CNN "State of the Union" - Transcript: Interview With Sen. Amy Klobuchar

Interview

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BASH: Hello. I'm Dana Bash, in for Jake Tapper in Washington, where the state of our union is at a stalemate.

President Trump impeached by the House of Representatives for abuse of power and obstruction of justice -- obstruction of Congress, rather, but the process is still at a standstill. Congress went home for the holiday break, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is still holding the articles of impeachment and will, she says, until the Senate agrees on what the trial will look like.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says, no skin off my back. He's in no rush for an impeachment trial, and he's holding off Senate Democrats, who are demanding a pre-trial deal to call witnesses.

As for the president, he is eager to mount a strong defense. Assuming a Senate trial does happen, the Democratic senators also running for president will have to balance serving as impeachment jurors with precious time on the campaign trail. The Iowa caucuses are around the corner.

With me this morning, one of those senators working hard in Iowa, hoping her buzzy debate performance this week helps draw more support there.

So, Amy Klobuchar, you see there, is a Democratic candidate for president, also a member of the Judiciary Committee in the Senate.

So, Senator, you have said that you and your fellow Democrats should do whatever it takes to push for witnesses in a Senate trial. But, as you know, the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, he isn't on board.

So, would you vote to start a Senate trial without an agreement to call witnesses, or is that a deal-breaker?

KLOBUCHAR: I think that there will be an agreement and this trial will go forward.

I think what is shocking to me is, right now, despite the president claiming his innocence, claiming that he wants to present witnesses, he's the one blocking the witnesses, Dana. He's the one -- he could have his acting chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, testify.

We just found out this weekend that someone who works for Mulvaney, Michael Duffey, had sent an e-mail 90 minutes after the president made that critical call to the Ukrainian president. This guy sent an e- mail. I have it here. We just found it.

It says: "Given the sensitive nature of the request, I appreciate your keeping this information closely held." And he said, don't release any of the funds.

This man should testify.

And I will add one more thing. When Richard Nixon -- when those hearings were held, Richard Nixon had all the president's men testify. He had major people testify from his administration.

BASH: But...

KLOBUCHAR: And they're being blocked.

And don't be surprised. The polls show 64 percent of Republicans think these witnesses should testify.

BASH: So, just to follow up quickly, you think that there will be an agreement soon, but it sounds like there will probably be votes on whether these witnesses will be asked to come forward?

KLOBUCHAR: You know, I don't know exactly how this will go down.

I simply know that we have a constitutional duty to take on this very important case.

BASH: OK.

KLOBUCHAR: The president betrayed the trust of the American people.

And I have been even saying the same thing as I say in public behind closed doors with our leadership in the Senate. I'm in the leadership team. And I'm being very clear. We should do whatever it takes. And I can still run for president. I'm a mom. I can do two things at once.

BASH: All right. So let's talk about that, running for president.

At this week's debate, one of the biggest moments was your criticism of Mayor Pete Buttigieg over what you said was his lack of experience.

Listen to how he responded on CNN afterwards.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE BUTTIGIEG (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, I think the suggestion is that I don't understand the ways of Washington.

The reality is, I understand them. I just don't accept them. The American people are fed up with the way things are going in Washington. And I think we need to bring change.

[09:05:03]

It might just be a good idea for that change to come from outside the Beltway.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: So, he's basically saying, he's an outsider, you're an insider.

Your response?

KLOBUCHAR: My response is what I said on that stage, is that he basically had condemned the experience, he said 100 years of experience on this stage, in the previous debate.

And I pointed out to him that experience does matter. That is how we got the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, because of Elizabeth's work, or two people that weren't on that stage this last time, Cory Booker's work on the FIRST STEP Act, which is going to help get a lot of people out of prison that shouldn't have been there, or Kamala Harris' work helping consumers in California.

I just think the fact that someone has experience can be a really good thing right now, when we have a president who went in there with no experience, and has done nothing when it comes to helping regular people.

What do I hear in Iowa? I hear about people who are struggling to pay for insulin, people who are struggling to send their kids to college. And when he passed that tax bill, he could have helped regular people. Instead, he went down to Mar-a-Lago and said to his friends, hey, we just made you a lot richer.

And guess what? None of the people from Iowa were sitting in that room.

BASH: So, Senator, also at the debate, you were asked a question about your vote to confirm a Trump-appointed federal judge who further dismantled Obamacare this week.

