Fox News "The Ingraham Angle" - Transcript: Interview with Rep. Kevin McCarthy
Interview
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INGRAHAM: Big news night. And joining me now House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, well, apparently is the only person left on Capitol Hill. Congressman. OK. Well what here we are Congressman, I mean, you should be you know stuffing stockings at home and hanging the mistletoe and all the fun stuff you do in California. But here we are the government will shut down in two hours did you all wait too long?
REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY, R-CALIF., MAJORITY LEADER: I don't know that we waited too long, if we look at the House, because the House has passed the funding before. I mean, as you know we've had the 5 billion in there. The challenge really lies -- and this is what the viewers have to understand.
The House did pass a bill that protects and secures the border. The Senate it takes 60 votes. So when it really comes to the question of shutting down it comes to Schumer. Does Schumer make a decision to shut down or not? And this is a fundamentally different shutdown than any of those in the past because we have already funded three-quarters of the government.
So when it comes to defense, our military men and others -- and women, they're all taken care of in this process. But this is too important to let keep going. We know what's happening along this border. We know we needed to have be secure. And think about what Schumer just said a couple weeks ago. He was for providing money for the border, but he's afraid it would affect Nancy Pelosi's vote for speaker January 3rd.
INGRAHAM: Congressman, but I got to tell you though, back in October you and I talked about this at the time. When Paul Ryan said we're going to do this big fight about the border in December. We're going to have conversation, it's going to happen. We all knew that was ridiculous, OK. I mean, you were not in that camp.
But for two years, Paul Ryan -- and I everyone hears me says, I like him very much as a person. He has not been on the President's side on this wall. He never wanted a wall, he never believed in the wall, he didn't like it, he didn't like a lot of what Trump was saying about the wall. So here we are at the 11th hour and this is all on Trump's shoulders? I find it outrageous that's on the President's shoulders. He's someone who actually wants this done.
I got to tell you Mazie Hirono, I know you and she are good friends. Mazie Hirono, Congressman -- Senator -- excuse me from Hawaii, on television blaming Fox News and basically talk radio. Let's watch.
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SEN. MAZIE HIRONO, D-HI: He's got some rightwing loud people yelling at him on Fox News and suddenly he says, "Well I don't think I'm going to sign it". So it is very true that he will bring on this shutdown and he has to take responsibility for it. Any effort on his part to blame the Democrats will be such --
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INGRAHAM: Well, she said the BS word there Congressman.
MCCARTHY: She does say a lot of crazy things.
INGRAHAM: Yes, is this a Fox News, talk radio, rightwing pundit shutdown or did the President kind of say, it's do or die here. Got to do it.
MCCARTHY: You know, the President campaigned on this. The President said he was going to fight for this all along. And this really comes down -- that it takes 60 votes in the Senate. But the President is doing what he promised, just like he's done across the country on everything else from getting tax reform and others. This President is a fighter.
And I know you might disagree with me, but Paul has been fighting for this wall as well, maybe didn't think at the right time. But here we are, we're in this fight and what's changed this week -- remember when Nancy Pelosi was sitting in the Oval Office. She looked at the President said, "Well, you don't have the votes in the House". Well, we overwhelmingly proved that's not true and we had sent the bill now to the Senate.
So it really lies with the Senate and the challenge there, as you've watched the vote before. It comes down to what Schumer has some power. And that's unfortunate for the President, but more importantly, it's unfortunate for America. We see what's happening across this border. We need have a secure border.
INGRAHAM: Got to the --
MCCARTHY: It has to. But that's why I'm still at work right now.
INGRAHAM: Yes, well again, I beg to differ. I think Paul Ryan could have gotten that the votes for that Goodlatte bill. You he came within like what 13 votes of passing that and everyone was told it wasn't going to happen. I think it could have happened and it would have happened.
But, look, you're right. I mean the Senate has the cards now. We really appreciate your spending time with us tonight and thank you so much Congressman McCarthy. All right we have a lot more to get to. Coming up the Democrats whiplash over war policy, Friday Follies with Raymond Arroyo, a brazen attack on two Marines by Antifa. All coming up stay.
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