House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) holds his weekly press briefing.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Heads up.
00:01Good afternoon, everyone.
00:02Good afternoon.
00:03House Democrats are going to continue to focus on the things that matter to the American
00:18people.
00:19We're going to protect Social Security, protect Medicare, protect Medicaid, protect
00:26our public schools, protect veterans, and protect nutritional assistance for children,
00:34everyday Americans, and families.
00:37House Republicans and the Trump administration are trying to take a chainsaw to everything
00:45that matters to the American people, like ending Social Security and Medicaid as we
00:55know it.
00:58Seniors on Social Security receive an average of $65 per month.
01:05They rely on Social Security and earned benefit to put food on the table, clothing on their
01:13back, and to make sure that they can pay their rent or pay their mortgage.
01:19It's extraordinary to us that Donald Trump, the administration, and Republicans are trying
01:28to detonate Social Security in real time, including by dismantling the Social Security
01:38administration, which will impact the ability of older Americans to receive benefits.
01:49The Republicans believe that Social Security is a Ponzi scheme.
01:55Project 2025 is the Ponzi scheme.
02:01Republicans are defrauding the American people.
02:05Last year, Republicans promised that they would drive down the high cost of living and
02:11ignored Project 2025, lied to the American people as if it didn't exist.
02:19This year, Donald Trump, the administration, and Republicans in the Congress have done
02:24nothing to drive down the high cost of living.
02:29Costs aren't going down, they are going up.
02:32Inflation is going up.
02:36America is becoming more expensive and less affordable under complete Republican control
02:44of government.
02:48At the same period of time, Republicans are flooding the zone with a parade of horribles
02:55that all relate to Project 2025.
02:59That's the Ponzi scheme that's been run on the American people, and front and center
03:05right now is the target that Republicans have put on the back of Social Security recipients
03:12all across America.
03:13Democrats are going to fight hard to protect Social Security, and Medicare, and Medicaid,
03:23and the things that actually matter to making life better for the American people.
03:29Questions?
04:01I'm going to refrain from commenting.
04:04Go ahead.
04:05It's starting.
04:06In any event, there's been some suggestion that Republicans might have numbers with their
04:12reconciliation package.
04:13There is some reporting that there might be a withdrawal of the nomination of Elise Stefanik.
04:18What do you think that that says if they were to pull that nomination or she were to withdraw
04:23about them having trouble with numbers to get through the so-called big beautiful bill?
04:28Republicans are in free fall right now.
04:32House Republicans are fighting with Senate Republicans.
04:35Senate Republicans are fighting with House Republicans.
04:38House Republicans are fighting with each other because you've got a group of people who
04:45are uncomfortable with the fact that they were forced as House Republicans in so-called
04:50swing districts to vote for the largest Medicaid cut in American history, and we will not let
04:57the American people ever forget it.
05:00Then you have a group of so-called freedom caucus Republicans who want to go further
05:06in terms of the cuts that are harmful and painful that they want to inflict on the American
05:13people.
05:14And then you've got Republicans in both the House and the Senate who don't know whether
05:18they should follow orders from Donald Trump or Elon Musk.
05:22So the whole situation is chaotic and confusing, but it all relates to a corrupt Ponzi scheme
05:32that they are trying to jam down the throats of the American people.
05:35But speak to this numbers issue.
05:37It's unclear what the numbers issue ultimately represents.
05:43I don't know.
05:44They seem to be panicking about the two special elections in Florida, which shocks the conscience
05:51of anybody who follows these races closely.
05:55Florida won in Florida six.
05:57Donald Trump won those two districts respectively by 30 and 37 points.
06:03How is it that they are even competitive at this point?
06:07Why are Republicans panicking in deep red districts?
06:13It's because their agenda is unpopular.
06:18They are completely and totally out of control.
06:20There's been no focus on driving down the high cost of living.
06:24And instead, this budget that they want to jam down the throats of the American people
06:30in order to provide tax cuts to their billionaire puppet master donors like Elon Musk is also
06:36unpopular.
06:39So they do have a numbers problem that they're going to have to try to resolve.
06:44But that's for Republicans to work out.
