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INT BROLL REPUBLICAN SENATE AND HOUSE LEADERS PRESSER ON OBAMACARE Thursday, September 19, 2013 TRANSCRIPT: Press Conference with House and Senate Republicans SLUG: 1230 SEN REP LEADERSHIP RS15 78 AR: 16X9 12:34:14 REPRESENTATIVE TOM GRAVES (R-GA): Well, let me thank you for being here today I mean, today's a great day for the American people Over the last several weeks we have all been in discussions, both House and Senate, as to how best to accomplish the goals that we all believe in, and that is, number one, keeping the government open and protecting our constituents from the harmful effects of Obamacare 12:34:48 We want to thank the House leadership, Speaker Boehner, Leader -- Kevin McCarthy, for moving forward in such a bold fashion to put this bill on the floor tomorrow, which we're in full support of We want to thank them for listening not only to our conferences but also to the voices -- and which we represent -- from our districts, and that's our constituents I expect that we'll have a very strong showing in the House tomorrow as we vote on this bill, and I encourage all our House Republicans to support the bill But as we turn to the Senate, make no mistake; it turns to Harry Reid And the question will be posed to him, and it's a choice he's going to have to make: Will he protect the American people from the harmful effects of Obamacare or will he coldly force this upon them? 12:35:25 The other question is -- that he's going to have answer to the American people is, why's he willing to protect big business and special interest from the dangers of this health care law and yet not protect the hardworking families of America? We have made our choice, and we're making it clear today We are here to protect the American people Now the question turns to Harry Reid What will Harry do? Now I'd like to turn it over to senator from Utah 12:35:56 SENATOR MIKE LEE (R-UT): Thanks, Tom Yesterday was a great day It was a day of victory for the many, many millions of Americans who have been speaking with a sustained voice over the last two months on this issue I want to thank and congratulate Speaker Boehner for making the courageous decision to stand with my friend Representative Graves and my other House colleagues who are up here with me today and, most importantly, for standing with the American people to bring forward this legislation that will keep government funded, keep everything in government funded, while defunding Obamacare 12:36:29 This is an important step It's one supported by the American people According to one recent poll, some 56 percent of Americans believe that Congress should pass a continuing resolution that funds government while defunding Obamacare We look forward to the passage of this resolution, and once that happens, we look forward to that resolution coming over to the Senate, where we demand, we expect, we hope to have an up-or-down vote, so that the people's elected representatives in that body can have an opportunity to weigh in on whether or not they're willing to protect the American people both from a shutdown and from the undue risky consequences of this unwise health care legislation Thank you SEN/REP : Jim 12:37:15 REPRESENTATIVE JIM JORDAN (R-OH): Everyone knows -- everyone knows the -- this law's not ready You don't just listen to Republicans, you listen to Democrats Mack -- Max Baucus called it a train wreck Howard Dean said it's going to lead to rationing of care James Hoffa said it's fundamentally going to change the 40-hour work week, going to hurt working Americans Everyone -- including the president -- the president knows this law;s not ready That's why he delayed it for big business, said you don't have to comply with the employer mandate The Chicago Tribune, the president's hometown newspaper, endorsed him twice, said in their editorial three weeks ago, delay the entire law 12:37:47 So everyone knows this thing is not ready Frankly, I don't think it'll ever be ready So let's just do what the American people expect us to do Let's fund our government and let's delay a bill, delay a law that's not ready, that's bad for the country -- simple as that And so I just want to commend my colleague Tom Graves for the work he's done and the rest of the folks up here and frankly our leadership for understanding, look, we want to stay on the side of the American people, do what's best for this country and fund our government and make sure this law doesn't happen 12:38:19 SENATOR TED CRUZ (R-TX): Two months ago, conventional wisdom in Washington said this day wasn't possible And yet I want to commend House conservatives for sticking their neck out I want to commend Tom Graves for sticking his neck out And I want to commend Speaker Boehner for listening to the American people and for leading For the House of Representatives to stand up and vote to defund Obamacare is a tremendous victory to the American people 12:38:51 And ultimately that is where this battle will be resolved In just a matter of weeks, over 14 million Americans have signed a national petition to defund Obamacare, because it's the biggest job- killer in this country, and it is hurting Americans, millions of Americans who are losing their jobs, who are forcibly being pushed into part-time work, 29 hours a week, who are seeing skyrocketing health insurance premiums and who are losing their health insurance Obamacare isn't working 12:39:16 With the House of Representatives' historic leadership, the ball now moves to the Senate and to Harry Reid 12:39:34 This is a moment for Republicans to unite, for every Senate Republican to stand shoulder to shoulder with the gentlemen here and the Republicans in the House who