Sparks Fly As Accusations Of Lying About GOP Budget Are Traded By Dan Crenshaw, Marc Veasey

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The House Energy Committee markup hearing on the GOP reconciliation budget bill sees fireworks.

Transcript

00:00Eddie goes back. The gentleman from Texas is recognized. Three minutes for an opening statement.

00:03Thank you, Mr. Chairman. For months, literally months, point of order.

00:08I'm sorry. I'm sorry. The gentleman from Texas is recognized.

00:12Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Look, I just want to respond. Look, I have a young daughter,

00:19and I would be fearful.

00:20Would you start on? I'm sorry. Mr. Vesey was from Texas, too, so I just want to clarify. I was

00:24recognizing Mr. Crenshaw, so I have to say his name.

00:27It's all right. Mr. Crenshaw is recognized for five minutes. Sorry.

00:31Some might say there's too many Texans, but I don't think there's enough.

00:35I mean, at least we could agree on that, Mr. Vesey.

00:40Look, just to respond here, I mean, look, I have a young daughter, and if she was on Medicaid

00:45and we were at risk of taking that away from her, I would share that fear.

00:51The problem with this narrative is that there's no reason to have that fear.

00:54I think the crime here is scaring someone like George.

01:02No, you don't, because, well, I'm sorry.

01:06I am sorry that, here's my apology to you.

01:09I am sorry that people lied to you.

01:12I am sorry that so many people in the media and on the left have lied to you about what's

01:19in this bill.

01:20George, I want to tell you, you have nothing to worry about.

01:25Your Medicaid is not going anywhere.

01:27I'm sorry if they flew all the way here from Michigan.

01:33I'm sorry for that.

01:36That's not fair for people to be lied to and to be scared on purpose for political reasons.

01:45Read the bill.

01:47I know it hasn't been out that long, and I know it's complicated stuff, but over the

01:52next 24 to 28 hours, we're going to go through it all.

01:56And I just want to say to George and his family, you're going to go home feeling a lot better.

02:01Yield back.

02:04Gentleman yields back.

02:07The chair recognizes the other gentleman from Texas, Mr. Veazey.

02:09Mr. Chairman, thank you very much.

02:13You are going to hear a lot about lies.

02:18Let me tell you who the biggest liar of them all is.

02:21That is Donald Trump.

02:22Donald Trump promised he wouldn't touch Medicaid.

02:26That was a lie.

02:28My Republican colleagues, my MAGA colleagues swore up and down that they wouldn't touch Medicaid.

02:33It was a lie.

02:36Objection.

02:36Now, hold on a second, Mr. Chairman.

02:39Everybody over here has been hollering about lying, and now all of a sudden they're objected.

02:44All right, gentlemen.

02:44Come on now.

02:45What?

02:45Come on now.

02:46The objection is a reference from the President of the United States in relationship to lying,

02:51which is in violation of the rules.

02:52They've been hollering about lying the whole time, and now I get into my spiel, and then

02:57they want to make an objection about it?

02:59Come on.

02:59Mr. Chairman, lying generally is acceptable.

03:01Lying specifically is not.

03:02Come on now.

03:03Come on now.

03:04All right.

03:04The gentleman will suspend.

03:05And they've been calling us liars this whole time.

03:12Can I resume, Mr. Chairman?

03:13Just one second.

03:14All we're saying is members of Congress, members of the Senate, and the President in our speech

03:29and our debate is protected from insults.

03:33So we should not use the word lying and so forth moving forward.

03:36I get it.

03:36I've heard it said before.

03:38You guys have been saying it the whole hearing.

03:39We'll proceed.

03:40You guys have been saying the word lying the whole hearing.

03:43Excuse me.

03:44This is ridiculous.

03:45Mr. Chairman.

03:46Point of clarification.

03:48Mr. Chairman.

03:48Let's just not use the word lying as we talk about each other.

03:51I'm just saying in general.

03:52Mr. Chairman, point of order.

03:56Just just point of order.

03:58Gentlemen, I recognize the report of order.

03:59I have a question for you, Mr. Chairman.

04:00Yes.

04:01In your opening remarks, you talked about Joe Biden.