06:48Senator Jeffries, what is your comment on the latest mass firings at HHS today, announced
07:01today, in context of the others that we are hearing about?
07:07The mass firings are likely unlawful, will likely be challenged in court.
07:13And we also know that it does nothing to improve the health and safety and economic well-being
07:19of the American people.
07:21It will hurt it.
07:22Leader Jeffries.
07:23Thank you, Leader.
07:25Have you spoken with Congressman Crockett regarding her comments towards Governor Abbott?
07:31And how are comments like that affecting the party's brand?
07:35I have not had a conversation with Jasmine.
07:38I did see that she issued a statement clarifying her remarks.
07:42And her statement speaks for itself.
07:44Leader Jeffries, on top of that, you've mentioned the list of horribles from President
07:52On top of that, one of the other ones, unrelated to Medicaid, is the ramping up of deportations,
07:58sending people to El Salvador.
08:00And they're coming day by day by day.
08:03Is just the rapid fire of these deportations, a lot of those which seem unlawful and without
08:07due process, is the speed of it making it harder for Democrats to respond to this violation
08:12of due process and civil liberties?
08:14No, these deportations that appear to involve, in several instances, American citizens or
08:23legal permanent residents have been challenged in court and will continue to be challenged
08:28in court.
08:29Democrats will also forcefully speak out against overreach whenever and wherever it occurs.
08:36Leader Jeffries.
08:37Thank you, Mr. Leader.
08:38Earlier this week, President Trump issued an executive order that introduces several
08:43changes to federal election procedures, including proof of citizenship for voter registration.
08:49I wanted to get your reaction to that executive order.
08:52And you've spoken about the role that kitchen table issues and that cost of living has played
08:57top of mind for a lot of voters.
08:59Do you think that these threats to democracy are also top of mind of voters?
09:03Or will Democrats have to work a lot harder to communicate to the American people what
09:08the impact of executive orders like this is, even if they're challenged in court?
09:13Well, the executive order that was recently issued by President Trump is not worth the
09:17paper it has been written on.
09:19It will be challenged in court and it will be invalidated.
09:24Do you think that the American people, because it's going to be challenged in court, that
09:29it's not worth Democrats putting forward a forceful message about the fact that Republicans
09:35have claimed that federal elections should be left to the states and local municipalities,
09:40but now you see this executive overreach.
09:42Is that something that you think the American people should be aware of?
09:45Republicans have zero credibility on the issue of protecting democracy and as it relates
09:52to the integrity of our election.
09:54Republicans have actually concluded that voter suppression is an electoral strategy.
09:59These people in the House wouldn't even be in the majority right now if it weren't for
10:04the egregious mid-decade, highly partisan gerrymandering that took place in North Carolina.
10:11Think about that.
10:12They would not even be in the majority right now, but then they're running around the country
10:17claiming to have a mandate.
10:19Give me a break.
10:21There were a number of town halls last week where Democrats heard from constituents who
10:26were angry that the party isn't doing more to stand up against Trump.
10:29AOC said at one of her rallies that she thinks you guys need leaders who are fighting harder
10:33for the Democratic Party.
10:34Do you think the party could be doing more to fight against Trump and MAGA?
10:39It's all hands on deck and it will continue to be all hands on deck.
10:42Peter Jeffries.
10:43Thanks.
10:44Thank you, Peter.
10:45Just wanted to ask about the D.C. budget fix.
10:49Have you spoken to Speaker Johnson about what the timeline is for when that's expected
10:54to come to the floor and are you concerned about conservative opposition potentially
10:59derailing the bill?
11:00Andy Harris was saying earlier today that they're pressing for requirements for the
11:03district.
11:04I don't know if that's something that Democrats can even get on board with.
11:08In terms of the District of Columbia funding fix, it needs to happen before we go on the
11:15next district work period, which means it should occur either next week or the week
11:21after next.
11:23The Senate Republicans have clearly and unequivocally expressed support for the spending legislation.
11:32Senate Democrats, House Democrats, apparently even Donald Trump himself has expressed support
11:41for the need to correct this egregious error that was in the House Republican highly partisan
11:48spending bill.
11:49And so it needs to happen.
