CNN "State of the Union" - Transcript: Interview With Rep. Jim Clyburn

Interview

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

As millions of Americans wait for much needed financial help from the federal government, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says Congress will be keeping a close eye on the Trump administration's allocation of those funds with a new oversight committee chaired by the House majority whip, Congressman Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, who joins me now.

Majority Whip Clyburn, thanks so much for joining us.

President Trump on Friday fired the intelligence community inspector general, Michael Atkinson, who, of course, was the one who informed Congress of the whistle-blower complaint that ultimately led to the president's impeachment.

The president said it was his decision, and he did not run it by Congress because he has -- quote -- "the absolute right" to do what he did.

What's your response?

REP. JAMES CLYBURN (D-SC): My response is simply this.

I think that that is one of the reasons Speaker Pelosi decided that this committee was necessary. We, in the United States Congress, have oversight, and we must perform that oversight. And we will do that to make sure that we save lives, that we save taxpayer money.

And she was very smart, I think, to pattern this committee after the Truman Committee that was stood up back in 1941.

It's kind of interesting. Harry Truman said at the time -- he was junior senator from Missouri at the time -- he looked back at what happened in the country after World War I, and saw that 116 different committees were stood up to investigate what was going on after World War I.

He said at the time he thought it was much better to have one committee before the fact. And that committee proved to be very, very wise. According to history, the committee spent less than one million, but save $15 billion for the taxpayers.

That's what Speaker Pelosi is trying to do here, get out in front of this to protect the American people, so that we cannot only save lives, but we can keep fraud and abuse, profiteering, price-gouging.

We see that already. The governor of New York recently said that masks that he was spending 70 cents for, he's now having to spend $7 for. Is that price-gouging? I think it is.

And that's what this committee is all about. This is not about the president of the United States or even the independent counsel or the inspector general. This is about focusing on how the money is spent, whether or not the people who are getting the money are actually working on behalf of the American people, or whether or not they're profiteering.

TAPPER: So, this committee, it will only be looking at how the money is being spent and whether or not private businesses out there are price-gouging?

You're not going to look at all at the federal response and why it took so long to get a federal response going that would have saved lives, as Governor Pritzker just put it?

CLYBURN: My understanding is that this committee will be forward- looking.

We're not going to be looking back on what the president may or may not have done back before this crisis hit. The crisis is with us. The American people are now out of work, millions of them out of work. The question is whether or not the money that's appropriated will go to support them and their families, or whether or not this money will end up in the pockets of a few profiteers.

And that's what I understand we are to do...

[09:50:00]

TAPPER: OK.

CLYBURN: ... if we are patterning this after the Truman Committee.

And I spent the weekend looking deeply into the Truman Committee and what happened since March 1, 1941, when it was stood up and stayed up for five years, and proved to be very, very successful.

And I'm trying to base my work on this committee on the history that's found with the work of that committee.

TAPPER: Meanwhile, the Congress, of course, needs to continue to do its job, perhaps pass even more stimulus funds, continuing to legislate.

It's obviously very difficult for Congress to do so in the middle of a pandemic, when there are so many concerns about people flying, people traveling, people congregating.

Isn't it not -- is it not time, on a temporary basis, for the leaders of Congress to allow remote voting, so you can continue to do your job without any of you putting your lives at risk?

CLYBURN: Well, you know, a lot of people think that it is time for that. And maybe it is.

But here's what I know. Speaker Pelosi has asked Jim McGovern, chairs of our Rules Committee, to look at the Constitution, look at our rules, look at the rules under which we operate on the House floor, and to see whether or not that is a way to go.

I would much rather us respond to that issue after good study -- and Jim McGovern is a very good study -- and make recommendations, and then let's respond to that.

So, I don't want to be willy-nilly about this. I want us to make sure that whatever we do will not be challenged later on as having been unconstitutional or in violation of our rules.

Let's make sure we get it right before the fact, so we won't have to be spending a lot of time with a lot of investigative committees looking back on what we did, and maybe rendering some of what our actions might have been as being unconstitutional.

TAPPER: And, quickly, sir, if you could, on a call last month with lawmakers, you said this was -- quote -- this pandemic was -- quote -- "a tremendous opportunity to restructure things to fit our vision."

You have been criticized a lot by Republicans for saying that. What exactly did you mean by that?

CLYBURN: I meant exactly what we're experiencing now.

We are experiencing children out of school here in South Carolina. There's a big article in this morning's local papers about children not being able to get educated because they're not online. That article is saying, we need to restructure our educational systems to accommodate something like this.

We see they're closing the rural hospitals, four here in South Carolina. I saw a state the other day that said 11 rural hospitals have been closed.

We need to restructure our health care delivery system, so that these rural communities, these low-income communities can get the goodness of this country that should be accessible and affordable for all. That's what I meant.

And I would hope...

TAPPER: OK.

CLYBURN: ... that Mr. McCarthy would join me in doing that.

TAPPER: Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, thank you so much. Stay healthy. Stay safe, sir. We appreciate your time.

CLYBURN: Thank you very much for having me.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source