McCarthy Pushes for Immediate End to Pandemic Emergencies as Biden Won’t Until May

FOX BUSINESS NETWORK ANCHOR, SEAN DUFFY: This week, President Biden will meet with Kevin McCarthy, Speaker.

However, he said this earlier today about negotiations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP).

QUESTION: What do you tell Speaker McCarthy when he declares he wants to negociate?

JOE BIDEN PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES : Show me your budget, and I will show it to you.

(END VIDEO CLIP).

DUFFY

Leader McCarthy — I mean, not leader — Speaker McCarthy, good to see you. I was downgrading your performance. Congratulations, by the way, on the big speaker’s win. I haven’t spoke to you since.

Talk to me about Wednesday’s negotiations with Joe Biden. And I’m doing a two-part question for you, which I know you don’t like.

(LAUGHTER)

DUFFY : Are all the Republicans sticking together? You won a very small majority. It’s great to see you all rally together and fight for this cause.

REP. KEVIN McCATHY (R-CA),: Yes.

First, let me say congratulations to you two. I’m so happy to be part of the hottest TV show. You guys are amazing. You guys are both my favorite. And I’m so excited for what happens in the future.

DUFFY : Thank you Mr. Speaker.

MCCARTHY: So let me do a good job, so you invite me back, OK?

DUFFY: Absolutely.

MCCARTHY – Yes, we do.

For the president to say he doesn’t want to negotiate something this large, I mean, when you think back to 2011, when he was vice president, they even called the negotiations after the debt — over the debt ceiling the Biden negotiations.

I mean, to think that the president believes there’s no place in government you can’t cut and have a savings for the hardworking taxpayers, there’s so much waste out there. And we need to return to a balance.

Consider this. We currently have 120 percent GDP and 120% of our debt. We haven’t been this place since World War II. Our debt is now greater than our economy. It’s like giving your child a credit card, they charge it up, you’re responsible for the charges, but do you just raise the limit? Or do you look at, what are we spending on, and let’s eliminate some of this?

It is done by every family. Every business. And when I’m going to go see the president, that’s exactly what I’m going to tell him. We need to sit down together, find common ground, find where we can eliminate the waste, and let’s put our country back on a path where we can balance and give our future brighter than before.

It looked like we were fighting back when we first came into power, according to the Republican Party. Because we only have five seats, I believe that this was a very good thing. Greg Steube will be returning home in a few weeks. He fell from a tree. So we’re going to work very closely together.

And I think you’re going to find us more united than ever before. Consider what we did the week before. We created the Select Committee on China bipartisanally, got 146 Democrats to join us, and got 113 Democrats on board to vote against this president’s plan to sell oil from our reserve to China.

For the first time in seven year, we had an open floor process. Anyone can propose an amendment. The Democrats were shocked because they’d never allow you to do that.

DAGEN McDOOWELL, FOX BUSINESS ANCHOR : This runaway inflation was caused by all the spending of the Democrats.

MCCARTHY: Yes. Exactly.

MCDOWELL

However, Democrats are proposing in the House an 8.7 percent raise for federal employees, despite the fact that most Americans have not received an inflation adjustment raise.

MCCARTHY: Yes.

Federal workers received the same increase as military personnel, more than 4 percent.

MCDOWELL: Right.

MCCARTHY: And the real challenge here, though, is, we’re putting a bill on the floor to end this pandemic.

Did you know that 47 percent are not yet in work for federal employees? After we won the majority, I was elected speaker. One of my first actions was to get members of Congress back to work. For the first time in history, members of Congress didn’t have to show up, and they kept getting paid.

People must have a work ethic. People should be willing to go to work. And we’re going to pass that bill this week that brings — brings those federal employees back to work to provide the service that they’re getting — that the taxpayers are paying them for.

You can think about it. You’re right that the Democrats, when they were in the majority for those four years, they increased discretionary spending by 30 percent, $400 billion. You know how much discretionary spending rose in eight years when Sean and I were both in the majority as representatives. Zero.

It dropped $10 billion. That’s the difference between us, in eight years, no increase, in four years by 30 percent, which brought us inflation, which brought us our economic problems where you can’t afford the eggs or others. And we’re going to change all that in this negotiation.

