MSNBC "The Ed Show" -Transcript: Trans Pacific Partnership

Interview

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SCHULTZ: Let me bring in Congressman Jim McDermott of Washington, and also
Congressman John Garamendi of California, gentlemen great to have you with
us tonight.

Well, Congressman McDermott and Congressman Garamendi the three of us we`ve
had a lot of conversations about health care in this country. How big a
day is this, Dr. McDermott?

REP. JIM MCDERMOTT, (D) WASHINGTON: OK. It`s a fabulous day, Ed. We all
knew that the court was going to decide this. I thought that John Roberts
did not want his legacy to be, I`ve put 11 million people out on the street
with no health care so I always thought that he would vote. But the fact
that we got six votes instead of just five is really that`s a real stamp of
approval on this bill and I think we`re now going to get the Republicans to
recognize they have to do some things to make it work better. It`s not
perfect.

SCHULTZ: Well.

MCDERMOTT: And it needs still (ph).

SCHULTZ: Congressman Garamendi, House Speaker John Boehner said he`s not
giving up on repealing the law. When did the Democrats in, in conference
go into Boehner and say "You know, dude, you have to give it up." Are we
at that moment yet?

REP. JOHN GARAMENDI, (D) CALIFORNIA: Well, we`re at that moment long ago,
Ed. But he`s wrong, he`s wrong on the constitution, he`s wrong on the law,
and he`s wrong on what the American people want. American people want
health insurance, they want affordable health insurance, and they`re able
to get it, they`re able to get it through the Affordable Care Act, Obama
care, whatever you want to call it.

And now I got to tell you whether you are an older American in your 50s and
60s, and you have high blood pressure, this is critically important to you,
because you`re going to be able to get coverage, no pre-existing
conditions.

And if you happen to be a young woman that`s 25 or 21, you`re getting
insurance, either through your family or if your 25, 26 your going to able
to get insurance and not be discriminated against because you are a woman.
There are so many things in this bill, preventative care for seniors
driving down the cost of health care. We have seen the lowest inflation
rates in health care ever.

SCHULTZ: Yeah.

GARAMENDI: Since we have Medicare as a result of the Affordable Care Act.
It is good news for America, and this is a great day for every American,
because we all need health insurance.

SCHULTZ: Congressman McDermott, how much was this is just anti-Obama on
the part of the Republicans? And they just didn`t want to see this
President succeed, but maybe behind closed doors they admit what Mr.
Garamendi is saying, maybe there`s a lot of good stuff in this. What about
all that?

MCDERMOTT: I think that`s absolutely the root of the problem, they have
always wanted to make him fail. And he -- when we put this together with
him, and now it`s clearly working, and they are really stuck, you`re going
to see governors all over this country who have denied their people access
to Medicaid now begin to make changes.

You can`t go into the election of 2016 saying that you forced a million
people in your state not to have health insurance just because you want to
embarrass Obama. That`s not working for them.

SCHULTZ: Yeah. And Congressman Garamendi, what do you think the politics
of this looks like going forward? I mean are the Republicans going to gear
campaigns toward repealing Obamacare, now that the Supreme Court twice has
upheld the law?

GARAMENDI: Well, they`re certainly been stuck on that riding the road for
at least since 2010, and that -- will they get off it, they should. The
American public is not with them on this issue. Individuals Americans,
particularly those that are among the 16 million that have insurance, this
is a very, very important issue and those who want to get insurance, they
understand this is how they can get it.

Well, I looked at the Congress, I looked at my colleagues there, and I`m
afraid they are stuck that they`re going to come back just as Boehner said,
we`re going to try again says Boehner. Well, he`s going to fail,
ultimately the President will veto it, ultimately Jim and I and the other
Democrats will uphold that veto.

SCHULTZ: Congressman Jim McDermott, Congressman John Garamendi, gentlemen
great to have you with us, and congratulations...

MCDERMOTT: Thank you.

SCHULTZ: ... is in order. And a personal note -- you bet.

GARAMENDI: Thanks for your advocacy. All these many years you`ve been on
it, we thank you.

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