have been courageous doing the right thing And this is a moment ultimately for Harry Reid and the Democrats to decide for whom is it they work In my view, every elected official should listen to the American people And the American people are united: Obamacare isn't working; it's killing jobs And the people who are hurt the most by Obamacare are the most vulnerable among us -- young people, Hispanics, African Americans, single moms They're the ones losing their jobs They're the ones being pushed into 29 hours a week 12:40:03 And so today is a day to celebrate the historic leadership of the House of Representatives, and today is a day to continue to get ready to move forward, for every elected official in Washington to listen to the American people 12:40:20 REP : Many of you today will be writing about what happens here in Washington, DC, but the real story is about what is happening back on Main Street in our districts That's the real story Town hall after town hall, I heard real stories about jobs that were lost, health care coverage that was promised but now is not being delivered 12:40:45 And yet what we see is, is that we focus on the fight here when the fight really is about working with the hard-working American taxpayers back home 12:40:54 You know, the president has talked that this is a bill that just needs a little bit of tweaking, as if it were an app on an iPhone But the problem is, is that an app on the iPhone, when it doesn't work, game over has one meaning Game over has a totally different meaning when we're talking about health care, and it is time that we fight together And I just want to applaud our leadership, Speaker Boehner, and challenge those in the senate to stand with the American people and make sure that we turn the tide on what shouldn't have been implemented in the first place 12:41:33 REPRESENTATIVE MATT SALMON (R-AZ): This is the reason that I came to Congress The reason I came to Congress, after a 12-year hiatus, was because this bill is so oppressive and so hurtful, both to small businesses, individuals and, I believe, the American economy that I decided to come back I'm proud to be part of this fight What's more, I'm really proud of my Republican leadership I'm proud of the speaker for standing up and for listening to the American people I think it's wonderful 12:42:06 This really -- I don't know that it's Democrats against Republicans Sometimes I think it's more Washington establishment against Main Street Americans And I think that ultimately, Main Street America has to win 12:42:19 One other thing I'd like to just comment on The president knows -- he knows that this law isn't ready for prime time That's why he has postponed 41 out of 82 of the provisions of Obamacare They've either postponed them, changed them or altered them Everybody in this town knows that it's not ready for prime time The exchanges are supposed to open on October 1st, and none of them are ready In Arizona we're several months away And one of our community college districts in Arizona, the Maricopa Community College district, the largest one, has already reclassified 1,300 full-time employees to part-time status 12:42:52 This is bad stuff And we have to do everything we can to halt it, stop it And I hope that the president and Harry Reid care more about the American people and keeping government open, as we do, than their stubborn political pride And that's all this is about 12:43:13 REPRESENTATIVE JIM BRIDENSTINE: I can tell you after August it was clear where the public in my district is They want Obamacare repealed They want it defunded They want it dismantled They want it to go away I talked to businesses Just recently I talked to a business They've got 57 employees They're trying to get down to 49 Other businesses are moving full-time workers to part-time workers And this is not unique to the 1st District of Oklahoma; this is happening across our country And if you look at the jobs reports, that's what you'll see, which is why it's so important to our economy that this law be halted 12:43:47 I'd like to double down on the thank-you to the leadership in the House of Representatives for listening not only to the people but to the members of Congress as they have come and expressed their views 12:44:00 I would also like to thank Senator Mike Lee, Senator Ted Cruz for their leadership on this It's been said that first you win the argument, then you win the vote And these two gentlemen have been out in front on this winning the argument day in and day out The American people are with them So are many of us in the United States Congress And I'm looking forward to tomorrow's vote 12:44:24 REPRESENTATIVE RON DESANTIS (R-FL): I'm going to be very brief Most of you have written stories about how important it is for Washington to compromise I would dare say that every person who's here at this podium who has spoken to you today and who -- and who will speak to you today would want to get rid of Obamacare completely But the reality is that we have realized that the president and his party are not going to get rid of Obamacare So we're thinking that the best thing that we can do is delay this flawed law for the American people, just like Obama, President Obama, has done for his friends and the people that have his ear That's all we're asking for 12:44:58 I think it's a reasonable approach You all ask us and the American people ask us to reach a compromise I think this is a really good compromise We get to fund the government for an entire year We get to fund the government at the appropriate levels by only delaying Obamacare We're not asking for a shutdown Nobody here wants to shut down the government We just want to be reasonable, and we want to give the