MSNBC "The Ed Show" - Transcript
Interview
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Congressman Pascrell, Boehner not being able to get enough votes. What do you with make of that tonight?
REP. BILL PASCRELL (D), NEW JERSEY: He can`t control his own caucus, it`s quite obvious -- 50 votes going south on him. You know, I`m from Jersey, so we`re going to fight this out. We`re going to get the money that we need to get to help not only New Jersey, but the 52 other -- the 52 districts throughout the Eastern Seaboard and the 15 states that were hammered by Irene.
I agree with Governor Christie of our own state that this is not a time to have politics. We have never done this during tornadoes, hurricanes, snowstorms in Dakota. Americans come to help Americans. They don`t affect Democrats or Republicans, these storms, they affect everybody.
If you go through my district, which is probably one of the hardest hit of all of these 52 districts, Ed, you`ll see that people can`t get back into their homes. Many of the bridges have probably been really, really
minimized, so that we cannot use them any longer. We need that money from FEMA and we need it up-front.
SCHULTZ: Yes.
PASCRELL: Because we don`t know what the real damage is in this storm. We do not know. We have no idea of the health matters, the environmental matters, let alone the destruction on our streets.
So, for the Republican Party to try to put a string attached to this emergency money, which we`ve never had before, I`m not going to accept that.
SCHULTZ: Well, Congressman McDermott, we`ve known all along that they`re a radical bunch, but today, I think, it`s a new chapter. I mean, John Boehner could not get enough votes, because he didn`t go deep enough on spending cuts.
Is there any limit that these Republicans -- what is the limit that they`ll go to? Is there any line drawn that they will stop, just continuing, pounding away? It`s all about defeating President Obama and stopping government at this point. That`s what it seems like.
Your thoughts?
REP. JIM MCDERMOTT (D), WASHINGTON: Well, Mitch McConnell said it a year and a half ago that his job was to prevent the president from being re-elected. And they will do anything, as they did today. If you will
take hostage people who have been ravaged by a hurricane and ravaged by an earthquake in the central part of the United States, or in the eastern border of the United States, you are willing to take anybody hostage. They have no scruples whatsoever.
This is a religious element in the Republican Party that John Boehner has absolutely no control. He`s not running that thing anymore. It`s being run by the radicals, who are basically nihilists.
They don`t want government. They don`t think government should solve anything. God did it and God will fix it and they don`t want to use the government.
SCHULTZ: Is there going to be a special session, Congressman McDermott, this weekend? You`re scheduled to be gone next week, Congress is going to adjourn.
What do you make? I mean, the fact of the matter is, we`re headed for another shutdown unless there`s action. What do you think?
MCDERMOTT: I think there will ultimately be enough adults in the room who understand what America is, and that we take care of people when we need to take care of them and that we want jobs.
When you think about the fact that you got increasing home foreclosures, even today, in my district, one of the districts that`s done very well, you know this country is in problems.
SCHULTZ: Yes.
MCDERMOTT: And there are enough adults who are going to say, we can`t close the government down. That`s crazy. We will get the votes and get out of there.
SCHULTZ: I want to ask both of you, quickly.
Congressman Pascrell, what about President Obama, now taking it to the wealthiest Americans? Isn`t this a slam dunk for the Democrats to support him on this, saying that the wealthy Americans have got to pay more? I mean, is he going to get enough support from his own party to push this through? What do you think?
SCHULTZ: Is there going to be a special session, Congressman McDermott, this weekend? You`re scheduled to be gone next week, Congress is going to adjourn.
What do you make? I mean, the fact of the matter is, we`re headed for another shutdown unless there`s action. What do you think?
MCDERMOTT: I think there will ultimately be enough adults in the room who understand what America is, and that we take care of people when we need to take care of them and that we want jobs.
When you think about the fact that you got increasing home foreclosures, even today, in my district, one of the districts that`s done very well, you know this country is in problems.
SCHULTZ: Yes.
MCDERMOTT: And there are enough adults who are going to say, we can`t close the government down. That`s crazy. We will get the votes and get out of there.
SCHULTZ: I want to ask both of you, quickly.
Congressman Pascrell, what about President Obama, now taking it to the wealthiest Americans? Isn`t this a slam dunk for the Democrats to support him on this, saying that the wealthy Americans have got to pay more? I mean, is he going to get enough support from his own party to push this through? What do you think?
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