LEADER JEFFRIES: "EXTREME MAGA REPUBLICANS HAVE NOTHING TO SHOW FOR THEIR TIME IN THE MAJORITY"
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries appeared on CNN's This Morning where he emphasized that while House Republicans continue taking orders from Donald Trump and waste time with political games, House Democrats will continue to put people over politics and stand up for everyday Americans.
PHIL MATTINGLY: Joining us now to talk about all of it, House Democratic Leader, Hakeem Jeffries of New York. Sir, we appreciate your time this morning. I want to start with what I was asking Lauren Fox about, because I do think it's a critical question, when Republicans say this is just opening and formalizing an inquiry. Is there any way you see this not ending in a vote to impeach President Biden?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, that remains to be seen. What we do know is that there is zero evidence that President Biden has engaged in an impeachable offense. There is zero evidence that President Biden has engaged in any wrongdoing whatsoever. There is zero evidence that President Biden has broken the law. The Republicans have now reviewed more than a hundred thousand pages of documents, heard from many witnesses and they can't find a scintilla of evidence to justify this impeachment inquiry. It is happening because the Puppet Master in Chief, the former twice-impeached, so-called President of the United States of America, has ordered them to launch this impeachment inquiry as a political hit job on President Joe Biden.
PHIL MATTINGLY: You believe that's explicitly the case, that because the former President has tweeted about this, because his allies have certainly pushed this throughout much of this Congress, that that's why this is happening. That's the only reason this happened.
LEADER JEFFRIES: There are no facts. There is no evidence. There is no basis in law for this illegitimate impeachment inquiry. And so the only reasonable conclusion, I believe, that people can reach is that the Republicans have been directed to execute this political hit, this political stunt, engage in this political gamesmanship as it relates to President Joe Biden as part of an effort to try to take him down in advance of the 2024 presidential election. It's not going to work because the American people will be focused on the issues. And we as House Democrats, the President, Senate Democrats, we're going to continue to put people over politics and focus on the things that matter, making a difference in the lives of everyday Americans, on the economy, on health care, on a woman's freedom to make her own reproductive health care decisions.
PHIL MATTINGLY: Your point about that-you don't believe this is going to work. A member of your Caucus who I will acknowledge is running for president against the incumbent president, Dean Phillips, suggested in an interview earlier this week that this would make-would be problematic politically for President Biden. It would make him "unelectable." You think that's wrong?
LEADER JEFFRIES: I think it's dead wrong. President Biden has an incredible track record of success. He's produced over and over again on issue after issue from the American Rescue Plan, shots in arms, money in pockets, kids back in school allowing us to emerge from a once-in-a-century pandemic and put our economy on an incredible path forward. We still have a lot of work to do to build an economy from the middle out and the bottom up, but we are moving in the right direction. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was historic, fixing our crumbling bridges, roads, tunnels, our airports, our sewer and water systems, clean water in every single community, creating millions of good-paying jobs. The Inflation Reduction Act to strike a dramatic blow against the climate crisis, the largest investment in combating the climate crisis by any country in the history of the world. We've lowered the cost of insulin to $35 a month. And we're bringing domestic manufacturing jobs back home to the United States of America. That's an incredible track record of success that President Biden can articulate to the American people not to say reward us, but to say trust us. We're going to continue to do more to solve problems for hardworking American taxpayers.
PHIL MATTINGLY: When you list all that off, and certainly with those first two years when Democrats were in the majority as well with the legislative accomplishments. Do you believe the President has done a good enough job of articulating that laundry list of legislative victories?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, over the next year, we're going to have to continue to make sure that we are communicating aggressively with the American people about the things that we have done as a foundation for our vision to make a difference in the lives of the American people as we move forward. There's much more work that needs to be done on the economy, to combat inflation, with respect to affordable housing, fighting for lower costs across the board, safer communities, to grow the middle class. That's our vision for what the next four years at the completion of President Biden's first term will look like. And we have an opportunity over the next 11 months to really articulate that vision and contrast it with a do-nothing Republican Congress. Extreme MAGA Republicans have nothing to show for their time in the majority, which is why they are wasting time and taxpayer dollars on an illegitimate impeachment inquiry.
PHIL MATTINGLY: Well, there is a very significant policy negotiation going on across the Capitol from where you're standing right now between Senate Democrats and Republicans over the President's national security supplemental package. It seemed like last night, based on several hours of closed-door discussions, they at least made some progress compared to where they had been for days prior. Do you trust, particularly on the issue of immigration, that the administration won't sign anything or won't push anything that runs contrary to where your Caucus is?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, our position is that, and I'm confident that the administration will proceed in this manner along with Senate Democrats, is that we have to fund America's national security priorities as it relates to the safety and security of the American people. And that connects with making sure that we are supporting Israel's effort to decisively defeat Hamas and the terrorist regime that inflicted such brutality on the Israeli people on October 7th. We have to make sure we stand by Ukraine in its effort to aggressively push back against Russian aggression, and the Ukrainian war effort has been successful to date. 50% of the territory initially captured by Russia has been recaptured. More than 300,000 casualties have been inflicted upon the Russian army. We have to continue that war effort and, of course, make sure that we deal with our other national security priorities. Now, with respect to the border issue, it's my view that the administration will continue to proceed and make sure that these discussions are consistent with our values as a nation of immigrants, but also consistent with our values as a nation anchored in the rule of law.
PHIL MATTINGLY: If an agreement is reached, do you believe the Speaker will put it on the Floor?
LEADER JEFFRIES: That remains to be seen because the pro-Putin caucus of the House Republican Conference is extreme, it's loud and it's growing. It's led by Marjorie Taylor Greene and Jim Jordan on the inside and on the outside, it's led by Donald Trump and Tucker Carlson. And it seems increasingly clear that this pro-Putin caucus would like to see Vladimir Putin win in Ukraine, which would be bad for America's national security, which is why it's an open question as to whether House Republicans are serious at all about funding the Ukrainian war effort.
PHIL MATTINGLY: There was a major, at least in New York politics yesterday, decision that came through. When it comes to redistricting, when it comes to how New York districts are set up. New York was always going to be front and center, center-stage in 2024 for the House, in the battle for the House. Did the decision yesterday clinch your pathway to the speakership in 2025?
LEADER JEFFRIES: No, we're not looking at the decision through the lens of what may happen in November of 2024. We're looking at the Court of Appeals decision through the lens of what the Constitution of the state of New York requires, which is that congressional lines be drawn by an Independent Redistricting Commission. Period, full stop. We are operating right now under congressional lines that were drawn by an out-of-town, unelected Special Master who was airdropped into the state of New York by a right-wing extreme judge from Steuben County, which Phil, by the way, is closer to Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Toronto than it is to Westchester, Long Island and New York City. And so this was a broken process that was forced upon the voters of New York State. And now because of the Court of Appeals decision, we can get back to doing things consistent with the New York State Constitution, which will lead to fairer maps in the state of New York.
PHIL MATTINGLY: It is a position Republicans certainly dispute, but there is a lot on the line in the state, no question about that. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, we appreciate your time this morning. Thank you.
LEADER JEFFRIES: Thank you.
Full interview can be watched here.