American people what they're asking for, which is relief from Obamacare, just like President Obama's friends received relief from Obamacare Thank you 12:45:35 REPRESENTATIVE MARLIN STUTZMAN (R-IN): Good morning Marlin Stutzman, Indiana's 3rd District I just want to say thank you to each member up here for their work on this latest proposal I just want to thank our leadership too because this is what the American people are asking for As I traveled home throughout the August recess, this was the number one issue until the Syrian issue arose And now that the Syrian issue is hopefully resolving itself, this is, again, the number one issue 12:46:07 Americans are feeling the hurt and the pain in the decisions that they have to make regarding Obamacare As I talked to a mother of a son who had a (touch of ?) autism, who lost his insurance, she was asking, what do I do now This is story that we heard over and over and over again as we traveled across the district and around the state And, you know, and I believe that this is our time This is when it matters Yes, we voted to repeal Obamacare 30 to 40 times, but this is when it really counts This is when it's time to put up or shut up because this is going to be a law that is we see already is hurting people, it's affecting families, and it is hurting the American economy And I think that I appreciate our leadership being willing to put this on the floor for a vote Let's get it over to the Senate Let's let our Senate colleagues have this fight because if President Obama and Senator Harry Reid want to force a law that we know by the NBC- Wall Street Journal polling is so unpopular with the American people, if they want to force it on the American people, that's their choice But as for us, we're going to stand with the American people And I know that's why we're on the right side today because the American people are with us Thank you very much for being here 12:47:29 REPRESENTATIVE RAUL LABRADOR (R-ID): Well, to me, this is just about fairness On July 3rd the president unilaterally delayed the employer mandate for big businesses In August the president and the administration through OPM cut a special deal for members of Congress And even though we had some news on Friday about labor unions, I would bet my bottom dollar that at some point, the administration will cut a special deal for unions And so what you have is a situation in which the harmful effects are imposed on society Those who have political connections to the administration or the corridors of powers in Washington relieve those burdens from themselves and leaving the rest of the American people holding the bag 12:48:11 And so we have the power of the purse in Congress If we can't use it for this basic principle of fairness, then I don't know what good the power of the purse is Q: Senator Cruz, just yesterday a senior House Republican aide said it's disappointing to see that Wendy Davis has more guts than Ted Cruz Now, he used a different word than guts (Laughter) But other Republicans have called you a phony and a joke How do you respond to that? 12:48:37 SEN CRUZ: Well, I'm always impressed with the courage of anonymous congressional aides (Laughter) You know, it is very easy in Washington to make this about personalities, to make this about people This is not about any of us This is about the American people This is about the people who are struggling because they can't find a job This is about the people who are having their hours forcibly reduced to 29 hours a week, and they can't feed their kids on 29 hours a week And so there will always be the back-and-forth of politics, but I can tell you one of the reasons I'm proud to stand with these gentlemen up here is that they're focused on doing our job, which is fixing the problem for the American people and bringing back jobs in the economy Obamacare is the biggest job killer in the entire country And if you want to understand this issue in one sentence, it comes down to the following: President Obama has granted waivers for giant corporations and members of Congress Why is President Obama threatening to shut down the federal government to deny those same waivers to hard-working American families? Q: Senator Cruz -- (inaudible) -- we'll give you some names though Yesterday, Congressman Tim Griffin of Arkansas said: You know, Senate Republicans are good at getting Facebook likes and town halls Representative Sean Duffy said: Cruz and Lee refuse to fight, raise white flag and surrender Speaker Boehner this morning: It's time for them to pick up the mantle and get the job done Will you filibuster this on the House floor, a la Rand Paul and drones? Is that the only choice you have right now? 12:50:16 SEN CRUZ: I will do everything necessary and anything possible to defund Obamacare Q: Filibuster? SEN CRUZ: I -- yes, and anything else -- any procedural means necessary Listen, this is the most important fight in the country And it's easy to focus on the political back and forth Listen, this is going to be an iterative process In all likelihood, it's not going to be a single shot CR and everything's resolved and done As soon as the House passes this into law, it's going to be in Harry Reid's court And he may well be able to hold his 54 Democrats to not listen to the American people, to threaten to shut down the federal government to deny American families the same special treatment that big corporations and members of Congress are getting But if that happens, then it's going to go back to the House of Representatives And what we need to do is we need to be making the case every day and every way to the American people Not about the petty political bickering -- Americans don't care about petty political bickering in Washington -- but on the substance And I'll tell you this, if and when we win this fight, it is going to be because House Republicans have stood up and showed the courage that they are showing right now, and that they continue to stand up The House is the one branch of government that Republicans have a majority Q: Senator, does that pledge include allowing a default of the Treasury? 