MSNBC "The Rachel Maddow Show" - Transcript: Interview with Amy Klobuchar
Interview
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KLOBUCHAR: Thanks, Rachel.
MADDOW: What`s next? Where does this go?
KLOBUCHAR: What`s next? We`re going to Georgia.
The Rules Committee has not gone on the road for 20 years, and that is just the beginning because my colleagues maybe should have learned a lesson in Georgia, my Republican colleagues.
And that is I smiled when I heard the great Senator Warnock speak, the guy who said it all in probably one sentence. This is all summed up that some people don`t want some people to vote.
And guess what? When the people of Georgia saw what was happening back in early January, when they saw the big lie being perpetrated on them, when they saw their elections being undermined by the Republican Party, they turned out and they voted. They didn`t just vote in one Democratic senator, they voted in two.
So, we had the people on our side on this big time, Rachel -- Democrats, Republicans, independents. The bill polls at, what, 78 percent for many of the provisions? We have a united party as you saw by the vote today.
So, we are not ending this fight. And one of the ways we do that is getting out of this Capitol dome and heading out to the states so we can hear from people and so my colleagues can hear them because it`s hard to hide when you have people talking about standing in 10-hour lines without food and water or people trying to find one drop-off ballot box in the middle of Harris County, Texas, of 5 million people, or the discriminatory voting practices, or six states still requiring notarized signatures from notary publics just to get an application for an absentee ballot.
That`s what they`re going to hear when we go out there to states across the country.
MADDOW: And is it your expectation that that kind of pressure and that kind of public support for the voting rights protections that were in this bill, is it your expectation that that will peel off Republicans who will decide that they want to align themselves more with public opinions on this, that they see the light on this, and Republicans will peel off and support it? Or is it your expectation that Democrats in your own caucus will decide that this is important enough and there`s enough public support for this, that this is worth a new approach for the Senate rules that allows this to be passed without Republican votes?
KLOBUCHAR: I would take either. But the point is that I`m not giving up, and Senator Warnock is getting (ph) up, nor is -- nor is Senator Merkley. We are not giving up.
And I favor abolishing the filibuster, and I came to that decision after years of inaction, after seeing how important legislation on things like climate change, and immigration reform, things where there was even bipartisan agreement got stopped because of an archaic procedure. And I don`t think our colleagues on the other side should be able to tyrannize us basically and the country and hold the country hostage. I don`t think you should be able to filibuster our democracy. That`s what I believe.
But, of course, yes, we have to convince our colleagues to make changes. They`ve been open to reform. You`ve heard Senator Manchin talk about the standing filibuster, and we can proceed that way, and we can also put pressure on Republicans.
But the point is, there are so many provisions in this bill, including, by the way, the DISCLOSE Act to go after dark money in our politics. That is overwhelmingly, overwhelmingly popular. And I`d like to see my colleagues on the other side vote against that,
Or my Honest Ads Act which simply says that social media companies have to put disclosures and disclaimers on these ads so we know exactly where the money`s coming from.
All of these things are going to be on the ballot as we move forward.
MADDOW: I mentioned a few minutes ago about an exchange with Senator Durbin of Illinois that a reporter from "Vice News" had with him today in which he`s told her that he wasn`t sure what was going to happen next procedurally. But he also said that it was his understanding that President Biden and the Biden White House are doing a lot of things on this issue that haven`t been announced publicly but that might be materially relevant in terms of what happens next.
Do you have any idea what he`s talking about? Is there someplace else we should be looking in terms of next steps or what other resources might be available for voting rights protection?
KLOBUCHAR: Well, there`s a lot of things. We`re working on an infrastructure package right now. And there`s going to -- you know, there`s the bipartisan group that`s negotiating hard, but there`s also going to be a second package, and we can include election infrastructure in there.
When it comes to the Justice Department, you`re looking at people like Vanita Gupta that`s over there, people like Kristen Clarke. These are experienced leaders who understand voting rights.
This is not your daddy`s Justice Department or should I say your Daddy William Barr`s Justice Department anymore. These are incredible forceful leaders who know what they`re doing.
So, I can`t tell you exactly what they`re going to do. But what I can say is they`re going to make sure that these states out there who are even thinking of impinging on people`s right to vote, they`re going to go after that because you can`t do that in America.
This is a fundamental right shared by Democrats, Republicans, independents, anyone that wants to vote in America, something our whole country was founded on, the simple idea of democracy.
And these guys, whatever they are, Cyber Ninja, whatever they are, they are messing with us right now.
And people in this country don`t like that. Look at what they did in Georgia back in January.
So, we`ve got major, major work in front of us on many fronts, Rachel. So, I don`t want to take away from the work we`ve got to do in the coming month on infrastructure and Build Back Better.
But I can tell you, there are a number of us that see the evil that`s out there and we`re not just going to pretend and go away. That`s why I`m bringing the Rules Committee out on the road.
MADDOW: Minnesota senator, chair of the Rules Committee, Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota -- it`s great to have you here. I know that this is the start of a different kind of fight here. Thanks for keeping us apprised, Senator. It`s great to see you.
KLOBUCHAR: Thanks, Rachel.
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