MSNBC "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" Interview - Transcript
Interview
MSNBC "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" Interview - Transcript
MSNBC "COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN" INTERVIEW WITH HOUSE MAJORITY WHIP JAMES CLYBURN (D-SC) INTERVIEWER: KEITH OLBERMANN
Copyright ©2009 by Federal News Service, Inc., Ste. 500, 1000 Vermont Ave, Washington, DC 20005 USA. Federal News Service is a private firm not affiliated with the federal government. No portion of this transcript may be copied, sold or retransmitted without the written authority of Federal News Service, Inc. Copyright is not claimed as to any part of the original work prepared by a United States government officer or employee as a part of that person's official duties. For information on subscribing to the FNS Internet Service at www.fednews.com, please email Carina Nyberg at cnyberg@fednews.com or call 1-202-216-2706.
MR. OLBERMANN: Tomorrow morning, House Republicans and Senate Republicans will finally reveal their budget and they will hold a rally. The rally is no doubt to celebrate the fact that, this time around, their budget has actual numbers in it.
Meantime, in our third story in the Countdown, brought to you by the number three, President Obama, having met once again with House Democrats, may be days away from having his budget passed, with certain differences from what he requested originally. The House majority whip, Congressman Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, will join us presently.
After the GOP's first budget reveal, which was a fiasco with legs, Republicans have now reportedly added figures, utilizing all possible digits, zero through nine. The GOP alternative to be unveiled again after Republicans meet privately in the House chamber tomorrow morning; the unity rally on the steps of the House expected soon after.
Unity among Democrats would be enough to meet President Obama's imperatives. And yesterday he met with House Democrats behind closed doors. The president was reportedly upbeat, downplaying differences between his proposal and what his party, including its moderate plank, is willing to give him; at issue, primarily, deficit containment. He spoke to fellow Democrats for about 14 minutes and took questions. The president stressed that his budget is tied to his economic strategy and that, once passed, it will fuel momentum toward a health care bill.
Joining me now, as promised, the House majority whip, vice chair of the Democratic caucus in the House, Congressman James Clyburn of South Carolina.
Great thanks for your time tonight, sir.
REP. CLYBURN: Well, thank you so much for having me.
MR. OLBERMANN: Yesterday's meeting, was it one last pitch by the president? Were differences also hashed out? How did it go?
REP. CLYBURN: Well, it was a very upbeat meeting. I think that the president made it very clear to all the members there that he understood what their anxieties were all about. But he also laid out his vision of this budget; that is, to do three major things. He wants us to do something about making health care more affordable and accessible and cheaper. He wants us to make education more affordable, more accessible and cheaper. And he wants us to do something about energy, laying a foundation for making energy affordable and accessible and cheaper, and laying a foundation for us to get to energy independence in a reasonable amount of time.
And so when it was all over, he had a Q&A and people got to ask the questions they wanted to ask. And I think people were pretty satisfied with his answers.
MR. OLBERMANN: The end result of this -- a lot has been made lately about the moderate plank in the party -- the moderate flank, if you will. There's a concern about the deficit, that it was forcing significant changes in the budget; and yet the president's budget director saying that the administration is getting 98 percent of his request. Is that an accurate number, or is the truth somewhere in between the flank and the 98 percent?
REP. CLYBURN: Well, I think he's not getting the numbers he wanted everywhere. But in terms of what he wants in this budget, yes, he's going to get 98 percent of what he wants in this budget, if not more. What he won't be getting is the same level of expenditures, because there are people in our budget -- we cut it back by 1.5 percent in the so-called non-discretionary -- non-defense discretionary spending. We are about 1.5 percent less than what the president asked for. And so I suspect that's why they're using the 98 percent number. So I would suspect he got 98.5 percent of what he's asking for.
MR. OLBERMANN: Congressman, do you have any idea what we're going to see tomorrow from the Republicans in this alternative budget, take two, after last week's (freed dissemination ?) of folders with nothing in them? It didn't go over so well.
REP. CLYBURN: Well, you know, Keith, I hate to say this, but, you know, if I'm right, looking at my calendar, tomorrow is April 1st, is April Fool's Day. And I think that that's pretty much what you got. This budget is a joke. People saw what they did last week. And they've thrown together some numbers. They won't talk about what their projected deficit is going to be. We all know that it's going to be one. And so I don't believe that you can take this budget seriously at all.
People have pretty much determined that Barack Obama has their confidence. Back in December, about 15 percent of the American people said they liked the direction the country was going in. Today we're at 42 percent saying they like the direction this country is going in; 66 percent of the American people say they support Barack Obama's leadership here. About 60 percent support his position on economic issues. So I think that the president is in a very good place, and Democrats are going to have to do what is necessary to help him stay there.
MR. OLBERMANN: Congressman James Clyburn of South Carolina, under difficult circumstances tonight, thanks to a traffic mess in Washington, with us by phone. Great thanks for your time tonight, sir.
REP. CLYBURN: Well, thank you so much for having me.
MR. OLBERMANN: Always a pleasure.
END.
Source