11:51I haven't spoken to Speaker Johnson specifically about this, but if there's further delay,
11:56I will raise it with him directly.
11:58Peter Shumer.
11:59Two weeks ago, you and Peter Shumer ended up in different places on the CR vote.
12:05Moving forward, what are you and him doing to get on the same page?
12:09We are on the same page right now as it relates to pushing back against the reckless Republican
12:14budget, which includes the largest Medicaid cut in American history.
12:20We are on the same page as it relates to stopping the Republican effort to dismantle
12:26Social Security as we know it.
12:28We are on the same page as it relates to what needs to be done to actually create an economy
12:36that is affordable for everyday Americans.
12:41Obviously, the Democrats are mad.
12:43The base is mad.
12:45We've noticed this uptick in the use of expletives in both chambers by Democrats.
12:50I have a list and I want to read it.
12:52Am I on that list?
12:53No, you're not.
12:54Actually, you're a gentleman.
12:55You haven't used a curse word that I've heard of yet.
12:57Do you think this is the best tactic and the smartest way to connect with voters?
13:02Is this something that you think works right now?
13:05Voters are angry all across the country for good reason.
13:09We are witnessing in real time an unprecedented assault by Republicans on the economy, an
13:16unprecedented assault on Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, an unprecedented assault
13:22on the American way of life, an unprecedented assault on veterans, thousands of whom have
13:29been fired without justification by the Trump administration, and an unprecedented assault
13:37on American democracy.
13:40People are upset.
13:42People are concerned, anxious, frightened, scared, and all of the above.
13:48And so you see Democratic members across the country channeling those feelings in a variety
13:55of different ways.
13:59One thing is clear.
14:01Electorally, Republicans are on the run.
14:06They're on the run.
14:08We saw it in Iowa in January.
14:10We saw it in New York in February.
14:13We just saw it in Pennsylvania yesterday in places where Republicans should not simply
14:21be winning, but winning easily.
14:26And it's because there is an energized Democratic base and swing voters, along with independents,
14:33are abandoning Republicans in droves all across America.
14:40By the way, that's the reason why Republicans are actually spending millions of dollars
14:50in two districts in Florida that Donald Trump won by north of 30 points.
14:57So is it fair to say that you won't use that language, but you're okay with it?
15:01It's fair to say that Republicans are on the run all across the country, and I'm okay with that.
15:09Governor, given the anti-establishment energy from some of the Democratic grassroots on
15:15the ground, how confident are you that you'll be able to maintain the unanimous support
15:19that you've enjoyed from your caucus when it comes to the 2027 speaker election, particularly
15:25from some of the new members that may come in?
15:28Very.
15:35Unanimous support now, what, 20 different times across two different Congresses?
15:43Kind of speaks for itself.
15:46Thank you, Leader.
15:47As we've seen, a number of students, international students here on visas get detained at Columbia,
15:51Tufts, and today the University of Alabama.
15:54Do Democrats have any advice for these students on things they can do to protect themselves
15:58from these detainments, and what specific actions do Democrats plan to take to combat
16:03these recent actions?
16:04We are carefully working with a variety of different advocacy organizations, as well
16:12as our allies in the legal community, and where appropriate, Democratic attorney generals,
16:18to make sure that we are forcefully pushing back against any violation of the law, including
16:25where students on visas and legal permanent residents, as was the case in New York, are
16:33being illegally targeted by the Trump administration.
16:37Thank you, Leader.
16:40Can you describe your relationship right now with Leader Schumer, and are you two good?
16:46Yes.
16:47Can I ask you to elaborate on your strategy?
16:55You said it's all hands on deck, as far as what the fight looks like.
16:59When can we start to expect to see some evidence of this fight, and whether or not Democrats
17:04can land a punch on Republicans?
17:07And what evidence are you looking for, exactly?
17:09Should we win elections?
17:12Check.
17:13Should we out-raise Republicans?
17:16Actually, the DCCC, interesting that I haven't seen this aggressively covered, because it
17:23runs against the narrative, the DCCC had its best off-year January ever, and out-raised
17:32House Republicans by $4 million.
17:36Wait a second.
17:37They're in the majority.
