CNN "Newsroom" - Transcript: Interview with Eric Swalwell

Interview

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ACOSTA: And in Washington, two Trump allies feel the pressure from the January 6th probe. The Justice Department is weighing criminal charges for, one, Steve Bannon, after he refused to cooperate. The other, Jeffrey Clark has agreed to testify. Clark is a key architect of Trump's behind-the-scenes efforts to overturn the election, and he'll be grilled by the House Select Committee on Friday.

The committee is also ramping up efforts to follow the money behind the massive "Stop the Steal" campaign that culminated in the January 6th rally and insurrection.

And joining us now to talk about this, Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell of California. Congressman, thanks so much for being with us. We appreciate it on this Sunday. I'm sure you've heard this more than once. Republicans say it's time to move on from January 6th, but Democrats warn that this threat to our democracy is nowhere near over.

And you recently shared a voicemail that a Trump supporter left for you after watching Fox News. I want to play just a portion of that for our viewers.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: You people are a disgrace to God, our country, and our people. You're the enemy of the United States People (BLEEP). You atheist, communist (BLEEP) are the threat to our democracy, our constitution, and our way of life, and as for these foreign invaders that you're letting in this country, I hope they chop you and your family up and feed them to your dogs, you pig. You (BLEEP). And there's your free speech for today (BLEEP). From Trump nation! Write it down, you little (BLEEP). Trump nation, baby!

(END AUDIO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Now, some of the expletives are bleeped out, the N-word, as well as homophobic slurs. But in your view, what does this say in this phone call say not just about the person who left the phone call message, but also about Fox News?

REP. ERIC SWALWELL (D-CA): This is the Tucker Carlson effect, Jim, where you see a straight line from Tucker Carlson lying about me, inciting his viewers, and then aiming them at me where this caller references Tucker Carlson from the very get of this call that he was just watching Tucker Carlson.

And I have confronted Tucker a number of times about this. I've told him that his lies have led to death threats against me, against my family. And the fact that he continues to lie about me and so many others shows that this is what he wants, that he wants his viewers to unleash this type of venom at his targets.

And I'm just afraid, Jim, we're going to see more and more political violence in this country as long as Donald Trump and Tucker Carlson are unleashing, you know, their hateful propaganda out into the ether.

ACOSTA: And as somebody who was in the capitol during the insurrection, let's talk about January 6th. What did you make of the former president this week saying that the real insurrection happened on Election Day and that January 6th was a protest? I mean, it's a two -- it's a double-edged sword, congressman, putting his statements out there.

They're so toxic and dishonest and poisonous. But at the same time people need to understand the lies behind them. What did you think when you saw that statement?

SWALWELL: Again, Donald Trump is trying to erase history and reframe the debate. This is what he did with the Russia investigation where it was so clear that he had worked to collude and expected help from Russia. This is what he did with the first impeachment. And, Jim, the Republican Party led by Donald Trump and Kevin McCarthy,

they don't believe in voting anymore. They believe in violence. And right now they are setting the stage with what they're encouraging in Arizona and Florida and Georgia and Texas with the voting rights changes. They're an anti-majority party. They are an anti-majority party.

They are setting the stage to make sure that even if they come up short with the votes that they could overturn future elections. That's a very scary place to be for a democracy that's on life support right now.

[17:04:54]

ACOSTA: And we ask Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene about her confrontation with Congresswoman Liz Cheney during that vote to hold Steve Bannon in contempt. Let's play that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And what about that confrontation with Congresswoman Cheney? Why did that happen?

REP. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE (R-GA): She's a traitor.

ACOSTA: She's a traitor?

GREENE: Yes.

ACOSTA: How can you say that?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: This traitor talk, throwing that kind of stuff around is just so dangerous. What's your reaction?

SWALWELL: It's unsettling to hear. And you remember when Donald Trump was president, he talked about what we should do with traitors when the whistle-blower complaint came out. He talked about that we used to handle traitors the old-fashioned way. Again, when you define Liz Cheney as a traitor, all you are going to do now is you're going to aim venom and violence at Liz Cheney.

But that's the intent. That's what they want. That's why they do it, Jim. And that's why it's all the more important that we get to the bottom of what happened on January 6th. That we make sure a day like that never happens again in the Senate

And I hope the president is listening because I think he's the most persuasive person here. They have to break the filibuster to make sure that we have voting rights restored once again in this country.