12:51:54 SEN CRUZ: Well, that's a very good question And it's worth underscoring that the continuing resolution has nothing to do with interest on the debt or a default Yesterday, the president made a reference to a default We're not talking about the debt ceiling Q: Well, the second bill the House is going to pass will allow the debt limit to rise So I'm asking, is the pledge to filibuster the CR also a pledge to filibuster the second bill if it would defund Obamacare 12:52:17 SEN CRUZ: What I have said from day one, what Mike Lee has said from day one what the gentlemen up here have said from day one is that we will not support a continuing resolution that funds Obamacare This is a fight over the continuing resolution And you know, I thought it was unfortunate that in the president's comments yesterday he tried to distract with an issue of the debt ceiling when this is about the continuing resolution And this is about Congress using the Constitutional power of the purse to rein in an overreaching executive and to stand up for the American people, to stand up and say: Look, even among those who thought this law might work, we now know it isn't It's why you've got the labor unions running for the hills because we're seeing in practice that the stated good intentions of Obamacare aren't working and the losers are the American people And we need to focus on the substance of this policy, on bringing back economic growth, bringing back jobs and expanding opportunity for those struggling to achieve the American dream Q: Senator -- Q: This question is for Congressman Graves REP GRAVES: Let's go to Chad real quick here Go ahead, Chad And thanks again for this morning Q: The question is, there was a lot of back and forth, as has been alluded to here, about what the Senate Republicans might or might not do Can you characterize what House Republicans -- why they were nervous? Why there was this tension between the two sides? And has that been resolved to your satisfaction? 12:53:42 REP GRAVES: I would hope that today you see unity from the House Republicans and the Senate Republicans We are unified behind funding the government and stopping the harmful effects of Obamacare -- 100 percent unified behind that Clearly, there's differences in strategies and there's a lot of different personalities, as the senator alluded to But we are focused We have 11 days to be laser- like focused on accomplishing this objective And we will not be distracted So we will continue pushing forward Q: What was said -- what was specific -- and I guess is from Senator Cruz's statement last night What was said in that that, you know, lit a fire under House Republicans and how was this resolved so that we're all here today and everybody's, you know, singing Kumbayah What happened? REP GRAVES: What do you mean, what happened? Q: Well -- REP GRAVES: I mean, we were unified behind those objectives, there's never been a doubt Q: Everybody was on a different page last night What -- REP GRAVES: You need to ask them You need to ask them I thought -- I thought the senator addressed it very well And as to those who sent out their tweets, I'd recommend that you comment, or have comments for them -- REP JORDAN: Chad, what happened is that -- Q: Could you speak with the microphone? 12:54:53 REP JORDAN: Yeah, what happened -- and you know what happened is there wasn't 218 votes for the other -- the other proposals brought forward This is something that they're -- I believe that you're going to see a strong majority for, and frankly, maybe even you'll see some Democrats We had 35 Democrats vote with us to delay the employer mandate; we had 22 vote with us to delay the individual mandate So as I said, Democrats understand how harmful this bill is Simple truth is, there weren't the votes for the alternative, and this is where the votes are (Cross talk) Q: (Off mic) -- be a little more clear, if we can, on -- REP GRAVES: Well, let's go right here just for a second, yes Q: Thank you I was wondering if you could say, after ping-pong from the Senate back to the House, do you believe that Speaker Boehner should abide by the Hastert Rule in this, if this comes around a second time and only have a majority of Republican votes? Do you -- MR : Yes (Scattered laughter) Q: -- (inaudible) -- a sign of hands, maybe? 12:55:34 REP GRAVES: Well, that's -- I mean, that's clearly a question for the speaker, something that he's been very -- I think, very forthright with in how he is going to operate the House So I mean, I heard that question asked to him earlier today, and I imagine he was standing right about right here So I guess you weren't satisfied with his response then, huh? Q: I was wondering if you were -- if you're going to hold him accountable -- if you believe that he should abide by the Hastert Rule You said yes? MR : Absolutely Q: Yes? REP GRAVES: I mean, that's what he's clearly stated in the past And I saw yesterday -- I saw yesterday, and I think our colleagues from the House will -- could share this as well -- a resolve in the speaker of the House that was very reminiscent of his early days of being in the House He is totally committed to keeping the government open and protecting American families from the hardships of Obamacare And it was a very powerful resolve with much constitution Q: So (you don't ?) -- worry at all -- 