During a press briefing on Tuesday, Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA) answered reporter questions on President Biden's 2024 campaign.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Questions?
00:01Nicole.
00:02Thank you so much.
00:03Congressman Cohen earlier told a couple of us outside of the D.C. team that it's not
00:04even an issue of Democrats being on the same page.
00:05They're not even in the same hook.
00:06So, these discussions that you're having, are they constructive or destructive?
00:07And as leaders, at what point do you put your foot down and button this up?
00:18discussions that you're having. Are they constructive or destructive? And as leaders, at what point do you put your foot down and button this up?
00:28The President has been clear he's staying in the brakes.
00:31I think anytime we can gather together as members and House leadership can hear from the members, I think it's constructive. It always is.
00:41I learn more from my House Democratic colleagues each and every day about their values, about their districts.
00:49And that's what this has been about. This has not been an exercise to hear each other talk.
00:55This has been an exercise to genuinely listen to people and to bring a perspective to the table, but to listen to each other and to have that grace that goes along with that.
01:08So that's what this has been about. Every conversation we have had has been helpful.
01:14Our job as leaders, the vice chair and I and everyone in the caucus, is to take this in and to help in any way we can, Leader Jeffries, guide this caucus.
01:28That's what our efforts have been about and that's what our efforts will continue to be about.
01:33From whether that was discussions about vacating the chair to the debt crisis that Republicans started time and time again,
01:41we have been focused on listening to our members and that's what we have done over the past week and a half.
01:50Rebecca? Martha?
01:57Hi, this is Martha from the Latin New Services. You have clear that you need to go forward,
02:02but what's the strategy that you are willing to implement or the changes that you are willing to make in order to convince your own people
02:10and also the American citizens that Biden is your best candidate?
02:15Some of that is campaign strategies and tactics.
02:21What House Democratic Caucus leadership is asking their members to do, our members,
02:29is to talk about the importance of preventing Donald Trump from ever setting foot in the White House.
02:35I don't want Donald Trump on the public tour of the White House.
02:39Many of us served when Donald Trump was here.
02:42We know the chaos that reigns from that and we know what we have been able to do together.
02:48The Biden-Harris administration, 15 million jobs created, getting us through the pandemic,
02:54shots in arms, money in people's pockets, bipartisan infrastructure bill.
02:59These are things that we can do together and that's what we have been focused on.
03:04While we chart this path ahead, while the politics of the day continues on to November,
03:09House Democrats are very confident in the agenda that we have been a part of for the past few years
03:16and now it's implementing that agenda.
03:19Thank you.
03:21Chad.
03:22Thank you so much.
03:23You say you are clear-eyed when it comes to making sure that Donald Trump is not in the White House
03:28and that's consistent with all Democrats,
03:30but it doesn't seem that everyone is clear-eyed about the future of this president.
03:34Can you address and characterize what those concerns are
03:38and attribute how you do get everybody on the same page?
03:42Our caucus meeting today was about listening to members.
03:46There was no instruction to get on the same page.
03:49We were talking about the importance, the twin goals that we have,
03:53preventing Donald Trump from ever setting foot in the White House
03:56and getting 218 votes for Hakeem Jeffries on January 3rd.
04:02That is the focus of House Democrats.
04:05You have heard us say before that unity is something that is so helpful to us.
04:12Unanimity is not the same as unity.
04:17House Democrats bring different thoughts and ideas and viewpoints each and every day to this House chamber.
04:25We learn from that.
04:26We accept that.
04:27We accept each member's perspective.
04:29And our focus is to be unified.
04:32And we are unified that Donald Trump cannot win
04:35and we are unified that Hakeem Jeffries needs to be Speaker to help the American public.
04:50Right now, President Biden is the nominee
04:53and we support the Democratic nominee that will be Donald Trump.
04:57That is the fact.
04:59That is where we are.
05:01And preventing Donald Trump from a disastrous reign
05:05where he can level Project 2025,
05:09where he can deport kids from families, rip families apart,
05:14that's what we want to prevent here.
05:15And that is the focus in addition to ensuring that Hakeem Jeffries is a Speaker.
05:21Nick.
05:31That's up to the President and his team.
05:34I can't speak to that.
05:36Our job today was to convene the House Democratic Caucus
05:39to hear different viewpoints, different ideas,
05:42and to be unified behind that message of ensuring that we do everything we can to win this November.