You acknowledged that -- quote -- there are some of these judges that you think are going to be OK. And they aren't.

So, you have actually voted for dozens of Trump-nominated judges. Was that a mistake?

KLOBUCHAR: I have actually voted against dozens of those judges.

(CROSSTALK)

BASH: It's about half and half. We looked it up.

KLOBUCHAR: And I have a pretty good record. Yes, OK. You can, yes.

But I am somewhere in the middle of our caucus on these judge votes. And I think everyone tries to make their best determination.

I think what I pointed out is, the person that actually wrote that decision was a judge that had been supported by President Obama and Ted Kennedy and Bernie Sanders and many other people, including myself.

So, my point here is, what's really going on is that the Trump administration brought this case. They're trying to dismantle the Affordable Care Act.

And some of my colleagues on that debate stage want to actually start over with Medicare for all.

BASH: So, last year...

KLOBUCHAR: And, as I said, I -- go ahead.

BASH: Just to button up, I just want to ask the original question, which is on the Trump judges.

You -- yes, you voted against a lot, but you also voted yea on 29 of the judges. Other -- and 26 others were approved by voice vote. So you gave tacit approval. Do you regret that now?

KLOBUCHAR: I would have to look at each of those judges.

I don't carte blanche make a decision about each judge based on whether or not Trump nominated them. I think most of my -- if it went by voice vote, then every other presidential candidate up there that's in the Senate right now voted for them as well.

So, you make your best judgment.

I think the bigger case is, as president, I will be able to appoint the kind of judges that we see right now that I admire, like Elena Kagan, and like Sonia Sotomayor, and like Justice Breyer, and like Justice Ginsburg.

My track record of recommending judges to Barack Obama -- and he took every recommendation I made -- have been some excellent, excellent judges. And I think that's what you look at, as well as my experience.

I'm the one that, when Justice Kavanaugh, then nominee Kavanaugh, took me on at the Judiciary Committee, I didn't back down. I strongly opposed him and made a point to the American people.

BASH: So, we have been talking about the debate and what happened there.

Looking ahead to the debate in January, you say you have already qualified for that debate.

KLOBUCHAR: Yes.

BASH: So far, only five white candidates have qualified. Why do you think that is?

KLOBUCHAR: You have to look at each individual campaign.

I'm hopeful that that won't be the end. My friend Cory Booker's out here in Iowa campaigning as well. I know that Andrew Yang has qualified, at least partway, toward making that debate.

And so we will see what happens as this campaign keeps going. There's been a lot of twists and turns. All I know is this, Dana. We have a huge momentum going on right now.

Every one of our events in tiny, tiny towns -- we have just done 15 counties -- have record crowds. We raised over a million dollars from regular people at AmyKlobuchar.com in just 24 hours after that debate.

We have doubled our offices in Iowa, doubled our staff in New Hampshire, added people in North Carolina and South Carolina...

BASH: And you know what else?

KLOBUCHAR: And, as well, South Carolina and Nevada. We are working so hard.

BASH: So, you know what else you have? You have a doppelganger on "SNL."

I'm not sure if you watched last night, but take a look.

(LAUGHTER)

KLOBUCHAR: Yes. Yes. No, I...

(LAUGHTER)

[09:10:02]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE")

RACHEL DRATCH, ACTRESS: The only cave I ever go to is a man cave.

(LAUGHTER)

DRATCH: I call it the Senate.

(LAUGHTER)

DRATCH: For more of these classic zingers, please check out my stand- up special, "Land of 10,000 Laughs," only on Costco+ streaming service.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

BASH: Stand-up Amy Klobuchar special coming soon?

KLOBUCHAR: That's pretty good.

Yes, well, that was a pretty fun part of that debate, actually, when I pointed out there -- that discussion that gone so long, so I suggested that maybe we should go to the Wind Cave in South Dakota, which is a national park.

And what you would like to know, Dana, is, now I have a number of spelunkers, right...

BASH: OK.

KLOBUCHAR: ... that are now really excited about my candidacy.

So, you know, in a close primary like this...

BASH: You never know.

KLOBUCHAR: ... you just have to keep reaching out to these groups. BASH: One constituency at a time.

Senator, thank you so much.

KLOBUCHAR: That is exactly how I'm going to win this.

Thanks, Dana.

BASH: Thank you. Thanks for joining me. Appreciate it.

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