17:39They've got access to all of this deep-pocketed money.
17:44But the DCCC had its best off-year January ever in history.
17:53And then what happened in February?
17:58We out-raised the Republicans again.
18:01They're in the majority.
18:03We out-raised the House Republicans.
18:05And by the way, out-raised the Senate Republicans as well, which almost never happens.
18:11And then in special election after special election after special election, Democrats
18:16are winning.
18:18Winning.
18:21We're talking quantifiable facts, numbers, fundraising, elections, and Donald Trump's
18:33public approval ratings are plummeting.
18:36He's supposed to be in his honeymoon period right now.
18:40One of the reasons why Republicans are probably panicking in terms of whether they ultimately
18:47will be able to produce the votes to jam a reckless budget down the throats of the American
18:52people is that the so-called swing seat Republicans get nervous when they see these special election
18:59results and see Donald Trump's poll numbers collapsing, while at the same time, in every
19:06single one of these races, independents are breaking for Democrats and the Democratic
19:13base is turning out.
19:16Wait, the Democratic base is turning out?
19:19In Iowa?
19:20In New York?
19:21In Minnesota?
19:23In Delaware?
19:24Most recently in Pennsylvania?
19:28That seems to run counter to the narrative that some in this town continue to try to
19:35put forward, but we're in the facts business, not the perception business.
19:42Can I just follow up there?
19:43Sure.
19:44It's not just a narrative.
19:45I mean, that's what we're hearing at town halls, is like constituents want to see the
19:49fight.
19:50Correct.
19:51Journalists want to see the fight.
19:52So if you're answering the question to constituents, when will they see the fight?
19:58Is it just looking at special elections that don't necessarily impact a lot of people across
20:02the country?
20:03But I think what has been clear, and what you see, and first of all, we're having town
20:08hall meetings.
20:09Republicans aren't even having town hall meetings.
20:12They're afraid to have town hall meetings.
20:14We're in these streets regularly, whether that's in Brooklyn, in the Midwest, in the
20:20Deep South, in California.
20:24So we interact with constituents all the time.
20:27I interact with constituents all the time.
20:29And we'll continue to talk about the things that are being done in Congress to push back
20:36against Republicans, our strong opposition to the reckless Republican spending bill.
20:44That was a fight.
20:45We were on one side of that fight.
20:47Republicans were on the other side of that fight.
20:49It was a legislative fight.
20:51Our uniform opposition to the reckless Republican budget.
20:58Every single House Democrat voted against it.
21:01Every single Senate Democrat voted against it.
21:05That was a legislative fight.
21:07We were on the side of the American people.
21:10And Republicans were on the side of their deep-pocketed donors and special interests.
21:18We're in the middle of a fight right now as it relates to Pete Hegset.
21:23He needs to resign or be fired by Donald Trump.
21:28We've made that clear across the caucus.
21:31And Democrats, I think, showed fight in the Senate hearing on Tuesday and in the House
21:40hearing on Wednesday.
21:43Our veterans have stood up to push back against this stunning national security breach.
21:49That's a fight that we're in right now.
21:53Are we on the sidelines?
21:55Have we been silent about this scandal?
21:58Signally?
22:00Have we?
22:01No, no.
22:02Okay, so that's a fight.
22:03These fights are ongoing.
22:05We're pushing back against their efforts to dismantle the Department of Education.
22:11Johanna Hayes and others, they're leading that fight.
22:16Joe Laguse and Jamie Raskin and others who are leading the litigation working group effort
22:25have been involved in the fights that are taking place in court case after court case
22:32after court case where the American people are actually winning in court and Donald Trump is losing.
22:40That's a fight.
22:43So, yeah, special elections are one indication of it.
22:50It's an important indication because is the Democratic base energized or demoralized as it relates to turning out?
23:00Y'all can answer the question based on what you are seeing.
23:05Is the Democratic base energized or demoralized as it relates to supporting the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee?
23:15The data speaks for itself.
23:18Those are data points.
23:20But the most important thing is that the substantive fight has been underway from the very beginning
23:28and it will continue with the relentless energy and righteous indignation that the moment deserves.
23:37Thank you, everyone.