MCDOWELL

MCCARTHY: Yes.

MCDOWELL: He went so far as to claim that federal workers are entitled to this raise and require it because of the brutal personal attacks by Donald Trump, the former President.

So, I just wanted to note that, that that’s why federal workers deserve a raise of almost 9 percent. But, Sean, continue.

DUFFY: I don’t think, Mr. Speaker, you’re going for that.

But you’re making a good point, which is the fact that the Democrats racked up this credit card…

MCCARTHY: Yes.

DUFFY: … and now they’re coming to you in the majority and say, hey, Speaker McCarthy and Republicans in this new majority, we want you to pay the bill for us with no spending cuts, which makes no sense to me.

But Joe Biden keeps talking about this being catastrophic if you don’t raise the debt limit. Well, if it was catastrophic, wouldn’t he sit down and negotiate? Wouldn’t he take a position of, Kevin, I got some things I really love here, you got some things that you love, but let’s figure out how we move forward?

You shouldn’t dig your heels in.

MCCARTHY: It’s not.

We have now reached the statutory debt limit. But let’s be honest. There’s hundreds of billions of dollars. So this doesn’t come to fruition until sometime in June. It would be a great time to get together, as our founders intended. You must find compromise.

Voters decided that Republicans would be the majority in the House. He is the president. The Senate has a tiny majority of Democrats. So the only person who’s being irresponsible that could affect the markets is the president by being that spoiled child, said, I will not talk, I will not meet. It’s enough to increase the debt limit.

This sounds like your 13-year old daughter who got a credit card. She then charges it up again and wants to spend even more. That’s not the way the government works.

DUFFY, Are you talking about my children, Mr. Speaker.

(LAUGHTER)

(CROSSTALK)

MCCARTHY : I’m sure you have a lot. They are all my favorites.

(LAUGHTER)

MCDOWELL – Fearmongering right out of the White House directly impacts the cost of borrowing to buy a home for all Americans.

DUFFY: Joe Biden.

MCDOWELL: If this language causes markets to move in your favor, it is not you but the president.

MCCARTHY: Exactly.

(CROSSTALK)

MCCARTHY: Well, think about what he’s — think about what he’s doing if he doesn’t find a path to put us on to balance.

Our debt will be our largest future payment.

DUFFY: Yes.

MCDOWELL: Right.

MCCARTHY: Our economy is more indebted than our debt.

We haven’t had this since World War II. We borrowed all of this money in World War II to save our country and save the entire world. It collapsed right after the war was finished. Right now, what they’re spending their money on is not the way that we would invest properly.

DUFFY: Could we change gears here, Mr. Speaker.

Because I can’t get enough of the story. Representative Adam Schiff, Eric Swalwell, and Ilhan Omar…

(LAUGHTER)

DUFFY: … they took to the media airwaves this last weekend about your decision to remove them from their committee assignments.

This is a great listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP).

REP. ERIC SWALWELL(D-CA): This Bakersfield B.S. It’s Kevin McCarthy weaponizing his ability to commit this political abuse.

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): I don’t accept the premise that this has anything to do with the conduct of any of the Democratic members. This is merely the weakness of Kevin McCarthy’s speakership, that he’s so reliant on these extreme members.

REP. ILHAN OMAR, D-MN: It is wrong to smear someone’s character, their love of their country, and the work they do on a committee.

It is also politically motivated.

(END VIDEO CLIP).

DUFFY: Mr. Speaker, I didn’t hear any of these three Democrats make those kinds of speeches when Nancy Pelosi took Marjorie Taylor Greene off of every single committee or Paul Gosar off every single committee.

They applauded the gesture. And now, what, they’re offended that they lost one of their prized committees?

MCCARTHY: Think about it.

This is not related to the removal of people by them. I’m talking about the Intel Committee. Sean, this is what you know. Here is the place where classified information is provided.

Swalwell was appointed by the Democrats to the job. The FBI then came to Congress and warned Congress that this person had a relationship to a Chinese spy.

When I was made leader, I received the briefing. He can’t get a security clearance in the private sector. He shouldn’t be allowed to join Intel.

