LEADER JEFFRIES ON MORNING JOE: "TAXPAYER DOLLARS SHOULD BE SPENT TO MAKE LIFE MORE AFFORDABLE FOR THE AMERICAN PEOPLE"
Today, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries appeared on MS NOW's Morning Joe, where he made clear that Democrats are focused on lowering costs and ending Donald Trump's reckless war of choice to make life affordable for working families.
JON LEMIRE: Mr. Leader, thank you for joining us this morning. Let's start with what we just saw there from those Trump supporters in Ohio. It seems to me that is, we see the President's approval rating and that's the biggest reason why. People who backed him last time said, look, you made these economic promises. He hasn't delivered. So how do you then make that message for Democrats this fall, and what solutions do you offer?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, there are far too many people in this country, including the two that were just interviewed, who are working hard, they're playing by the rules, but they're struggling to make ends meet. They can't thrive, and they can barely survive. And this is all unfolding in the wealthiest country in the history of the world. And it's not the type of America that we should be living in. And, as Democrats, we're going to work hard to drive down the high cost of living, to address the affordability crisis. It's real. It's not a hoax, as the President has indicated. We actually do care about the financial situation of the American people. And we know that we need to make progress in terms of grocery costs. We need to lower housing prices. We need to lower the cost of healthcare. We need to push back against Donald Trump's tariffs, which have increased costs for everyday Americans by thousands of dollars per year. And, of course, we need to end this reckless war of choice, which has driven up gas prices.
JON LEMIRE: So, let's go to that right now. The President once again yesterday suggesting that a deal to end this war is near. Has the Congress received any sort of briefings as to what might be happening in these negotiations?
LEADER JEFFRIES: We haven't received any briefings, and there's no reason to believe the President at this particular point in time. He's now said, and the war's gone on for over 100 days, he's now said 38 different times that a deal was close or that the war was ending or that it was effectively over, 38 different times. There's no reason to believe him at this point. He's divorced from reality. The reality that the American people are seeing is that we've lost the lives of over a dozen patriotic servicemen and women. Hundreds have been injured. Over $100 billion in taxpayer money has been spent. And Iran is actually stronger now, relative to their position in the Middle East, than they were prior to this war.
JON LEMIRE: So one more on this. Obviously, your opposition to the war is well known. But that can't be changed now, we're in this conflict. So what does the President need to get out of these negotiations?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, we do think it can be changed. The House was able to successfully pass a War Powers Resolution to end this conflict. We sent it over to the Senate, and Senate Republicans need to get their act together and actually stand up for the American people. That is one way that this conflict can end. I do think that we need hyper-aggressive diplomacy, and Donald Trump needs to bring our traditional allies back to the negotiating table because it's clear he can't get a deal done on his own. What President Obama was able to successfully do with the Iranian nuclear agreement was bring together Great Britain and France and Germany, Japan, India, and China and Russia at the same period of time. And what Donald Trump now has done is broke up that agreement, detonated it because Donald Trump has Obama Derangement Syndrome, and now Iran is stronger than it's ever been. We certainly are not in a position to send ground troops and create another quagmire in the Middle East. And so he's got to try to get back to a negotiated resolution. But, of course, as he himself indicated, Iran is operating with a stronger hand right now. And so our ability to arrive at a diplomatic resolution of the situation has been greatly weakened.
JON LEMIRE: You mentioned the need for Senate Republicans to stand up to the President. There've been a few moments where they've shown a little bit of independence in recent weeks. They were objective to the slush fund, for instance, the anti-weaponization compensation fund. But they didn't put it into law. And colleagues at The Atlantic this week were reporting that the President has not entirely abandoned this idea. This might be something that's revisited. What can the Congress do? What should Senate Republicans do to prevent this from happening, because as we've noted, some of those payments could theoretically go to those convicted of the January 6 insurrection?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Which would be such an unacceptable, un-American and unpatriotic thing to do. And we've called upon the Congress to legislatively pull the plug on the $1.8 billion corrupt slush fund because under no circumstances should we see taxpayer dollars being spent to reward people who brutally and violently beat police officers on January 6. This has been the through line of the Trump administration. We believe that taxpayer dollars should actually be spent to make life more affordable for the American people. That's what, as House Democrats, we're committed to doing. And that's what Republicans have failed to accomplish now in the 18 months where they've had complete control of government in Washington.
