CNN "CNN Newsroom" - Transcript: nterview with Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA) on the trillion-dollar coronavirus package
Interview
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BALDWIN: The White House and Congress are now locked in discussions over that massive $1 trillion plan to keep the U.S. economy afloat as the coronavirus forces cancellations and closures nationwide.
With me now, Democratic Congresswoman Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania. She is a member of the House Foreign Affairs and Armed Services Committees. So, Congresswoman Houlahan, thank you so much for being with me. And I hope you are well through all of this.
REP. CHRISSY HOULAHAN (D-PA): I am, thank you.
BALDWIN: Just first, is there anything you don't support in what the White House is offering in terms of that trillion dollars?
HOULAHAN: I think that it remains to be seen how it will all come together, and it clearly is a very, very fluid situation. When I last checked in actually what I heard coming out of the Senate was that the Senate was actually going to take up the bill that we sent them late last week and they were going to pass that and in fact then there would be a third bill.
And so, this is a very dynamic situation and I'm absolutely in support of making sure that we first take care of the people which is what our second bill that we passed in the House does. And then that we move into the business to make sure that we're shoring up our businesses as well.
BALDWIN: In a briefing today, the Treasure Secretary Steven Mnuchin said that the administration is talking to Congress about sending cash to Americans over the next two weeks just to soften the blow. Do you support this and how would that money -- how would that be distributed?
HOULAHAN: I think the devil will be in the details, but I do support a short-term cash infusion. But I also think that we need to be thinking not only of the short term which I think will be an immediate help for people who are in acute pain, but I also know that we need to be thinking about the mid and long term implications.
I had the opportunity of doing two town halls, telephone town halls today, one with my community at large which has almost 4,000 people on the line and the second one a telephone town hall with nearly 1,000 small businesses on the line.
And everybody is concerned about sort of their short-term prospects and opportunities, and then the mid and long-term implications. And so we just need to be very take strategic about the delivery vehicles for help that we have. But clearly, we've heard that these cash infusions seem to have bipartisan support which is intriguing.
BALDWIN: One piece of all of this, of course, and you are a veteran, so I wanted your thoughts on this. Paul Rieckhoff, he's a veteran, he founded IAVA, this is what he tweeted. And I just want to call everyone's attention to this. He tweeted, a 100 tests total for a V.A. health system that serves 9 million vets, half of which are over 65. This is not getting enough national attention. The President, Secretary Wilke and Congress must be pressed on it.
And so just to you, Congresswoman Houlahan, what can you, what can Congress do to help our nation's veterans get the tests they need?
HOULAHAN: And thank you for pointing that out. One of the things that's been remarkable about these news cycles is how rapidly things are changing and how much information we're sharing with one another. I'm a beekeeper and I kind of think of this as sort of a hive mind mentality. And the hive needs to sort of adjust itself to where help is needed. And I can absolutely tell you if help is needed with the V.A. I'm a veteran and I will be swarming towards that area.
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But I can also tell that help is needed right here in my own community, in Chester County and Berks County. We also have tests in the hundreds as well. And we're hearing that there are places where there are opportunities for thousands of tests to be done in a day and we definitely need to make sure that there is equity and that we understand where tests are available and how they are available.
BALDWIN: Congresswoman Chrissy Houlahan, Pennsylvanians, Americans are relying on you. Thank you so much and just stay healthy as you fight the good fight.
HOULAHAN: Thank you.
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