And for him to claim it’s Bakersfield B.S., they’re attacking the rural voters. You’ve been to Bakersfield.

DUFFY: Beautiful.

MCCARTHY: And you know what’s interesting? Integrity is key.

We looked at Schiff, the chair. We saw how many times he lied about the American people.

They can also be members of other committees. They can’t be on Intel.

She said, however, that Congresswoman Omar stated that the way the rest the world sees America when it comes down to foreign affairs. It was all about the Benjamins, she said. She compared the American military with Hamas and the Taliban. She goes after 9/11, because something happened that day.

Lookit, they can be on other committees, and they’re allowed to. That’s the difference between Republicans and Democrats.

DUFFY: You’re too nice, Mr. McCarthy. I would have kicked all of them off any committee.

(LAUGHTER)

DUFFY: But that’s just me.

I’m sorry. Dagen, go ahead.

MCDOWELL: Also, Swalwell, I would not expect him to know this, because he’s — well, I’m going to edit myself, Mr. Speaker.

(CROSSTALK)

MCDOWELL – But you don’t insult Bakersfield.

MCCARTHY: That’s right. Merle Haggard.

MCDOWELL: And you insult all of — well, yes.

You don’t insult country, you insult Western. We love both.

MCCARTHY: Yes. MCCARTHY: Yes.

MCDOWELL: He is a dipa-dee doo-dah.

(LAUGHTER)

MCCARTHY: I’m born and raised in Bakersfield, and I could not be prouder.

MCDOWELL: Exactly.

DUFFY: We have those — you grow little carrots there, right, the little mini carrots?

(CROSSTALK)

MCCARTHY: That’s right.

And for the world to know, two families, now, they have sold — they grow 80 percent of all the carrots in the country. You know those tiny carrots? They’re really — really just big carrots. We will chop them, then charge you a little more. Then you can buy them. And we are grateful for America.

(LAUGHTER)

MCDOWELL – You know Bakersfield well.

DUFFY: I was there along with the speaker.

MCCARTHY: Yes.

MCDOWELL: Before we go, here’s a gem from Congressman Lieu that happened at the end of last week.

Gas prices have risen 32 cents per month, according to me. They’re still up from a year ago.

MCCARTHY: They’re up $1.20 since the president has been there.

MCDOWELL: Right. Exactly.

But here’s what Congressman Ted Lieu had to say about Joe Biden and gas.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP).

REP.TED LIEU (D -CA) : I think you can summarize the debate over the last two days in one sentence. Joe Biden reduced your gas prices, and Republicans are angry about it. That’s what this is about.

We should give the president more freedom to use the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

(END VIDEO CLIPI)

MCDOWELL: Mr. Speaker, before we go.

(LAUGHTER)

MCCARTHY – I’ll tell you that they are telling lies.

Think about the president’s actions, which brought us the largest inflation in 41 years through their spending. And now he doesn’t want to negotiate about it. He’s opened a border that now people on the terrorist watch list, more come across the country in one month than came across under Trump’s four years.

He sold our Strategic Petroleum Reserves, which are supposed to be used for an emergency to China. We’ve seen him repeatedly criticize former presidents for keeping classified documents. He’s had them in his garage when he was a U.S. senator.

Sean, you are aware of this. I don’t know any member that could walk out of a SCIF with top secret documents. But he did.

DUFFY: Impossible.

MCCARTHY – I’m referring to the fact that he has repeatedly failed this country.

But the American voter has rerouted the House’s course. And we’re going to stand up and keep our Commitment to America, make sure you’re safe on this border, bring us energy independence, let parents have a say in their kids’ education. And, yes, we’re going to hold this government accountable.

MCDOWELL: Kevin McCarthy, speaker, it’s great to meet you. We appreciate your participation.

DUFFY : Thank you Mr. Speaker.

(CROSSTALK)

MCCARTHY: Congrats on the amazing show. I’m watching it. You are amazing. And I’m really excited. I hope that you’ll invite me back.

DUFFY : Thank you Mr. Speaker. You are the best.

MCDOWELL: We are very grateful.

DUFFY: We appreciate it.

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