04:04That's right.

04:05So can you explain to me the difference there?

04:07Okay.

04:07I said I talked about the Biden-Harris policies.

04:11I didn't say Biden-Harris lied to the American people.

04:13I didn't say that.

04:14I didn't say anything like that.

04:15So your members have called us liars in the last 15 minutes.

04:19I've asked I've asked everybody to spend on the on the word lying.

04:23We will we will go forward.

04:26And so, Mr. Vesey, you're recognized to continue unless you're my friend, you're recognized to

04:32continue.

04:32But let's let's try not to use it.

04:35You're right.

04:35I admit the word line has been used.

04:37It's been brought now as a as a point of order has been made on that.

04:41So let's let's all suspend using the word lying for each other.

04:45So, Mr. Vesey, you're recognized.

04:46Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

04:47So Donald Trump, my Republican MAGA colleague, stop capping.

04:51Stop capping to the American public.

04:53This is a betrayal.

04:55Republicans are butchering Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, and they're carving it up.

05:00So billionaires, so literally billionaires like Musk and Bezos and the others can have

05:07a tax break.

05:08So the good old boys can have a tax break and the people that are out there struggling cannot

05:13have Medicaid.

05:15It's terrible.

05:17It's arson.

05:18And Republicans are the arsonists.

05:20And who are the targets?

05:22The targets are children.

05:23The targets are mothers.

05:24The targets are seniors.

05:26The targets are people with disabilities.

05:27The targets are hard-working Americans.

05:31And again, $884 billion.

05:34Think about that.

05:35Those are the three people that I just talked about, those billionaires.

05:38It's so they can have a tax cut.

05:41And it's so people like Carla, who is a cancer survivor that lives near the district that I

05:48represent.

05:49And Carla wants to tell you her story.

05:51She's someone whose life was saved by Medicaid, but I'd rather have Carla share her story.

05:57Carla, can you share your story?

05:59Yes.

06:00Thank you, Congressman.

06:01My name is Carla Prothro, and I am a seven-year-old lung cancer survivor.

06:06And the daughter of a World War II veteran, who I know is-

06:10You can't play a recording on a-

06:11It's not a recording.

06:12It's a live call, Mr. Chairman.

06:14We don't allow other people to testify on your life-

06:17I was diagnosed with day-

06:19So, gentlemen, hold on, hold on, hold on, Carla.

06:24That's not-

06:25Mr. Chairman.

06:26I know, yeah.

06:27Gentlemen, what's this been?

06:29Mr. Chairman.

06:30The gentleman can proceed.

06:32Mr. Chairman, these are-

06:34Can Carla be heard or not?

06:36The rules do not allow someone to speak in your opening time.

06:40I'm sorry.

06:42It cannot be.

06:43She's not-

06:43That's not in with the rules.

06:45Well, Carla, I apologize that they won't hear from you.

06:48I don't know why they don't want to hear from you, because-

06:51It's the rules.

06:52You're their people.

06:55You're the people that helped them get elected, and they want to cut you off.

07:00And I don't understand why they want to cut you off.

07:02I don't understand why they're afraid to hear from you.

07:05And I'm not sure why now, all of a sudden, they want to ignore voices like Carla.

07:10They also probably want to ignore voices like Virginia, who lives in Ms. Kamek's district.

07:16She has multiple dystrophy.

07:18She relies on Medicaid for her home health care.

07:20She told us that during a lapse in her coverage, she considered calling 911 just so she could

07:26get in and out of bed.

07:29These are the type of people that they're betraying, Mr. Chairman.

07:32I have a lot more stories to tell.

07:34There's a lot more that came from, but I'm out of time.

07:37This is sad that we are doing this to the most vulnerable people in our country.

07:41I yield back.

07:42Jimman yields back.

07:43Is there anyone on the Republican side seeking recognition?

07:46Seeing none, the general aide from Illinois is recognized for three minutes for opening

07:48statement.

07:51It's a shame that the conversation about threats to Medicaid continues.

07:56These are dark times in our country.

07:59So let's be clear about what today's markup is and isn't about.

08:04This isn't about reducing fraud, waste, or abuse.

08:09None of us.

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