ACOSTA: And yesterday we were talking to the "Daily Show's" Jordan Klepper about all of this bizarre imagery, that cult-like imagery that you see at Trump rallies. He was showing us some stuff from a recent rally. There were drawings of a Trump on a tank, Trump riding a velociraptor carrying a machine gun. There was QAnon merchandise, confederate flags despite this being in Iowa.

You know, have we already lost half of the country to this disinformation universe that so many people live in and do you get the sense that you can get any of these folks back?

SWALWELL: Well, as an Iowan, Jim, it was hard to watch a lot of that. I was born there. My dad was a police chief there. And I do think we have to work as hard as we can to make sure that truth still matters in this country and that we recognize that talking to folks and not demeaning folks is very important.

Recognizing that they believe in this country if you work hard you should do better for yourself, dream bigger for your family and that the Build Back Better agenda, which we're trying to pass in Washington aims to do that. It's a pro-family, pro-worker agenda.

And so it's important for us, I think, to, as I said, reframe the debate, get it around policies that people should vote on, and not violence that fires people up. But this party right now, the Republican Party, they are cruel, they believe in violence. They don't have a policy agenda. They don't value families one bit, and that's more and more clear every day.

ACOSTA: Well, speaking of the president's agenda, Mr. Biden was meeting with Senator Schumer and Manchin today about the spending bill. Speaker Pelosi says Democrats will reach an agreement this week on a framework for it.

As you know, congressman, there's an important governor's race in Virginia coming up. Are you running out of time to get something done with respect to this legislation? And do you think it's time to just at least get that hard infrastructure bill passed so President Biden has something to show voters in places like Virginia?

SWALWELL: Jim, it's Sunday so I'll say this. We need to clap our hands, come out of the huddle and put the football in the end zone. It's time to show the voters why they gave us a democratic majority that on infrastructure we're going to invest in clean, green jobs across the country to reduce emissions, that we're going to invest in paid family leave, that we're going to have a childcare tax credit, that we're going to have free community college, things are going to help people.

And wherever we come up short, to my progressive friends, let's go tell the voters in 2022 that this was a down payment and we can do a lot more with a larger majority. And to moderates who are worried about the price tags, I'll just say this.

The Republicans are never going to tell the truth about you in the elections. They're going to lie and say that you're for open borders, socialism, de-funding the police. So if we can do something that makes a difference in American lives, let's find that compromise and put that ball in the end zone.

ACOSTA: But, to use the football analogy, what does the clock say right now. SWALWELL: Yes. First in goal with about one second left.

ACOSTA: Are we two minutes -- two-minute warning. One second left. Okay.

SWALWELL: Yes.

ACOSTA: What does that say about the situation that you're in right now, that the party is in right now?

SWALWELL: The speaker recognizes that. She worked all week and she worked the whole weekend and I think we're going to come out this week with progress that you can actually measure and that's going to make a difference. I'm optimistic about that.

And then, Jim, we have to get back to telling the voters what's at stake once we deliver for them if we were to turn over the keys or the playbook to continue the analogy to Republicans because as we are seeing in-fighting on our own side, Steve Bannon, Donald Trump, and Kevin McCarthy are circling the capitol with gas cans dowsing the place and getting ready to drop the match to torch our democracy.

ACOSTA: And what about this risk that you run that voters will get the message that you had the House, you had the Senate, you had the White House and you couldn't get these key things done? If all of these items are popular with the voters, Democrats might say, you know, why can't our party get this done?

SWALWELL: Yes, that's a fair question. And 98.7 percent of all Democrats in Congress have to agree to get anything done.

[17:10:01]

Franklin Roosevelt passed the new deal with 310 plus democrats. We have a very thin margin. So that's why everyone needs to be reasonable and recognize where we come up short. I'm confident we can define the Republicans as an anti-voter, pro-violence party and that with the bigger majority we can do more in 2022, but doing nothing is the surest way to putting this democracy that's on life support, it's effectively pulling the plug for our country.

ACOSTA: All right, Congressman Eric Swalwell, thanks so much. We appreciate it. We'll have to call a time-out on this interview --

SWALWELL: My pleasure.

ACOSTA: -- but thanks for joining us.

SWALWELL: That's right.

ACOSTA: Thanks a lot. All right, coming up, new details. CNN learning that the crew member who handed Alec Baldwin a prop gun was the subject of safety complaints, some about firearms dating back years. That's next.

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