MSNBC "All In with Chris Hayes" - Transcript: Interview with Sen. Chris Murphy
Interview
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Joining me now for more perspective from the Senate is Democratic Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut. Senator, I wanted to have you on because you said something that -- you said something that I think jive with my read on today. You said something along the lines of getting statements from Sinema and Manchin were positive steps today. Elaborate on that.
SEN. CHRIS MURPHY (D-CT): Yes, it was not. I see today is a good day. This is a bit of an artificial deadline that was created by the Speaker of the House. It was a forcing mechanism to try to get her caucus to come to the table on the bipartisan infrastructure bill, but also a forcing mechanism to try to get Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema to be a little bit more detailed in what they support and what they don`t support.
And in that sense, we have had a good day. Right now as we speak, there are discussions happening that are more detailed and more nuanced than at any point in the last few weeks about what kind of agenda all 50 senators can get behind. Now, if it ends up being closer to $1.5 trillion over 10 years, by the way, not over one year, we`ll have to make some hard choices between whether we`re going to save the planet or whether we`re going to save middle-class families from bankruptcy due to childcare costs and health care costs.
But at least we`re talking. At least we`re making progress. And again, this -- the ability to pass Biden`s agenda doesn`t expire tonight, doesn`t expire tomorrow. We can still work at this over the course of the next several weeks, the next month to get it done and get it done right.
[20:10:42]
HAYES: Well, but -- OK, there is a little bit -- so that I hear you on this, the sort of forcing mechanism of the House a little bit of an artificial deadline. There`s a transportation, surface transit authorization which expires but you can take care of that. You guys -- you guys kept the government open today like it was nothing. When you want to vote, you can vote. So, who is doing the talking here? Like right now, what`s happening? Describe for me what`s happening.
MURPHY: So, right now as I understand it, you have Senator Manchin and Senator Sinema and their folks talking to the White House and Senate leadership about a framework, right? What are the things that they can support, what are the things they can. As you mentioned, you`re picking from a grab bag of really popular items, but items that are frankly, vitally necessary to get this economy up and running.
You mentioned child care. So, I met a woman in Hartford, Connecticut just earlier this week who is out of the workforce, for one reason and one reason only, because she can`t find affordable care for her 1-year-old and her 3-year-old. She wants to be a social worker. She wants to be in the healthcare field. But she can`t do it unless she can find an affordable childcare space.
So as we have all these employers who are clamoring for more workers, for more applicants, the investments in the Build Back Better agenda are good for them just as much as they`re good for average people out there. So, we are going to have to make really tough choices here. But if we don`t invest in things like child care, then I don`t think there`s any hope to address some of the fundamental weaknesses in our economy. And I think it`s those decisions that need to be made by Senators that are holding out in consultation with the rest of us in the White House.
HAYES: Right. So, this is -- this is a thing that I`ve -- I have watched develop and been saying on the show is everyone has got to kind of talk to each other. Like, there`s still no -- nothing gets done here by any kind of, you know, game theory bluffing or back and forth. Like, ultimately, when you have to reach consensus, and if you`ve ever been in a room that has to reach consented, it`s like my least favorite thing in the universe is doing that, but you know, the only thing that happens is people talk to each other. That`s it.
MURPHY: Yes. And listen, let`s not forget the context here. We can`t lose a single vote in the United States Senate. We have to come up with a major historic investment in regular people, in average, middle class families, and we need to do it with every single Democrat on board with a similarly slim operating margin in the House of Representatives.
So, I think up until today, some of us weren`t sure that Senator Manchin was really on board for anything. He was saying a week ago that he wanted to punt this whole thing to next year. So, it`s good news that this room exists now in which we`re working out the details. And so, that`s why I think a lot of us take from today a bit of a boost heading into what we hope are some fruitful negotiations today and through the weekend.
HAYES: Yes, that would -- that was my read on it too. I mean, the thing that I have learned the hard way over the last, what, five years is, boy, the future is uncertain. It`s not pre-written and we don`t know what happens next. I mean, we`ve learned that the very, very hard way recently. But Senator Chris Murphy, thank you so much for checking in.
MURPHY: Thanks.
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