12:56:42 MR : I'd like to comment on it I've been the guy in the House that's been driving the signatures on the letter to get the Hastert Rule codified within the conference, and I will echo what Mr Graves said I haven't seen this kind of -- I served with Speaker Boehner before; he was the chairman of the education committee; I sat on that committee I always thought that he was a firebrand I saw -- and I said this in conference yesterday, I stood up and I said, I haven't seen this kind of fire in the belly with the speaker since he was part of Gang of Seven And I do believe this is Boehner 20 And I believe -- I take him at face value that this is a fight that he's going to fight He believes that by year's end, we will have defunded or postponed Obamacare for a year, and I think that -- I think he means it Q: Is there any way, if the government happens to shut down -- I realize that's -- wouldn't be a goal here, you say -- but if it shuts down, do you think there's any way that Republicans can escape big- picture blame from this from the American people, or is there plenty of blame to go around? 12:57:32 MR : If we're giving the president a bill that keeps government open and his political stubbornness is so intense that he's willing to throw it all away to preserve a bill that's not -- or a law that's not ready for prime time; even he knows that, then I would hope that the American people and the press out there would posture it as it really is We've all said we want to keep the government open We want to do everything we can to keep the government open But ultimately, I would hope that they'd understand that in this kind of a situation, the president has to determine what's more important to him Q: What happens is -- REP GRAVES: Go ahead -- let -- (inaudible) -- comment 12:58:14 MR : I'd like to weigh in on that one really quickly, as well First of all, when this -- comes over to the Senate, I do predict that Republicans are going to stand solidly behind it to fund government while defunding Obamacare I would hope that maybe a handful of Democrats, perhaps some of those who are up for re-election in red states, might consider joining with us as well, especially in light of recent polling, suggesting that 56 percent of Americans think that something like this is what Congress should, in fact do, and especially considering that a solid majority of Americans now believe that this law will make their family health care situation worse, rather than better The point is that this will be a real opportunity We need an up-or-down vote And with that up-or-down vote, I do think we'll keep all the Republicans, and I hope that we might get some Democrats joining with us Now, if they reject it, if Democrats in the -- in the Senate reject it, then they've got to come up with a proposal They don't have a proposal We haven't seen a proposal from them; we haven't even heard of an outline of a proposal The onus is on them, at that point So, yeah, at that point, especially once the House passes something to keep government funded, once the Republicans in the Senate have the opportunity to vote on that -- and any Democrats who might join with us -- if the Democrats in the Senate choose to reject that at that point and and thereby open this grave possibility that you describe, they've got to come up with something Q: Senator Lee -- MR : Last question Q: -- is there a point when -- (off mic) -- consequences of a shutdown are too great for this particular fight? People may have fears Three may be uncertainty Is there a point when it's too much? SEN LEE (?): A shutdown is too much We don't want a shutdown We don't need a shutdown We should avoid a shutdown And Obamacare is a law that's going to harm people, and it certainly is not a good idea to shut down the government in order to force through the implementation of Obamacare at a time when the president has said he's not going to follow the law, and he's made substantial changes, without statutory or constitutional authority to do so So, yeah, look Shutdowns are bad Shutdowns are not worth it This law is not worth causing a shutdown over Q: Senator Lee -- MR : Thank you That's -- we have a 1:00, another press event that we need to get to Q: (Off mic) MR : All right One more question You -- all right, all right You were -- you've been very patient, yes Q: (Off mic) -- you said a couple times an up-or-down vote Just for a little more clarity on what's going to happen when it gets to you all in the Senate, most of the time we interpret up-or-down vote as a 50-vote threshold Now, Senator Reid will probably do that -- not to get down in o the weeds -- but this -- MR : Oh, yeah I understand what you're saying Q: You're going to lose that vote SO my question is, if it's 50, and Democrats kill it, like you say, and they kill this proposal, the question is, are you all going to line up 12 or 14 deep and talk this thing till September 30? Because if it's a 50-vote threshold, of course Harry Reid could make you lose that That's an up-or-down vote That's all you want MR : Yeah, I want to be clear In that setting -- I want to be clear In that setting, by referring to an up-or-down vote, what I'm talking about is a vote on the merits as opposed to a motion to table -- one -- you know, an nondebatable motion to table that simply comes up and it goes straight into a vote on that 51-vote threshold, not on the merits of it but on the merits of the motion to table So that's what I'm talking about MR : Great Thank you, everyone Sen Ted Cruz (R-TX)is flanked by House Repulicans while speaking about Obamacare during a news conference on Capitol Hill, September 19, 2013 in Washington, DC Sen Cruz spoke about Republican efforts to repeal Obamacare