JON LEMIRE: Leader Jeffries, Eugene Robinson is in Washington, and he has the next question.
EUGENE ROBINSON: Mr. Leader, I want to get back to those Ohio voters that we just heard from. I just saw a Fox News poll, a high-quality poll of Ohio voters, that showed Democrat Sherrod Brown quite comfortably leading his Republican opponent. This is in a state that has really trended Republican in recent elections. But it showed Sherrod Brown ahead. It showed the Democrat tied, essentially, with the Republican in the Governor's race. Is this a trend that you are seeing? I'm not asking you to go too far out on a limb, but what are you seeing politically across the country as people react to the fact that inflation is not down and the war is not over?
LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, not only is it a polling trend line. I think most importantly, perhaps, Eugene, what we've seen since the first special election of Donald Trump's term, his presidency, in January of 2025, which is when Democrats flipped an Iowa State Senate district, that for 18 consecutive months, we've been winning elections up and down the ballot, across the country. Voters have been rejecting Republicans and elevating Democratic candidates because they know we're relentlessly focused on confronting the affordability crisis and driving down the high cost of living. So we've seen this in places like New York and New Jersey and Virginia, but also in places like Mississippi and Georgia and Pennsylvania. All across the country, we've been winning races. We've won races, including in Donald Trump's own neighborhood, in Mar-a-Lago. We've won races in deep red parts of Texas. We've won races in Louisiana. And so, I think the trend line is positive. And so, these polling numbers don't surprise me. But we're going to keep our foot on the gas pedal because we know we have to run through the finish line to get it done in November. But I am confident that Democrats are going to take back control of the House. And we have a real shot of doing the same in the Senate.
JON LEMIRE: So Leader Jeffries, in the last couple of weeks it is impossible for two people sitting in New York City having a conversation to not speak about the Knicks, so let's do that now. I know you're a Knicks fan. You were saying you almost brought Knicks gear to the table this morning, which would have been welcome. Tell me just how you feel about the series, but also what you're seeing, frankly, in the streets.
LEADER JEFFRIES: Yeah. It's been an incredibly exciting run in terms of, you know, this team. The city has fallen in love with the team. We love the Knicks, generally, as we were talking about. Basketball is the city game and the Knicks are the city team. Many of us have been loyal, but long-suffering Knicks fans. They've been good, but there have been a lot of moments of agony. And what's been so exciting, and this is why Game Four in particular was incredible. It was the agony of the first half but just the thrill and the ecstasy of a historic comeback that was accomplished with heart, soul and grit. And so, I'm excited for Game Five. I think we're going to finish it off, hopefully in San Antonio, but definitely if it comes back to the Garden in Game Six.
JON LEMIRE: Yeah, we're seeing the highlight here of OG Anunoby's already legendary tip-in to win Game Four at the buzzer. And yes, Game Five tomorrow night in San Antonio. And I know there's some Knicks fans who would say, 'Oh we'd really love to win it on our home court,' which would be Tuesday, Game Six back at the Garden. I would just caution on that. Like, you know, you let the Spurs win the game. Sure, you're still favored to win the series and even win it in six, but you leave the door open and there are 53 years of ghosts that can sneak through.
LEADER JEFFRIES: Absolutely, get it done. And that was one of the exciting parts of Game Four, because we've been in games like that before, but our heart was broken. And in Game Four, not only did they come roaring back, they finished the job, and I think we need to just finish the job in San Antonio tomorrow.
JON LEMIRE: Knicks fans simply not used to how to handle wins like that. House Minority Leader, Democratic Congressman Hakeem Jeffries of New York, thank you for joining us this morning.
LEADER JEFFRIES: Thank you.
Full interview can be watched here.