Face the Nation: Rep. Josh Gottheimer
Interview
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"That's not going anywhere. I mean but I -- but I think to Brian's point we have to address both. And I think it's a false choice to say we want to do one or the other. But clearly we know that we've - we can make it the next 45 days to support Ukraine and make sure we stand up to Putin and to China and Iran, which is critical to our national security and to our allies. But also we need to make sure that we deal with and deal with the challenges at the border and border security and live up to our values there, right?"
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"Well, I think we can't -- we know that we can get through the next 45 days. But it's a matter of days and weeks and not months and years in terms of what we've available to make sure that we -- Ukraine has what they need to stand up to Putin, (INAUDIBLE) march. So, I think we have to make sure that we get some legislation to the floor quickly. I know the speaker is open to that. He has signaled that he's open to that. I think that's key. And - but we also - we have other challenges and we could do more than one thing at once."
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"Sounds like Brian was open to Hakeem there. I don't know."
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"You know, I -"
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"The way I look at this, you've got a civil war raging in the Republican caucus and - and has it been since the beginning, right, with extremists trying to take out common sense. And they keep doing it time and again. And so I'll leave that to Brian. You know, that's their caucus. And I'm from Jersey. We don't mess with other people's families. And so I'll leave it to them.
But - but I'll tell you what we're very open to from a policy front. We continue to do this. As you saw yesterday, as you saw the debt ceiling, when - if there's bipartisan ideas brought to the table, we're always going to be at that table negotiating in good faith. That's what the Problem Solvers Caucus does. It's how we got yesterday done. Right, I you remember, that's how yesterday happened. You had every Democrat plus one help cover for the 91 Republicans they lost. We all came together for the good of the country to stop a government shutdown and make sur we help people and help families. That's the kind of stuff we should be sitting around a table about and negotiating in good faith. And we'll continue to do that."
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"Well, I've said the only way these things are getting done is with Democrats, right?"
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"And so -- and bipartisan governing. And that's good for the country. The country -- people want us to put the country over party."
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"And we're going to work around - and I think the point is, we're going to work around the clock these next 45 days. But this cycle of insanity has to stop. And that's what Brian and I believe, right, we need long-term solutions. We can't keep doing this and wasting our time. We have real challenges in the country."
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"Right. And - and -"
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"That's why we were behind that deal, you know."
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"A hundred percent. A hundred percent."
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"A hundred percent."
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"Yes."
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"But the extremists, you saw how we got there."
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"These ultra-right wing extremists keep fighting against reasonableness and common sense. They refused to vote for the defense bill, right? Multiple times they kept trying to take it down."
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"And that's the point. That's why you need bipartisan solutions right now in this Congress. It's the only way we're going to be able to govern."
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"He called for the government to shut down, President Trump."
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"Right."
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"Yes."
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"We have a five-seat majority. That's all they had. The only way we're going to get stuff done for the country is by us working together. That's the only way, as we're seeing."
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"You bet."
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