. They`re going to resolve that.

I would not vote for that standalone bill that rolls back the November 14
executive order because that executive order, whether it was for dreamers,
whether it was for some of their parents, whether it was some of the kids
who`ve been previous dreamers who had not been covered by the earlier
action -- I think that would have been all part of the immigration reform
that I supported in the past. Why would I vote against it now?

MATTHEWS: Do you believe it`s constitutional, what the president did last
fall?

WARNER: I think the courts...

(CROSSTALK)

MATTHEWS: ... executive.

WARNER: I think the courts are going to rule on that.

MATTHEWS: Where`s your ruling?

WARNER: Hey, listen, that`s why I never became a lawyer and became a
business guy (INAUDIBLE) instead.

MATTHEWS: OK. One last time. Why doesn`t the Senate do its job and pass
a clean Homeland Security bill to fund through the next segment of the --
from now to October 1st?

WARNER: Chris...

MATTHEWS: Why not just do that and expect the House to do what it has to
do?

WARNER: Chris, you and I know that -- you and I and a few folks who follow
the insides/outsides of who`s up and who`s down are very few in number in
terms of House and Senate. What the American people want, what Virginia --
people of Virginia want is they want to make sure that Homeland Security
doesn`t go without funding after Friday night at midnight. The only way we
do that is if we get a bill that has no riders to the president of the
United States so he can sign it.

MATTHEWS: Anyway, you`re my kind of Democrat, so I hope it doesn`t hurt
you to hear that. But thank you so much...

WARNER: Thanks, Chris.

MATTHEWS: ... Senator Mark Warner, a reasonable guy from Virginia.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source